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Comment by paxys | Hacker News Reader

The thing that plugs into the wall is already regulated (for every electronic device, not just chargers). That is why you don't have to rewire your house when you buy a new phone. This directive is specifically for the bit that connects to your phone.

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And every single Apple phone I've owned so far uses a cable that plugs into USB A. Which is a standard. I'm still using the wall warts I got for my original iPhone. Which have international wall plug kits. Solid, long-lived electronics.

Meanwhile, the burner phones I've bought for when I'm in the EU have these shitty all-in-one wall-to-micro-USB, and I ended up eventually throwing them out. So there's your e-waste.

Compare the price of an Apple phone to a burner phone and you'll know why they're not great quality. Apple chargers at that price would also suck.

The problem with the burner chargers was that they were inflexible. The wall plug couldn't be changed for other countries, and there was no USB A between the wall wart and the cable so I couldn't use it to charge all of my other gadgets.

Replaceable plug costs more money and I don't expect you spent a lot on your burner phones. My flagship Android did come with a replaceable plug.

The fact you couldn't charge all your other gadgets is the point of the regulation though.

It is? Only in some abstract sense. They all already have a cable that plugs into USB A. I'm supposed to throw them all away to move to a new standard interface in a different place?

Micro-USB is shit.

So is Lightning, but at least it’s slightly more robust physically.

USB-C and be done with it.

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