Windows Phone Thoughts: Cell Phone Manufacturers to Standardize on Micro-USB for Charging?

"On Monday, the Open Mobile Terminal Platform (OMTP)--a forum dominated by operators but including manufacturers such as Nokia, Samsung, Motorola, Sony Ericsson and LG--announced that its members had agreed on micro-USB as the future common connector. Micro-USB, which is thinner than the currently ubiquitous mini-USB standard and therefore better suited to the ever-shrinking dimensions of mobile phones and other consumer electronics, was introduced to the world by the USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF) at the start of this year. Like mini-USB, the standard also makes it possible to charge phones from PCs."



Jason has ranted on this topic before, and while this announcement doesn't guarantee that Pocket PC Phones will all be standardized on Micro-USB (the left of the five in this image from Wikipedia's USB article), this is a first step, and hopefully one that compels broader adoption by mobile device manufacturers. I for one would applaud a model that avoids me having to buy, and toss, cable after cable after cable.