EU Standard Phone Charger Regulations Allow for an Adapter

Ben Rooney:

The common charger will be based on the “Micro USB,” already widely used as a connector for computers and peripherals. Although the new standards only apply to the 27 states of the EU, the Commission hopes that with some 400 million potential consumers in that market, it will drive manufacturers to adopting the standard world-wide.

The Memorandum of Understanding signed by the 14 manufacturers does provide some wriggle room for companies like Apple that have their own bespoke leads. The agreement does not prohibit manufacturers from having their own nonstandard plugs as long as they make available an adaptor.

So Apple doesn’t have to put Micro USB ports on their products to comply with these regulations in Europe.

★ Thursday, 6 January 2011