My Accessory Cache - 4 Reviews in 1 - Galaxy Tab 10.1 Accessories

So I went a little crazy today. Before k begin, I need to explain some events leading up to this accessory shopping spree. I have been out from work for 5 weeks while recovering from lumbar back surgery. For the 2 weeks prior to surgery and during my recovery I had 4 Asus Transformers. This week i had enough with 2nd and 4th chances. Dont get me wrong, Asus made a great product. I would be still using if I got my hands on a July unit. HOWEVER, 1 week with the Tab 10.1 and I am wondering why I was so hung up on ports. I go back to work Monday. So I am going to rely heavily on this light and thin wonder, meanwhile my work laptop will be 'bolted' to my desk (too big and heavy still to tote around.) Here are the accessories I picked up today and my initial thoughts.
1) Keyboard Dock - This keyboard is compact but they aren't joking when they say full size. Having owned and used the Asus Keyboard for the Transformer, the Samsung kit is far more productive for me. I felt sort of cramped on the Asus and always had to disable the trackpad. Thumbs would glaze it and cursor would end up where it shouldn't be. The dock lit right up. No funky hide the clock, and I just had to change from ThumbKeyboard to Samsung. This is easily done with the notification option when using any keyboard in Honeycomb. Once I undock, it was a breeze to switch back to ThumbKeyboard. The dock had no tight squeezes on the unit itself or the invisible shield.
2) Media Dock - I did get the clock screen. Tapping back took me back to my last used activity. From there I could home, recent apps, or back my way out. Not tired the HDMI pass through as I don't have the adapter, and ill hook up my work deal speakers on Monday. The angle is great for my sitting height at my desk or event when standing. The ease of docking/undocking was easy. The downer is the front inside edge of the dock cradle has to little tiny notches. They tend to ruffle the invisible shield in the lower L/R corners of the Tab. You can flattened back out once you undocn. But I am sure it'll result in a new invisible shield periodically. this is going to sit on my desk at work. That way I can charge, use, listen to music, or multi task while my work laptop is in tied up. It'll function perfectly for that purpose, but the Invisible Shield wear and tear will be a test to see if it stays.
3) Samsung Wall Charger - Just like the one included with the tablet. Same length and module wall plug. Will use with Media dock while included plug will stay at home with Keyboard Dock. I've learned my lesson with non OEM chargers... they can damage your battery and its ability to hold charge. So I am drawn to OEM plugs or certified by OEM partners. But honestly $50 for a 3ft cable and wall plug? Even the Apple chargers are less than that. But no alternatives mean I pay the price.
4) Samsung Leather Pounch - I was very shocked when I pulled it out of the case! THIS THING IS NICE! High quality leather and soft felt interior, but most importantly it is thinner than the Tab itself. Therefore it does not double or tripple the thickness of the Tab's thin profile. Which is what drew me to the tab to begin with. It will work great to transport to/from/around work and other travel needs. I highly recommend for those who don't want a flipper always dangling around while thumbing it. I found that a annoying with my iPAD1 and Asus experiences. So if you aren't a fan of the full size keyboard and angle setup, this will be a great thin, light, and safe method to protect your tablet. It is basic but stylish. Best of all its a 1 step process to remove the Tab10.1 for docking with the above.
So.... I am actually looking forward to returning to work Monday now. LOL. Mission accomplished. The Bluetooth keyboard and notebook case were on my lost but no one has then in stock yet to examine. The two Belkin cases were very nice and high quality, but they both add considerable mass. And most importantly require more than 1 step to remove the Tab for docking. That is not desirable to me as over time it makes the safe guards that keep the tablet from falling out of the less effective.
I hope this is helpful. I know there are a few other review and comments about the two docks. But I wanted to give more of a 'my personal setup' perspective to my review as well as share why personally a stable and pimped out tablet is so important to me right now.
Enjoy and let me know of you have any questions or comments.
Sent from my GT-P7510 using Tapatalk

djchad72 said:
3) Samsung Wall Charger - Just like the one included with the tablet. Same length and module wall plug. Will use with Media dock while included plug will stay at home with Keyboard Dock. I've learned my lesson with non OEM chargers... they can damage your battery and its ability to hold charge. So I am drawn to OEM plugs or certified by OEM partners. But honestly $50 for a 3ft cable and wall plug? Even the Apple chargers are less than that. But no alternatives mean I pay the price.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There are plenty of alternatives. A solder blob and a resistor turns an iPad charger into a Tab 10.1 charger. There's also a good possibility that a kernel tweak will allow the Tab 10.1 to use unmodified iPad chargers (I just need to find if there are separate ADC channels for D+ and D-)
There is NO reason why any iPad charger could damage the Tab - USB is USB is USB, 5 volts is 5 volts is 5 volts. Samsung's weird detection resistors violate the USB Battery Charging standard (so do iDevices for that matter), and it is purely a racket to milk money from users.
Your views on OEM chargers are archaic and date back to the days when dumphones were so dumb that charge control intelligence was in the charger/power supply and not in the phone itself. This hasn't been valid for 95%+ of phones for years, and isn't valid for 99% of the devices that are discussed here on XDA, if any. These days, if a battery in a smartphone or tablet gets damaged by improper charging, the device itself and only the device is to blame, because all charge control intelligence has been moved into the device.

I disagree. I bought non standard non OEM wall charger and cables for a Palm Pre. That was only 2 years ago. It fried both batteries and my battery charger pack. The batteries would degrade quickly upon operation and random reboots crept up. Techs examined the batteries and they tested bad. They had to replace.
I know there are 3rd party makers that can be trusted. But in the end the OEM and end user is going to only take so much before replacement get bothersome.
Sent from my GT-P7510 using Tapatalk

The only thing I can think of there is that the charger was weak and browned out, potentially confusing the phone's charging circuit.
Either that or the charger was SERIOUSLY defective. I'll be honest - before using a charger I do check that it is at least regulating to around 5 volts, so far I haven't had any surprises. The only surprise I've had were Monoprice "1A" chargers that were really only capable of 400-500 mA.
An iPad charger with the charging resistors tweaked so that D+ and D- are around 1.2 volts will be indistinguishable from the real deal for our tabs.

Related

Multimedia dock available NOW!

I was browsing around on ebay and found a multimedia dock for our beloved TB's. Its deff not the highest quality dock i have ever seen, but it looks like a viable replacement until Verizon or HTCpedia release the official one. It doesnt look like it is slanted slightly to have a nice viewing angle but still its $30...the one from Verizon is $60. Let me know what you guys think.
http://cgi.ebay.com/USB-Sync-Battery-Charger-Cradle-HTC-Thunderbolt-4G-/380333733043?pt=PDA_Accessories&hash=item588da834b3
That one has been available for a little while now. There is a thread where someone has a link for it cheaper also. I'm holding out for the Verizon one.
I would avoid this one, I purchased one from amazon and returned it the same day. The viewing angle is horrible, it is difficult to put in and take off (almost dropped my TB taking it off), and worst part about it, It did not charge the phone. All the lights worked on it, but would not produce a charge. I will wait for the verizon one if it ever comes out.
halopower said:
I would avoid this one, I purchased one from amazon and returned it the same day. The viewing angle is horrible, it is difficult to put in and take off (almost dropped my TB taking it off), and worst part about it, It did not charge the phone. All the lights worked on it, but would not produce a charge. I will wait for the verizon one if it ever comes out.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
aw really? i wanted to get this only for charging purposes but whats the point if it doesnt charge
Bah, Noob with first smartphone here! I failed to read any replies, and jumped at the deal, and even ordered the silicon soft case from the same guy.
I want to plug the phone into my Roku box's USB to show videos and pictures I took on the phone. I went to the Verizon store and they said that their multimedia cradles would be available soon, but so far 3 weeks have past and no cradle.
Well, I guess I could fix it if it don't work, I just hope that the extended battery fits.
I bought the soft case to see if I could cut out the extended battery hump easily with a laser engraver.
Misleading title, please change.
Hmm... I've been wanting a cradle for awhile now. So I jumped on this offer, and like any good online buyer, I look for reviews on the product AFTER I buy it. Can you guys confirm that this won't charge the phone? I was just looking for something to hold the phone up while I use WiFi keyboard. :/
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004JX1FOY?tag=5336653508-20
OK I have this dock but I knew going in what it was going to be about so I can give you an idea of what you're getting.
The dock has two connectors on it. One is a USB cable (removable) and one is an A/C plug. The A/C plug is there ONLY to charge the second battery and does not charge the bolt when plugged into the dock. It WILL charge the extended battery (the OEM extended batt does fit in the spare battery slot) but not when it's actually on the Bolt. You can't fit the Bolt in the dock with anything other than the stock battery on it.
The USB cable plugs from the dock into (duh) a USB port on your PC. When it's plugged into the USB port the Bolt does detect the connection and I have been able to charge the Bolt this way. I've also been able to mount the SD card this way to move files and stuff. It doesn't charge as fast being USB vs wall charger but it does charge it. I'm looking at it right now and it just charged it to 100 percent.
The USB cable will not plug directly into the Bolt. It's Mini USB and not Micro USB. Another issue is that you can forget leaving the Bolt in a case and putting it on this dock. It will not fit with any case that I've seen. As was previously mentioned the viewing angle is a bit harsh (it's not angled.) It's basically a straight up and down mount so unless you're putting the dock somewhere at least at eye level it's not as easy to view.
This dock also has NO HDMI port on it. I have mine at work because I don't need the HDMI here. I'm going to get the OEM dock for home use since it's expected to have the HDMI out.
So to summarize it does charge the Bolt's stock battery in the dock as well as the extended in the spare battery slot. You can use the USB functions while plugged into the dock. I'm streaming Pandora right now while docked. The viewing angle is a bit harsh when the dock sits below eye level. The Bolt charges over USB with this dock. The spare battery will only charge via the attached A/C plug. You can't charge it in a case. The USB cable (removable) is mini USB NOT Micro USB and there is no HDMI.
Hope this helps.
ETA: I should add that you could use one of those USB to A/C adapters and plug the USB cable from the dock into A/C and charge that way (if you just wanted a faster charging solution.) I have tested it and it does charge that way.
Many thanks Cubs2008 ! This is exactly what I was looking for. I feel bad that I bought the dock on Ebay for $27 when I could have gotten it on Amazon for less, but lesson learned. Glad to know that I can charge the phone and the battery! Now to figure out the viewing angle problem (post it notes under the front end?). lol.
BigMcGuire said:
Many thanks Cubs2008 ! This is exactly what I was looking for. I feel bad that I bought the dock on Ebay for $27 when I could have gotten it on Amazon for less, but lesson learned. Glad to know that I can charge the phone and the battery! Now to figure out the viewing angle problem (post it notes under the front end?). lol.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I paid even more ($34 I think) but it does what I need it to for now. If I needed HDMI at work I'd have waited but no point in that.
As for the viewing angle it's really not too bad if you can raise the dock more to your eye level. It does wiggle a little bit left to right in the dock (but very little.) You could put it on a book or something that would raise it up and it's fine. I sit pretty low at my desk in my chair so it's not nearly as much of an issue for me (and it's not quite at eye level.)
There is one more thing I forgot to add...someone mentioned getting it in and out of the dock being a pain and I totally agree. It's due to the fact that it basically sits almost upright in the dock. There are times where I've gotten frustrated just trying to get it in or out of there. It's because I always think of angling it into the dock rather than going straight down with it. When I do drop it straight in it usually slides right in with no issue. However I also have a Zagg max coverage shield on my Bolt so I may have more of an issue because of that.
Good luck!
Thanks for the information, Cubs2008! Very much appreciated.
Wish I had a contact at a factory in China... probably wouldn't be very difficult to produce a better quality desktop dock at a competitive price!
pdxdon said:
Thanks for the information, Cubs2008! Very much appreciated.
Wish I had a contact at a factory in China... probably wouldn't be very difficult to produce a better quality desktop dock at a competitive price!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No kidding! If they would've angled the dock in front just a little bit and added an HDMI port this thing would've slayed the OEM dock. It still does a lot on its own IMO and we probably would've seen the dock for $60+ instead of around $30.
I'll still get the OEM dock when it comes out but this one does do what I need it to at work. Yay.
Cubs2008 said:
No kidding! If they would've angled the dock in front just a little bit and added an HDMI port this thing would've slayed the OEM dock. It still does a lot on its own IMO and we probably would've seen the dock for $60+ instead of around $30.
I'll still get the OEM dock when it comes out but this one does do what I need it to at work. Yay.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
they can't just add an HDMI port just like that. if they could we already would see a post on here about a hdmi cable.
The dock arrived today...
Here is the lowdown after disassembling it:
It looks to be assembled by children with a hot glue gun and old fashioned soldering gun. There is gobs of hot glue used to hold in the 2 LED's. One is an insanely bright blue led, and the other, untested and discarded, is a bi-color led.
There are 2 completely isolated circuits inside, one being a simple micro-USB connector on a cable that is hot glued in place, with the blue LED tapped off the 5V from the USB. I could not find any resistor inline with the LED, so it's lifespan is questionable at best.
The second circuit is the battery charger board held in place with 1 screw at one end, and the mini-USB socket at the other. It has wires to the bi-color LED. This is powered by a 5V 1A wall wart. It does not supply any power to the USB that connects to the phone
The LED's have their full length of lead wire in tact, with over-sized shrink tubing loosely covering them, and all that excess lead wire is sticking out of the hot glue like cat whiskers.
In effect it electrically comparable to a $5 battery charger, and a separate $1 USB to micro-USB cable, nothing more.
There is no media functions whatsoever. It is difficult and time consuming to plug the phone into the cradle, and you cannot use it with the extended battery or any type of case.
Advice: pass! Use your easier to plug in HTC USB cable, and if you want a separate battery charger, get another brand.
lippstuh said:
they can't just add an HDMI port just like that. if they could we already would see a post on here about a hdmi cable.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They probably could've when they manufactured it.
wow, Cubs2008 thanx for the indepth info!
I wanted to add to the topic that you can actually stand the entire dock upright with the Bolt plugged in and the extended battery in there and it will stay standing up. I'd advise placing the battery and the Bolt in it landscape and then pick the entire dock up and it will stand up. I've used it this way with no ill effects.
I work for vzw and the Samsung charge and thunderbolt have a charging dock that not only charges, but comes with an extra battery that charges in the dock itself. Should be released very soon.
4Geezy ON DopeDiculous's ROOTED TBeezy!
dopediculous said:
I work for vzw and the Samsung charge and thunderbolt have a charging dock that not only charges, but comes with an extra battery that charges in the dock itself. Should be released very soon.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How soon is "very soon" then?

Solar case for Xoom

I'm looking for the perfect Xoom case (for me).
I want a case that can house the Xoom, Motorola keyboard, Altec Lansing Sound Blade, and assorted small accessories such as a Mojo mini mouse, usb otg cable, stylus, card reader, etc. It can be hard or soft, and I don't want it to be larger than what I need for all those things.
BUT- I want it to have solar panels and a battery that will charge my Xoom & Droid.
I've found one for $600, but I'm not really quite THAT green!
Anyone have such a case? Chime in even if you have a charger (solar) that can fully charge the Xoom. I'm not opposed to buying a solar charger and somehow matting it with the bag.
Next choice would be a stand alone solar charger w/battery that is dimensionally close to the Xoom.
Thanks all.
Also looking at non-solar backup batteries. I would want one that is the same dimensions as the Xoom.
Question: What are the battery specs I'm looking for to fully charge the Xoom? Double what the Xoom's capacity is?
if you can do simple soldering and are proficient in modding you could make a pelican case to suit your needs. pelicans are also water proof. (do not work for pelican, i promise) they come with foam liners you can cut to suit individual items.
i turned one into an all in one 12v powered, ipod, wireless remote system with a headphone jack to plug into a amp on my dinghy so i could use my ijet wireless commander without getting everything wet, and keeping ipod and separate phone and wireless unit powered and charged. was pretty cool cause when i went out in the dinghy all i had to do was plug this box into cig lighter and haedphone jack on amp, and i had a water proof stereo, with wireless remote so i never had to touch ipod. or risk getting wet. ive since dissassembled the setup but i can show you pics of how the pick and pull foam in the box is easy to deal with.
not sure if i can post links, but here is waht i suggest, or something similar
http://www.pelican.com/1075/index.html
also solar panels are not that efficient, the solar panel will be more of a gimmick than anything else, especially if you are charging extra batterys as well, unless you make a mini foldout array, and now it is just getting complicated and unecessary. lithium packs are light, if you look on google you can find slim lithium packs to make a spare external pack, keep in mind you will need to keep the pack at 12v since thats what the xoom charges with. also its important to remember that the xoom uses 12v at 1.5 amp. by comparison thats almost equal to the output of 5 standard apple wall chargers, thats why our xooms charge so quick.. solar panels put out around 7w per square foot at 12v for the affordable panels that you see on peoples roofs, you would need a 4 square foot solar panel to meet the charging requirements of the xoom. so it would just be easier to integrate a beefy lithium pack that you can plug directly into the xoom. a properly sized pack could charge a xoom at least twice without weighing you down too much. of course you need to make sure you have the proper protections in place so you dont over or undercharge the external pack, packs can blow if treated incorrectly as we all know.
sorry about the ramble, sometimes i get carried away.
Thanks for all the input, bundles.
I am a good fabricator, so I may actually adapt something similar to the pelican, fitting it with a solar panel and LiIon battery pack. I know I can't run or charge directly off the solar cell, but the cell can take all day to charge the power pack; -That doesn't matter. Fitting the case together with all the components doesn't bother me, and I solder well (used to be a jeweler). But setting up several batteries in parallel or series, etc, I'm less confident about. Don't wanna burn the Xoom, and I don't wanna start one of those pretty green flamers like the old laptop batteries sometimes did!
I was also hoping to find something that allowed for several different currents/voltages so I could also charge the wife's iPad, our cameras, Droids, etc.
So it looks like the Energizer XP18000 is what I'll get for realtime practical functionality that meets my criterion, but I might make a separate solar cell unit to charge it with in the future.
the one other thing i forgot to mention is leaving a bag out in the sun will get very hot, i wouldnt want to cook my xoom in a solar powered oven of death. when you want to use it, it may be too hot.
If looking for solar / power up combo (costs a bit, but panels are amazing, I have the Adventure 10) ... check GoalZero products.
http://www.goalzero.com/shop/c/1/
That links to their power kit list.
if you can charge via your USB port you should also check out PortableSolarPower dot Biz and look at their USB solar charing panels , the 12w USB panel is perfect for the tablets that need 2 amps to recharge.
PortableSolar said:
if you can charge via your USB port you should also check out PortableSolarPower dot Biz and look at their USB solar charing panels , the 12w USB panel is perfect for the tablets that need 2 amps to recharge.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Unfortunately, the Xoom cannot charge via USB.

Best portable battery?

Hi all,
I'm wondering if anyone has any experience with portable battery packs. I don't mean extended batteries either. I mean the universal usb charger kind that packs several thousand mAh.
I'm looking to get one for a nine hour flight, and I want to know what is a good brand.
Luuthian said:
Hi all,
I'm wondering if anyone has any experience with portable battery packs. I don't mean extended batteries either. I mean the universal usb charger kind that packs several thousand mAh.
I'm looking to get one for a nine hour flight, and I want to know what is a good brand.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I can't answer your question, but a lot of planes have a USB/charging input now. I know when I fly Air Canada, they have it.
I have had an Energizer XP18000 for about 3 months now and it has surpassed my expectations.
It holds 18000 mAh of power and will charge my Gnex and my Xoom at the same time (need to order a special tip for the Xoom/non standard device). I use it for long train rides to keep my phone topped up.
When watching HD video over 4G my battery level will drop about 1-2% every half hour, so it is not charging as fast as the wall charger, but it is enough to keep you from having a dead battery when you get to your destination. With my usage I can go 3 to 4 days and never need to look at a wall outlet.
The size is about as big as a external hard drive. There is also a wall charger that has a good size power brick in the middle of it. You can remove it when you don't need the wall charger, but I keep everything in one small bag so all I have to do is set it down next to an outlet and top up the external battery, then fold the cord into the bag and pull out what ever cord I need when I am on the move. It works just fine with the original Samsung usb charging cable.
I picked mine up from Amazon but you might be able to find a better deal if you look hard enough. They make a smaller model too that is only 8000 mAh.
I always keep it in my bag and it works so well for me that I don't even need the extended battery and leave 4G on all the time.
http://www.energizerpowerpacks.com/us/products/xp18000/
Beautiful. Thanks Dante. And yeah, I heard some planes have USB chargers now. Unfortunately I'm not flying with them. I live near YVR, but Air Canada is having a bunch of problems with their workers right now. Last thing I need is flight delays or bad service.
I did a ton of research before buying mine. I wanted a pocket sized one, that had large capacity (enough to fully charge the phone twice), and could charge a device at a full 1 amp. After much research, I bought the original version of this one:
http://www.newtrent.com/store/iphone-external-battery/iphone-battery-imp50d.html
Mine has less markings and I believe both ports on mine are 1 amp, where as the new one has one 500mA and one 1A port. Mine was also like $55, this one is on sale for barely over $40, an even better deal.
It is very powerful - 5,000 mAh will charge the phone 3+ times - much bigger than other "pocket batteries", fits in a pocket nicely (I wear cargo pants) because it's skinny, like a deck of cards. Fairly light too. Only complaint is that I bought it before MicroUSB became the new standard, so it charges with miniUSB instead.
I carry a retractable mini-usb cable, and a retractable microUSB cable, in an altoids tin, in in my pocket with it. Works great, can charge my friends phones at the same time as me. Had it for 2 years, still going strong!
There are newer designs they have now too if you look at their website.
It does take a long while to charge - 8 hours to charge fully or so if you charge off a 500mAh USB port, because it's a huge battery! a lot less maybe 4 hours if you charge off a high speed 1A charger.
i was looking at this one http://www.amazon.ca/Anker-8400mAh-...UTF8&coliid=I3IVVC4G6YETK&colid=1ILTNQ88L4FE5
it has a 2amp 5v port, this can charge a transformer prime with the screen off.
I got this one recently:
http://www.amazon.com/Anker-SlimTal..._1_2?s=wireless&ie=UTF8&qid=1335035472&sr=1-2
Its (much) smaller than my Nexus, has a built in micro-usb cable, and charges via micro-usb as well. While it doesn't have the capacity of those listed above (only 3200mAh), it was only $20 and the size really does let you take it everywhere.
It can fully charge it the phone from dead about 1.5 times.
I bought mine due mainly to the fact that it includes the micro-usb cable that hides away when not in use. It has a standard USB port as well for charging other items, but the appeal of only having to carry one item and no extra cable sold me.
My only complaint is that the built in cable could be a bit longer.
It has a flashlight too... lol
Been researching this topic lately and found that Anker's 10,000mah external battery is looking the best
Sent from my i9250 (GSM) Galaxy Nexus.
[email protected]
I use the Veho Pebble and it's fine for my needs. I get 2 charges out of it.
after hours of my own research I also bought the Anker Slimtalk. I dont travel enough to need one that is huge and can charge my phone 8 times. This seems small enough to toss in my pocket and not bother me since its so thin and light. For $20 and the convenience of having its built in micro usb cable sounds like a perfect little invention to get me through the day.
If I traveled more I would of probably got the Energizer XP8000. Their tip program is awesome. Free tips for life but really its $2 shipping each. if you want this device to charge a whole bunch of things it can. My Acer netbook, EVO 3D, girlfriends RAZR, 3DS, bluetooth, iPad 2, Nook, and the list goes on. I've been trying to ask New Trent for almost a week if their products would be compatible with the Energizer Tip program but found that contrary to what I've read their customer support is terrible, but their prices are better than energizer. So they loose out on the sale since over the last few times of researching has allowed me to find the Slimtalk which for the price and for my needs is perfect.
Curb71 said:
after hours of my own research I also bought the Anker Slimtalk. I dont travel enough to need one that is huge and can charge my phone 8 times. This seems small enough to toss in my pocket and not bother me since its so thin and light. For $20 and the convenience of having its built in micro usb cable sounds like a perfect little invention to get me through the day.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Exactly why I went with it. Even while traveling I'm generally within range of a car or home charger, especially now that pretty much everyone without an iPhone has a micro USB charger somewhere.
I just wish it had a built in AC adapter as well but I'm sure the size would increase by quite a bit. Someone (iGo maybe) makes one like that but it only has about an 1100mah battery if I recall.
I found something here in the Netherlands, and I'm not quite sure if you guys in the US have the same thing..
The thing this has going for it is it's portability. It fits in your pocket, and if you don't mind a big lump in your pockets, it even fits together with your phone.
Click over there <<< to check out the dutch website of duracell. It basically is a battery with a socket plug on it, and 2 USB outlets.
Tech. info:
Output voltage: 5 volts DC
Input voltage: 5 volts DC, max. 1 amp
Capacity: 1800 mAh
Offcourse, this is the dutch version, with the dutch socket plug, but maybe there's an US version as well?
Thanks for all the info here guys. I have that crappy Black and Decker Pocket Power from a few years back, that well, isn't living up to the charge these days, so I need something else.
Still a bit too many options, but I'm sure I'll find one that works the best.

Official Nexus 5 Wireless Charger, First Impressions.

I had the tilted wireless charger already (link bellow) but decided to get the official wireless charger as well.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2611246
Of course its a lot better made then the Chinese charger but is it better in usability and charging speed?
With the Chinese charger I was using the stock nexus charger and cable because they are much better then the cables that came with the charger, more detail in the link bellow
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=50254993&postcount=116
The info you need to know is that the OEM nexus charger and cable put out about 1000-1100mA while the same cable paired with a samsung 2a block was able to push past 1600mA but not keep it there, leveling out at 1200mA. The OEM block and cable with Chinese charger puts out between 650mA and 730mA
So how does the official Nexus charger compare?
Well to start I tested the new cable with the OEM block and it was putting out just over 1100mA, so we know the cable is better then the OEM cable. Then I tested the new cable with the block that comes with it and got a steady 1600mA and it didnt drop. Now the block itself doesn't say anything on it as to what it puts out, but the charger base says 1.8a, is that what the block puts out? Regardless the block is much better then the Samsung 2a block.
I don't use a case so the phone on the charger itself puts out only a little bit more then Chinese charger keeping a steady 768mA. Now it can drop below and above that number but it really likes 768mA. So while it does have a great cable and block, if all you care about is speed then charger itself is a little faster but not by much compared to the Chinese charger.
As far as usability, I cant get the nexus charger to miss. I can throw it on and it connects every time. With the Chinese one it didn't always connect and i had to make sure i got it in the right spot and make sure, even if I heard the noise, that it didn't disconnect and was actually charging. With the nexus charger I feel confident that the magnets are lining it up and it gets a good connection every time.
As and added bonus, I have heard a lot about how you could possibly charge while vertical attached to a wall. I decided to try this and I can attest that the weak link will be the charger holding the wall not the charger holding the phone, as long as you don't use a case like me. The magnets are more then strong enough to hold the phone vertically, in fact they are more then strong enough to hold it upside down, I tried! The pad that sticks to the surface is just as strong as I've been hearing as well. I literately just slapped it on the wall and then threw the phone up and its holding thus far. I have it only a few inches above my night stand and will update if it falls, but so far it has held up to me taking the phone off and on about 50 times with no issue. I'm not sure how it would hold up as a car mount, only because I don't know how the sticky part of the base would hold up to extreme hot and cold. I image it would probably fall, especially if completely vertical.
I would definitely recommend the Nexus charger over a Chinese one. I you have the $50 then its a no brainier, it was even a couple bucks cheaper then that on amazon and my prime membership got it here on Monday when i ordered on Saturday afternoon. If you only have $13 bucks and don't mind waiting 3 or more weeks then Chinese one charges almost as fast.
I too finally went from the orb to the new charger because I wanted a vertical mount. I'm blind as a bat with my contacts out and wanted to be able to see the time on my phone while in bed. With the orb, the angle was bad and my nightstand is taller than my mattress, making it hard to see. So I got the new charger, put it on the side of my nightstand and it's holding just fine. Holds the phone great too and now I can see the time on my phone. As long as you can get a smooth, flat surface, I don't see why mounting vertically would be an issue.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
just wanted to say, it did end up falling off the wall the 2nd night while charging, the charger from the wall, not the phone from the charger. A good sized piece of 3m double sided tape right in the middle of the charger fixed that and I've had no problems since.
Charger in use
Can you advise please if the Google charger cuts out once the phone has reached 100% or does it change to a trickle charge? Looking at some of the alternatives (e.g. on Amazon) I haven't found any that automatically cut out at 100% although a few mention about changing to a trickle charge. What's your experience in this regard?
S
[Nexus 5 about to be delivered]
I bought the official one and I must say that I'm very pleased with my purchase, Is there any apps which can detect the charging voltage so i may test my charger as well?
zubsz said:
I bought the official one and I must say that I'm very pleased with my purchase, Is there any apps which can detect the charging voltage so i may test my charger as well?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you're root, can use Android tuner from play store!
Tapatalked with my Nexus5(aka the Hammerhead)
Hi guys,
I can see in the UK it costs £34.99 but how much is the delivery charge?
Thanks,
M
how long takes to make a fully charge?
xupthree60 said:
I had the tilted wireless charger already (link bellow) but decided to get the official wireless charger as well.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2611246
Of course its a lot better made then the Chinese charger but is it better in usability and charging speed?
With the Chinese charger I was using the stock nexus charger and cable because they are much better then the cables that came with the charger, more detail in the link bellow
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=50254993&postcount=116
The info you need to know is that the OEM nexus charger and cable put out about 1000-1100mA while the same cable paired with a samsung 2a block was able to push past 1600mA but not keep it there, leveling out at 1200mA. The OEM block and cable with Chinese charger puts out between 650mA and 730mA
So how does the official Nexus charger compare?
Well to start I tested the new cable with the OEM block and it was putting out just over 1100mA, so we know the cable is better then the OEM cable. Then I tested the new cable with the block that comes with it and got a steady 1600mA and it didnt drop. Now the block itself doesn't say anything on it as to what it puts out, but the charger base says 1.8a, is that what the block puts out? Regardless the block is much better then the Samsung 2a block.
I don't use a case so the phone on the charger itself puts out only a little bit more then Chinese charger keeping a steady 768mA. Now it can drop below and above that number but it really likes 768mA. So while it does have a great cable and block, if all you care about is speed then charger itself is a little faster but not by much compared to the Chinese charger.
As far as usability, I cant get the nexus charger to miss. I can throw it on and it connects every time. With the Chinese one it didn't always connect and i had to make sure i got it in the right spot and make sure, even if I heard the noise, that it didn't disconnect and was actually charging. With the nexus charger I feel confident that the magnets are lining it up and it gets a good connection every time.
As and added bonus, I have heard a lot about how you could possibly charge while vertical attached to a wall. I decided to try this and I can attest that the weak link will be the charger holding the wall not the charger holding the phone, as long as you don't use a case like me. The magnets are more then strong enough to hold the phone vertically, in fact they are more then strong enough to hold it upside down, I tried! The pad that sticks to the surface is just as strong as I've been hearing as well. I literately just slapped it on the wall and then threw the phone up and its holding thus far. I have it only a few inches above my night stand and will update if it falls, but so far it has held up to me taking the phone off and on about 50 times with no issue. I'm not sure how it would hold up as a car mount, only because I don't know how the sticky part of the base would hold up to extreme hot and cold. I image it would probably fall, especially if completely vertical.
I would definitely recommend the Nexus charger over a Chinese one. I you have the $50 then its a no brainier, it was even a couple bucks cheaper then that on amazon and my prime membership got it here on Monday when i ordered on Saturday afternoon. If you only have $13 bucks and don't mind waiting 3 or more weeks then Chinese one charges almost as fast.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Have you considered using this charger in the car? From what you're saying, the hold issue seems to be the charger itself. Using double sided 3m thick tape may solve the issue.
The reason I'm curious is because I and many other previous Palm Pre users used to use the touchstone wireless charger in their cars and the phone never fell of even on extreme bumps. It was great being able to simply place the Pre on the charger and if you were lucky you could put the touchstone right in your line of sight (I have an 06 civic so the touchstone fit right next to the steering wheel, to the right. Look at my profile pic or do a search for palm Pre wireless charging in the car and you'll come up with hundreds of results and pics).
Do you think the charger's internal magnets would be strong enough to hold the nexus 5 in place while driving? Right now, I still use the touchstone as a place holder for my 5 as the internal metal discs on the 5 line up nicely with the internal magnets in the touchstone. I did modify the touchstone slightly and added magnets every 90° starting at the 45° position and then the other 3 were 90°apart from the initial magnet. I'll try to post a pic or a video of what I mean. The touchstone is not a qi charger so it doesn't charge but it certainly makes for a super convenient spot for the phone to be especially when using navigation. Also the nexus has not fallen once while driving over some pretty harsh bumps.
What do you think?
Sent from my wondrous Nexus numeral 5
VOLTAGEROCK said:
Have you considered using this charger in the car? From what you're saying, the hold seems to be the charger itself. Using double sided 3m thick tape may solve the issue.
The reason I'm curious is because I and many other previous Palm Pre users used to use the touchstone wireless charger in their cars and the phone never fell of even on extreme bumps. It was great being able to simply place the Pre on the charger and if you were lucky you could put the touchstone right in your line of sight (I have an 06 civic so the touchstone fit right next to the steering wheel, to the right. Look at my profile pic or do a search for palm Pre wireless charging in the car and you'll come up with hundreds of results and pics).
Do you think the charger's internal magnets would be strong enough to hold the nexus 5 in place while driving? Right now, I still use the touchstone as a place holder for my 5 as the internal metal discs on the 5 line up nicely with the internal magnets in the touchstone. I did modify the touchstone slightly and added magnets every 90° starting at the 45° position and then the other 3 were 90°apart from the initial magnet. I'll try to post a pic or a video of what I mean. The touchstone is not a qi charger so it doesn't charge but it certainly makes for a super convenient spot for the phone to be especially when using navigation. Also the nexus has not fallen once while driving over some pretty harsh bumps.
What do you think?
Sent from my wondrous Nexus numeral 5
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Been using the official Qi charger in the car daily, with this set up: http://forum.xda-developers.com/goo...es/kenu-airframe-n5-wireless-charger-t2573184. Perfect solution.

[REVIEW] Inateck 5 Port Smart USB Desktop Charger w/pics!

This is a review of Inateck's 36W 5-port USB Desktop Charger. http://www.inateck.com/inateck-uc5001-5-port-usb-family-sized-desktop-charger/
This is my first time with an Inateck product and my initial impression is Quality.
I received their new 5 port Smart USB charger and have spent about 1 1/2 weeks testing it and putting it through its paces. More on performance later. For now... Initial impressions:
The product arrived in a clean, easy to open, minimalist package. Under the outer sleeve is an unassuming, cardboard box, with a slide in type closure and bent/molded cardboard for packing.
The outer sleeve contains all the usual information:
The Packing:
Included:
My initial impression was both good and bad. The bad however, was quickly assuaged. The unit is relatively small, no doubt due to the transformer being in an external power supply. That was my initial "bad' feeling; the charger comes with a laptop style power supply:
At first I thought "UNGH! A laptop charger?!" but shortly I realized the genius of it. By not incorporating the transformer/converter in the unit itself, nor in the plug, give you a smaller more svelte desktop component and the plug fits in a crowded outlet and doesn't fall out due to its own weight.
The outside of the unit is plastic and includes an on/off button and a single blue LED. The LED lets you know the charger is on. This is a nifty light that lets you know it's powered, but really only would only be useful if you plugged your device in and it didn't charge. The charger has 3 1A charging ports and 2 2.1A ports. This configuration suggest it was designed more for Apple than Android since apple iPhones/iPods use 1A and iPads use 2.1... BUT they work well with android also. My phone (Nexus 4) uses 1.5 maximum amps for charging and charges in both the 1A and 2A ports, slower and faster respectively. Most android tablets are also 2.1 amp so the 2 higher ports work for them also.
I have charged my devices a few times and can say that this little beauty works as advertised. I have charged 5 items at once and it didn't even get hot! I charged my: iPod 4th gen, iPod 5th gen, Nexus 4 phone, Nexus 7 tablet and my Jaybird X Bluetooth headphones all at the same time and since my phone was on a 2.1A port all items charged within their normal charging limits.
One of the best features of this charger is that it doesn't have designated ports for certain items.. I can charge anything in any port (as long as the amperage agrees ) So I don't need to fuss over what goes where.
All in all the only complaint I have is a small one: I wish they'd used rubber feet on the bottom of the unit to prevent it sliding around, but since I can pick up a set of small rubber buttons for a buck at my home store, it's really not a big issue. I can definitively say that this Inateck 36W 5-port USB Desktop Charger is ONE of the BEST chargers I've ever used. I keep mine on my nightstand, and I can keep 5 devices charged and not need to unplug my alarm clock! :laugh:
They are on sale at Amazon right now also!
Questions & Comments are welcome, as always!
Reserved.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk
Ordered one, definitely a great choice for lots of charging ports at such price.

Categories

Resources