19 comments

  • pimeys 9 minutes ago
    Cool. Just want to chime in that I wanted to see how quickly GPT-5.5 can turn this into a KDE Plasma 6 Plasmoid. Took about 10 minutes and two dollars, and now I have a nice QML app showing the same information in my taskbar.

    Just wanted to say this because I feel it's really crazy that I can just do this today...

  • sagacity 55 minutes ago
    This is pretty nice, but why do a lot of Mac apps insist on living in the menu bar?
    • poisonborz 38 minutes ago
      Making 1 click to access is faster than typing the app name in finder. Dock is usually full and used for different type of apps. Makes also constantly visible output possible with standard ui patterns.
      • UqWBcuFx6NV4r 24 minutes ago
        OK, thanks. We understand what a menu bar is.

        How is this conducive to the typical usage pattern of an app like this?

        • awakeasleep 3 minutes ago
          Are you saying you wish this was a desktop app and you would just open it occasionally when curious?

          If so, it feels like a needlessly indirect and combative way to go about it.

  • bkummel 1 hour ago
    Doesn't work for me. Says "No USB-C ports detected", although I'm pretty sure my monitor is connected via USB-C, and the monitor also has a built-in USB hub where my USB keyboard is connected to.
  • mp0rta 18 minutes ago
    Great project. It would be even better if it supported platforms other than Mac.
  • theanonymousone 46 minutes ago
    I would like to ask an LLM to rewrite it as Python CLI script. Is it even possible, or some Swift-only functionality is necessary?

    P.S. Some time ago I learnt through HN of a one-line command in macOS which revealed the power (Wattage) of the connected charger. Can't find it now, but it was very useful.

    • krelas 22 minutes ago
      `system_profiler SPPowerDataType | grep "Wattage"`?
  • n3storm 1 hour ago
    can something like this be done for linux? maybe a wrapper for lsusb. I just found https://github.com/doug-gilbert/lsucpd which adds PD and more.
  • ricardobeat 1 hour ago
    I remember seeing a recent analysis where the vast majority of cables from Amazon misreported their capabilities. Is this tool going to be able to catch those, or blindly report what the chip advertises?
    • Neywiny 49 minutes ago
      I think for real cables the delta could also be explained by damage or just a bad plug-in attempt, so even if you're not trying to detect counterfeit cables it could be useful to know:

      1. What does the host support

      2. What does the cable support

      3. What does the device support

      4. What actually got negotiated

  • kmmbvnr_ 1 hour ago
    Could it be just a console utility?
    • captainbland 1 hour ago
      Yeah I like the sound of the functionality but I don't like the idea of it taking up menu bar space. Console utility would be good or even a gui that can be quickly launched through spotlight
      • piskov 3 minutes ago
        > I don't like the idea of it taking up menu bar space

        You know you can close it? :-)

  • thiagoperes 37 minutes ago
    I am definitely gonna contribute or fork to create an open leaderboard of cable brands and quality :D
    • j16sdiz 33 minutes ago
      It won't tell you the _quality_

      It just tell you want the e-marker said.

  • brk 1 hour ago
    14 Inch 2021 MBPro / M1 Pro chip / Sonoma 14.5

    WhatCable says "No USB-C Ports Detected".

    System info clearly shows my iPhone attached to USB 3.1 Bus.

  • emaro 1 hour ago
    Pretty cool. What I don't understand is why both my USB@1 and USB@2 show the same connected devices. I'd expect to only see the respective devices. USB@1 is my USB-hub monitor, the other one is connected to my phone. Both show keyboard, etc. plus my phone as connected devices.
  • denkmoon 53 minutes ago
    I get that the connectors are identical but I find it odd that people find it so challenging. Thunderbolt is the thick and short cable. If it's not thick it's not gonna work well and if it's over a metre it's not gonna work well. cf my pile of thin long "basic" usb c cables.
    • zimpenfish 1 minute ago
      Great, and what about non-Thunderbolt cables? How do I distinguish between power only, USB 2, USB 2+PD, and USB 3.2 cables? I've got a whole pile of cables that, without my Treedix tester, are indistinguishable re: functionality and support.
    • wallst07 38 minutes ago
      How do you define "thick" or "short" to a non-engineer/tech person? Relative to what exactly?
    • consp 39 minutes ago
      Thunderbolt 4 passive (over usb) is 0.8m in length, longer cables are active, up to two meters I think, so they do exist.
  • aquir 1 hour ago
    Good stuff, but it's telling me that my USB-C Thunderbolt cable has been plugged in upside down but the connector handled this. I was not aware that you can plug in something into USB-C upside down!
    • justusthane 1 hour ago
      I wasn't either (insomuch as I had never thought about it), but it makes sense if you think about it for a second. If you have one end plugged in one way, and the other end plugged in the other way, each individual wire is flipped from where it should be. The fact that you _can_ plug it in either way means that the device on one end needs to be capable of recognizing that and logically reversing it. Same as automatic crossover in Ethernet.

      That's all the program is telling you. It doesn't matter that it's backwards, but technically it is.

      • regularfry 55 minutes ago
        It's not always the case that the cable will correctly fix it. I think (hope?) any that any which didn't would be out of spec, but they exist...
  • Alifatisk 59 minutes ago
    Any plans to support installations through Homebrew?
  • BiteCode_dev 1 hour ago
    Tangential, but LLT recently came out with their own lineup of USB-C cables guaranteed to be up to spec. And they have the main specs printed on each cable end, so you know what you grab.

    That should be mandatory.

  • ulfw 1 hour ago
    The 'plugged upside down' is weird for a USB-cable. Especially as that doesn't work. I tried plugging it 'the other way around' and it showed the same 'upside down' warning
    • AndroTux 29 minutes ago
      Everyone knows you have to flip the USB cable twice before it’s no longer upside down.
  • gedy 52 minutes ago
    I like the idea and thanks for sharing, but I do think folks who vibe code or use Claude should take their time using, testing, and improving app before rushing to share. This was pushed/deved like 2 hours ago
    • LordGrey 29 minutes ago
      And it's been updated, with full releases, many times since.

      I like this tool, but I agree that it was rushed and it is still being rushed. I urge the developer to slow down and get it right.

    • xandrius 35 minutes ago
      Just because it got pushed 2h ago it doesn't mean they didn't test it on their end.
  • hallegbg 1 hour ago
    Nice!
  • suyavuz 1 hour ago
    [dead]