The main problem I have with USB-C is that the "U" is a lie. Always has been to some extent, but seems like it's particularly true with USB-C. This is closer to that meme that's like "There are 12 competing standards. We created a new universal standard to replace them all." Except instead of there now being 13 competing standards, USB-C is a fractured mess so instead it's like there's now 20 competing standards. This cord supports passthrough power, this one doesn't, but even the one that does only supports 20W so you have to have a special one to deliver 65, and that USB-C power brick only gives 15W, so you have to buy a special one that does 80W, and this USB-C port on my phone doesn't support the USB-C to Aux jack adapter I bought, so now I have to buy a different adapter. It goes on and on and on and frankly I'm old and tired.

Every barrel jack a different size and voltage.

barrel jacks were great until you lost them and had to buy a new one for way too much money. but, I'd rather have a standardized barrel jack than usb c

I have also had issues with type C connection reliability, but every single time so far it has been an issue with the cable. I thought that the port on my phone of 4+ years was dying, the connection felt loose and it would charge unreliably, but changing out the cable has completely removed all issues.

Grab a thin needle or piece of wire, thin enough to easily insert into the USB-C port, and scratch all of the dirt and lint out of it. Always point the needle towards the outer surface so you don't scratch the electrical contacts in the middle.

There is often a surprising amount of junk inside even if you can't see it from the outside, and that can greatly affect the connection quality.

My phone recently had a similar issue where it would only charge if the cable was inserted in a specific way, and any movement would cause it to stop charging. The cable also wasn't really held well even though it looked like it was fully inserted. I cleaned out the port even though I couldn't see anything inside, and managed to pull out a bit of dust anyway. And now my phone no longer has charging issues and holds on to the cable much better.

USB-C unfortunately just seems to have a design that makes it very easy for dust to get stuck in it, while also having a relatively low tolerance for foreign material buildup before the connection quality gets affected, making this a quite common issue.