Loyd Case recently noted that the standard 3-prong computer power connector is.. not so standard any more:
This is a companion discussion topic for the original blog entry at: http://www.codinghorror.com/blog/2006/04/a-fistful-of-connectors.html
This is a companion discussion topic for the original blog entry at: http://www.codinghorror.com/blog/2006/04/a-fistful-of-connectors.html
To a certain extent thatās true, but your garden variety standard sized cable can easily carry anything from a millivolt to, er, lots of electricity (1.21 jigawatts?! Great Scott!).
So thereās really no good reason for a dumb two-pin power cord to have a keyed connector.
Itās unusual to get male connectors on the live end of cables because you donāt want live metal pins lying around where they can easily be shorted out. In a female connector the live connections are protected and therefore much harder to accidentally short.
I guess the hermaphroditic connectors would need to have the live connections around halfway down the āpinā, on the āinsideā so that you canāt easily splash them and short out your power supply. To me this sounds like an expensive alternative. But I agree with the potential advantages of such a design.
I share your pain with USB, I always have to stop and think and look; which, to me, says that the design is brokenā¦
I have yet to learn which way āupā actually is. If Iām trying to plug something in at the back of my computer under the desk I stand next to no chance of getting it right first time.
Larry Page shares your opinion on more universal power cables. Heās probably got a bit more clout in this area at getting something sorted. Then again, probably not.
I was at a Douglas Adams keynote a few years back, and he pointed out that there is one universal power adapter in common use.
The cigarete lighter in cars. Thereās only one type. Everything plugs into it. It provides the same voltage to everyone. Cell phones, PDAs, GPS, Radar detectorsā¦ everything that can go into a car can be powered by a cigarete lighter.
Now I get annoyed because my car only has one.
By the wayā¦ cigarete is mispelled because it claims that the correct spelling is objectional content. How dare I mention smoking.
As other commenters have already said, the āstandardā connector - normally just referred to as an IEC here in the UK by users technical enough not to just call it a ākettle leadā - is IEC 60320 C13 (cable end socket) and C14 (chassis plug). Actual kettles generally use C15/C16 which have an extra channel/lug to indicate the higher temperature rating. The less-standard connector is a C5 (socket)/C6 (plug).
As for your two-pin connectors, two of them are also from the same standard; thereās definitely a C7 there and one of the others looks like a C1. Most low-ish current double-insulated equipment comes with a C8 inlet over here.
A downside to the C13 is that it doesnāt latch, making it possible to knock the connector out. Some designs of line socket are compatible with a latch cage that mounts to the chassis plug which simply clips over the back of the socket when connected, to reduce this possibility.
As to why they do it - probably to force you to buy an overpriced power cable from them rather than use a standard one. It doesnāt exactly save any space.
Not that standardized though, just come to the UK or anywhere else in Europeā¦
I got an iJuice for Christmas from my wife. Since using it on my phone, the phone will not hold a charge as long as it previously did (and this is after replacing the battery). In addition, my tabletās battery life seems to have been reduced as well. The customer service on getting information on tips from iGo is non-existent. Buyer beware.
Great idea, but I havenāt had good luck with it. I just got a new tablet and Iām very leary about using the iJuice with it.
I assume that Dell either found out that power cables were often lost (common for notebooks, but Iād be surprised if it was common for desktop PCs), or that the cheap power supplies they use often blow up (more likely), and theyāre trying to cash in on them as expensive accessories. I think itās pretty obvious why other companies donāt get together and standardize their connectors ā thereās probably a lot of money to be made in accessories, second power cables, etcā¦
Of course, it may not be so sinister. Maybe thereās a usability issue with the standard PC power cable that Dell has discovered from their support data. Iād find that hard to believe, thoughā¦
The ānewā one in the top picture has been around for years. Apple used to use it for their older PowerBooks. (Back when the Apple logo was the way up dictated by ergonomics, rather than the current superficial aesthetic-driven orientation.) My current IBM ThinkPad uses the exact same plug. (In fact Iām using an old Apple power cable with my ThinkPad right now.)
If Dell are moving in this direction, thatās actually a positive step. My Dell Latitude D800 uses a bizarre three pronged setup that is essentially the standard 2-pin figure of 8 (which is ubiquitous here in the UK; Iāve never seen any of those other 2-pins you show) with the third pin in line with the other two, rather than stacked in the middle. Iāve never seen this on anything else. (Not even on Dellās other laptops!)
The āstandardā 3-prong connector is often described as a ākettle leadā in the UK because almost all kettles use them. (Although strictly speaking, kettles required the high-current variety, which have a little notch cut into the flat edge in line with the earth pin. However, you can use the high-current leads in computers just fine.)
Iāve never seen a laptop that uses the āstandardā kettle lead. All the laptops Iāve used have either had the figure of 8 2-pin, the ānewā 3-pin you show here, or Dellās bizarreo Latitude-D800-only inline 3-pin.
Actually, the industry tried a hermaphroditic connector many years ago, it was used called the Token Ring connector. Look where that wound up!
The reason for non-standard is the reason for anything else, Money!!! Like you, Iāve noticed that sometimes companies ships with different power cables or even USB cables, so that if you need a new one, you have to get it from the manufacturer. If they were standard you could get them from anywhere else.
But answering to Doogal about non-standard power connectors on US, Europe or UK: You donāt want to connect a Europeās desktop PC to a US outlet. They use different Voltages and you would burn out the equipement.
Re: USB; supposedly the USB ālogoā is on top of the connector, so it should be facing up when you plug it in to most things. Of course, thatās all for naught if you have verticle slots. (for instance, on my Gateway Profile, my USB ports face the back of the machine.)
As for the main topic: I completely agree. As an exercise, try to buy one of those funky rounded things, I believe theyāre called a C-4 style cable. (thatās a better hint than I had!) It took me the better part of a morning to even fine out what they were called, nevermind how to get one.
Theyāre all too common on laptops and projectors too. Itās a shame there will probably never be a standard similar to USB, i.e. the regular and small USB-B connectors; those are only occasionally screwed up. (Hello, Pentax!)
I remember seeing this question raised elsewhere before. Iām fairly certain there was something about voltages? I wouldnāt want to spread misinformation but other vendors do use this and it does appear to be a standard.
http://www.eta-usa.com/powercord.html
If you view the PDF for AC power cord-3prong US Standard youāll see it detailed somewhat. From there Iām sure you could find out information about the standard.
Of course I may very well be giving them the benefit of the doubt hereā¦ But Iām no EE so Iām not sure where else to really look for more detailed information about these cords.
Actually more information can be found here:
http://www.americor-usa.com/americor_products/05%20_Product_Page_IEC_320_C6.htm
The key terms seem to be the āWS-083 connectorā and āIEC-360ā.
Perhaps the best information yet Iāve found is
http://www.accesscomms.com.au/iec320.htm
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Thing is, none of those connectors are expensive. Thereās a place here in town that sells a variety for $1 each!
True. I have way more clout than Larry Page.
(I know itās not what you meant, but I couldnāt resist the misinterpretation 
I always thought that that the plugs were different because the cables carry different voltages and amperages.
Most of these connectors go in the back of the machine. IMHO, they should be designed so they
can be orientated by touch. Not only would it help visually impaired and blind people, but it would help fully sighted people working in bad light and cramped conditions. Or doesnāt anyone put the ātower caseā under the desk these days?