FWIW, "smart" vs "dumb/plain" USB cables can often be spotted by comparing the sizes of the plug housing. Plain/dumb USB cables have smaller plastic plug housings. The "smart" USB cable included with my Light & Motion Rando 500 has oversized plug housings colored orange.
Some of my other devices have special USB cables, but these aren't color coded, or the plug housings are only slightly larger than plain cables, so it's not easy to spot the special cables after I've dumped them all into a basket or drawer. I try to tag the special cables but forgot to do so with my bike computer USB cable. Without the special USB cable I can only recharge the bike computer. With the special cable I can transfer data via USB to my computer, rather than just wirelessly.
Unfortunately all of this complicates the USB standard, which was originally intended to minimize confusion over varying cable and plug standards. The only remaining standard is that most USB cables will recharge most USB rechargeable devices.