Universal mobile phone charger in the air
In a move set to make one small aspect of modern life simpler, mobile phone companies are working on a one-size-fits-all charger for all new handsets, a press report said on Monday.
The firms are planning to introduce the device in response to growing pressure from European Union regulators, the Financial Times Deutschland daily reported, citing unnamed industry sources.
EU Industry Commissioner Guenter Verheugen told German radio station Deutsche Welle last week that with over 30 different kinds of charger in use across the 27-nation European Union, his "patience is now at an end."
Handset makers like Nokia have resisted developing a universal charger in the past because of compatibility and legal problems, the FTD cited a spokesman for the European Commission as saying.
Introducing a one-size-fits-all charger would also help the firms to cut costs since in the future new handsets would no longer necessarily need to be sold with a charger, the FTD said.
It would also enable firms to bolster their green credentials since the planned new charger, which works using a micro USB socket in the handset, uses less electricity than current models, the paper cited its sources as saying.
Universal mobile phone charger – give your views
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