USB Type-C is getting increasingly close to becoming a unified charging port for all your devices. After the USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF) announced the spec for USB Type-C 2.1 about a year ago, introducing support for 240W charging, cable manufacturer Club 3D has now listed the first cables supporting these new speeds on its website.
Club 3D has three versions of USB Type-C cables supporting 240W charging. One (model number CAC-1573) is only marked with the 240W charging logo, and it has USB 2.0 data transfer speeds, meaning it’s only meant for charging. There’s another one (CAC-1575) that’s rated for both 240W charging and 20Gbps speeds (officially called USB4 Gen 2×2), and finally, one (CAC-1576) that supports 40Gbps (USB4 Gen 3×2) of bandwidth in addition to 240W charging.
Unfortunately, Club 3D doesn’t list pricing information for any of these cables, and we can’t find them at retailers, either. However, seeing them listed likely means we’re one step closer to these charging speeds being a reality over USB Type-C.
Having a single cable that can charge all kinds of devices has long been a wish for many, and over the years, USB Type-C has gotten increasingly close. Nowadays, not only are most phones charged with this port, but laptops that only require up to 100W of power can do the same, too. And that 100W cap has been a limitation of the USB Type-C spec itself, so when the USB-IF announced the 240W charging spec, it planted the seeds for this kind of possibility. Most gaming laptops come with power adapters up to 230W, so the latest specification is clearly designed to meet that target.
Of course, it’s not just about having compatible cables, and we have yet to see any USB Type-C power adapters that support this kind of power delivery, so it’ll still be a while longer before we can really get rid of proprietary charging ports. Still, the possibility of it happening in the next couple of years is exciting in its own right. As these cables and chargers start to hit the market, you’ll want to look out for is that cables are marked with official certification logos – which were announced a few months ago – to ensure they don’t damage your device.
Source: Club 3D
Via: Tom’s Hardware