Chuck M 

I know USB is the standard for most rechargeable devices, but I'm afraid I won't be able to see to plug in those little connectors before I'm too old to ride.

If there was one physical thing I could get back, it would be a toss up between my eyesight and hearing.

Bald Paul

Thankfully, USB-C seems to be the new standard. I can't tell you how many times I tried to jam one of those mini and micro connectors in upside down. On the units I have that use them, I paint a white dot on one side of the connector, and one on the unit. Line up the dots and connect.

Chuck M 

The white dot idea is a good one. I may do that.

Iride01 

I use a red paint pen. Certainly we'll be at odd's!

Red dots make it charge faster! <grin>

DiabloScott

Me too! White out works great - pen or brush.

Calsun

When I reached my 40's I need to wear eyeglasses for many tasks and still do. For bike rides I wear safety glasses that are bifocals and provide me with a 2.0 diopter magnification and they cost less than $20 and are availalble in clear, gray, and yellow tint.

USB-C is a welcome change having dealt with the USB B micro and mini and type A connectors for years. I now keep the appropriate cable stored with the device to save on hunting for a special cable.

Something to watch out for with USB-C devices is that the power draw depends on the wall charger that is used. Many need 10x the Watts output of the old chargers that fed a cell phone. With my power banks only a 20-Watt rated wall charger is effective.

Machka 

If you can't see to use a USB, can you see to ride?

njkayaker

Yes.

"Can't see" might be a bit of an exaggeration.

The orientation of the small micro USB is hard to see. It's not unusual for people to have trouble with it. It's harder than it should be for the simple task of plugging something in.

It's common for people to have trouble plugging in the larger USB A type.

https://upjoke.com/usb-jokes

Polaris OBark

I'm seeing double.

Polaris OBark

The remarkable thing about non-USB-C type USB connectors is that you have a 50/50 chance of getting it right the first time, but the odds are stacked > 99% against you. Even more remarkably, I've often gotten it wrong twice in a row.

Chuck M 

Yes. Quite well. Most everything I need to see on a ride is at a greater distance than arm's length.

This is how I expect my grandson should get his shoes on the correct feet. But somehow he has a higher percentage of getting it wrong than right.

BlazingPedals

That would be the definition of tough luck - to plug it wrong on the first try, then immediately try again and get it wrong again!

John E

The one big benefit of being -7 diopters myopic is that I simply remove my glasses whenever I need magnification of a small object.
My wife sometimes has to ask me to read fine print, even though her eyes are otherwise "better" than mine.

Ogsarg

Europe is requiring all devices use USB-C soon so I think you'll see everyone incorporate that soon to avoid different products for different areas. I think it is headed that way anyway but this will help it along. It is so much better and especially so much easier to insert into the receptacle.

79pmooney

Good idea! (I can still see those things in sufficient light - for now.) But I might go a step farther. White for one type, Red for another. Might need yellow.

79pmooney

+1 I have 4 levels of focus. Distance. Office. Reading. No glasses. I hate trifocals so I have distance/reading and office/reading.

_ForceD_

I just wish the electronics industry would have chosen one USB format and forced everyone (device makers, including Apple/iPhone) to use it. Instead…it seems like every new device comes with a different cable format.

Dan

Calsun

Not at all unusual for blind people to ride bicycles safely. But then they have the advantage of not being distracted by their smartphones.

terrymorse 

After several years of plugging in the wrong direction, I finally marked the connector with some acrylic paint.

Now it's almost fool proof.

Even so, I say death to all USB connectors (except USB-C).

KF2M

On quality USB cables (cheap ones probably not) the USB symbol (the one with the 3 dots connected to big one) is either embossed or inked onto the top of the connectors. The downside is there are manufacturer's who mount the port upside down.

Bald Paul

Precisely why USB-C is becoming the new standard. Or, rather, the standard, since there didn't seem to be one previously. Even if they were embossed 'correctly', the unit they were plugging in to wasn't necessarily marked. The dots work.

KF2M

Would have been a godsend when I used to work the trading floors on Wall St. Though sometimes you did not have the opportunity to see what, or where you were working so it was all done by feel. Think rats nest under a desk with upwards to a half dozen PC's each with at minimum 2 monitors, or a server rack in an IDF closet at the end of the hall that has a waterfall of multicolored wiring. Not just talking USB but RS-232, Ethernet, fiber, video, etc. Got good enough that I could tell what connector I had in my hand without even looking at it.

Machka