Understanding cable tech can be hard at times—harder than it should be, really—and weighing the pros and cons of a new gadget is complicated enough without having to know the differences between HDMI 2.1 and HDMI 2.2, or the reason some USB-C ports are also Thunderbolt ports.
Help is at hand, though: WhatCable does a fine job of analyzing the cables attached to your Mac—not just giving you a list of specs but also explaining what those specs mean.
One way the app can be useful is in explaining why your MacBook isn't charging as quickly as it could be. This can be down to the charger and the cable you've got connected, and WhatCable will break all of this down for you without any jargon. You'll see the rate your laptop is charging at, and the reasons why.
Why your cables matter
To fully explain the modern cable landscape would take an article many times the length of this one, but it is possible to get to grips with the basics relatively quickly. Every connection has three elements that you need to consider together: The port on the device you're connecting to (like a monitor or charger), the cable in between, and the port on the device you're using (like a phone or laptop).
For the best results (the fastest charging or the smoothest display performance, for example), all those elements must be supporting the same standards. If they aren't, you might not get optimum results, or the setup might not work at all.
Unfortunately for us as consumers, simply finding a cable that fits a port isn't enough to guarantee everything will work, or work as well as you might like. Both cables and ports come with supported standards that you need to weigh, like the various flavors of USB (we're up to USB 4.0 version 2 now, for reference).
Always double-check the specs when buying a new cable. Credit: LifehackerThe most common port you'll see on laptops and phones today is USB-C, but this is only the start of the story. USB-C ports can also support Thunderbolt and DisplayPort protocols, as well as a variety of USB speeds—you need to check the device spec for details. Even similar-sized ports on the same device may be configured differently.
When you've determined what the ports on your computer or phone are capable of, you need to find a cable that supports the same standard, to get the best possible results. Be careful when reviewing cable listings before buying, both in terms of specs and length—cables beyond one meter (a little over three feet) typically require extra tech to support the highest data speeds, and will therefore usually be more expensive.
To add to the confusion, these standards are changing pretty regularly, with manufacturers sometimes adopting the changes promptly and sometimes waiting a while to implement them. The short version is, don't rush cable buying, or think that all cables and ports are the same. Spend a few extra minutes analyzing the relevant specs in detail, and it'll pay off.
How WhatCable can help figure out your cables
You can download WhatCable for free from its website or GitHub page, which will both direct you to a zip archive. Launch the app, and WhatCable shows up on the menu bar; click its icon to see details of connected USB cables. Via the cog icon (top right) you can have WhatCable launch with macOS, and run as a regular app rather than from the menu bar. As soon as you get connect a cable, you'll see information on the charging speed and data transfer rate (where applicable), and a breakdown of what the cable can do.
If you've connected a charger, then you'll be told whether or not it's a good match for your MacBook. Look for the "charging well" message for confirmation, alongside the charging rate. If a cable isn't charging your MacBook at the maximum speed, or the MacBook is itself limiting the charging (because the battery is almost full), you'll be told about this too.
WhatCable presents its data in a simple, understandable way. Credit: LifehackerIf you've hooked up a phone or another peripheral, then its identity will be reported inside WhatCable, and it's here that the data transfer speeds might be more relevant. If an external storage device has been connected, then you'll see the transfer speed it's negotiated with the Apple operating system.
WhatCable also looks at the e-marker inside a cable, which is essentially its digital ID, advertising its capabilities to the computer it's plugged into. If there are discrepancies between this e-marker and commonly followed technology standards, then you'll see an orange flag. It's not necessarily saying the cable is a fake, but just alerting you to something that doesn't quite seem right.
In short, any details that the cable is reporting to macOS will get shown by WhatCable, and you should see a significant difference between cheap and limited cables and the more expensive and powerful ones—which will be a reassurance if you've paid extra.
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