13 votes

USB inventor regrets making them so difficult to plug in correctly

Posted by asteroid
Tags: usb, hardware, ibm, inventors, ajay bhatt, consumer electronics, author.kellen beck, source.mashable, short read
https://mashable.com/article/usb-inventor-explains-difficulty/

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Title
The inventor of the USB sees our pain and explains their design
Authors
Kellen Beck
Published
Jun 23 2019
Word count
364 words

6 comments

  1. Ephemere
    Link
    I kind of disagree, I feel like USB is just fine. Maybe it's a touch annoying to have to fumble to plug it in, but once it's in you know it's in, unlike micro-usb, and it's unlikely to come out. I...

    I kind of disagree, I feel like USB is just fine. Maybe it's a touch annoying to have to fumble to plug it in, but once it's in you know it's in, unlike micro-usb, and it's unlikely to come out. I guess what I'm thinking is that it doesn't rank in my top 100 technology problems.

    6 votes
  2. Anwyl
    Link
    On spec compliant devices it's pretty easy to plug in the correct way around. The USB symbol is SUPPOSED to be on top. Unfortunately many devices are non-compliant, like blackberry putting the...

    On spec compliant devices it's pretty easy to plug in the correct way around. The USB symbol is SUPPOSED to be on top. Unfortunately many devices are non-compliant, like blackberry putting the blackberry logo on top.

    It should really have a haptic indicator also, but once you know which way is "up" it's fairly easy to work with.

    4 votes
  3. [4]
    dblohm7
    Link
    It's too bad that USB has turned into such a dumpster fire, though. Terrible naming, shitty USB-C cables, etc, etc.

    It's too bad that USB has turned into such a dumpster fire, though. Terrible naming, shitty USB-C cables, etc, etc.

    2 votes
    1. [4]
      Comment deleted by author
      Link Parent
      1. j3n
        Link Parent
        I think the main issue is that there are a huge number of protocols that each cable can support, and most (all?) only support a subset. There's no longer an obvious way to tell if the cable you're...

        I think the main issue is that there are a huge number of protocols that each cable can support, and most (all?) only support a subset. There's no longer an obvious way to tell if the cable you're holding supports video in the same way that there was back in the days where USB and DVI (for example) were totally unrelated things with totally distinct cables.

        9 votes
      2. TheJorro
        Link Parent
        Maybe they're referring to all the cheaply made ones that don't meet the proper spec? Or perhaps mislabelled. Buying a USB-C cable really is harder than it should be right now, as if you're not...

        Maybe they're referring to all the cheaply made ones that don't meet the proper spec? Or perhaps mislabelled. Buying a USB-C cable really is harder than it should be right now, as if you're not careful you may get one that's power delivery only, no video.

        2 votes
      3. dblohm7
        Link Parent
        There was a Googler named Benson Leung who used to post detailed reviews of USB-C cables. Many of them did not correctly follow the spec.

        There was a Googler named Benson Leung who used to post detailed reviews of USB-C cables. Many of them did not correctly follow the spec.

        2 votes