[NewsPoster]

The previously hinted-at USB Type-C connector has been detailed in a presentation at IDF conference in China. The new connector is smaller than existing USB connectors, supports more power, faster data transfers, and is symmetrical, more than passingly similar to Apple's Lightning connector. The new standard will replace full-size USB and Micro-USB connectors, and offers bandwidth at 10Gbps -- about half the speed of the first generation of Thunderbolt.

The receptacle opening is 8.3mm wide by 2.2mm high, and is expected to have a durability of 10,000 cycles. The new cable will support up to 3A of power, up from the 2A of today's cables. Adapters and other cable-ends will retain backwards compatibility with USB 2.0 and 1.1 devices.

The standard is expected to be ratified this summer by the governing board.

[jfgilbert]

Another technological advance that Apple shamelessly copied by doing it first.

[prl99]

Will the EU force everyone to change to this USB connector, getting rid of whatever micro/mini-USB connector they're forcing everyone to use for phones?

[TheGreatButcher]

Curious that they are changing the connector. IMO, this is what derailed FireWire.

[Inkling]

If the EU is doing any forcing, I'd rather they force a faster, more powerful and particularly a non-polarized connector on Europeans and, by implication, on us. In fact, it'd be great if Apple added a couple of these connectors to their laptops and possibly tablets.

[Spheric Harlot]

Originally Posted by TheGreatButcher 

Curious that they are changing the connector. IMO, this is what derailed FireWire.

No, the connector change didn't harm FireWire. By the time FW800 became commonplace, FireWire was already a niche product. The industries built around FireWire don't care in the least that the connector changed. We all deal with various adapters all the time. I just use different cables, end of story.

What turned FireWire into a niche was USB 2.0 eventually not sucking anymore, and video cameras gaining enough processor power to record compressed formats such as AVCHD, which could be transferred via USB.

[Spheric Harlot]

Originally Posted by prl99 

Will the EU force everyone to change to this USB connector, getting rid of whatever micro/mini-USB connector they're forcing everyone to use for phones?

This is exactly why the EU regulation is so boneheaded: they are pushing the completely outdated micro-USB-connector.

[Arne_Saknussemm]

I do hope the European Union forces a standard connector for everything from phones to cameras, and suppose they will update to the new standard once it becomes finalized our mainstream. What's ridiculous is having to carry a cable for each device. Since a couple of years all phones but one can share the charging cable; guess which phone you have to carry a special adapter just for charging batteries...

[Charles Martin]

Troll_Saknussemm: I carry one charging cable for all my iOS devices, but I know for a fact that you need different chargers for different Android and BlackBerry (and Windows Phone) phones ...