WhatCable
Hardware
usb-c cable inspection
SHOW HN2026
566points
168comments
#38of 4,366 in 2026
Top 1%of 2026 by points
How HN took it
DebatedReal support and real criticism
25 positive, 33 neutral or asking, 0 mixed, 21 critical, out of 79 comments about the project. Thread score +0.10.
Idea: 9 for, 4 againstExecution: 3 for, 9 againstDesign: 0 for, 8 against
The thread, comment by comment
Each row is a top-level comment and its replies, in HN's order. Select a cell to open that comment on HN.
positive neutral or mixed critical about another commenter or something else the maker
What HN said
What people liked
Useful for sorting a drawer of unlabeled USB-C cables
From 4 comments
This is something that I’ve wanted for quite a while. I have lots of mystery USB-C cables that it would be nice to be able to label with their capabilities. Now I can.
dhosek on HNNice! This solves a real problem. I have a drawer full of identical USB-C cables and no idea which ones support Thunderbolt. The menu bar approach is perfect for this :) You…
repoinsider on HNThis is really cool stuff. It is a pain to categorize cables and this really helps. Thanks for showing.
patrickhener on HNThanks for creating this. I'm blind so the $16 USB tester off amazon to sort through my drawer of cables is not an option. This will stop me from needing to buy a sbc just so I…
jareds on HN
Native Mac app, handles complex docking setups
From 2 comments
I love that this is a native mac app. Thanks for building this, and thanks for sharing.
bichiliad on HNAwesome! It handles my kinda complicated setup with docking station, USB and DisplayPort switches pretty well.
tuzemec on HN
Objections
Menu bar placement is unwanted and clutters a full menu bar
From 4 comments
This is pretty nice, but why do a lot of Mac apps insist on living in the menu bar?
sagacity on HNAgreed, especially for something like this that might get used a handful of times (I’m assuming most people don’t have myriad cables or want to check them regularly?) The problem…
mft_ on HN> Dock is usually full My menu bar is also full and, unlike the Dock, I can’t resize it to fit more.
lxgr on HNSpotlight exists. Typing is much faster than moving your cursor to a small target like a menu bar item.
johanyc on HN
Shows 'No USB-C ports detected' or wrong results on some machines
From 2 comments
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…
bkummel on HN14 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.
brk on HN
Released too quickly and not tested enough
From 1 comment
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…
gedy on HN
Requests
Linux, Windows, or GTK/KDE ports
From 4 comments
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.
n3storm on HNGreat project. It would be even better if it supported platforms other than Mac.
mp0rta on HNIs it also possible to read the e-marker on non-Apple devices? Linux or windows? This would be so useful...
andix on HNCool. 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…
pimeys on HN
Command line interface
From 3 comments
Could it be just a console utility?
kmmbvnr_ on HNis there a CLI?
thatxliner on HNI 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…
theanonymousone on HN
Homebrew installation
From 2 comments
Any plans to support installations through Homebrew?
Alifatisk on HNCool ! Would love a brew installation as well
randomeel on HN
Questions
How the IOKit SPI for e-marker data was discovered
From 1 comment
I'm curious how the SPI to do this (e.g. `IOPortTransportComponentCCUSBPDSOP`) was discovered. There was nary a mention of it anywhere prior to release. Even Claude has to latch…
archagon on HN
Whether it detects misreported Amazon cable specs
From 1 comment
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…
ricardobeat on HN
Alternatives named
Hardware USB-C cable testers
From 2 comments
Thanks for creating this. I'm blind so the $16 USB tester off amazon to sort through my drawer of cables is not an option. This will stop me from needing to buy a sbc just so I…
jareds on HNawesome utility . I purchased a $50 usb cable inspector on Ali express because usb-c compatibility is atrocious. there are dozens of protocols, (data, multiple PD, EPR, various…
tonymet on HN
Menu bar managers such as Ice, Bartender and Thaw
From 3 comments
You can put it in a secondary onclick taskbar with Ice (similarly to Windows)
poisonborz on HNThaw is a fork of Ice which is maintained and woks on Tahoe. https://github.com/stonerl/Thaw
wlonkly on HNThere's also Bartender, Hidden Bar etc., but they all come with some downsides. I just don't get why Apple doesn't recognize this as a problem. Do the engineers working on macOS…
lxgr on HN
lsucpd for Linux
From 1 comment
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.
n3storm on HN