Is there any reason

Well... for one, if you bought something off me and it broke down... guess what I'd put the blame on ;)

Because if you could use a standard charger then you wouldn't buy THEIR charger and they wouldn't make any money which is the whole point of being in business in the first place.

Friday

I've never heard of a USB manufacturer blaming the USB port.

Michael

I think you're right, although I don't see how their profit would be effected that much. Surely the first manufacturer to start doing this would sell more products and make more money.

I suspect that some Chinese operator would rip off the design and produce them in such large quantities and at such a low price that no-one could compete. Then nobody would bother.

Whilst this will not relieve your frustration, a Douglas Adams essay is always a good read. Your post reminded me of one of my favorite DNA articles:

Cheers! Rick Measham

The first question to ask is "What is a *standard* charger?"

The chargers for my Motorola V3i and Bluetooth headset are both made in China. The phone and headset are probably made there as well. Check the labels on your own gear to see how much is made in China these days.

My O2 atom charges while plugged in to the USB port, though it would be nice if all phones had a standard charging port and all cars used the same parts..........

:-P

This boy is quick!

Would you like to drive the same car as everyone else. Would you like to live in a house that was identical to everyone else's?

If one factory made everything, where would we all get jobs to pay for all the identical products?

It's called consumer choice.

There's a huge difference in this case though, consumers don't need the choice of different chargers for different electronics. This choice is only to profit manufacturers (although I think it is a false economy for them).

Michael

No its not, currently there is no choice, you have to use the charger that the manufacturer provides. If there was a universal charger interface, you would be free to choose the charger that best suited you. Now THATS called consumer choice.

There already is a wall wart that has a USB socket mainly aimed at the IPod market. I would be surprised if it isn't made in China.

If all the units used this sort of charger then there would be no need to include a separate charger with each piece of equipment, manifacturer's cost would go down, packaging would be simplified, and transport costs reduced. All in all the consumer's price should drop. Also, if you lost your charger or it died, you could just drop into any electrical shop and pick up a new one. Try doing that now.

Well why dont i get a choice in the design of my 240v power point?

The choice is in the equipment. You choose the equipment, the manufacturer supplies the charger. What more could you want? If the equipment didnt come with a charger, then you would have something to complain about.

High level of intelligence on this group tonight, isn't there?

Great for the environment isn't it? It's called waste.

:-P