According to a new law passed by the European Parliament, all new smartphones, tablets and cameras on the market will have a single standard charger from the end of 2024. Smartphone, laptop and camera manufacturers will have to adopt a common charger for all products, at least in Europe. Laptop makers have been given extra time till 2026 to implement this.
Even in the iPhone 14 series released this year, Apple has used a slower lightning connector. With this, the European Parliament members voted and passed the decision that USB-C is sufficient for all electronic devices sold in Europe, and Apple may need a USB-C port if it wants to sell iPhones and the like in Europe from 2024.
The European Parliament passed the law in this regard with a large majority. 602 people voted in favor and 13 people voted against. The new law will apply to all 27 countries in the Union. The law could come into effect as early as next year. It is indicated that India is also preparing to bring such a law.
EU lawmakers say that every company rolling out different types of data cables and chargers creates heaps of e-waste, and that one connector for all devices is enough. Most Android phone manufacturers have already switched to USB-C.
Some of Apple’s iPads and all MacBooks have switched to USB-C. Apple doesn’t offer USB-C on the iPhone and lower-end iPads. Some users have complained that large-sized 4K ProRes video recorded on Apple’s iPhone 14 Pro series this year takes too long to transfer to a computer or the like via the Lightning connector.