Question 1st phone with USB C: Get USB C cables or 'micro-USB to USB C' adapters?

[JEDI]

i bought a new phone (Moto One Action).
apparently it is USB-C.

all my cables are micro-usb, including an expensive set of Anker.
how bad are usb-c adapters? ($1 on ebay)

 

[ch33zw1z]

Adapters for what? Charging?

 

[JEDI]

Adapters for what? Charging?

Charging and xfer to/from computer

 

[ch33zw1z]

I would just get the right cable. Also, use a charger with the right output for the phone.

 

[thecoolnessrune]

how bad are usb-c adapters? ($1 on ebay)

The USB Specification specifically forbids them, which should tell you all you need to know as to why they're around for $1 on eBay. It's in section 2.2 here at the very end: https://www.usb.org/sites/default/files/USB Type-C Spec R2.0 - August 2019.pdf

Specifically:

USB Type-C receptacle to USB legacy adapters are explicitly not defined or allowed. Such adapters would allow many invalid and potentially unsafe cable connections to be constructed by users.

The Anker 3 pack of USB A to C cables (USB 2.0) goes on sale fairly often for $11-$12. It's worth getting some new cables to work with your new phone.

 

[AnitaPeterson]

As someone who has had USB-C on their phones for a while, my advice is "Don't skimp on good quality cables".

First of all, many of the USB-C cables on the market are not really USB 3, but USB 2.
USB 2 cables will be slow as molasses, for both charging and data transfer.
USB 3 should be blue in color, and there should be additional connectors inside the large rectangular plug.

Second, adapters can work - but when they don't you just threw the money away.

Bad USB cables will not allow your device to charge, will not connect properly to a PC, and will generally make your life miserable.

Go to ebay, look carefully around, and you'll find that proper USB 3-C cables can be had for surprisingly little money.

 

[JEDI]

2.4A power supply:

1) using usb micro to usb c adapter- charged 15% in 25 min (.6%/min)

2) using the usb c cable that came with the phone in same 2.4A charger- 20% in 25min (.8%/min)

1/3 slower using the usb-c adapter

 

[JEDI]

Bad USB cables will not allow your device to charge, will not connect properly to a PC, and will generally make your life miserable.

Go to ebay, look carefully around, and you'll find that proper USB 3-C cables can be had for surprisingly little money.

yeah learned the hard way about usb micro cables from ebay that will not connect properly to the pc to xfer data.

so what to look for on ebay for quality usb-c cables?

 

[bononos]

i bought a new phone (Moto One Action).
apparently it is USB-C.

all my cables are micro-usb, including an expensive set of Anker.
how bad are usb-c adapters? ($1 on ebay)

I use adapters for low powered devices like mp3 players, headphones that don't draw alot power during charging so I don't have to reach and swap cables and they work fine. One possible issue that could happen is pulling too much current with USB-c devices if the adapter/cable doesn't have a 56kohm pullup resistor so I only charge my phones with proper usb-c cables with the right charger. The cheapo adapters max limit is about 2A.

 

[AnitaPeterson]

yeah learned the hard way about usb micro cables from ebay that will not connect properly to the pc to xfer data.

so what to look for on ebay for quality usb-c cables?

Look carefully at the pictures. If the plastic inside the USB A plug is not blue, and you can't see any additional connectors at the bottom of it, don't buy.

Here's an example of a good cable. You can see the plug is blue, and is inscribed with "SS" (for Super Speed):

USB 3.1 Type C Male to USB 3.0 A Male Data Cable Samsung Galaxy LG HTC Macbook | eBay

1 x USB 3.1 Type C Male to USB 3.0 A Male OTG Data Cable. USB 3.0 to USB 3.1 Type C Data Sync Charging Cable 3Ft 1M. The maximum data transfer rate up to 10GBit/s, USB3.1 standard. A single powerful interface can also support data, audio and video power.

www.ebay.com

 

[bononos]

Look carefully at the pictures. If the plastic inside the USB A plug is not blue, and you can't see any additional connectors at the bottom of it, don't buy.
...........

Not necessarily, the markings and . Like I said, what can happen is when usb3 devices that draw alot of power are using cables that are not up to spec which can damage the usb port. The findings of one Google employee has been reposted here and elsewhere many times.

Cheap USB-C Cables Could Kill Your Phone or Laptop

Benson Leung, an engineer on Google’s Pixel team, was doing God’s work by risking his Chromebook Pixel, which charges via USB-C, to test every single USB-C to USB-A cord available to general consumers. One crappy cord, and his $1500 computer would be fried.

gizmodo.com