Comment by wolvoleo

It had a pretty bad flaw: the spring contacts being on the device side, causing wear and tear there.

USB-C moved those to the much cheaper to replace cable. The little strip in the middle makes cleaning a bit harder but does provide for more longevity. It's s necessary evil in order to have the spring contacts on the plug side as well as not having them exposed to touch.

I think the plug side of USB is pretty well designed. The problem is more with the electrical and signalling side and the marketing of the different versions.