This new Apple Watch and USB-C charging cable looks like my ultimate travel accessory, but I’m less keen on the price

LovabledanielsFebruary 5, 202579 Views

Nomad has launched a cable that can power-up two devices at once
It can charge iPhones, Apple Watches, iPads and even MacBook Pros
It’s not cheap, though, with a $100 price tag

Tired of having to carry a bunch of cables to juice up your iPhone and Apple Watch? Accessory firm Nomad thinks it has the solution in the form of a cable that can charge both devices at the same time, reducing clutter on your desk and when you travel.

Dubbed the Universal Cable for Apple Watch, Nomad’s product is a 1.5m braided cable with a Kevlar outer weave. On one end is a USB-C connector, which can be plugged in to your power adapter, laptop, iPad, iPhone, or other USB-C device. So far, nothing too out of the ordinary.

The interesting part is found at the other end of the cable. There, you have another USB-C connector, but just before it is an integrated Apple Watch charging puck. It’s built into the cable, so you don’t need to attach or detach it at any time.

When the cable is plugged in, you can hook up both your iPhone and your Apple Watch and have them charge at the same time. The cable delivers 100W of juice to your devices, which can either fast-charge your iPhone with the full 100W capacity or provide 92W to your phone and the rest to the Apple Watch (or to recent AirPods cases). In fact, 100W is enough to charge a 16-inch MacBook Pro, as long as you have a powerful enough adapter.

Powerful but pricey

(Image credit: Nomad)

Nomad’s cable is a clever idea, not least because it cuts in half the number of cables you need to carry with you. That’s a bonus if you frequently travel, find yourself losing your cables, or just want to tidy things up a bit when charging your devices.

Note that Nomad says data transfer speeds are limited to USB 2.0, which tops out at 480Mbps. That’s because the cable is designed for charging rather than data transfers.

There is another significant catch to the Universal Cable for Apple Watch: the price. At $100, it’s far more expensive than most USB-C charging cables on the market.

That means you have to decide whether the extra convenience is worth the extra cost. If it is, you’ll have a much more streamlined way to keep your iPhone and Apple Watch topped up. If it’s not, you’ll just have to make do with using two power cables.