Having a USB-C charging standard is great. Until you get chargers like this one with USB-C connector and 9V. Using that would be a great way to kill some devices. Apparently, GTMEDIA just replaced the original DC port with USB-C without other changes to the device and the charger

@nijel USB-C can have a higher voltage, can't it? Up to 20, I believe.

It will default to 5, I believe, unless the connected device negotiates a higher voltage.

@mt this doesn't negotiate, this is just a DC power supply with USB-C instead of the original DC cylindrical connector.

@nijel Wow. How can device like this get any certifications? CE? FCC? What else should they check on electric device like this?

@nijel Are you sure it outputs 9V without any negotiations?

@nijel Wow, that's horrible. 😳 What is it supposed to power?

@Razemix Satellite/DVB signal measuring device, https://gtmedia.global/products/satellite-v8-finder-pro

@stepan Unfortunately I don't have away to measure the USB-C connector, but looking at the supply label it does (the label actually states it has a circular DC connector). It doesn't list 5V at all, unlike any other USB-C power supply I have around.

@nijel How can this even be legal? I hope that if complaints are filed (at member state level, not EU) , the local consumer protection agency will react quickly. Or at least the press needs to be alerted. Where are these things sold?

@tml @nijel Seems that it isn't legal. The updated EU regulation mentions not just the mandatory USB-C port but also Power Delivery compliance according to EN IEC 62680-1-2:2021. (Which I assume describes voltage negotiation etc.)

https://single-market-economy.ec.europa.eu/sectors/electrical-and-electronic-engineering-industries-eei/radio-equipment-directive-red/one-common-charging-solution-all_en#:~:text=the%20Commission%20Delegated,for%20wired%20charging.

@nijel Lol, they even have a Power Delivery symbol next to the charging port. I doubt that it does any voltage negotiation. That's cursed. 😂

@Razemix Not on my device

@nijel @Razemix Wondering whether a spec-compliant USB-C charger can damage this device then.

@ondra @tml @nijel The funny thing is that in this case they didn't have to include the USB-C port. EU mandates it only for specific categories of devices (phones, tablets, cameras etc.). So they voluntarily made their life harder and managed to violate the spec in a truly spectacular way. 😂

@Razemix @tml @nijel Oh, that's a good point. So maybe it's not illegal, after all.

Reminds me of the good old days when people like Benson Leung tested each USB-C device, cable and charger for spec compliance and published their results.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benson_Leung

@Razemix Looking again at it there seems to be "Gtmedia Satellite V8 Finder Pro" which has PD icon and "Gtmedia Satellite V8 Finder Pro 2" which I have and doesn't have it. That's what I call an upgraded version!

@nijel @stepan

I would suspect that it is only 2 strand cable, and for power negotiation you need the data strands. So "measuring" may be as easy as cutting it open and looking at the cables.

@plactagonic @stepan I still need the charger, so I'm not considering destructive ways to measure it.

@nijel so the "CE" mark doesn't mean it's been tested for that kind of compliance?

@nijel @plactagonic @stepan It could still be able to provide 9V and 5V if the connector has a smart PD chip at the connector able to regulate the voltage from the adapter. One way to know without opening the connector is to try to charge a power bank that accepts PD and has a screen to tell you if the device is using the protocol (and what voltage is being delivered). I think there are small gadgets that you can buy from China that will tell you this too.

@nijel @mt How tf is that legal to sell anywhere in the EU?

@nijel Even old Nokias designed for custom chargers were 15V tolerant... so this is probably not as bad as it looks. If you are designing device with USB-C, you should be ready for 20V, really... Still, this is not good.

@liskin @mt @nijel Take this as a business opportunity to sell USB-C DC-DC converters.

@nijel I recently got a "Chuwi Hi10 X1" tablet, and it comes with a little bastard charger. The tablet itself can negotiate voltage with normal chargers, (but it absolutely will not hold itself to any wattage limit).

The charger just yeets 12v without any concern for what is on the other end.

@stepan I've just confirmed that.

@nijel pak je to nabíječka porušujíci usb-c specifikaci 🤷‍♂️