https://chrisbergeron.com/2021/07/25/Ultra-fast-Thunderbolt-...
It'd be easier if it were $0 too but what does that have to do with anything? $30 is what it costs to make a cable that can do high speed data, high speed display, and high power. If you want a cable that does all of this it's going to cost more than a cable that doesn't. If you want a cable that's cheaper and doesn't do everything that is also an option. Apart from both options being available anyways this problem has nothing to do with USB standards.
> and still not support 240W
When the brand new standard actually hits the shelf you'll be able to get a TB4 240W cable, as of now there just aren't any 240W cables in general. Also not supported: USB 6 and 2 kW PD or anything else from the future instead of present.
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Type C is an interface specification not a guarantee that you're $19 cable will be compatible everything man could desire to implement in your lifetime.
Except that is exactly what a lot of people think Type C will and should provide. And whether you agree with that they think or not is an entirely different question.
My other reply https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=29452173
There is frustratingly little relation between price and quality. I have literally spent hundreds of dollars on usb-c-cables and I haven't even attempted to do displayport or thunderbolt through one, and I still don't own any that I'd expect to work on a lot of scenarios.