Callpod Accessories - General Accessories

I like Callpod (have been able to abuse one of their Dragon bluetooth headsets while enjoying the extended range) and their accessories, but... I think one of their accessories is what killed my Excalibur, my Asus P600 PND, and my Athena (all of them had their charging circuits fried somehow...).
None of the three devices will take a charge or be recognized as even being plugged in on a USB port on either side.
The only common thread between all three of these devices is that they were in my car (which I have a 4 way 12volt splitter in place) and they were all plugged in to the callpod chargepod Adapter (not the chargepod itself, mind you, but the car adapter *for* the chargepod) at various points, and the Callpod was the last charger it was plugged in to. I should know better... much better, but when I was out of town and needed a Mini-USB car charger, I grabbed it as it was the only Mini-USB charger that was on their shelf (and with a dead phone in the middle of a conference call, you can imagine the rush).
Chalk it up to experience but don't use their charger directly with your devices. All I can find for technical specs is that it is 6VDC from 12VDC, no info on the mA or A that it provides. Heads up.
Now I have a nice Diamond Touch on the way and a few weeks on the couch due to an upset wife and the Callpod adapter is being dismantled systematically to make me feel better.
-Will
PS. I know Li-ion batteries have circuits to manage the charging etc. But this is honestly the only thing I can figure is that somehow it was sending small surges down the line that eventually popped something in the circuit... feel free to pose other hypothesis to me if you have one.

Yes mate it can be done i have fixed a tomtom same plug you can order them online ,you need a very small tipped soldering iron (low wattage) search these forums for strip down guides for your phone good luck

Related

Car charging issues

I have found that when charging my HTC phone (Kaiser now, used to be a Blue Angel) in my car, if I use a cigarette lighter splitter (So that I can charge another device too) that even if nothing else is plugged into the splitter, the phone will not charge properly. It seems to get enough power to maintain charge, but if I am low on batt, then charge the phone and use it for satnav while I drive, when I finish the journey, the phone has not charged.
This does not seem to be the case if I plug the phone charger directly into the cigarette lighter socket instead of via the splitter.
Knowing a little about electricity, I guess the splitter is running the sockets in parallel or something and dividing the power between the sockets?
Any ideas on what I could do? I would imagine a car battery has plenty of power, maybe it just isn't being distributed properly. I guess the splitter is possibly limited such that it can't pass too much power if only one device is connected?
All the devices I want to use can power from USB, so I am guessing that the solution is maybe a USB hub designed for car use. I have 3 items typically that I want to be able to charge, so a 4 port hub would be nice. Anyone know where to get one in the UK?
I've got the same issue with my car charger (HTC Mogul phone), although for me it doesn't matter whether I use a splitter. Where did you get your charger? Maybe it just isn't supplying enough power.
While it's true that having two devices in parallel causes half the current to flow to one and half to the other (assuming they have the same resistance), the power supplies should be more than capable of pushing enough current for each device, especially when the car is running (and you're getting your electricity off the alternator).
well I thought it could be a dodgy cable but I just got an official HTC car charger for my kaiser and am observing the same thing.
It could have been the cigarette lighter->USB converter or the retractible sync cable I used to use, I will do some more tests and see if I can work out which bit is causing the problem - it wasn't until just recently that I had an official end-to-end solution (ie one HTC car lighter to miniusb cable) so I will try connecting it up various ways, but it isn't exactly quick to test if it is good or not as you need your phone low on batt and to be driving around for an hour or two to see if it is charging properly.
Flat Batteries
Seems XDA has software to prevent charging batteries which are too flat. (Perhaps to protect internal circuitry).
I recommend this thread which has a solution:
http://www.htcwizardweb.net/node/2013#comment-3808
I made it work OK but it is a fiddly job. An external charger for these batteries would be great but I can't find one.
Good luck !
I have the same issue. The battery has refused to charge when its below 40% or so. I now carry a spare in the car, especially as I often depend on Sat nav working!
yeah I had that low batt thing happen with my BA once or twice.
Actually, now I have kept an eye on it, it doesn't seem that bad with my kaiser. I no longer use my car lighter usb adapter though - I use the HTC car charger into a 3-in-1 splitter (usb, extusb, 3.5mm audio) and from that into my Kaiser and it seems to charge the kaiser ok (albeit a little slowly) even when I have a cigarette lighter splitter also powering an RF transmitter.
So I think maybe the weak link was the car lighter to usb adapter, maybe it was outputting too little power on the USB rails.
Car Charger died
I'll jump on an old thread...
My HTC branded car charger (that I got from sending in the post card) worked fine for my Cingular 8525 until a few weeks ago. Then it got flakey and now it doesn't want to work at all.
My 8525 will still charge on my laptop connected cradle and the AC charger.
Has anyone seen any failures in these chargers?
Any recommendations on chargers that are reliable?
Dave.

Pocket PC/Windows Mobile Equivalent to a laptop bag

I'm looking for a bag to use with my HTC TyTN II and associated paraphernalia. I already use the supplied HTC carry case for the device itself and often clip it onto my belt but what I really want is a bag to carry all the other things I have that go with it such as travel charger (c/w 4 interchangeable country specific adapter plug heads), spare batteries, 3-in-1 USB adapter and of course headphones.
If it's good enough for there to be bags designed for laptops then why not pocket PCs as well? I was thinking something like a camera case may do the trick but so far I haven't found any with the right compartment sizes. The bag for the HTC Shift thats referred to elsewhere on xda-dev is the wrong size for what I need.
Can anyone suggest something suitable or even a brand to start looking with? HTC are really missing opportunities by not offering such 'value added' branded accessories to their range.
***EDIT 22/9/08 Something Suitable found***
I went out shopping yesterday and came across the Case Logic QGPS-1 Quickdraw SatNav case for £9.69 at Staples. I tried it out with all my paraphernalia in the shop and it fits everything in very well so I bought it. It's not listed on the Case Logic Website but Googling for it brings up further details.
Given that whenever i am travelling i tend to have a small army of electronic bits and bobs then a small camera bag serves well enough.
For a charger i have invested in a mains plug that has a USB port in the top so that all i need to carry is one plug and an assortment of charging cables given that everything can be charged from a USB port. Saves me carrying two or more of the "fat plug" devices and their cables that never stay tidy when packed.
travel every day
I travel every day and I take a PC conection cable in my computer bag and a set of earphones in my "man-bag", and that's it. It's no problem. I charge from my laptop.
kimandsteve said:
I travel every day and I take a PC conection cable in my computer bag and a set of earphones in my "man-bag", and that's it. It's no problem. I charge from my laptop.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Handy if you also have a laptop - I do not. At the moment I just throw everything into my backpack or satchel bag as neatly as possible but the leads always come out tangled and things do move about in there quite a bit. One of my spare batteries has a dent from making contact with the pins on my charger so I really want something suitably compartmentalised which offers an element of protection.
What camera bag do you use deedee - any particular make and model?
Found!
I found something suitable so edited my original post accordingly. Thanks for the feedback those who replied.

[Q] Original usb cable is loose. Whats your take?

My charger doesnt fit well and i just came to terms with this but it has got worse the last two weeks. It plugs in and the led lights up but it doesnt charge sometimes, it says it is charging but an hour later and the battery goes down 5% ish. Also it only connects when the phone sits face up and the cord hangs down as in it must sit on the edge of the table for it to charge. I tried my friends Droid cord and it was a snug fit. do i have an insurance claim on my hands?
You can try getting the cable swapped, but honestly I think the amount of hassle you would go through would just not be worth it. If the problem was with your phone then I would 100% definitely get the phone replaced, but if the problem is only with the cable, I'd take the path of least resistance and just buy a new cable out of pocket. They really aren't expensive if you know the right place to get them.
I use this cable here with my Aria and it works great: http://www.monoprice.com/products/p...=10303&cs_id=1030307&p_id=5458&seq=1&format=2
It is only $3.13 shipped (to my address), and it's 2 feet longer than the original cable which I like because I thought the original one was too short. Never had a problem with it charging my Aria. I know it seems too good to be true, but the quality really is just as good as a $20+ cable you'd find at a local store.
I ran into the same problem with an Aria I bought off of Craigslist. It would kind of charge at first, then it gave up altogether. I found that the end that plugged into the phone had been slightly squished by the previous owner. I just went to Staples and bought a Staples branded MicroUSB cable, it's six feet long and works fine. Granted, it wasn't ebay-cheap but I got the problem handled same day, no screwing around. The nice thing about this cable is it's just as flexible as the original, unlike the MicroUSB charge/sync cables that come with Blackberry phones and the extra length makes it a little more versatile.
Don't mean to resurrect an old thread, but I didn't want to start a new one.
My connection is getting worse every day. It is very aggravating. I'll plug in at night time and wake up to find my phone didn't charge at all. I have to put the cable in at a slight angle to get it to connect.
Using adb and just any file transfer on the computer is almost impossible.
I use the original cable, and sometimes my brother's Captivate cable--both are just as bad.
And the AT&T car charger is a joke. So I think it is the phone, not the cables.
i find that the motorola(backflip) usb doesnt fit snug(still charges & transfers fine, a little slower)
May be just a bit too rough with this little phone
Finally had enough of the cable problem, so I decided to figure out whats wrong. Turns out, I ended up pulling out about a cubic centimeter of dust and lint from in the port (way down in there, a quick glance and it didn't look as bad as it really was.)
Works like a charm, now!
Brivette, glad to see you fixed your issue!
For future reference,
The MicroUSB cable that has become the new standard contains 2 prongs on the end of it. This prong is responsible for ensuring it stays locked into the connector.
The newer MicroB connector is rated at a higher use cycle than the old MiniB type, which is why current devices are moving to it as a standard. It is also designed so that the cheaper cable will bear the wear and damage, rather than the device. The usual culprit is the two latch pins at the top of the male connector which tend to wear and bend eventually causing the cord to become "flaky" or fickle (for a lack of a better term). This is usually the cause of most people's woes. However often times the connections from inside the cable may wear and short out, causing the cord to become dysfunctional. Before sending your phone in for a replacement, I highly recommend trying a second cable.
If changing the cord doesn't work, the problem most likely lies with the phone. While it is possible that the PCB mount has come disconnected from the board, it is more often than not likely that the port has become clogged with debris. So before sending your phone in for service, check the port and ensure that the port is clear and clean of obstruction.
This also goes for charging or data transfer. Sometimes issues with data transfer can arise out of a bad cable. This often happens when people wrap their cord too tightly or kink it, which causes signal interference. It also occurs with frequent use and wear and tear, which is normal.
Take good care of your cord, and it'll be there to last you a long time.

Brodit active car holder won't charge the S2

Hey guys,
I got my brodit active car holder now for a few days and it seems it doesn't supply enough juice to the S2 while in use :-(
While navigating with navigon, it even loses charge, though it's connected .... that's really disapointing, since brodit normally supplies quality products.
Anyone else got the brodit active holder with the same problems?
boba
Not got the Brodit, but I have the same problem when using CoPilot and charging via the USB cable attached to a car charger. It can keep the charge at current level with CoPilot on, but will only charge with CoPilot off.
Also noticed if SII has less than 50% charge, it won't charge at all with CoPilot on.
Taking a punt on one of these to see if it makes a difference:
http://www.buyincoins.com/details/d...-for-ipad-iphone-4g-ipod-2a-product-2748.html
Which holder do you have exactly? Can you make a photo?
Does it toggle car dock in the S2? You can see a steering wheel in notification bar.
ALexander
I was thinking exactly the same thing this lunchtime. I have the cigarete lighter active Brodit mount and - if i makes any difference - a 2004 Vauxhall Astra H. I as wondering if I would have to turn off the nice things [like satellite view, etc] on the phone for it to survive the journey. Not happy.
boba23 said:
Well I don't know the exact reason yet, but it seems the S2 doesn't accept enough juice from the charger,
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is the S2 in USB AC Mode?
Take a look here: Einstellungen - Telefoninfo - Status
Yesterday I modified a Brodit active car holder from the good old htc HD2 to fit the S2. Now I have fast charging (AC) and Car-Mode.
I currently own some chargers. Not the original one, well the UK Version with no use in Austria.
A 1A HTC Charger with USB socket, a 450mA noname charger with USB socket and a no name car charger with micro usb.
The car charger and the HTC charger show charging(AC) whilst the noname 450mA charger shows charging(USB)...
It would be interesting to measure the exact mA taken by the phone...
ALexander
CurrentWidget doesn't work...
ALexander
Hi all,
Okay, I've now tried four different chargers, and I've also had the phone replaced. Today, in a last attempt, I bought an official Samsung charger.
NONE of them work - even though the phone says "charging on AC" for all of them.
The only thing I haven't tried is a different car (which I'm going to do, once my neighbour gets home).
The one sensible suggestion I've read is that Samsung have screwed up somewhere in software and the phone can't draw enough juice.
Electronics is beyond my little brain, so I don't get why the GS2 charges from my netbook (even when it's only on battery) but won't charge in the car.
And I'm not talking when I'm using satnav. It won't charge at all. In fact (weirdly) it actually DISCHARGES much faster than it does if it's just sitting in my pocket.
I've logged this with my provider (Voda UK), because I refuse to get stuck with a useless phone for the next 18 months if this isn't sorted out. It's ludicrous. If I can't charge the phone in the car it's as good as useless to me.
UPDATE:
Okay, I just tried my neighbour's car (Vauxhall Astra) and the GS2 charged perfectly. 3% in four minutes. Pretty much what I get off the mains charger.
I wish I knew about electrics but I don't. Explanations will have to come from the boffins round here.
I tell you what, though. I don't really want to get a new car just to use my phone properly
Do you have any chsrger with a led?
If the led stays dark the cigarette lighgter of your car might need a new fuse.
Which car?
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA Premium App
Ive ordered one of these mounts and will report how it behaves in my 2008 Civic
barneypooch said:
UPDATE:
Okay, I just tried my neighbour's car (Vauxhall Astra) and the GS2 charged perfectly. 3% in four minutes. Pretty much what I get off the mains charger.
I wish I knew about electrics but I don't. Explanations will have to come from the boffins round here.
I tell you what, though. I don't really want to get a new car just to use my phone properly
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You might be able to change to a higher amp fuse in your car fusebox.
eddablin said:
You might be able to change to a higher amp fuse in your car fusebox.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ROFL!! Genius!
Brodit mount arrived and looks great. Fit and design excellent and seems to charge as I would want.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk
So what charger do you guys advice? Which charger does charge the phone, even while navigating with Navigon?
I got the Brodit active charger (BR512...), there isn't a problem with charging at all.
I think the issue you got is really car related. My guess:
a) your cigarette lighter port is poorly wired -> Measure voltage at the port with a voltmeter, it should be at least 12V DC (Edit: Even if it does there is still the possibility that your wiring is bad, showing 12V doesn't mean it can handle the current this charger needs)
b) your cigarette lighter port doesn't make a good contact to the brodit plug. Check for corrosion of the contacts, dust, dirt, etc. Some ports go bad after lots of plug in / out cycles.
If you have no idea what I'm talking about here, I'm pretty sure every car mechanic can fix your problem for a small amount of money
Edit: it's very possible this plug works with other chargers and phones and still fails with the S2 charger. The reason for this is the different ways chargers convert the car's 12V DC into 5V DC. Some might work down to 7V input, some already **** up at 11.8V
I have the same problem with my GSII trying to charge it with my 12V Ipod adapter...
I just arrive from a short travel with my Citroën Xsara and i almost got lost cose the phone discharged all the time while using IGO on the phone...
I don't think this is car related because there are so many people with different cars having this problem... so... Samsung wants me to buy a new car to be able to use their phone in travels?
Hi guys, just thought I'd try to clear up a few of things:
1. All phones can use more power than they can draw. Note that the more apps you use, the more juice you draw depending on their features.
2. Not all CLAs are the same. Most modern devices will need 2amps, but the majority of CLAs on the market are 1 - 1.2amp units.
3. Your device will stop charging if it reaches a certain temperature, without giving you any further indication that it is too hot. This is a common scenario if you've got a phone on the dash giving guidance, with the sun rays beating a back. And yes this does mean dedicated satnav devices have a greater operational temperature range than phones, usually a 15-20 degree difference (celcius).
4. If the CLA is being tripped out due to poor isolation (a lot of cars suffer from this) it will also stop charging.
5. In general terms, the lower the battery level of the device, the more juice it pulls. This is why you may find you ha email no problems getting a small charge when you start with a battery at 85%, but your phone dies if the battery is 50% or less.
Hope that helps.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA Premium App
OK, I have no idea what the problem is. I have a Brodit active charger (the cig-plug version) for my Galaxy SII. It's not charging my phone AT ALL. There is no sound, nothing displayed on my phone when I connect it. I have the charger led (blue light) on, so I know it's working.
Things I have tried so far:
1. Asked for a replacement from Brodit. Got it, no difference.
2. Tried with a different car (I have a BMW, my wife a brand new Toyota Auris) - doesn't charge it either.
3. Tried a different no-name universal charger - it works perfectly well, the phone is charging as expected. Other things like the GPS device also work fine.
4. Tried a different kernel and ROM on my phone, still no success.
Any suggestions are welcome.
LazyPawn said:
OK, I have no idea what the problem is. I have a Brodit active charger (the cig-plug version) for my Galaxy SII. It's not charging my phone AT ALL. There is no sound, nothing displayed on my phone when I connect it. I have the charger led (blue light) on, so I know it's working.
Things I have tried so far:
1. Asked for a replacement from Brodit. Got it, no difference.
2. Tried with a different car (I have a BMW, my wife a brand new Toyota Auris) - doesn't charge it either.
3. Tried a different no-name universal charger - it works perfectly well, the phone is charging as expected. Other things like the GPS device also work fine.
4. Tried a different kernel and ROM on my phone, still no success.
Any suggestions are welcome.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thats strange, in the first place i thought a faulty micro-usb or charger. But you got it replaced so can't be the problem.
I have a brodit with charger too, but i use it in a different way, meaning i can remove my holder and unplug it without unplugging my charger. ( near my holder i have a small connector that i can unplug).
What i did is cutting the cable from the charger and i did put a male usb port on it ( regular male usb port) and i have a Belkin charger with a usb port, this charger deliver 1A charging current and charge my phone even when i use my navigation. ( with bluetooth and gps on).
Your phones micro-usb seems to be fine too because it charge with other brands of chargers.
Your BMW delivers enough power i guess at your cigarette lighter plug, because it doesn't charge at the Toyota either and both not delivering enough power would be coincidence.
Anyway mine works perfect the way i did it and if i can remember it worked too with my original plug attached too. ( though the original one doesn't provide enough power sometimes to keep it charged while using navigation).
The only thing i can think of is that there is some stress-pressure on your connection between phone and holder connection and that one pin isn't connected properly, with the universal charger you only plug the micro-usb plug in your phone and the micro-usb plug can adjust freely to your phones micro-usb port.
Try to wiggle a bit with your phone when in the holder and see if the power comes on. Or try to connect a little device on your holders micro-usb port ( if you have something small that charge over micro-usb) and see if that works.

Car Charger Spec Query

i am looking for a decent [working, cheap and quick charging] car charger.
I know I'll need at least a 1amp [right?] however i have seen a few that charger at 1amp and 2.1amp
is it going to ruin my battery if i use 2.1amp?
anyone found and goodies out there?
thanks
I second this request, i've got a few generic car chargers from older gear that i've tried with the galaxy nexus. So far they all come up as charging via usb, and so the phone loses power when the navigation/bluetooth/etc/etc is all on. I understand the power requirements, and looked into the data-cable soldering malarkey solution, but my soldering skills in the "fire hazard" class at best so i'd much rather an off the shelf solution.
I'd be very grateful if anyone could point out a car charger that they know/strongly suspect works fine.
Cheers
so the same car charger i've been using for my nexus one for navigation won't work with the GNex?
grizlore said:
is it going to ruin my battery if i use 2.1amp?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, but it won't charge the battery faster either.
More amps is fine. Your phone will only pull what it needs, even if more amps are available.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium
Also be aware that even though some car chargers state they can supply >1A current, some phones (like my Nexus One and Galaxy Nexus) will not recognize it as a high speed charger.
Smartphones and other devices check to see if the data pins (D+ and D-) are shorted or have a specific resistance before activating high-speed mode since normal USB data specifications say that devices should only pull <500mA from the port.
I have this one: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B002IW79ZC/?tag=68656c7064757-20, which is supposed to supply 1A, but I when I plug my phone in with a normal USB micro cable, it says it's charging through "USB" vs "AC", where "AC" is the high-speed charging.
I've made a hacked cable adapter, though, which has the data pins shorted. When I use this with the car adapter, it charges at full speed. You should check to be sure that your phone is fully utilizing the charger by going into the Settings > Battery menu.
Hi all,
I thought I'd share how I've gotten on. There's a 2.1a charger that maplins sell that I thought might do it, but alas no - still comes up as "Charging(USB)". I know taFFer solved the problem with a little solder, and a lot of forum threads also suggest the same fix, but the last time I picked up a soldering iron actually ended with a trip to A&E (long, embarrassing, story) so I was still keen to find an off the shelf solution.
Anyway, after reading a lot more forums, I found a few different people recommending the same motorola charger. Amazon UK sell it, so I stuck in an order. Details below:
MOTOROLA P513 MICRO USB IN CAR CHARGER, £5.45*
http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B000S5Q9CA
*above item(s) sold by and shipped from Keep Talking
It arrived today and sure enough simply plugging it into the car results in it appearing as Charging(AC). I've not gone on a long enough drive to know about charging speed when gps/bluetooth/etc is all going, but if anyone else is after a cheap car charger that just works without hacking your own cable I think this is the one.
Cheers
***EDIT***
After criss-crossing the country over the xmas period i can tell you this charger is working fine for me. Even when using all the gps, bluetooth, screen on, etc that i can muster (while still driving straight!) the phone gains power and would often come out the car more charged than when it went in. The charger has one annoyance - they've built in a blue led to the charger which is lit up the whole time the thing is plugged in and thats kind of distracting, i don't really know what they were thinking with that, but otherwise i've no complaints.
nexuskettle said:
Hi all,
I thought I'd share how I've gotten on. There's a 2.1a charger that maplins sell that I thought might do it, but alas no - still comes up as "Charging(USB)". I know taFFer solved the problem with a little solder, and a lot of forum threads also suggest the same fix, but the last time I picked up a soldering iron actually ended with a trip to A&E (long, embarrassing, story) so I was still keen to find an off the shelf solution.
Anyway, after reading a lot more forums, I found a few different people recommending the same motorola charger. Amazon UK sell it, so I stuck in an order. Details below:
MOTOROLA P513 MICRO USB IN CAR CHARGER, £5.45*
*above item(s) sold by and shipped from Keep Talking
It arrived today and sure enough simply plugging it into the car results in it appearing as Charging(AC). I've not gone on a long enough drive to know about charging speed when gps/bluetooth/etc is all going, but if anyone else is after a cheap car charger that just works without hacking your own cable I think this is the one.
Cheers
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks a lot for the news mate. I'll be getting one soon! Will you be able to post again when you find out how the charger works with gps etc. Thank you!
Anyone know if this charger works with the galaxy nexus (detected as AC?)
http://www.amazon.com/Scosche-Dual-Charger-iPhone-Players/dp/B000RYSU7O/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top
nomisunrider said:
Anyone know if this charger works with the galaxy nexus (detected as AC?)
http://www.amazon.com/Scosche-Dual-Charger-iPhone-Players/dp/B000RYSU7O/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
For optimal charging, you need 1000mAh output. How much does this charger output?

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