1 yr. ago • 93%

Saudi Arabia passes law requiring USB-C charges for smartphones

appleinsider.com Saudi Arabia passes law requiring USB-C charges for smartphones

From 2025, Apple's iPhone and all Android smartphones sold in Saudi Arabia will have to have a USB-C charging port, with laptops to follow in 2026.

Saudi Arabia passes law requiring USB-C charges for smartphones::From 2025, Apple's iPhone and all Android smartphones sold in Saudi Arabia will have to have a USB-C charging port, with laptops to follow in 2026.

31 comments

Holy shit... This is the first time I've agreed with anything from Saudi Arabia. Who knew basic rights suppressors would be pro consumer lmao.

42
- They are not pro-consumer. They are doing this because EU has done it. On the face of things they look progressive and what not, in reality EU really dictates sane laws.
  
  21
  
  They are not pro-consumer. They are doing this because EU has done it.
  
  Doing it when another country has already done it is still more pro-consumer than not doing it at all.
  
  7
- They’re just following in the EU’s steps in a self-aggrandising move. Everyone knows apple won’t bother with splitting the iphone line and will go with USB-C soon.
  
  15
- Nothing about Saudi Arabia is pro-consumer.
  
  8
And if you don't use USB-C they'll behead you.

28
- Finally, the punishment fits the crime /s
  
  16
OK. Now copy all other EU laws.

24
- Yes and then they should jail those who violate basic human rights.
  
  One can dream.
  
  8
While I agree with the point of these laws, to get everyone on a standard, it's going to suck when the next, better standard comes along and the are all these laws preventing phones from adopting it

8
- The EU has appointed a committee to reconsider the standards every couple of years and the law allows changing the standard if they decide to. I’m not sure how Saoudi Arabia will deal with this.
  
  27
  
  SA is a monarchy where laws are decreed over the radio.
  
  If an updated standard comes out, the political process for amending this law is very streamlined.
  
  8
- EU attempted to get smartphone manufacturers to agree on a standard so that law wouldn't be necessary to avoid this scenario. Guess which company didn't want to play with the others?
  
  18
  
  Guess which company is now forced to do it in second revision of the same law or is going to get forbidden from selling their devices in EU. Being an asshole strongarming your way around works for certain countries on this planet that have legalized bribing and call it lobbying. EU doesn't give a shit.
  
  9
  
  One of the largest Tech companies in the world, is it Orange?
  
  3
  
  And they didn't want to do it likely because of the previous comment - what don't you understand?
  
  -15
- it’s going to suck when the next, better standard comes along and the are all these laws preventing phones from adopting it
  
  this argument keeps being trotted out.
  
  Standards can change.
  
  The USB-C protocol allows for future improvements. The spec allows for charging at capacities far higher than exist today, and the connection type so far supports USB3.0, 3.1, 3.2, USB4 and even the unfortunately-named USB4v2.0. The USB-C connection type will still be around for USB5.3v2max SuperSpeed or whatever it's called in 2030.
  
  13
  
  Governments move really, really slow. How long has USB-C been out? Many years it seems and now it’s being mandated? In my view USB-C is old tech. I like it, don’t get me wrong, but it’s old old.
  
  If you go to any government organization except maybe parts of the military, you’ll find that their tech is outdated and running legacy shit because they have to go through piles of paperwork to change anything.
  
  -7
IMO other countries shouldn't adopt laws like this, the EU and maybe the US should be the only ones, since new standards will take longer to get adopted if every country with this kinda law has to allow it instead of just one or two.

1
A step in the right direction, good job

1
I think all smartphone companies should pull out of Saudi Arabia until it has better human rights policies.

-3
I’m in the minority here, but I don’t think any governments should be regulating the choice of cable in smartphones. I think it’s a convenience that they can dangle in front of people so they can say they are pro-consumer, while ignoring the working conditions of those who manufacture it, the taxes paid by corporations who make the phones, the lobbying done against right-to-repair laws, and the monopolistic tendencies displayed by these companies.

The governments have a real responsibility to hold these companies responsible for a lot of things, but I don’t think the choice of one small piece of the technology pie should be one of them.

-19
- I disagree. Standardization is one of the great benefits of international cooperation, and governments should hopefully continue to push towards it. It forces companies to work together rather than try to sabotage each other, which benefits the consumer.
  
  I also don't know about this SA law, but the EU one is about way more than just smartphones, it mandates a standardized charging connector for all kinds of electronic appliances. You're underestimating the impact this will have on the market and our e-waste.
  
  20
- If the companies won't do it on their own, they have to be forced. Apple didn't want to play, hence the law.
  
  14

You've viewed 31 comments.