Quote:
Originally Posted by NullNix
The idea is One Charger To Rule Them All. Seems like a damn good idea to me, if implementable, which thanks to the very features you're disparaging, it is.
(Also, this means you can have things like displays with both signal and power coming over USB-C. Much better than a separate power cord!)
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Both are truly stupid ideas, like personal flying taxies.
The only reliable "One for anything" chargers/PSUs have been 6V / 12V / 24V chargers for lead acid batteries. Even then they go wrong.
Universal small power supplies tend to be unreliable and waste space as they have to be rated for the highest power. A common way to fry gadgets. USB-C is a stupid attempt to automate the voltage selection and use a data port. If it's really a universal charger it will be about x4 on average larger than needed and more expensive and less reliable.
Laptop PSUs have tended to come in about 4 voltage ratings and various power ratings. Some will work on different models. Replacing that with USB-C for power/charging is pointless and only suits a subset of skinny low performance laptops.
Any display taking more than about 5W to 8W needs a power connector. A decent display can't sensibly run from GPU over USB. Displays ought to use HDMI. I've had even a phone and tablet with micro HDMI, which is far better than Wireless solutions or USB.
A decent display is about 35W. More than twice what a Mac USB-C port can power.
Also crazy extra load for a laptop other gadget to power any sort of decent display larger than 12".
Trying to make an existing thing do stuff never intended breaks compatibility and reliability.
Combing data and power for more than 5W to 8W and calling it USB anything is stupid. By all means invent a new system that can do 30W, 4K HDR video and high speed peer to peer data. But where does the "Host" get the power? Double the capacity of the power brick for the laptop?
Note that Laptops can be 20W to 200W depending on CPU type/clock, GPU type/clock, screen size and resolution, HDD /SSD type and size. That's before you add the power for peripherals connected to USB ports.