Google Engineer loses Chromebook Pixel after using bad USB-C cables

Over the last few months, Google engineer Benson Leung has been testing out USB Type-C cables and rating them in an effort to stop consumers from buying dodgy cables that don't meet the recommended specification for USB Type-C. Now, that mission has ended in one cable frying his Chromebook Pixel, essentially proving his point that bad USB cables can do serious damage to hardware.

Leung's reviews were posted on Amazon and the most recent cable to come across his desk was made by a company called ‘SurjTech'. Apparently this particular USB Type-C cable was “completely miswired” and ended up destroying his testing equipment, which included a Chromebook Pixel. Obviously, Leung didn't realise it was miswired until after the fact.

The engineer explained exactly where the company went wrong with its cable, saying” the GND pin on the Type-A plug is tied to the Vbus pins on the Type-C plug”. This is evidently a bad thing and can have an adverse effect on the hardware it comes into contact with.

Due to this, Leung's USB Type-C reviews will be “slowing down a bit” and he is not too happy about the incident. If you are planning on buying a USB Type-C cable, then you can check out Leung's current reviews, HERE to find one that won't break your device.

KitGuru Says: It seems that badly made USB cables can be an even bigger problem than we first thought, with this one completely frying a laptop. Hopefully this will help raise awareness of the issues and cable makers will start meeting the proper specification for Type-C. 

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