The European Union and Parliament have agreed to adopt a standard wired charger for all smartphones, other tablets, video game consoles and digital cameras.
France 24 said that it was decided that the decision would enter into force within two and a half years, despite the dissatisfaction and opposition expressed by Apple about this measure.
The European Parliament issued a statement explaining that under the new agreement, “consumers will no longer need different devices to charge whenever they buy a new device.”
“They will be able to use one charger for all their small and medium-sized portable electronic devices,” the statement continued.
By the fall of 2024, all mobile phones, tablets, e-readers, headphones, helmets, digital cameras, portable video game consoles and portable speakers should have a USB-C port if they are rechargeable with a cord.
The European Union believes that a standard cable for all devices will reduce electronic waste, while Apple believes that a standardized charger will slow innovation and create more pollution.
It is noteworthy that the decision of the unified charger targets a market of 450 million of the richest consumers in the world, and the imposition of a unified charger on this number could affect the entire global smartphone market.
“This new law will make the lives of European consumers easier and be better for the environment,” said engineer Andrei Kovachev, one of the negotiators of the decision.
“It’s time to put an end to the piles of cables we all have in our drawers and save about 11,000 tons of e-waste annually,” he concluded.
Europe adopts a unified charger for all smart and tablet devices
