Finally – a standard for phone chargers
Last I checked I had five phone chargers in use at my home. Two of them are the same type, but in different rooms. I also have a pair of chargers in my office at work. It wasn't too long ago that getting a new mobile phone meant getting a new, proprietary phone charger.
That was yesterday — and today. Tomorrow will be different, thanks to an agreement by 17 mobile phone makers and service operators. A standard has been agreed upon and a universal charging solution (UCS) will begin in 2012. Micro-USB will be the common charging interface. It's smaller than the mini universal serial bus in use on some handsets today.
The change will mean a drop of at least 50 percent in the number of chargers manufactured every year, as the chargers will remain in use when a handset is replaced, according to a GSMA World Conference statement. The group is meeting in Barcelona, Spain.
The statement says: “The initial group of companies who have joined the GSMA's UCS initiative include 3 Group, AT&T, KTF, LG, Mobilkom Austria, Motorola, Nokia, Orange, Qualcomm, Samsung, Sony Ericsson, Telecom Italia, Telefónica, Telenor, Telstra, T-Mobile and Vodafone — some of the world's largest mobile operators and manufacturers who together are committed to making a universal charging solution a reality up to 2012 and beyond."
One huge exception to the standard is Apple; its iPhone will continue to use a unique charger. There are still almost three years for the company to change its mind.
Read the statement here. http://www.gsmworld.com/newsroom/press-releases/2009/2548.htm
