BLE caberQU is a USB-C cable tester that displays data, charging, and cable health details (crowdfunding)

Not all USB Type-C cables are created equal. Some support higher data transfer speeds than others. Some support fast charging and others don’t. And it can be difficult to tell what a cable is capable of just by looking at it.

So a few years ago developer Peter Traunmüller created the C2C caberQU, an open source board that can detect the capabilities of any cable that’s plugged into it and display the results by lighting up an LED next to each feature. Now Traunmüller has launched a Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign for a more advanced cable tester called the BLE caberQU.

For the most part, the new model does the same thing as the original: it applies voltage to all 24 pins in a USB-C cable to measure which ones are connected. But instead of a printed circuit board that indicates functionality with a series of LED lights, the BLE caberQU is a device with a case, a small LCD display, four navigation buttons, and Bluetooth functionality for pairing with a mobile app so you can view details on your phone.

Not only does the LCD allow the BLE caberQU to show more information about a connected cable, there’s even a screen that shows how to connect a cable in the first place – the system is designed for USB Type-C to Type-C cables, so after you plug a cable into one port, you’ll see a picture showing how to insert the other end of your cable into the device’s second port.

The system can then display which version of the USB standard the connected cable complies with (USB 1.1 to USB4), what voltage and currents it supports (05V to 48V and 0.5A to 5A), which helps you figure out things like charging speeds (2.5 watts to 240 watts).

The BLE caberQU will also let you know if any of the functions of a cable are broken and could cause harm if you plugged the cable into a phone, tablet, PC, or other device.

It looks like there are already working prototypes of the BLE caberQU in the wild, but according to the Kickstarter campaign, the device isn’t expected to ship to backers until May, 2025. So even though the campaign ends in about two and a half weeks, you may be waiting a while to receive one.

If that’s not a problem for you, backers can reserve a BLE caberQU for a pledge of €69 (about $76).

via BoingBoing