For months, a battle over EV charging has taken place across the auto industry, playing out in headline after headline and pitting one type of connector against another to gain dominance and win consolidation into a single standard.
But set aside electric vehicles for a moment: There's another charging connector transition underway that affects far more vehicles and exponentially more consumers. And it's coming to an instrument panel and rear seat near you — if it hasn't already arrived.
The Universal Serial Bus-A connector — the thin, rectangular hole with the plastic tongue that's been a part of automotive equipment since 2006 — is being replaced by the smaller, more efficient USB-C. The USB upgrade has been ongoing in the larger world since 2014, with computer, cellphone and electronics manufacturers migrating steadily to the new standard.
In the auto industry, the transition remains a work in progress.
Just how widespread is the switch to USB…