Four Ways to Use Your Phone’s USB-C Port (Beyond the Obvious)
The USB-C charging port will likely remain ubiquitous on phones for the foreseeable future—at least until Apple engineers figure out how to create the long-discussed port-less iPhone —but this little connector is far more versatile than you might imagine.
Here are four more ways to use the USB-C port, regardless of your phone’s make and model—from freeing up space on your device to boosting productivity on the go. It’s almost like giving your phone extra superpowers.
Connect external storage.
You can connect almost any type of external USB drive to your phone, just like you can to a laptop or desktop computer. Lifehacker previously wrote about how this works on the iPhone, and many Android phones offer similar functionality, with the default file manager app also recognizing the external drive.
You may need some kind of adapter, and you might need to make sure the USB drive is formatted a certain way (a quick internet search for “details for your specific phone model” will tell you if this is the case). But often, simply plugging in the drive is enough, and the phone will figure it out.
This is useful for backing up photos and videos without monthly cloud storage fees or simply freeing up space on your device. It’s also a quick and easy way to transfer files to your phone, whether they’re audio or video files you want to play without streaming, or books or documents you need to view during a long trip when you can’t count on a good signal.
Bring your videos to the big screen
Many phones, including the latest iPhone and Pixel models, can output video via USB-C. This is useful, for example, if you’re in a hotel room and want to watch a movie on the in-room TV without using Wi-Fi or streaming protocols.
This can be quite complex in terms of the required cables and how to connect them to the TV, but with a little research about your specific phone model and the required ports, you can set everything up without much trouble. For example, here’s Apple’s guide to the required cables and adapters for iPhone.
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If you have a Samsung Galaxy device, it likely supports Samsung DeX . It’s a desktop environment (similar to Windows or macOS) that can be run on an external monitor or TV from your phone, allowing you to not only play videos on the big screen but also use social media, web browsing, and office apps.
Connect a game controller
There are plenty of great mobile games for iOS and Android, but using touch controls can be awkward: you’re about to destroy an alien spaceship, only to accidentally touch the wrong part of the screen and end up dimming the brightness instead. It’s not ideal, but a dedicated game controller can help.
Lifehacker has already reviewed some of these controllers , and many of them can be connected via your phone’s USB-C port, providing a reliable and stable connection for lag-free gaming. When connected via USB-C, the controller won’t need to be charged, as it will draw power from your phone’s battery.
One of the best examples is the $99.99 Backbone One controller . It works with Android phones and iPhones and improves gameplay in games like Fortnite and Call of Duty . It’s also great for streaming games from a Microsoft or Sony console to your phone over Wi-Fi.
Connect the mouse and keyboard.
You can connect even more peripherals to your smartphone, including two that can be used as productivity devices: a mouse and keyboard. This works with a wide range of iPhones and Android smartphones— for example, here’s how to connect a wired mouse to a Samsung Galaxy phone. (You can also connect these peripherals via Bluetooth .)
Of course, you’re unlikely to pull out a full-size keyboard every time you send a text message, but if you need to write a lot of emails or a long report on the go, a travel keyboard can be very useful. If you have a foldable phone with a large screen, you have a perfectly decent portable workstation.
A USB-C hub can even connect a mouse and keyboard together, and as an added bonus, it has a memory card slot. Just be mindful of power consumption: if you’re connecting multiple accessories, choose a hub that also supports a charger to prevent your phone’s battery from constantly draining.