Using the wrong USB-C cable can damage your tech - important !

Hi all -

I know about this but ZDnet published a really good article that everyone should know about.
If you use AC adapters with a USB-C end, it is even more important.

Using the wrong USB-C cable can damage your tech. Here's how to avoid that | ZDNet

Hope this helps. Comments welcome.

Cheers!

Xathya said:

thakn alien for heasd up! almost cold of deepfrreid5 my uncle macbok pros (15 insh, 20) the other day by splurging it (him) in !p

You're welcome. I hope that people benefit form this.

Very useful info Compumind . Thanks.

The only complaint I have is that testing these things after you get them home is not ideal. We need to be able to tell the specs before we buy.

I agree with bro.

I thought that article started out reasonably enough but to claim that device overheating, battery overcharging or battery damage can occur from a limitation in the cable is illogical.

Under-rated cables cause cable overheating which can lead to fire when 240V mains power is involved but for USB cable voltages I'd be amazed to hear of it leading to anything more than cable/connector melting.

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I have a USB-C powered tablet and its supply voltage is 5V. I have been careful to select which USB cables to use because the supply is up to about 3.5A.
I have not seen a USB-C powered laptop. I assume it is those that have 20V USB-C cables.


All the best,
Denis

There is no USB device that uses 20 Volts whether it is AC or DC, it is the wattage of the device that determines the amount of current draw.

Anibor said:

I have a Lenovo laptop that is charged via a USB-C port. The charger is rated at 65 W, or 3.3 Amp at 20 V. It can also supply 45 W, or 3 Amp at 15 V, 18 W (2A at 9V) and 10 W (2A at 5V).

Those devices that are demanding that much power are designed by the mfg to use a USB plug and cord for power charging which misleads consumers to believe that they will not have issues with using a USB-C port or hub to charge a device, which ends up damaging the device being used as a pseudo power supply. This all started with micro-usb.