Micro USB to connect most of our devices in future

Almost 10 leading mobile / mobility device manufacturers have formally signed a European Commission Memorandum of Understanding which curbs the creation of e-waste by making manufacturers of mobiles to use the standard (Micro USB) for charging the devices and also for connecting them to computers for data exchange.

Micro USB are not to be confused with Mini USB which is already available in many phones especially from Motorola and BlackBerry. Mini USB has a very super cool option that will seamlessly allow different mobile devices to be connected with each other without the actual need for a host computer. The Micro USB is already in use in the Amazon Kindle which has a craze following in the US market.

Some of the company’s that have signed the agreement include Apple, LG, Motorola, NEC, Nokia, Qualcomm, Research in Motion, Samsung, Sony Ericsson, and Texas Instruments. These are the same company’s which are members of the OMTP Forum.

As per the commitment on the MoU signed the manufacturer’s need to roll out all their products with support to Micro USB from the year 2010. This is really a very exciting news since we don’t have to anymore worry about different sets of cables for charging or data transfer purposes. Currently, I have atleast 3-4 sets of chargers for my Sony Ericsson, BlackBerry and Nokia mobiles and another equal number of cables that are needed for syncing each of these devices with my PC / Laptop.

Once, we have the Micro USB standard we can have a single charger and data cable for most of our devices. Imagine using the same charger to charge ur Sony Ericsson mobile as well as your BlackBerry and also your iPod – now that’s gonna be super cool. But, you’ll need to purchase the new models that are released post 2010 (Now that’s a catch).