USB plugs are the harshest example of quantum physics — you can try to plug them into a socket one way, and they won’t fit. You then try and plug them in the other way… and they won’t fit. Only on the third try will a USB plug fit into its socket. (This is the USB Superposition Principle.) Not so with these physics-defying double-sided microUSB and USB Type-C cables from ViPower — you can plug either end in any way, and it’ll work.
A regular, boring, principles-of-quantum-theory-following USB cable for your smartphone has two ends. There’s the Type-A end, the rectangular USB 2.0 or 3.0 connector that we’re all familiar with. This one’s OK (but still, not great). It’s the other end that is the source of all our pain — it’s the one that doesn’t seem to fit properly whenever we try to plug it into our smartphones.
ViPower has a cable that solves everything. We’ve seen this idea before on an IndieGogo campaign, but this one is actually available in Australia, and right now. Its raison d’etre is a microUSB connector that is symmetrical, with that rectangular diamond shape on both ends, so you’ll be able to plug it in however you like and have it fit the first time. (F**k you, science.)
Not only does this reversible microUSB cable fit in both ways like Apple’s Lightning connector, it also detects the device it’s plugged into, and lights up LEDs in the microUSB end to denote the rate of charge. Fast charge, too, means it’s compatible with Qualcomm Quick Charge 2.0 devices like the Samsung Galaxy S6. The connectors look pretty sturdy, too, so they should stand up to the constant unplugging and re-plugging of months of regular use.
If you have a new Google Nexus, a OnePlus Two or one of Microsoft’s Lumia 950 family, your phone will have USB Type-C, the rounded-rectangle reversible connector (also used on the MacBook) that promises to solve all life’s problems. But that still doesn’t solve the problem of the other end of the cable, the regular USB Type-A rectangular plug that connects to your PC or USB wall charger.
These ViPower cables, though — there’s a USB Type-C one as well — have a single sliver in the centre of that rectangle, with data and power connectors on both sides — so either orientation will work. Honestly, it’s like magic. AusPCMarket has ViPower’s microUSB and USB Type-C cables in stock; you’ll pay anywhere between $14 and $17 depending on which kind of cable you want and whether you’re after a 20cm, 50cm or 1-metre length. [AusPCMarket]