March 24, 2009
Finally! Someone is doing something about this long-standing pain in the butt issue of universally adaptable cell phone chargers! As the GSMA announced at Mobile World Congress a few weeks ago, we will soon have standardized chargers. They have chosen the micro-USB technology - which I think is a great idea. In addition to the new Universal Charging Solution, the group has also committed that the majority of chargers shipped will meet the high efficiency targets set out by the OMTP (Open Mobile Terminal Platform), the industry body who developed the technical requirements behind move towards the new Universal Charging Solution. After reading through all the technical specification on this - the nut of it is that they will be up to 3 times more energy efficient than unrated chargers. Some major companies have announced support for the plan such as: 3 Group, AT&T, KTF, LG, Mobilkom Austria, Motorola, Nokia, Orange, Qualcomm, Samsung, Sony Ericsson, Telecom Italia, Telefónica, Telenor, Telstra, T-Mobile and Vodafone. Interesting that our friends at RIM are not on the list of manufacturers though...
In addition to making all of our lives easier - the other benefit here that may not be as obvious (but may be the real driving force behind this decision) is that this plan will help save the environment. By making the chargers universally compatible, less replacement chargers will be manufactured and transported and less older chargers will be thrown away - winding up in garbage dumps - and less power will be used with the new energy efficient chargers. Whether this is altruism on the part of the manufacturers or the result of community or political pressure I don't know - but I am sure it is a good thing and I commend all those involved.
As an early adopter of technology, I'm always buying the latest gadget, and especially mobile gadgets. And I always feel ripped off having to buy new add-on accessories every time I buy a new device. So hopefully, not only will device makers standardize their chargers, but also standardize the ear pieces, car chargers, and laptop connectors!
But 2012? That's a lifetime away in the market of smartphones. What are they afraid of? Probably of losing short-term revenue in accessory sales, and the fear of making it easier for consumers to switch manufacturers. Hopefully, they will realize that they have to listen to consumer pushback and will reap rewards in the end.