Wireless

A standard for a universal phone charger was approved this week by the International Telecommunication Union, a branch of the United Nations.

Side by side view of a Micro-USB connector and a regular USB connector.

(Credit: Wikimedia Commons)

The Universal Charging Solution will enable the creation of one-size-fits-all chargers that can be used on any future phone, according to the ITU.

The standard is based on input from the GSM Association, which expects the shift to eliminate 51,000 tons of redundant chargers, or 13.6 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions each year.

Based on Micro-USB, the new chargers will also be energy efficient.

"Universal chargers are a common-sense solution that I look forward to seeing in other areas," Malcolm Johnson, director of ITU's telecommunication standardization bureau, said in a statement.

Manufacturers are not required to adopt the new chargers, but some have already signed up, such as Sony Ericsson, according to the BBC.

Apple and other big phone makers have struck a deal with the European Commission to start selling phones with universal cell phone chargers starting next year.

Side by side view of a micro-USB connector and a regular USB connector.

(Credit: Wikimedia Commons)

Under the agreement, manufacturers would start using micro-USB connections for phone chargers used for smartphones. Apple joins other big cell phone makers including LG, Motorola, Nokia, Research In Motion, Samsung and Sony Ericsson in agreeing to the new standard. Chipset makers, such as NEC, Qualcomm and Texas Instruments have also agreed to the deal.

In February the GSMA, a trade association for mobile carriers using GSM technology, said it had brokered a deal with handset makers to get the micro-USB technology into cell phone chargers by 2012. And the CTIA, the U.S. wireless trade association, backed the standard in April of this year.

The initiative has many advantages. For one it makes it much easier for consumers who no longer have to worry about losing their one and only cell phone charger. It also cuts down on waste since people can reuse their cell phone chargers when they get a new phone. Even though some cell phone manufacturers were reluctant to give up their proprietary cell phone chargers for fear that it would make it easier for customers to switch to new phones from competitors, eventually standardizing on one technology will help these manufacturers reduce costs.

Update: This story has been updated to clarify that Apple was not named in the list of handset makers that have agreed to use a new universal charger standard.

BARCELONA--After I've spent years scrounging through drawers looking for the right charger and kicking myself every time I forgot my charger while traveling, the mobile industry has finally decided to make one device that can juice up any cell phone.

The Micro-USB connector used on this Motorola cell phone charger will soon be the standard for all chargers.

(Credit: Motorola)

On Tuesday, the GSMA trade association announced at its 2009 Mobile World Congress here that it has brokered a deal with the world's leading handset makers to come up with a standard for charging cell phones.

All the major handset makers, including, LG, Motorola, Nokia, Samsung, and Sony Ericsson, have agreed to use the Micro-USB technology as the common universal charging interface, Rob Conway, GSMA CEO, said during the opening keynote speech Tuesday. By 2012, the GSMA promises, most cell phones will use the same kind of connector to charge their batteries.

Seventeen mobile operators, including Vodafone, Orange, and Telofonic, announced they are committed to implementing the standard for the universal mobile phone charger.

The GSMA said that going to this single standard will not only make life easier for the more than 3 billion mobile phone users in the world today, but it will also help the environment.

Conway said that the GSMA will push cell phone manufacturers to develop chargers that consume about 50 percent less power. The organization also believes that eliminating the need for people to replace lost chargers will significantly reduce greenhouse gases emitted in the manufacturing and transporting of these extra chargers. It will also mean less waste in landfills because people won't simply throw away chargers when they stop using their old phones.

All in all, it's huge win for the planet and for me--the consumer. It's such a no-brainer. It makes you wonder why no one thought of this sooner.

UPDATE: One mobile phone maker is conspicuously missing from the GSMA's list of partners: Apple, maker of the popular iPhone. It shouldn't come as a shock that Apple isn't following the rest of the industry on this one, considering that the company has been marching to the beat of its own drummer in mobile from the beginning.

The good news for iPhone users has always been that the connector that's used to recharge the device is the same one used for some Apple iPods. But annoyingly many iPod docking stations and accessories made by third parties for previous generations of iPods don't work with the iPhone.