EU (European Union) countries and European Parliament negotiators announced on Tuesday (7) an agreement to impose a single, universal charger for smartphones, tablets and handheld devices in the bloc by the autumn of 2024.
The standard will be a USB-C input for all these devices with the aim of limiting the toxic waste of thousands and thousands of cables of various formats, and defending the rights of consumers, forced to accumulate several chargers.
The project has faced strong opposition from tech giant Apple, which has championed its Lightning connection and charging technology.
European Industry Commissioner Thierry Breton welcomed the agreement and mentioned on Twitter that “the general interest of the European Union prevailed”.
The agreement means “more savings for EU consumers and less waste for the planet”.
In a press release, the European Parliament noted that the project “is part of a broader EU effort to make products more sustainable, reduce e-waste and make life easier for consumers”.
So “consumers will no longer need a different device and charging cable every time they buy a new device and will be able to use one charger for all their small and medium-sized portable electronic devices,” the note added.
Parliament also highlighted that the charging speed will be “harmonized for devices that support fast charging, allowing users to charge their devices at the same speed with any compatible charger”.
Bulgarian Conservative MEP Andrey Kovatchev, one of the main negotiators of the agreement, stressed that “this new regulation will make life easier for European consumers and will also be better for the environment”.
“The time has come to do away with the cable drawers we all have and reduce about 11,000 tons of e-waste a year,” he said.
According to the EU, European consumers spend a total of around €2.4 billion (about $2.8 billion) annually on cables and adapters to charge their mobile devices.
In 2009, the European Commission promoted a voluntary adoption agreement with the industry to reduce the huge cost of cables, but failed to convince Apple to join. The company claims that the adoption of a single charger is a brake on innovation.
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