What Is USB Type-C? An Explainer
With so many Macs and Windows laptops now featuring the interface, it's clear that the USB Type-C connector is here to stay. Here's why that's a good thing—and how to understand where it is headed.
Landing on a single standard to rule them all is an elusive aim in the realm of personal technology. At best, you end up in a format war, and one faction emerges victorious for a few years until an entirely new technology takes it out. VHS ate Betamax, then was ousted by DVD, which faded in the face of Blu-ray (a standard that itself knocked off its chief rival, HD DVD), now facing its own mortality at the hands of online streaming services.
But USB-C is different—and perhaps it's even as truly universal as its acronym (Universal Serial Bus) suggests. USB Type-C ports are now found on all manner of devices, from simple external hard drives to high-end laptops and the latest smartphones.
While every USB-C port looks the same, not each one offers the same capabilities. USB-C may now be ubiquitous, but it doesn't serve the same functions everywhere.
Here is a guide to everything USB-C can do, and which of its features you should look for when buying your next USB-C device.
What Is USB-C?
USB-C is an industry-standard connector for transmitting both data and power on a single cable. The USB-C connector was developed by the USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF), the group of companies that has developed, certified, and shepherded the USB standard over the years. The USB-IF counts more than 700 companies in its membership, among them Apple, Dell, HP, Intel, Microsoft, OnePlus, Lenovo and Samsung.
This broad acceptance by the ‘big boys’ is important, because it's part of why USB-C has been so readily accepted by PC manufacturers. (Contrast this with the earlier Apple-promoted (and developed) Lightning and MagSafe connectors, which had limited acceptance beyond Apple products, and thus became obsolete.)
Is USB-C Like Micro USB?
The USB-C connector looks similar to a micro USB connector at first glance, though it's more oval in shape and slightly thicker to accommodate its best feature; flippability.
Like Lightning and MagSafe, the USB-C connector has no up or down orientation. Line up the connector properly, and you never have to flip it over to plug it in; the "right way" is always up.
The standard cables also have the same connector on both ends, so you don't have to figure out which end goes where. That has not been the case with all the USB cables we've been using for the past 20 years. Most of the time, you have different connectors at each end.
Adapters and Cables
USB-C is electrically compatible with older USB 3.0 ports. But because of the new shape of port, adapters or cables with appropriate plugs are indeed required if you want to connect anything that doesn't have the USB-C oval shape.
Sometimes a new laptop will come with these; in other cases, you may have to purchase them separately. Apple, for instance, sells a variety of USB cables and adapters for connecting USB-C to other technologies such as Lightning or Ethernet. You can also find a variety of these for PCs if you browse online retailers. Some even support older protocols, to ensure a device you have from years ago will work on today's hardware. It's easy to find USB-C-to-DVI adapters, for example, but we've also come across some that split to two RS-232 serial connections.
The good news, though, is that if you invest in a couple of normal USB-C cables, they will work with anything and everything that supports USB-C, regardless of generation. Note, however, that that does not extend to Thunderbolt. Though Thunderbolt 3 and 4 use a USB-C physical connector, you'll need an appropriate Thunderbolt-specific cable to guarantee compatibility and full speed. This cable will have a USB-C connector at both ends but with a lightning symbol on each. It'll also be significantly pricier than a standard USB-C.
Do You Need USB-C?
The presence (or absence) of a USB-C port is increasingly becoming a consideration when buying a PC. If you buy an ultrathin laptop, it will almost certainly have at least one USB-C port, which will catapult you into the ecosystem automatically. If you are more of a lover of desktops, you are certain to find the ports there, too, with at least one on the motherboard-side I/O panel and likely more on high-end and gaming PCs.
Even if you don't need USB-C now, you will before long. We are only scratching the surface of what USB-C can do, but one thing is certain: The next generation of cross-platform connectors is quickly replacing the old guard just as the original USB standard replaced Apple Desktop Bus (ADB), FireWire, parallel, PS/2, SCSI, and serial ports on Macs and PCs. USB-C truly is one port to rule them all.