The European Union has set a firm deadline by which time manufacturers will need to adopt USB-C charging for most electronic devices sold in the region. New phones, tablets, headphones, portable speakers and many other types of devices will need to adopt that standard for wired charging as of December 28th, 2024. There’s no impact on devices that only support wireless charging.
EU member states have until December 28th, 2023 to publish regulations to govern the bloc’s directive on USB-C charging. They’ll have to start applying those rules one year later. The EU previously said the rules would come into force by the end of 2024 and it stuck to that timeline when it published the legislation in the Official Journal.
Laptop makers have a bit longer to comply with the rules, as The Verge notes. If they haven’t already done so, they’ll need to switch to USB-C by April 2026. In addition, devices with fast charging support will have the same charging speed, the EU says. As such, users will be able to charge devices at the same speed with any compatible charger.
Although it’s not like the company had much of a choice, Apple has said it will comply with the rules and put USB-C charging ports in iPhones sold in the EU (unless, that is, it were to switch to fully wireless charging). Technically, Apple wouldn’t have to adopt USB-C charging in iPhones until sometime in 2025, but reports suggest the company may make the switch as soon as next year.
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