The USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF) announced that the new generation of USB-C cables will support 240W power transfer. This is a big leap as current USB-C power delivery is capped at 100W.
The 240-Watt Power Delivery Option Is Called Extended Power Range (EPR)
The 240-watt power delivery upgrade comes in the form of the version 2.1 revision to USB-C. In an announcement on the official USB-IF website, the organization stated that the new power delivery option is referred to as Extended Power Range (EPR).
The release document also outlines other features of the new USB-C port. Cables with 240-watt power delivery will need to have visual symbols "so that end users will be able to confirm visually that the cable supports" 240W charging in the first place.
Additionally, manufacturers will need to make several design changes to their charging adapter. This is to prevent damage and potential misuse of the 240-watt power delivery cables. To comply with 240W power standards, cables will be required to support 5A and 50V of power.
Most gaming laptops and even monitors consume less than 240W of power. This means that these devices could soon be powered by the new EPR USB-C cables. You could even use high-end printers with that much power. This support could extend to e-bikes as well.
To put this into perspective, the MacBook Pro requires about 96 watts of power to charge. The 17-inch Razer Blade with the RTX 3080 comes bundled with a 230W charger. While the MacBook already uses a USB-C charger, the beefiest gaming laptops could soon sport USB-C charging as well.
When Will USB-C With EPR Be Available
Most likely, consumers could see the new USB-C cables in the market by late 2021 or early 2022. Since, it's a new technology, most manufacturers will take extra time in order to optimize it for their devices.
Additionally, devices such as gaming laptops and monitors could take additional time to adopt the technology since the traditional power cables serve them well.
Furthermore, smartphones already support 120W charging and implementing 240W charging could be overkill. However, it will be exciting to see whether electric vehicles such as e-bikes adopt the new technology. Even if they do, it is highly likely that we will get to see them anytime before 2025 or even 2030.
Notably, the iMac uses a 143W power adapter that could be the perfect candidate for the 240W USB-C cables.