So I have a few car and home chargers laying around that are Micro USB, just like the EVO. Is it safe to use them? I would think so since all the charging circuitry is internal to the phone. But, I figure i would double check.
Also, are there certain micro USB > Std USB cords that are designed for charging and data VS data only?
I use a Rocketfish (Best Buy) car charger in my truck and sometimes use my wife's Blackberry 9800 wall charger or USB cable and haven't had a problem at all. I remember this was a huge problem with my old Pre but I don't know if the EVO has the same issue.
I have been usin my old Blackberry's one and works perfect!
Just check the MilliAmps rating. The EVO uses some healthy juice to charge it. Most chargers will charge it slowly as generics are typically in the 500-700mA range. But they are typically safe, I use them sometimes.
Thanks for the info. I will check out the LG home and car chargers I have left over and see what they are capable of.
I use the chargers from my old LG verizon phone. They charge very fast so obviously they have enough juice. And they don't make a humming noise when at full charge like the htc oem ones that came with my evos.
Posted from my Atari 2600
I have a pointmobl car charger I bought from Radio Shack when I got the phone and I use a USB travel charger from my old Razr VE20 in my bedroom, both work great. The Razr charger is about 700mA I think, so it charges a bit slower but it still works fine. My car charger is 1A so it charges on that pretty quickly.
My EVO is quite the slut when it comes to chargers: I like it! My old HTC Universal was PI-CKY about chargers! Pretty much had to rely on a USB cable and a device.
The 500ma charger I bout with the phone back in June died a few months ago, so I think you can't expect to cheat THAT much. I have tested 4 different car chargers and they all work (rocketfish, verizon, and 2 no-name brands).
Mindspin_311 said:
So I have a few car and home chargers laying around that are Micro USB, just like the EVO. Is it safe to use them? I would think so since all the charging circuitry is internal to the phone. But, I figure i would double check.
Also, are there certain micro USB > Std USB cords that are designed for charging and data VS data only?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've never heard of a cord that was data only. Never seen one either.
Sent from my (insert daily ROM name here) Evo 4g
They are OK but watch the amperage. The HTC one is the only one providing a full 1A. Most other ones are 250-500mAh and I've seen as low as 125mAh. That means 8 times longer to charge.
I tried buying a no-name Chinese/HK 1A charger off eBay and it ended up freezing my phone anytime it was plugged in (and resuming like nothing happened when taken out.) Weirdest thing ever since I'm not sure how a charger could affect the phone that way, but be careful.
The cheapest I've seen for the official HTC one is here: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=150574209506
Looks legit and hopefully it's not a knockoff.
Related
So I bought a car usb charger that claimed it was rated at 1 amp. Using both my blackberry and HTC oem usb cables it will only show up as a USB charger (500ma).
This is not exactly enough to charge the phone while using 3g, gps, full screen brightness, etc. I'm looking for a good confirmed 1 amp hardwire (not using a usb cable) car charger and home charger. I used my sisters Samsung charger (rated at 700ma) and it charged it quicker than with the OEM htc charger.
And I would like to try and get ones that are confirmed to show up as fully charging the phone. I would appreciate some insight
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA App
And now that I think about it,
I would like to be able to use my Amazon prime for a change, so amazon links would be nice
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA App
I went through a few different car chargers, so I can help you out here. I bought the Belkin car charger recommended here in another thread, low profile and rated at 1A, but my phone only recognized it as USB and charging was fairly slow, extended road trips using video recording and navigation while plugged in would drain my battery over time.
I used my friend's palm pre home charger and it worked very well, so I went on to Amazon and bought the "palm vehicle charger". The one I got in the mail (from Park Deals) was DOA, wouldn't turn on at all (I emailed Park Deals and they sent me a new replacement free of charge, didn't even have me ship back the defective one). I called the local radio shacks and found one in stock at $9.99 (radio shack isn't carrying palm anymore, so the accessories are on closeout but hard to find in stock). Works like a charm, the phone recognizes as AC charging, the phone still charges while running navi or recording video.
My friend got a cheapo car kit on ebay, came with rubberized case, mount that fits the evo with the same case on, and a cheap unlabeled car charger with a bungie type cord. I tried this on my phone, my evo recognizes it as AC also, so I assume it would charge well if it's rated at 1A. I've seen several other cheapo car chargers rated at 1A as well.
Another thread here on XDA says that if you modify your charger/cable by altering the middle data pins you can get the phone to believe the usb port is plugged into the wall and draw full current from the charger. I tried covering the two middle pins with a piece of paper and plugging it in, but this didn't work for me. The other methods involved shorting the two data pins together, I didn't really want to waste a cable or mess up a charger and potentially my phone so I just bought a different charger. Another thread mentioned buying a specific rocketfish usb cable had a similar effect.
nhutpham said:
I went through a few different car chargers, so I can help you out here. I bought the Belkin car charger recommended here in another thread, low profile and rated at 1A, but my phone only recognized it as USB and charging was fairly slow, extended road trips using video recording and navigation while plugged in would drain my battery over time.
I used my friend's palm pre home charger and it worked very well, so I went on to Amazon and bought the "palm vehicle charger". The one I got in the mail (from Park Deals) was DOA, wouldn't turn on at all (I emailed Park Deals and they sent me a new replacement free of charge, didn't even have me ship back the defective one). I called the local radio shacks and found one in stock at $9.99 (radio shack isn't carrying palm anymore, so the accessories are on closeout but hard to find in stock). Works like a charm, the phone recognizes as AC charging, the phone still charges while running navi or recording video.
My friend got a cheapo car kit on ebay, came with rubberized case, mount that fits the evo with the same case on, and a cheap unlabeled car charger with a bungie type cord. I tried this on my phone, my evo recognizes it as AC also, so I assume it would charge well if it's rated at 1A. I've seen several other cheapo car chargers rated at 1A as well.
Another thread here on XDA says that if you modify your charger/cable by altering the middle data pins you can get the phone to believe the usb port is plugged into the wall and draw full current from the charger. I tried covering the two middle pins with a piece of paper and plugging it in, but this didn't work for me. The other methods involved shorting the two data pins together, I didn't really want to waste a cable or mess up a charger and potentially my phone so I just bought a different charger. Another thread mentioned buying a specific rocketfish usb cable had a similar effect.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That was me on both accounts. Love my rocket fish cable. Bought the 12v/usb converter for the car and whether or not i use the pc or car to charge, it shows as ac charger on the phone. I use this cable on all my pc's as well as the usb outlet in my vehicle.
This is the charger that I bought from amazon. It shows up as charging from AC (instead of USB) charging. It's available for Amazon Prime for under $6:
The Motorola P513 micro-usb charger.
Ok so I ended up with the Moto 513 charger as well (950ma rated)
http://www.amazon.com/Motorola-Vehi..._1_5?ie=UTF8&s=wireless&qid=1280759739&sr=8-5
But I cant find any AC chargers under prime that are 1000ma
investinwaffles said:
Ok so I ended up with the Moto 513 charger as well (950ma rated)
http://www.amazon.com/Motorola-Vehi..._1_5?ie=UTF8&s=wireless&qid=1280759739&sr=8-5
But I cant find any AC chargers under prime that are 1000ma
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
this one works great. I have it.
Ok, so I found an OEM Nokia for the N97 that is rated at 1200ma. Is this safe to buy for my phone?
http://www.amazon.com/Nokia-Origina..._1_2?ie=UTF8&s=wireless&qid=1280760676&sr=8-2
Auction with more specifics of the charger:
http://cgi.ebay.com/NOKIA-US-AC-10U...ccessories&hash=item414e190fa7#ht_2800wt_1026
There's a nokia micro usb charger for $6.99 available for Amaazon Prime. The model number is AC 6U. ASIN: B0030T0ULW
I'm charging with the scosche reviveII at 2.1 amps without any problems.
linhpham2 said:
There's a nokia micro usb charger for $6.99 available for Amaazon Prime. The model number is AC 6U. ASIN: B0030T0ULW
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
From this ebay listing it looks like the AC-6U is only a ~600ma charger:
http://cgi.ebay.com/NOKIA-CELL-PHON..._Accessories&hash=item5639f88b1c#ht_500wt_721
I think ill spend the extra few bucks on the 1200ma charger, I don't think ill have any problems (and i have the best buy warranty also so I'm not too worried).
linhpham2 said:
I'm charging with the scosche reviveII at 2.1 amps without any problems.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How fast does it charge?
One the 2.1 amp port, the Evo only charges at 1 amp. The Evo doesn't charge any faster with this charger than any other 1 amp charger.
linhpham2 said:
One the 2.1 amp port, the Evo only charges at 1 amp. The Evo doesn't charge any faster with this charger than any other 1 amp charger.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Gotcha, thanks for the info.
I just ordered a Rocketfish cable. We'll see how that works.
Would be nice if they made a Y-cable to get 1amp from 2 USB ports in a PC. I mean, I know they MAKE cables like this but I read somewhere that HTC phones were designed to still only charge at 500mAh even with one of those.
Dunno.
It depends on what you're using as a charging source. When usb charging on my home pc or car, it's AC charging at 1 amp.. But if I'm charging with my Energizer external battery, it's only USB charging at 0.5 amp. This is using the same usb cable.
iGo
Would anyone happen to know what an iGo tip (A97) delivers? I am trying to rig up a custom solution that is hard-wired, but uses iGo tips so I don't have to use the cigarette lighter plug and I have the flexibility at the corner of my windshield to swap tips for different devices.
Right now, I have a 4-port USB hub installed under the dash that is 12v powered. I then use a proprietary iGo cable that uses a standard PC style USB connector on one end and then terminates into an iGo tip connector at the other end. That USB cable runs up to the corner of the windshield so I can swap tips at will.
If I use the iGo A97 tip on their cigarette lighter adapter, it seems to charge, but I am not sure at what rate. If I try to use the A97 tip on the USB hub, it charges for about 2 seconds, and then the light goes out. The Evo does not seem to like the custom arrangement, yet all my other micro usb devices do not seem to have any issues and charge just fine...
Thanks,
-Rob
I can attest to the Moto 513 working fine - it has served me very well on my Evo and the Treo Pro before it.
Unfortunately it is a big ass charger though - wish there was a good micro option.
How do u determine how much power its actually charging at or if its not using the full 1amp rating?
_______________________________
Sent from my EVO 4G
robroy90 said:
Would anyone happen to know what an iGo tip (A97) delivers? I am trying to rig up a custom solution that is hard-wired, but uses iGo tips so I don't have to use the cigarette lighter plug and I have the flexibility at the corner of my windshield to swap tips for different devices.
Right now, I have a 4-port USB hub installed under the dash that is 12v powered. I then use a proprietary iGo cable that uses a standard PC style USB connector on one end and then terminates into an iGo tip connector at the other end. That USB cable runs up to the corner of the windshield so I can swap tips at will.
If I use the iGo A97 tip on their cigarette lighter adapter, it seems to charge, but I am not sure at what rate. If I try to use the A97 tip on the USB hub, it charges for about 2 seconds, and then the light goes out. The Evo does not seem to like the custom arrangement, yet all my other micro usb devices do not seem to have any issues and charge just fine...
Thanks,
-Rob
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Should pull 1A off the Igo
how do i determine if its recognizing a charger as ac versus usb? could this be rom specific? it seems to charge much faster with cyanogen than it did with damagecontrol
Last night, I decided to use my HD2 charger, since it was already in my drawer. Charged it around midnight and woke up around 4 and it only charged 10% So I decided to use the Motorola charger, and when I woke up around 6 it was fully charged in less than 2 hours. So my question is, are we only suppose to be using the charger that came w/ it or is my outlet possessed
The actual cable doesn't matter, but the charging port seems to. My phone doesn't charge as well when hooked up to my HTC Aria's usb charge vs. the one that came with my Atrix or even the old Motorola Z9 charger I have (like this one since it's longer than my USB cable and it reaches my bed so I can do "Sleep as a Droid"
I tried using my Nexus charger last night and the phone didn't like it at all. It started FC'ing all over the place and I had to reboot it. The voltage on both chargers are the same. For a moment I thought I f'd it up but it's been fine all day.
I'm using Blackberry's micro usb chargers with no problem. I bought a few of these for my N1, and they work fine with the Atrix. The N1 charger from Google/HTC does not work like you all have said.
http://www.amazon.com/BlackBerry-Fo...PN0S/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1298495146&sr=8-2
Roricken said:
Last night, I decided to use my HD2 charger, since it was already in my drawer. Charged it around midnight and woke up around 4 and it only charged 10% So I decided to use the Motorola charger, and when I woke up around 6 it was fully charged in less than 2 hours. So my question is, are we only suppose to be using the charger that came w/ it or is my outlet possessed
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Check the amp output of the charger, a good one will be at 1amp, where most are around 500ma or less.
If you're having charging issues, it's probably because the charger isn't supplying the required 800ma draw. Most USB power adapters still only output 500ma max. Be sure your 3rd party charger can output 800ma or more. For example the Apple USB adapters can output anywhere from 1000ma to 2000ma and they work great charging the Atrix.
Hope this helps!
bsinc1962 said:
I tried using my Nexus charger last night and the phone didn't like it at all. It started FC'ing all over the place and I had to reboot it. The voltage on both chargers are the same. For a moment I thought I f'd it up but it's been fine all day.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
co.ag.2005 said:
I'm using Blackberry's micro usb chargers with no problem. I bought a few of these for my N1, and they work fine with the Atrix. The N1 charger from Google/HTC does not work like you all have said.
Yep to both. I tried my N1 charger last night, and the Atrix wasn't having it. Tried my BB charger at work and it charged up quickly. It's weird. On the plus side, a second usb cable is only 6 bucks from at&t ... which is fair.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The Atrix must be a little charge sensitive (maybe it has a rapid charge mode or something). We have at our counter a surge protector that also has two built in USB ports for charging. We've charged our iPhone 4 and my Captivate at the same time for months.
When I plugged in the Atrix, it starting chirping (like switching the charge mode on/off/on/off) and the iP4 _also_ started flipping out (again, like the power was being interrupted).
I wound up plugging into the same surge protector, but used a regular AC outlet and the supplied USB>>AC adapter. Everything ran/charged just fine.
Mine seems to freeze up and force close often whenever I charge it with my blackberry cord. The same cord had been charging my Backflip fine for months.
Need the Amp rating
I don't have an Atrix yet (I will soon).
The Blackberry charger that I have puts out 700mA.
But I have tried to use other micro USB chargers with the BlackBerry (BB) and if the charger does not put out the right amps, the BB keeps flipping into/out of clock mode. If you then plug in a BB charger....works great.
A USB-Port is only supposed to deliver 500mA by norm.
So, to charge the phone it hast to be >=500mA.
That explains why the Atrix charges really slow hooked up to a PC, since the battery is ~1900mA/h
You do the math
I'm using a Samsung wall charger right now with no problems.
Has anyone tried using an apple charger/aftermarket apple chager on their Atrix yet? I have an incase combo charger that can feed 2 amps (necessary for the ipad) and I'm worried it might cook something.
http://www.goincase.com/products/detail/combo-charger-ec20035
Yeah I use a cheap generic CELLNET wall charger and works perfect no problems
wirelessF said:
I'm using a Samsung wall charger right now with no problems.
Has anyone tried using an apple charger/aftermarket apple chager on their Atrix yet? I have an incase combo charger that can feed 2 amps (necessary for the ipad) and I'm worried it might cook something.
http://www.goincase.com/products/detail/combo-charger-ec20035
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
whoa
$39 for a usb combo charger ?
does it give me a bj everytime i plug it in ?
Thanks for all the help everyone. I decided to just stick w/ the Moto one for now. Sure does take freaking forever to charge via usb on your computer. Lots of juice power
I just got this charger from Amazon fro $5.99 with 2 day shipping (if you have Prime)and it is OEM !
http://www.amazon.com/Motorola-Vehi..._1_1?s=wireless&ie=UTF8&qid=1298656516&sr=1-1
I've used my wife's captivate charger, and it seemed to charge just fine, will need to look and see the output.. I may need to try my Iphone charger and see the rating...
The B&N Nook charger works fine too.
i forgot to bring my charger to work today, phone died. then i found a charger in my desk for an old bluetooth headset i no longer have. 5v-550ma......seems to be working but i suppose we shall see
I have been using my HTC Evo charger without a hitch.
The original Samsung charger outputs 5V---1000ma, I have an extra blackberry micro usb charger that outputs 5V---750ma.
I want to use my old blackberry charger in my office, will this different current output affect my battery long term or short term?
edlivian said:
The original Samsung charger outputs 5V---1000ma, I have an extra blackberry micro usb charger that outputs 5V---750ma.
I want to use my old blackberry charger in my office, will this different current output affect my battery long term or short term?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
One of the immediate side effects will be that your phone will take a longer time to fully charge your battery.
If I helped you out in any way please thank me. Thanks.
Not sure how the blackberry chargers are. I know some of the Motorola chargers are accepted by the phone for high current charging (any charger that doesn't puts the phone in low current mode).
I charge my phone every night on my old 700mah Samsung charger and while it does take longer youd hardly notice unless you were trying to get as much charge in say an hour as possible. So as long as the phone doesn't limit it you should be good. <500mah is very noticeable.
I know it will take longer to charge. But Im not as familiar with appropriate charging output for li-ion as i am for ni-mh Sanyo eneloops for example that ideally should be charged at 220ma to maximize cell life.
edlivian said:
I know it will take longer to charge. But Im not as familiar with appropriate charging output for li-ion as i am for ni-mh Sanyo eneloops for example that ideally should be charged at 220ma to maximize cell life.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The rule still applies the less current used to charge the better the lifespan. The phone was paired with a battery with the intention of using a 1 amp charger. The phone will only allow high current charging mode if it thinks the charger is Samsung. Shorting the data pins is a way to fool it and many aftermarket chargers already do this.
With your phone on and the phone in low current mode (320 mah i believe) you will have a hard time charging the phone if anything is wake locking the phone even screen off. You will even have trouble charging and using the phone at 500mah depending on whats going on.
The phone will be eating some amount of power from the charger, the battery is not always seeing as much current as you might think. I always stick by the practice of not deep discharging it, LiION would rather be topped off then not charged (geeze remember NiCad laptop batteries.... lol). I feel this battery will be the shortest lifespan of any phone or laptop I have ever had. Just due to how much use it sees.
Charger
Any micro usb charger should work. I've had a dozen or so different gadgets that all use micro usb from Blue Tooth headsets, to speakers. I use all chargers interchangeably with one noteable exception. My wife's Nook Tablet will only charge using the provided Nook charger. Found that out the hard way.
I have also found that not all micro usb cables will provide data transfer for all phones. I'm guessing different pin-outs? For instance when I was trying to root my ET4G, I forgot my OEM cable at home so I tried to use my EVO cable. That dind't work well at all.
My old blackberry chargers seemed to work fine but I started seeing some strange jumping around of the battery while using. For instance it would all of a sudden jump up to 100% charged then if I unplugged and plugged back in it would go back to 70% or whatever. I went back to only samsung or just charging off usb. I use my pc, printer, cable box etc to charge my phone.
I charge mine with either the stock charger that came with my E4GT, or an old 700MAh charger that came with my old Samsung Rant. Occasionally I use the charger that came with my HTC Evo 4G. I really can never tell a difference. Although, like someone above said, it seems as if non-Samsung usb cables will not charge when plugged into a computer. That's how it is with the HTC cable, and I've also tried an LG usb cable and got the same results.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using XDA
BBJon said:
I have also found that not all micro usb cables will provide data transfer for all phones. I'm guessing different pin-outs? For instance when I was trying to root my ET4G, I forgot my OEM cable at home so I tried to use my EVO cable. That dind't work well at all.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Really? I rooted and always use Odin using an HTC cable...
EggosEvo said:
I charge mine with either the stock charger that came with my E4GT, or an old 700MAh charger that came with my old Samsung Rant. Occasionally I use the charger that came with my HTC Evo 4G. I really can never tell a difference. Although, like someone above said, it seems as if non-Samsung usb cables will not charge when plugged into a computer. That's how it is with the HTC cable, and I've also tried an LG usb cable and got the same results.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I had the exclaim, the replacement to the rant and thats where my 700mah charger came from.
All of my other Micro USB cables except the one are non samsung and I use them all for charging, data and they charge while connected to pc. But none of them are from other phone manufacturers or anything. The Micro USB spec is what these phones are using there is no difference.
The difference that matters most of the time is tolerances. Its easy to end up with cables that will work well in one port but not another. The rest of the cable may also be out of spec and not work well or at all for certain purposes.
I've ruined two batteries because of non-OEM chargers on the ET4G. (Actually, ruined two, and made a third battery just render terrible performance.) I definitely don't have the problem with other devices I own, and it's definitely happened with two separate ET4G's I've owned.
So, "be very careful using alternate chargers" is all I would advise.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium
Please correct me if I'm wrong but isn't electricity the same no matter the source?
If the phone is looking to pull 1A and your charger is rated for .7A I'd be worried about the charger not the battery, which technically is a cell not a battery.
Tolerances were mentioned before and I think that is most of the problem with certain cables working fine for some people and not others. All connectors and cabling are supposed to meet the USB spec and many cheap ones don't. Also the supposed 10,000 insertion rating for micro USB is a bit optimistic imo. I replace cables after a couple months max because of loose connections.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using XDA
dberend said:
Please correct me if I'm wrong but isn't electricity the same no matter the source?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not really because these chargers are doing AC to DC conversion and voltage regulation is a huge factor in its job. With a bad charger design not only can charging be affected, possibly even hurt the battery. Since the phone will consumer charger power to run while on the charger the phone can become unstable. Not talking a defective charger, just bad and cheap designs.
dberend said:
If the phone is looking to pull 1A and your charger is rated for .7A I'd be worried about the charger not the battery, which technically is a cell not a battery
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think about that alot actually. Coming from PC power supplies you never want to overload the unit. But I know for a fact I have devices that demand more from chargers than can be given, and do not have the low current and high current modes like this phone.
I am no electrical engineer and am only familiar with AC to DC and DC to AC circuits and various voltage regulation techiniques. But it is possible to current limit as well right? You design a half amp charger, with the data pin short to put the Samsung into high current. You limit the current to 500 mah but over build the components just a little to increase lifespan.
Anyways, I bought a 2.1 Amp RCA wall charger from walmart last night on a wim. 9 bucks, might come in handy when i get a tablet. Has a 1 Amp side and a 2.1 Amp thats shared with the 1 Amp. Phone didn't show any ill will to it and I had my Schosche GoBatt on the 1 amp end. If the phones drawing too much current could be bad in the long run but its working so far. Charged at the normal speed of the stock charger.
RainMotorsports said:
Not really because these chargers are doing AC to DC conversion and voltage regulation is a huge factor in its job. With a bad charger design not only can charging be affected, possibly even hurt the battery. Since the phone will consumer charger power to run while on the charger the phone can become unstable. Not talking a defective charger, just bad and cheap designs.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree with you on bad and cheap designs. How many tv's and other electronics have been rendered useless by a few substandard capacitors that saved the manufacturer $.02 per unit?
I try not to use any charger that doesn't have HTC, Samsung, etc on the label. I figure if they were willing to back it warranty wise for the original device it should put out clean enough power.
I'm far from being engineer but I do quite a bit of hardware hacking and learned a little bit about electronics when I was at Ft Gordon. So I'm not completely lost around a multimeter
I would imagine that there is some protection built into the charging circuit of the phone itself. How effective or what kind of tolerance Idk suppose I could look for datasheets if anybody really cares.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using XDA
I recently sold my old Toyota Rav4 which only had a standard cigarette lighter car charger. I used a cheap charger I've had since my old Blackberry Tour to charge my ET4G. I work on the road a lot and used the car charger a lot for about the last 10 months til my phone started dying on me. Sprint store tested the phone and said the battery was slightly swollen and definitely showed signs of being damaged which in turn damaged the terminals on the phone causing constant reboots. I paid $35 to have Sprint/Samsung replace the phone as it was less than a yr old and under warranty.
I now have a new car and new ET4G. New car has USB port under the radio as well as 2 standard car charging ports. I've done several searches and read several threads about different voltages and which ones actually charge phones and tablets etc but none have answered my question. The question is is USB charging any safer than standard car charger? I've been told by a friend that fluctuations in the cars battery can send different amounts of charge to the phone and damage it over time. Both methods charge my phone so I don't care which one I use though I'd rather use USB as my USB cord is just 1.5 feet long (perfect length to reach my phone mount).
For some reason they actually gave me a new ET4G not a refurb and it works great. I don't want to damage the battery on this one and would like to keep it alive and sell it when I upgrade phones around December. That's only a few months away but I'd like to know I'm not damaging the battery in the mean time. Any input would be great. Thanks in advance and sorry for the lengthy write up.
Anyone with any input? Anyone use USB to micro USB in their cars?
Don't know if the new car is also a Toyota but here goes...
04 and 10 Toyotas - tried a cheapo MicroUSB charger and the voltage actually drained the battery! So I bought a $10 lighter to USB port charger, plugged in the cable and charges like a champ!
It really depends on how much power they're pushing through the USB port and whether the E4GT can regulate it. I'm finding it to work great - and MTP mode should give you access to the music on the head unit. (Again, *if* it's a newer Toyota...)
Most radios and internal usb ports will be 500ma (same as a standard computer usb port). That is only enough to charge the phone when it is sleeping. Just snag a $10 adapter that puts out 1a.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda app-developers app
Thank you both. I just drove 2 hours with Bluetooth on and GPS running while connected to USB. Battery drained 8% which isn't much so it wasn't strong enough to charge it but slowed down drain.
The new car is a 2013 Hyundai Elantra GT (It's a new model to Hyundai). The cigarette charger doesn't seem to over heat the phone like my Toyota did. I'll ask Hyundai how much charge the cigarette lighter port puts out I guess.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda app-developers app
I highly recommend the OEM Motorola car charger. Got mine on Amazon for $6. It was the only charger that would work on my old phone because it had voltage control. Any generic charger would only drain my battery while still displaying the charging animation.
Plus it has a cool blue glow to it.
Ravaged Pheonix said:
I highly recommend the OEM Motorola car charger. Got mine on Amazon for $6. It was the only charger that would work on my old phone because it had voltage control. Any generic charger would only drain my battery while still displaying the charging animation.
Plus it has a cool blue glow to it.
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Sweet, I'll take a look at it. I heard back from Hyundai and the guy said he has no documentation on it yet since its a new model but if I wanted to swing by he could test it real quick and let me know. Today was hot as hell. I got in the car and blasted the AC. Put the phone on the USB charger and after about 10 minutes I got a warning on my screen saying phone is too hot and charging has stopped. I didn't even have GPS on or anything. I quickly unplugged the phone and it was fine after that. How can the USB overheat the phone when it can't even charge it while I run GPS and Bluetooth? I wasn't too happy. I used a brand new USB to micro USB cord from Monoprice (5 pin if that makes a difference).
I had an ATT branded iphone charger with usb port. When i plug in a usb cable and try to charge my htc on in the car it complains it cannot charge at full speed. What brand/make car charger will get me a normal charge in the car?
keroppilee said:
I had an ATT branded iphone charger with usb port. When i plug in a usb cable and try to charge my htc on in the car it complains it cannot charge at full speed. What brand/make car charger will get me a normal charge in the car?
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I grabbed this one here: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIA07R03A7077
Just received it a few days ago, haven't been able to fully test it, but it seems to be just fine.
Many car chargers just don't put out enough juice - especially older carrier branded ones (ie: cheaply made and sold at a premium). I'd be curious to know the rated output of yours.
The wall charger that ships with the phone is rated at 1 amp output. I've used a 500mA charger and haven't seen that message, though it does charge noticeably slower (as you would expect, with half the current). I don't know the specs on the charger that peteschlabar linked to, but you can find hundreds of chargers on Amazon or Newegg that are rated at or above 1A for a few bucks.
Well I didn't look at the specs of the charger I linked, but I was able to use it the other day while using my phone as a GPS. Battery level started at 94%, and was up to 96% about 1 hour later while using the charger and GPS nav with google maps for the entire hour. I'm completely stock, and the phone gets pretty toasty while charging.
But, main point - the charger seems to work just fine, keeping the phone charging upwards while in use.
Ahhh the joys of having an actual power outlet in your car. I don't have to worry about such things!
But my truck doesn't have that, so for my truck I bought the usb one that goes in the lighter, and it's powerful enough to charge an iPad, it's Belkin brand and it charges my phone very nicely, doesn't seem to be any slower than the house charger.
Sent from my HTC One.
I been using the same car charger since the inc2.
Still working great!
hatchmt said:
The wall charger that ships with the phone is rated at 1 amp output.
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andybones said:
I been using the same car charger since the inc2. Still working great!
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The wall charger that ships with this phone is the same, albeit slightly updated, model as the one that shipped with the original HTC Droid Incredible 3½ years ago, which I still use to charge my phones. They're both model number TC U250 with 5V-1A output and both have the same 100-240V~200mA input. The part numbers are different, though, and they're cosmetically different on the back with extra certifications on the newer one, and they also added Spanish and Chinese translations to the English.
I still use the same Verizon-branded car charger in my car from when I originally bought my Incredible, and if anything, it charges this phone faster than it did my Incredible and Incredible 4G. It went from 40-something percent to fully charged in about an hour of driving the other day with intermittent use. I was pleasantly surprised to see that.
keroppilee said:
I had an ATT branded iphone charger with usb port. When i plug in a usb cable and try to charge my htc on in the car it complains it cannot charge at full speed. What brand/make car charger will get me a normal charge in the car?
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I am a big fan of Y-CHARGE 4.2 Dual USB Car Charger By TYLT