Chinese smartphone manufacturer OnePlus announced that it will refund customers who purchased its USB Type-C cable through its website between now and the end of the year.
To ‘refund‘ means to give customers their money back.
OnePlus acknowledged that its Type-C cable and USB Type-C adapter use a resistor that may not be fully compatible with some third-party devices.
The flaw was originally detected by Google engineer Benson Leung, who tested the cable and found that the it could potentially damage devices from other manufactures by drawing too much power.
The cable works fine with the OnePlus 2 it comes bundled with, according to the company. However, it’s not suited for devices from other companies, such as the LG Nexus 5X and Huawei Nexus 6P.
The OnePlus USB Type-C cable.
“Our cable and adapter use a 10kΩ resistor, but according to version 1.1 of the Type-C port standard, these products should be using a 56kΩ resistor. The issue is that the cable and adapter are designed for a maximum of 2 amps of power, but the resistor will allow fast-charging devices to try to draw more power than a power source may allow. This could result in damage to the power source (third-party charger, USB port, etc.) if the device and power source do not have an internal mechanism to self-regulate the amount of power flowing to or from them. Typically, if a charger has a CE, UL or CCC logo on it, it has been certified and is safe to use.”
“In the meantime, our team has already begun developing improved Type-C cables and adapters with 56kΩ resistors,” Pei wrote. We’ll keep you posted when they’re ready for release.”
The process for applying for a return/refund:
- North American and European customers: Visit oneplus.net/support/type-c-refund and fill out the form with all the relevant information.
- Indian and Chinese customers: Take the cable or adapter you wish to return to the nearest OnePlus repair center.
