Final yr, my greatest pal purchased me an HP Sprocket transportable picture printer. This, she stated, would take my journaling recreation to the following stage. After a brief demo and dozens of journaling TikToks, I used to be stoked. After which I unboxed the rattling factor.
One other freaking Micro USB port. And proper after I’d confidently gotten rid of all however one emergency Micro USB cable.
USB-C debuted in 2014. The entire level was to create a common connector that will switch knowledge and energy rapidly, whereas additionally eliminating the scourge of proprietary chargers. The primary HP Sprocket got here out in 2016, a time when USB-C was primarily embraced by higher-end laptops and Android smartphones. However by the point my second-edition Sprocket debuted in 2018 — the final time this little printer was up to date — the usual was beginning to change into mainstream.
It’s not only a random HP picture printer. A couple of weeks in the past, I purchased a cat nail grinder that sadly costs by way of Micro USB. I reviewed a stress calming wearable in 2023 that relied on Micro USB. Peruse social media, and also you’ll discover folks griping about every kind of newly bought devices that also have the outdated connector: kitchen appliances, the latest Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K, nearly every Roku streaming device, and Garmin bike lights. Including to client confusion, typically product listings don’t specify which USB cable a gadget comes with. The ports and charging cable on the Roku Streaming Stick 4K are merely described as “USB.” The pictures are ambiguous. You’d need to launch the “View in 3D” function to seek out out it makes use of Micro USB.
After a full decade of USB-C, how is it that we’re nonetheless coping with this outdated port?
“There’s so many elements like prices, provide chain, stock, and stock within the [retail] channel,” says Jeff Ravencraft, president and COO of the USB Implementers Discussion board (USB-IF). The USB-IF is a nonprofit tasked with selling and sustaining USB requirements and counts tech giants like HP, Apple, Intel, and Microsoft amongst its members.
For some devices, lengthy refresh cycles are an enormous motive why you would possibly purchase one thing in 2025 and nonetheless see a Micro USB connector. Take airplanes. Ravencraft notes that the USB-IF has been working with Panasonic Avionics, a number one supplier of inflight leisure and connectivity, to get USB-C into airplane seats. The issue is that it would take you a very long time to see up to date ports on a future flight. Planes are designed to final 20–30 years, and upgrading a complete fleet is a pricey endeavor. You see the identical downside with vehicles, which generally have five- to 10-year refresh cycles.
Compounding that downside is stock. It’s totally doable that HP has pallets of second-edition Sprockets sitting in Amazon’s warehouse and throughout hundreds of Finest Purchase stockrooms. “Till these channels clear, that’s once you’re going to start out seeing change,” says Ravencraft.
Value, after all, can also be an element, however not essentially an enormous one. For some corporations, significantly producers in Asia, being extra reasonably priced than the competitors is what units them aside. If that’s the secret, each little little bit of price financial savings counts. However there is probably not a ton to realize by going that route anymore. “Is a microUSB connector that less expensive than a Sort C connector? In all probability not,” says Ravencraft.
That stated, there’s excellent news. The European Union began enforcing a regulation this previous December stating that “all new units bought within the EU should now help USB-C charging.” That is objectively an important factor. Much less e-waste! The foundations explicitly apply to cell phones, tablets, digital cameras, headphones, headsets, online game consoles, transportable audio system, e-readers, keyboards, mice, transportable navigation programs, and earbuds. (Laptops aren’t topic to the mandate till April 2026.) And since most tech makers need entry to the European market, this sort of laws has the knock-on impact of benefitting customers outdoors the EU. Living proof: Apple, a longtime holdout towards USB-C, lastly caved and ditched the Lightning port with the iPhone 15.
At some point, I’ll be capable to chuck my Micro USB cables with confidence; that day simply isn’t right now
Total, which means that most new electronics you purchase may have USB-C. Hallelujah! Sadly, the mandate isn’t hermetic. Take my HP Sprocket. The EU mandate doesn’t say a factor about printers. And what about different devices like drones, exterior microphones, smartwatches, and good glasses? The EU’s directive doesn’t forbid proprietary chargers as long as a gadget can even cost by way of USB-C. For instance, as we’ve reported earlier than, a MacBook can nonetheless use MagSafe as a result of it may cost by USB-C, too.
However let’s say HP have been to lastly get with this system and, by this time subsequent yr, there’s a third-edition HP Sprocket and the one improve is a USB-C port. As a lot as I’d like to throw my cash to the wind simply to rid my lifetime of Micro USB, that’d be a waste of a wonderfully good machine. And the longer the machine lasts, the higher the prospect that you simply would possibly want to purchase a brand new Micro USB cable.
Living proof, I’ve a Shure MV7 mic with a Micro USB port. It was launched in 2020 and discontinued in 2024, however it nonetheless works superbly. The one downside is that I often must take it with me on the go. My laptop computer solely has USB-C ports, and all my present Micro USB cables have USB-A on the opposite finish. Utilizing a dongle, of which I’ve too many, ought to have labored, besides my audio gave the impression of grime anytime I did. Certain, I may’ve purchased the newest model of the mic for $280. However a pleasant, braided Micro USB to USB-C cable prices $7. And that’s how I ended up shopping for a brand new Micro USB cable in 2025.
Even so, Ravencraft assures me it’s solely a matter of time. USB-C adoption, he says, goes nicely and is quickly growing. As extra governments comply with the EU’s lead, USB-C’s complete dominance shall be inevitable. At some point, I’ll be capable to chuck my Micro USB cables with confidence. That day simply isn’t right now. At this time, I’ll need to accept holding onto my two Micro USB cables and praying nobody ever items me one other Micro USB gadget.