[BinaryIdiot]

The joint motion points to adopting Directive 2014/53/EU which requires common _chargers_ but says nothing about the port that the phone uses. As far as I can tell this is only for the back half of the charger / brick that connects to the wall.

Yet the Apple statement, and most of the articles about this (including the linked one), are talking about the phone's connector and talks about lightning and usb-c. Most of the comments online are talking about how this forces Apple to use usb-c.

So, which is it? Isn't this just regulating the power bricks / back half of the charging equation? I don't see anything in the joint motion or directive stating a connector on a device has to be uniform at all.

Joint motion: https://www.europarl.europa.eu/doceo/document/RC-9-2020-0070...

Directive: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX:02...

[SiempreViernes]

Indeed, the text only speaks of a "common charger" without specifying further, so I'm somewhat surprised you make the claim the directive speaks only about one sub-part of the charger.

To me things appear thus: the EP passed a directive that states mobile radio equipment should have a "common charger", sensibly letting manufacturers decide how to solve the interoperability problem. Apple then argued "well, it's not explicit that you should be able use the 'common charger' without an adapter" and continued making phones that can't be charged by equipment made by others.

This join resolution isn't super clear about it, but does indicate that: "common charger" really ought to mean you can use the same charger for all similar devices.

[GeekyBear]

Apple's charger already had a standard USB-A port and has moved to having a standard USB-C port.

It's the cable that they include with the iPhone that has a USB connector on the charger end and a lightning port on the phone end.

That included cable allows you to charge with any manufacturer's USB-C charger in the same way that the previous version of the cable worked with any USB-A charging port.

So, in summary, the cable Apple gives you works with other manufacturers chargers, and the charger Apple gives you works with other phones, using a standard USB-C cable that, I would imagine, came with the phone.

If they want to force Apple's hand specifically, they should be focusing on the port on the phone, not the charger.

[BinaryIdiot]

Hmm. You make a good point.

In my attempt at reading both of these there seems to be a clear distinction being made when it refers to cables and when it refers to chargers. It also never really mentions ports.

Therefore, to me, it cares less about the port and cable on the phone half and more about the brick / part that plugs into the wall.

Neither document provides a definition for "charger". So perhaps whoever is in charge of implementing this directive (I'm not sure how this works in EU law) can interpret it either way?

I wish it was more clear.

[paxys]

The thing that plugs into the wall is already regulated (for every electronic device, not just chargers). That is why you don't have to rewire your house when you buy a new phone. This directive is specifically for the bit that connects to your phone.

[greglindahl]

And every single Apple phone I've owned so far uses a cable that plugs into USB A. Which is a standard. I'm still using the wall warts I got for my original iPhone. Which have international wall plug kits. Solid, long-lived electronics.

Meanwhile, the burner phones I've bought for when I'm in the EU have these shitty all-in-one wall-to-micro-USB, and I ended up eventually throwing them out. So there's your e-waste.

[pwinnski]

Apple is already using USB-C on the bit that plugs into the wall, so if that's all this is, it's nothing.

Apple has protested this, so it seems like it must be more.

[joezydeco]

What is Apple is heading toward completely sealed phones with only wireless charging / data xfer and they’re nervous that the EU is going to force them to keep the physical port on the device?

[akvadrako]

It seems pretty clear at the current stage it’s completely vague. Probably Apple has no idea what actionable laws will result.

Will they mandate all phones have usb-c ports? That’s absurd because who knows what’ll be the standard port in 5 years.

[pergadad]

Also this motion is not deciding anything. The parliament is just asking the commission (the EU equivalent to a ministry/government) to publish a study on this and take a next step.

Fixing to a specific standard would also not be something done in EU law - laws are meant to be slow-changing, this would be a barrier. You might have a law that specifies that a standard should be set and/or industry bodies ought to agree on a standard to use.

[Freestyler_3]

What I thought they were going for was that phones would no longer come with cable+charger, instead you could buy the one type of charger + cable that exists.

This would mean one connector for all devices.

If they allow different connectors on phones then lots of different cables will be made, and when a person switches phones then their old cable ends up in the trash.