I'd rather have a ziplock bag than those pressure sealed plastic cases that require a blow torch and an expedition team to get open

But they still can't put cereal in a ziploc bag inside a cereal box.

I use them for organizing other cables etc not in use. I have 2 bins full of all kind of cables (coaxial, lan, PC power, audio, all kinds of adapters). Putting them each in their own little bags ensures you don't ever have to detangle a bunch of wires to find and retrieve the one you are looking for.

They can also be used for different nuts/bolts/screws, and if they have a hole in the top meant for hanging (like in a retail store) I have spots for those in my garage.

I'll put fishing line in those little bags in my tackle box so the loose end never comes undone and gets tangled with other things.

They're good for keeping matches/lighters dry when going on camping trips.

I'll use them to put dead batteries in amd wait until the bag is full before taking them to be recycled.

For things like Ikea furniture or Lego sets that have extra pieces, I'll put those extra pieces in a bag along with the instruction manual. If one of those pieces ever breaks, the replacement is on hand.

It's retail packaging. It has no other function than to provide something that may attract a customer to that particular item.

It's meant to be discarded and is a waste of resources because it's a one-time use item. China cares not for your complaints.

You don't really know cable packaging hell the way I do. Ziplock bags are the least of my complaints.

I own a lot of cables. When I say "a lot of cables", I'm talking more than 500 hundred at least. With my home music studio setups (three studio desks now), I constantly buy all manner of cables from USB in all flavors, MIDI (musical instrument digital interface) cables, power cables and an incredible array of audio cables. There's even some fiber optic cables in the mix as well as SCSI and cables the likes of which most people have never laid eyes on. But no matter what kind of cable they are, they all come with stupid levels of packaging hell.

Single USB cables are packaged either in plastic bags or boxes with clear windows. Multiple USB cable packs come in boxes with or without windows but in a molded plastic tray or a multi compartment ziplock back. MIDI cables come either in cardboard and plastic clamshells that require a utility knife and some force to get into. I almost always nearly slash myself opening them. Audio cable can be like that too, but they are often worse as they get zip tied to the cardboard part and covered by a clamshell and I have to keep side cutters handy in the studio. Power cables are usually just a ziplock bag or taped plastic baggie. Any specialty cables, well they can come in any kind of packaging. The 1 foot extension cords I often need come zip tied and packed inside plastic fabric bag with a drawstring and closure to keep it shut. It's crazy shit!

The worst cable I have multiple of a audio "snake" cables. These are heavy duty (1 inch thick or more) bundles of eight or more audio cables with a thick rubber sleeve around them to keep them together and protected from abrasion and rowdy roadies. Those cables come coiled up, zip tied in at least 4 places and shrink wrapped with heavy duty plastic film. You really have to fight to get the cable free and often end up zip tying them again after putting them in place so the thick coil of cable stays manageable. Fucking nightmare to work with.

So, with all that said, I don't mind USB cables coming in ziplock bags. Any of them that do come that way are often just chucked in a storage box because they are cheap chinesium shit and not up to spec for the studio. I probably have at least 100 of those crappy cables now. They'll probably never get used. I can send them your way if you want more rant material.

Drug dealers buy them and throw the cables away. Everyone knows that.

Imagine how easy everything would open if it were a high trust society.

They just use them. I understand what you are saying, they need to package them, and instead of putting them into a plastic bag and closing it with tape, a ziploc bag is just easier way.

So the plastic ends up in your balls, retard.