Amazon Bans Sale of Potentially Dangerous USB-C Cables
 

Amazon has tightened restrictions on the sale of USB-C cables and adapters on its online store in an effort to protect customers from risky substandard products (via The Verge).

The online retailer added **n-compliant USB-C cables to its list of prohibited items, following a flood of potentially damaging third-party cables onto the market. The new **te on Amazon's page of undesirables prohibits "any USB-C? (or USB Type-C?) cable or adapter product that is **t compliant with standard specifications issued by 'USB Implementers Forum Inc.'"

The update was spotted by Google engineer Benson Leung, who has been testing USB-C cables sold by Amazon in an effort to highlight the risks of **n-compliant products. Leung was spurred into action after a USB-C charging cable he bought destroyed a Chromebook Pixel he was working on in compatibility tests.

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Apple introduced the USB-C standard to its Mac range with the release of the 12-inch Retina MacBook. The new standard allows charging, data transfer, and video over a single connector. As a result, USB-C cables are capable of carrying a lot more power than traditional USB connectors, making faulty units a risk to computers and power supplies, and potentially a fire hazard.

Apple states in a support document that the 12-inch MacBook will charge from USB-C power adapters **t manufactured by Apple if they adhere to the USB Power Delivery specification. Based on Leung's extensive testing, 30 percent of third-party USB-C cables currently available do **t meet USB-IF standards. Apple's USB-C ports are designed to shut down if a larger-than-expected amount of power is detected flowing through cables, however Amazon's ban should mean cables that can damage or shut down a device will ** longer be offered through the site.

Apple suffered its own USB-C problems when a "design issue" in charging cables shipped with certain Retina MacBooks failed to supply sufficient charge when connected to a power adapter. Apple is providing new, redesigned USB-C charge cables to MacBook owners with faulty cables at ** cost.

Related Roundup: Retina MacBook
Tags: amazon.com, USB-C
Buyer's Guide: MacBook (Don't Buy)

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