tl;dr: What are the requirements for a PD capable USB-C cable and plug?
As the USB-C plug/jack of my Dell charger is mechanically broken, I want to replace it.
So far, my naive attempt to simply replace the broken plug with one from a 4 pole USB-C to USB-A cable (see image below, connecting black-black, white-white, red-red, blue-green) has failed. It only yields +5 V (red against black), but it seems that no Power Delivery magic happens and the laptop does not charge.
I assume that the cable is not suitable for high power (maybe intended to only charge a 5 V USB-C device). Maybe the wiring is wrong. I wonder if the Dell cable/plug is somehow active – I have hoped that the PD logic would happen in the charger itself.
Also I struggle to find appropriate documentation. This is the best I can find.
What would be the requirements for a USB-C plug which can be used for Power Delivery? Also, how can I find out which PD version a device or a charger supports?
Best Answer
USB C is a dense pinout connector and Power Delivery requires more than just the "standard" USB 2.0 pins of Data+, Data-, 5V and GND.
From EE: How does a USB C port provide the power to charge laptops? you can see that the CC1/CC2 pins beside the D+/D- pins are used to communicate for USB PD.
This is the main reason why Power Delivery does not work for Type A ports, because they lack the communications lines necessary for negotiation and as a result revert to the "old" power level being selected by specific resistances across the USB data lines trick.
You need to find out if these pins are wired up in your new connector, if they are not then Power Delivery using that connector will be impossible.