A patent filed by Microsoft was seen yesterday, and it is pointing to a magnetic USB type-C (male) connector. It is said that this could be Microsoft’s solution in changing its current surface connector for future USB-C ready surface devices.

Background
Last month, Microsoft launched its new Surface Laptop and Surface Pro 2-in-1 tablet in select markets, and reviews for both devices have been positive so far. If you’re really picky though, you may not like the fact that both devices are almost impossible to repair, and Microsoft also received some flak for not future-proofing its latest Surface products with USB-C ports.
The part of the patent was made by the director of the bazaar designer Jan Rake, and it was first shared online by the MSPV user. The patent shows a new type of USB-C connector that connects the benefits of the original surface connector and the new USB-C standard.

About new connector
The new connector will actually be smaller and slim than the current surface connector, but it would be easy to attach and separate within the magnets too. If someone accidentally touches the cable, the magnetic connector will only be different and will not drag the user’s device from the table. Although this kind of USB-C connector seems like a fantastic solution.

Disadvantage
Microsoft’s patent says that the connector will only be able to support USB 2.0 speed, which is only up to 60 Mbps. This USB-C port can be a bit useless because most type-connectors are using USB 3.0 (5Gbps) and USB 3.1 (10Gbps) speed. Even if there is a lack of new magnetic USB-C connector, it should also be able to give power to surface devices. It seems that its purpose is to charge the batteries of any device.

New USB-C is slow! Why
Due to this new USB-C connector is slow, so the reason is that Microsoft has succeeded in making it small and thin. The new connector does not include six external power contacts, which is a normal USB-C connector. Microsoft’s proposed connector lacks the regular USB-C male connector springs, which has been replaced by a set of magnets.

Speed is limited
The speed of the male connector is limited to the USB 2.0 standard; it cannot be said about the female side. Microsoft’s future surface tablet and or laptop may still have a fully functional USB-C port that is compatible with USB 3.0 or USB 3.1 standard. This means that users should be able to continue using standard USB-C dongles, devices, and cables, as told by Neowin.

Conclusion
Microsoft unveiled Surface Laptops, the company’s high end Windows 10S laptop for students and teachers, as well as the Surface Pro 2017 refresh some people were a little disappointed that the two devices lacked USB-C ports, this year. The first prototype of ground floor laptop was also seen with USB-C ports. This suggests that Microsoft was already interested in it, but not really to end it on any of its new products.