At last, a miniature USB cable for handsets is at hand

Two years ago, the Micro USB spec was standardized, and shortly thereafter, the Open Mobile Terminal Platform (OMTP) announced approved it as the universal standard phone cable.

This week, the OMTP -- sponsored by Ericsson and Nokia, and 35 hardware and software manufacturers across the telecommunications industry -- announced the publication (PDF available here) of the "Common Charging and Local Data Connectivity" (CLD) document -- a sort of industry agreement upon what these Micro USB cables need to provide.

It seems a long time in the making, but the grip of mini USB on the mobile phone market is strong, and Micro USB introduces some new factors that change the way devices interact with each other. For example, an interaction that micro USB will allow that isn't common today is USB OTG ("on the go"), or the ability for two mobile devices to directly connect via USB without the need for a host computer. Furthermore, regulations surrounding micro USB also set much higher goals for energy efficiency and reduced environmental impact.

OMTP said, "Reaching an industry agreement on standard charging and data
connectivity solutions, still leaving room for innovation, shall streamline
the whole value chain and provide end users with wider choice when
choosing peripherals and enable the use of a common charger across
multiple terminals. The user will also be able to use their legacy home
entertainment and PC equipment that support USB connectors; and
their chargers. This will stimulate a new market opportunity for
peripheral vendors, which will benefit the end user and support
convergence-related operator business cases such as music delivery."

The group has set 2012 as the target year for a mobile device market that is based around the Micro USB standard.