I see ocasional ads for what is called a USB male type A to male type A charger cable, but I've been unable to find anyone who knows whether the cable has four wires or just two. On one hand, standardizing on 4-conductors whether or not the cable is sold for use in supplying power only, or may also be used for sending or receiving data, simplifies production. On the other hand, that's a lot of wasted wire. Can someone shed light on this can-of-worms? I plan to power an Arduino device with a female Type A power input connector that has pins 2 and 3 disabled so that whatever USB cable is used with it is OK. That means the IDE is unnecessary, and the sketch can't be modified (either accidentally or on purpose) by the user. Is this going to work for me, or is there some secret handshake with those pins before my computer will put the 5 volts on pins 1 and 4 ?
Yes, it will work. 5V is "always there" (as long as the computer or charger is turned on and working).
I assume a "charging cable" is missing the data connections.
Yes, your understanding is correct.
I power projects this way often enough.
Red and Black from the USB are +5 and Gnd, the other two are data (in this application, not essential).
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