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Every USB C to USB C cable is at least USB 3.1.

No, they are not.

Exhibit A:
https://www.apple.com/shop/pro...

Exhibit B:
https://griffintechnology.com/...

Some might argue that these are not "USB" cables because they violate some specification as defined by the people that own the USB logo. These are cables, with USB-C connectors on both ends, and that cannot be argued.

These are not unknown small time manufacturers either. Apple is a huge company and Griffin has been making computer cables for 25 years.

There's also an uncommon USB 2.0 Type C cable, which doesn't have any of the high speed pairs.

These are actually quite common. They are usually sold as "charge only" cables but the USB2 sets of wires are there to provide a data path to let the charging device know something is connected and to negotiate a charging rate.

One thing that I thought was true was that if a cable or device had a USB-C port or connector that it would have the pins for USB 2 data. This seemed true even for all the alternate modes, the USB 2 pins would still be there and could transmit data at USB 2 speeds. That data might only be "I'm here, now charge me" for a lot of devices but the cable would support USB 2 data. I was wrong.

I bought a Griffin "Magsafe" style USB-C charge cable that does not have a USB 2 data pass through. I don't have it here to verify but it seems it has some sort of USB chip on each end to tell the device it's plugged into that it can pass 60 watts of power, but that's it. Not a big deal since I had no intention of ever using this cable for data but I thought it would be nice to know that if I needed to just make something work, even if at only USB 2 speeds, I could use this cable to do it.

The one common feature across all the USB-C alternate modes was the USB 2 pins and 5V/1A/5W power, or so I thought. Seems that I can't even rely on a cable with USB-C connectors on both ends to transfer data at all.

I went to the website for the product and after looking closely I saw no USB emblem.
https://griffintechnology.com/...

They'll claim it meet USB-C specifications but they seem to use enough legalese to avoid getting slapped around by the USB lawyers, or the USB group is okay with a USB cable not actually passing through USB data.

Perhaps I'm picking nits in calling this "common" or even a "USB cable". I'm quite certain that I can find a USB 2 only cable, or power only cable, that is USB-C to USB-C at most any cell phone shop, grocery store, truck stop, hardware store, or fruit vendor.

They have : but it's a bit clunky so maybe Rev2 will be slimmer and sleeker to go with the MacBook...

It's also not cheap, but if you're spending $2k for a laptop another $40 isn't going to kill you.

A great idea for a USB-C charging cable that had a magnetic breakaway connector in the middle

Griffin has something like this:
https://griffintechnology.com/...

However, I'm not sure if it can take the full 90 watt from the Apple USB-C power adapter.

https://griffintechnology.com/...

Fantastic. Yet another dongle. Let's see. Magsafe dongle, dongle to charge iPhone, iPhone audiojack dongle. Ethernet dongle.

It's dongles all the way down.

https://griffintechnology.com/...

Yeah, if only somebody would do that.

they removed one of the biggest selling features for me: MagSafe. That one connector has saved my notebook's ass many times, and it's a sad day to see it disappear off notebooks until Apple's magsafe patent expire someday. PreviouslyApple claimed the macbook air was too light for the magnets to separate, but i don't think that argument applies for the heavier macbook pro.

    jerks.

I like MagSafe too. Looks like Griffin (and others?) are selling magnetic couplers for USB-c ports:

https://griffintechnology.com/...

...which is itself just a smaller version of a 19th century connector:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/maga...

Has anyone made a 1/4 inch jack to Lightning adapter yet?

I assume you mean to plug in a guitar/bass/keyboard?

Griffin has the "GuitarConnect Pro". Walmart supposedly sells them for $20 (list is $60). There are also others; but that comes closest to a "cable". BTW, it also supplies an Output, too, which is cool.

Unfortunately, it is mono; so if you have a stereo guitar (yes, they exist), bass (they also exist) or keyboard, you will have to sum the outputs with a Y-Cable before bringing them in to this device, or find another that has stereo input capabilities.

I'll add, the only downside was getting used to the dpi change when using a mouse. You have to move a noticeable amount more to clear the width of your desktop. I adjusted the mouse sensitivity up a little, but you don't want it too much or it feels unprecise. Its partly just a matter of accepting the increase in real estate you have :)

I wonder if it would become natural/intuitive enough to be essentially unnoticeable after a week or two of practice to have a knob or something mapped to adjust mouse sensitivity on-the-fly? If it didn't become intuitive, such an arrangement would really be no better than just using the usual OS adjustment dialogs; but if a little practice caused you to stop even having to think about the fact that you are using it such an arrangement(doesn't need to be that specific peripheral, it's just sort of the iconic USB-attached-knob) it could actually be pretty handy to be able to smoothly move between sweeping-but-imprecise zooming around your giant screen(s) and then upping the sensitivity as you approach the target and need to get some precise clicking done.

echo everything said, however you have to admit the design was pretty cool. and products such as this: http://www.griffintechnology.com/twenty show that there's a demand for wireless products with integrated amps.

Griffin Powermate. Been around a while, affordable.

http://store.griffintechnology.com/powermate-1

Let the net do your shopping to save $bucks.

Lots more out there, this has easy interface via USB.

Red

I'm using the Griffin iMate(?)

The only "problem" is that the power button on the keyboard doesn't work to turn on the Mac. It'll shut it down OK, it just won't start it up.

There appears to be a small 'button' battery inside the interface. I suspect that if I replaced it with a fresh battery, the power button would suddenly be able to boot the Mac.

As the computer is under the desk and close at hand, it's no big deal to hit the power button on the front when needed.

Other than that, the ADB/USB interface has been a flawless performer for me.

The only other 'problem' is that the ADB socket is a bit loose, however, a strip of duct tape around the ADB plug and iMate fixed that.

FYI, the iMate is discontinued, but can be found on eBay. Also, Griffin claims that it won't work with Tiger .

Worked fine under Tiger for me, and works fine under Leopard (10.5.8).

First boot after installing Leopard, I had to hit a couple of keys for the OS to recognize the keyboard. After that, every Leopard update has recognized the keyboard right off.

I'm getting a 2 year old white plastic MacBook from a friend later this year. After I install OS 10.6, I'm going to see if the iMate/Extended combo will work under Intel/Snow Leopard. I'm thinking "yes".

http://www.griffintechnology.com/products/imic

i play with the optimus mini three v2 ("check/fold", "check/call", "bet/raise"), and griffin powermate to vary bet sizes in no limit or pot limit games (turn knob), and switch tables (press knob).

Griffin Technology's PowerMate USB Multimedia Controller.

You can get a bunch of these: http://www.griffintechnology.com/products/powermate/

These used to be common, long ago: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dial_box

The "3Dmouse" mentioned above is not a dial. It is a puck that's spring-loaded to stay centered.
You cannot rotate it freely, so it is a relative control and not an absolute control.

Frankly, I've never understood why any manufacturer of ANY laptop, Mac or PC, would make a desktop-replacement grade laptop with no way to dock it so you can comfortably work AT A DESKTOP!

My MBP usually lives on one of these so I avoid using the horrible keyboard which blighted the Alu MBP.

Plugging in the power, Ethernet, video and a single USB and power takes a whole ten seconds, so its hardly a chore.

Lots of laptop manufacturers do (or did) produce docks - including Apple - but they never seem to have taken the world by storm. They add to the build cost of the laptop (custom connectors) and tend to be expensive (and, lets face it, you really need one for home and one for work).

One big reason is interference. With my house full of nerd gear and Ethernet wiring, using a real tuner amp gives very noisy AM reception. Even using USB extension cables to put it along an outside wall as far away from electronic devices as possible, I still get the same trouble with a Griffin RadioShark. I also get bad interference on AM radio as I drive my car into my garage.

RFI is nothing new. When I was a kid, I had to turn off my TRS-80 whenever the family wanted to watch channel 12 on the TV.

Would this help?

http://www.griffintechnology.com/products/imate

Hey, you can bet I'm still pissed about the iMac, with their switch from ADB to USB, making my WACOM tablet obsolete.

(in fact, the fucker's still working JUST FINE on my beige G3 - wish I could connect this $600 monstrosity to my Pro.)

Will it not work with a USB to ADB adapter like this? $39 doesn't seem like a bad price to possibly rescue a $600 device.

Griffin Technology makes an iPhone 3G case called the Clarifi with a built-in mini-macro lens. Perfect for this sort of thing.

http://www.griffintechnology.com/products/xpresscable/

I've used (and still have) one of these keyboards. It lives teathered to an old Mac lcIII.
A long while ago I found an ADB->USB adaptor, for using it on newer systems, which runs about $40 from http://www.griffintechnology.com/products/imate

Unfortunatly due to the nature of ADB, the response time will be quite low, and although there may have been some improvements in the driver software since then, at the time it was very hard to map all of the keys correctly to use with windows.

Everyone bashes the iMac's "hockey puck" mouse, but why don't they mention the keyboard?

Think of it like this:

When someones jamming a needle into your brain through your eye you tend not to notice he's also standing on your foot.

So... if anyone knows how to adapt an ADB keyboard to a PS/2 port, PLEASE tell me!

There were a number of adb->usb adapters made when the imacs arrived.
For example: http://www.griffintechnology.com/products/imate

You say PS2 which suggests you want to use it with a PC, so I'm guessing Windows or Linux. Keyboards and mice are supported under XP, and I figure if XP can see it as a usb keyboard there's decent odds Linux can too.

This reminds me a little bit of the rash of i-products that came out after the iPod became successful. Items like the iTrip and the iSpeakers took the design style of the iPod, coupled with the letter I, and sought to piggyback on their sales. I'm not sure if they ever had a deal with Apple to link their products like that, but the simple outcome was that a lot of people, at least that I knew, bought those products thinking that they were official Apple products and not third-party vendors. They weren't terrible products, but there was still market confusion, which I guess is the point here.

example: Itrip - 50$. Same transmitter @ ebay = 6$. Non Ipod ebay example? 10$ w/car charger. Similar non Ebay? 20$ .

Trust me, IPOD isn't special. I like the wheel, its a great thing that stupidly no other MP3 player has decided to support, aka "hmm, maybe they want to jump through the playlist really fast". Apparently that logic never caught on, instead it's "hmm, maybe after holding down next for 10 seconds we should speed up the search", as well as pitiful playlist support. I'll still never buy an IPOD, but people really need to realize the true benefits. Also, Ipod's don't play a lot of formats that other players (such as creative vision) do, and apple DRM's the stuff so that you can't transfer it to other people (creative could care less).

Add one then.

design high end interfaces for home theaters (where the remote it's self costs around $2500.00US or more.) and the number one thing my customers like is not the fancy graphics, cool animations or nicely laid out controls on the touchscreen.. but the VOLUME CONTROL HARD BUTTONS built into the side edge.

A $2500 remote, and you make do with +/- buttons to adjust the volume? Augh! +/- buttons are a miserable way to adjust such an analogue function. Adjustment is either too slow (going up/down 1 dB per keypress) or too fast (when you hold the button down and the acceleration function kicks in).
A linear slider or a rotary knob is much better: it allows both fine control, and huge, fast adjustments (without too much overshoot) when needed.

As far as I know, there are only two remotes that get this right: the Philips SRU 9600, and Quad once had a remote like this.

I'm using a Griffin Powermate to control the volume when watching TV on my computer. It's brilliant.

It might be fun to bind it to "skip track" and hit it hard whenever that song you meant to delete ages ago comes up.

For such things, might I recommend a Griffin Powermate? Excellent device.

Cheers,
Ian

Cassettes are dead, man, and the updated technology no longer includes this capability.

You're being obtuse. I didn't say anything about satellite or digital radio. The parent refered to recording songs off of FM radio, which you can still do today. And why do you automatically assume cassette tapes? Why not directly to your computer?

Still, a tape was more than good enough in a portable or in the car. MP3s are lossy, and most people seem happy with them, so I don't know what you mean when you say that "people don't feel the same way anymore."

You're ignoring the context. The parent was talking about DRM being a "culture shock" because it apparently prevents the kind of format-shifting described above. In fact, it permits exactly the same loss-inducing kind.

My point is that where once it was "acceptable" to record a CD onto a tape, incurring a loss of quality (perceptible or not), in the DRM-era it is "unacceptable" to incur any loss or face any obstacle when format-shifting. Saying "burn/rerip" can get you shot in some circles, even though it actually works.

The worst thing about computers these days is how much media stuff they try to do without giving you a good natural feeling interface to something as simple as volume control.

http://www.griffintechnology.com/products/powermat e/

Solves my problem. I really prefer being able to twist a knob to adjust volume. I realize it's a simple thing, but it makes the whole computer a lot more human. Clicking buttons, dragging things on screen, or keyboard shortcuts have never felt right. Twist the knob and the volume is adjusted: perfect. This is great particularly in games, or when watching a movie or anything like that where volume can be an issue. Regular computer use with beeps and bongs isn't really the driving factor for my desire of a regular ol' knob for volume.

New sound "card" for Mac mini? Yes: http://www.griffintechnology.com/products/firewave /

New TV tuners for Mac mini? Yes: http://www.elgato.com/

Additional USB ports for Mac mini? Yes: Any one of a thousand USB hubs on the market.

Okay, the graphics are not upgradeable, but please show me the PC video card that will fit in your "equivalent" PC with the MIni's form factor.

New sound "card" for Mac mini? Yes: http://www.griffintechnology.com/products/firewave /
New TV tuners for Mac mini? Yes: http://www.elgato.com/
Additional USB ports for Mac mini? Yes: Any one of a thousand USB hubs on the market.
Okay, the graphics are not upgradeable, but please show me the PC video card that will fit in your "equivalent" PC with the MIni's form factor.

There is another product called the Radio Shark that has been out for years that does the same thing. It runs great on MacOS X.

As in This RadioShark

The iMic USB soundcards are really nice. Good quality parts, 48k@24 bit recording (iirc). Interface-wise these cards are very simple. They pretty much just have volume and balance, no frilly features to speak of. Oh, and it runs on Mac, Linux, Windows, etc. without special drivers. By far one of the best (consumer-grade) sound cards I've ever used. And no, I don't work for them.

Griffin makes the SmartDeck, which does exactly that.

Take a look at EyeTV. It's a pretty decent PVR program. I've got their EyeTV 500 hardware to receive HDTV (ATSC), but I've got an EyeTV Hybrid on order, which will do analog and digital. Add the EyeTV in full-screen mode to Front Row, and you've got a pretty competitive media center. I got rid of my DVD player, stereo, and TV, and replaced them all with a Mac mini with the EyeTV and a RadioShark.

I was speaking of the recent FM receiver, you must mean the iTrip Nano It looks as though the iTrip Nano can only take over the whole screen while it is connected while the Apple model has a higher resolution tuning UI. I can't find any indication that there is an official SDK for developing iPod extensions, the only protocol information seems to be this which only covers the 3rd Gen iPod. The point stands that Apple can release new firmware anytime they want to add functionality for to support a new accessory, but the 3rd parties are limited to what hacks they can produce by reverse engineering the existing dock protocols.

Speaking of radio.

The only radio I have that I ever turn on is in my car. This is mostly to play stuff from my iPod through my RoadTrip. For me this is one of two killer features. The other was that I already had and used iTunes on my iBook so that intergration was nice.

Although I do love that it also "just works" and I can drag a drop tunes into it with my OpenBSD boxes.

Good thought.

Is there any sort of TiVo-like application for doing this (I'm thinking Mac or Linux)? I looked at StreamRipper, and it seems fairly straightforward if you just want to capture the stream and separate it into files -- how are you scheduling it? Just with a cron job, or is there some frontend/scheduler that I'm missing?

I've actually been toying for a while with the idea of getting a Griffin Radio Shark, which basically does "TiVO for Radio," but no sense in listening to a recorded FM broadcast if I can get a MP3 feed instead. (All I'm interested in listening to is NPR, basically.)

What would really be handy is a single program that displays programming info, schedules recordings, saves them, and then adds them to an RSS feed that you can subscribe to from another computer with iTunes as a Podcast, to have it loaded on your iPod automatically. Actually I have to think somebody has already made something that does that.

Griffin is actually the reason I've gone from mildly ignoring the iPod to active revulsion over the accursed device. I can accept the inexplicable bumper crop of white colored single-purpose peripherials, the profusion of morons thinking iPod was is and will be the first and only hard drive mp3 player, but watching what was formerly one of the greatest human computer interface companies in the world reduce their entire r&d to these white shiny peripherials... well... enough is enough. You've got your false god Jobs, thats fine, I respect your beliefs even if I disagree with them, but please leave your pagan devil worshipping their, stop oppressing my own religion; stop trying to convert our Saints to your blasphemy.

Look, just give us back Griffin and I'll suceed that iPod is the master device. Anything, just give em back!

One word; PowerMate.
Big. Shiny. Knob.
Best. Interface. Evar.

Love and kisses,
Myren

My main gripe with accessories is that they don't work with all the numerous versions of the iPod.

Take this example, I'm the happy owner of an iPod mini (which did not had a long life), but the great iTalk does not (and will probably never) work with the mini. See this Griffin iPod Compatibility chart, you'll find out the huge gap in iPod accessories compatibilities. (no I don't work for griffin, I'm just making a point here, I'm pretty sure other accessories providers have the same "problem"...)

It would be nice to get 5.1 out for movies...

I'm actually researching this now. The Apple DVD Player is 5.1 compatible. I don't know if the signal out of the Mac is surround sound compatible though. However, there are a few devices you can get to help with this:
http://www.m-audio.com/products/en_us/Transit-main .html
http://www.m-audio.com/products/en_us/SonicaTheate r-main.html
http://www.griffintechnology.com/products/firewave /

The FireWave (the last one) looks like the best bet to me. I might be buying one soon.

Just buy an iPod and the upcoming Griffen Tunecenter - it finally does the one thing I've wanted from the video iPod - display a menu on the TV.

Seems that most of the HTPC's I've run across just run into odd complications (usually because they won't just let me rip my DVD's to the hard drive, for fear of having the crap sued out of them). Which leaves either MythTV, or this iPod solution.

Honestly, what on earth are you talking about ? Name one current piece of hardware that works on a Macintosh but does not work on a PC.

Maybe the Mighty Mouse should 'just work' as a USB mouse, it's even supported by Apple under XP. Maybe the ball might not work 'just right' without some other software support ( maybe? ) but I can't think of anything else that's an external device that wouldn't work at least to some degree with a PC... maybe some USB audio devices ? Couldn't you just write drivers for those? Aren't there PC equivalents? How does Apple being on Intel make writing a Windows driver for, say, a Griffin iMic any different than it is now? BTW, I checked, and actually, the iMic supports XP... what's the hardware you're talking about that will be affected by the Mac Intel switch, exactly? I've tried, including with the example of the Mighty Mouse you've given, but they're *all* PC devices, it seems.

Plenty of PC stuff still won't really work on a Macintosh, though, just because a Macintosh isn't going to have 'legacy' stuff like RS232 parallel ports or PS/2 inputs, but anything else was ( and is ) still going to be a matter of writing supporting software- which still puts the OS with less market share at a disadvantage, no matter how easy developing for OS X is. The Intel switch doesn't change that, and for most gadget-makers it doesn't change anything, except the perception of folks like you.

All of this stuff is Mac-specific only in that it was being shown at MacWorld Expo. A ton of MacWorld Expo stuff is also PC-compatible... but that's nothing new. As for PC makers ( and others ) cribing Apple hardware design, that's nothing new, either, and I don't see how it could really get more prevalent than it already is.

One thing you won't be able to do, at least with Apple's factory setup of the iPod, is listen to radio (unless one day they charge for satellite radio). This could be so easily added as it is seen on competitors' devices but if users aren't listening to downloaded music, rather something from a source they do not control, then they are not buying things on iTunes. Am I correct to guess that this is a marketing thing and not because they can't fit a little radio on there? If so, that should be a big criticism of the device.

That would explain why the "competitor's devices" are now a runaway success and iPod is just a miserable failure...

..or rather is it the othey way round? Well, if it is - then this should be a pretty good answer for your "big criticism". The market demand for radio-equipped digital music players is too small for Apple to bother. Apple's strategy seems to be "sell a basic device with ginormous offer of all kind of add-ons (among them - FM receivers). The "competitors devices" seem to be based on an entirely opposite strategy - "sell a device with all features that we can fit... and no add-ons". It seems that the first one works better on the market, would you agree?

FM PCI card + Total Recorder + Shoutcast.

Or you could just try one of those Radio Sharks, which actually seems like what you want.

To all those who think my above comment was "Flamebait" or a "Troll":

Firstly, I'm a Mac fan. I'm not a PC lover, a Microsoft fan, or a troll. But that doesn't prevent me from seeing the realities of my chosen community, and yes, Mac/Apple fans ARE still trendoids, far more so than PC folks.

Submitted as evidence:

Would the PC world pay forty bucks for a glorified volume knob? No, but these things have been on the Mac market for quite a while now.

How would a $100 trackball fare in the PC community? Pretty piss-poor, but these guys (and their ADB predecessors) were mainstays of the Mac community for years.

Fancy a thousand dollar low-end laptop? Mac fans buy them in droves. I've bought several.

Maybe a sixty dollar ONE-BUTTON mouse? Mac users buy 'em. By the thousands.

How about a $2,500 monitor? You'd be hard-pressed to find a Mac fan who wouldn't buy one if they had the money.

Thirty-five bucks for a small rubber sleeve? Three hundred bucks for a small pair of flat panel speakers? All of these things would fail miserably in the PC world, but there's a market for them in the Mac world.

That's not to say Mac fans (including myself) are stupid, merely that they (we) like gadgets, and are willing (if not always able) to pay a premium to get shiny goodies.

So, yes, Mac users are trendoids, but not stupid trendoids. If you want to talk about stupid trendoids, look at the "audiophile" morons buying $300 power cables.