European Union announces plans to require all mobile devices to use USB-C

Enlarge / iPads with USB-C ports. (credit: Andrew Cunningham)

The European Commission has announced its intent to enact legislation that would mandate all consumer electronic devices sold in the European market within certain categories have a USB-C port for charging.

Should the new rules be enacted, they would make it illegal to sell consumer electronic devices that lack that port. The law would apply to smartphones, portable video game consoles, portable speakers, cameras, and some types of headphones-but it would not apply to devices that only use wireless charging.

The legislation also would not prevent devices from having additional ports for charging, as long as they also have a USB-C charging port.

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