Why two power ports on a budget laptop??

[jiyong]

In the dark?  Right way up?  Guaranteed not to break it?

Yes, every time.
So far I have never experienced that the PBP has a wrong way to connect USB-C.
I have also never experienced that with any of my devices.

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There is a problem that because of security, some devices no longer work properly with all chargers.
One example is my Yi 360 camera, that I can only charge with a cheap USB-A to USB-C adapter cable, as I can no longer charge directly from a USB-C charger.
Funny detail is that my phone refuses to charge with that cheap USB-A to USB-C adapter cable.

But in general I'm really happy with USB-C.
Now I only need one charger for my laptop and phone.
And even when I forget to bring a charger, there is someone around with a USB-C charger.

And that's the crux of the issue with power delivery over USB type C - the variety of power delivery specifications and chance that even if that charger has type C connector it's not quite compatible with your device because of the limits on the voltage and current it can deliver. And then there are some devices for which USB power delivery is a complete no-go due to their power requirements, like gaming or mobile workstation laptops that need more than 100W of power. With a dedicated power supply that just provides fixed voltage and up to fixed current none of those are an issue, though yes you'd have to carry one with you instead of relying on someone else having one handy for you to borrow.

Of course, neither of the above should be of much relevancy in PBP context, though even there I found out that I have two different USB cables where one charges the laptop almost as fast as the dedicated charger (not quite though), and another provides barely enough current to charge the laptop when it's idle.

You don't want to use the barrel port - don't use it, you don't want to pay for barrel port - look for a laptop without one. I, for one, like my barrel port because it allows me to use the single type C port without resorting to docks and dongles, so equivalent replacement for no barrel port would be two type C ports, which I'm certain would be more expensive than one type C and one charging port. And most importantly, I always know that if the power supply is rated for 5Vx3A with correctly sized connector and polarity then I don't need to still worry about the USB cable I use to connect it to the laptop, it'll always charge at ~15W.

What's the point of dismissing USB-C based on exceptions?
If it really was such a big mess, the whole world would complain about it.

The problem isn't the different voltages and current, it's about negotiating the correct voltage and current.
Remember Benson Leung? https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2015/11/...on-amazon/
It's about implementing things properly, according to the standards.

Now that USB-C has matured, it is much simpler than a barrel port.
Try charging with a random barrel port charger, good luck with that.