I have several usb-c devices:

My Samsung Galaxy phone

My camera battery charger

My rechargeable head torch

My portable battery/device charger

I would like: One cable to rule them all, one cable to find them, One cable to bring them all, and in the darkness bind them; In the Land of my travel shit where the shadows lie.

What wattage, version, output, recommendations can you give me.

Currently I have 5 cables, but I should really only need one.

Thanks in advance

  • MrJameGumb@lemmy.world
    71·
    24 hours ago

    That’s kind of the point of USB C, you can use one cable to charge all of those things. As far as wattage and output it would depend on the devices requirements, but I have a fast charger I bought at Target and honestly it works fine for all of my devices

    • remotelove@lemmy.ca
      1·
      16 hours ago

      That is almost correct. All USB-C cables may be used with older protocols, but newer iterations of cables are actually tagged (“E-Markers”) to tell the devices what the ratings of the cable actually are. I think this is primarily for data transfer reasons, but it is important that the cables can support high currents as well.

      https://learn.adafruit.com/understanding-usb-type-c-cable-types-pitfalls-and-more/cable-types-and-differences

      The USB spec is fucking confusing. There are so many types and they also re-branded some of the versions recently. I can’t follow that shit anymore.

    • mrmule@lemmy.worldOP
      41·
      23 hours ago

      Sorry, but that’s really not the case. My phone cable won’t charge the power bank or the head torch, but will charge the camera battery, hence my question

      • PlantJam@lemmy.world
        10·
        23 hours ago

        I suspect that you already have one cable that will charge all five devices. The device pulls the necessary current, the cord does not push current into the device. This means your most capable charger should charge all of the devices.

        • mrmule@lemmy.worldOP
          3·
          22 hours ago

          This is awesome advice, thank you and might be the reason why some things charge on my adapter and some things don’t, while on my partners they do.

          I’ve ordered a new 65w travel adapter after reading your comment, mine was quite old, before Usb-c PD I think.

  • Imgonnatrythis
    51·
    23 hours ago

    Ugh. It is a headache. I’m not aware of a naming convention to simplify this unfortunately. You want to look for peak power 240W. Usb 3.2 gen2.

    Cable that meets both of those should be universal ime.

  • MorningThunder@lemm.eeEnglish
    1·
    17 hours ago

    As far as charging goes there are only 3 USB-C cables.

    • 60W - All USB-C to USB-C cables can do at least 60W in the form of 20V 3A
    • 100W (Deprecated) - USB PD 3.0 introduced up to 100W charging using 20V 5A. Cables need an EPR (Extended power range) marker in order to allow this
    • 240W - USB PD 3.1 extended the limit to 240W via 48V 5A. These cables have a 240W EPR marker.

    All USB-C devices are supposed to support one of these three modes. HOWEVER, some cheaper devices don’t actually support the USB PD protocol, and only support legacy USB charging. For these you need a USB-A to USB-C cable or adapter. USB-C ports won’t provide power unless both devices are able to negotiate