Develop Bugs

Important safety message: Stop using the stock micro-usb cable!

As Seen on my Blog at DoesitPew.Blogspot.com
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The case today is an HTC Evo MicroUSB Cable.
This is the same cable that came with your HTC Evo and it may be the one that you still use.
STOP USING THIS CABLE ASAP - IT WAS POORLY ENGINEERED AND MIGHT BREAK YOUR PSU OR COMPUTER!!!!
I can say this because this is NOT the first time I have seen this same thing happen. You see, this is my Boyfriend's HTC Evo MicroUSB cable and not mine. Mine had the same issue, except I caught it right when it happened as it burned my hand when I was getting ready to plug in my phone at work 3 weeks ago!
This Cable was not engineered properly because of the MicroUSB Connector Chosen. Instead of using a proper MicroUSB Cable Mount style Connector as seen in the picture below, they went with a panel mount/board mount hybrid connector (cheapest as it uses board mount parts) as seen above.
What happens is that since the connector shield/metal outside part is not secured beyond two small points, any movement of this shield can cause a temporary dislodging and have the GROUNDED shield touch the 5V power line on the USB cable. Most Modern laptops and desktop computers put out between 500-1000ma of current at 4.5-5.5V which means that you could be having as much as 5.5Watts burning through those cable lines and melting the crap out of some rubber as in this case. This would not have happened is HTC had decided to go with the larger isolated and secured connector or if they simply had chosen to use a Hard ABS plastic instead of flexible rubber to secure a metal part (ga-'duh?!).
What this can Harm:
- Burn out the Power Diode for your USB on your Laptop/Desktop making that port useless (did not burn out my BF's Thinkpad as it is fuse controlled)
- Burn your fingers/hands as it did to me causing a blister.
- Burn out your USB Receiving Chip on your laptop/desktop
- Burn stuff ( a lot of us have a bunch of papers right next to your computer).
Why this matters:
No way in H3LL is HTC going to pay to fix your laptop or build you a house or pay medical bills. They will likely redirect you to the company that designed and manufactured the cable which is likely very hard to sue in the US.
Spend some money on a nice BlackBerry or Motorola or basically any proper cable. $5 for peace of mind is worth it.
I am not a MatSci or Mechincal Engineer (only a Computer Engineer), but dear Lord tell me that at least an Industrial or Manufacturing Engineer looked over this before they sent it out the Door! *Likely Not based on Information Shown*

ive had mine for a year and so has my girl we haven't had any issues the only people with issues are using the battery charge hack

This issue seems to just be happening now. 9-10months into ownership. I am not saying it will happen to everyone, I am just alerting you to the definite possibility. I mean just look at the rest of that cable, it looks like the day you got it!

interesting, never heard of the issue glad I saw this.
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA App

Mine died a while back anyways haha
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA App

It's fine. I broke my cable the day I got it anyways
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA App

I'm right around that 9-10 month mark of having my Evo. No problems so far and I haven't even seen anything close the the cable malfunctioning, but I'll keep an eye on it if anything goes wrong.

Wonder if this is a reason so many Evo's usb/charging port goes bad?
Sent from "The EVO" using XDA Premium

I don't think that this would have anything to do with Evo microusb ports going bad at all, that might just be a contact wear/ air moisture / board flexing problem. I know that my Evo sometimes can be a bit sensitive to getting it right, but my BF's Evo port is like new and locks like a beaut.
The reason why this is happening is the shield gets in contact with the power pin which cannot happen while your phone is connected.
The other construction on the cable is well done, but the steel shield on the MicroUSB end just isn't well designed for that rubber casing (which is was probably not designed for in the first place). It really does not take much flex on the micro-usb connection to make this happen. I have offered to buy all of the HTC cables like this from people I know at work to get a good test set of these. it was pretty easy to make it happen to a Co-workers cable by flexing the micro-usb area (rubber) till it let a little spark and started to heat up. However, he could plug it in again and have no problems. Its just that the rubber flexes too much and simply leaving it plugged in at your desk it could flex from gravity.
Talked to a Sprint store rep yesterday and a lot of people bring back that cable for being faulty, but he did not know the reason. Apparently people just say "it's broke" and then the rep gives them a new one.

This is the reason why I tell people to not use their phone, or at least not talk on it, while its charging. You have this cheap little htc rectifier plug thats dropping 120v down to 5v or so, very scary. I only use the stock cable for charging my phone by my nightstand, so it doesnt see any wear or tear, it just lays there.

mine has never gotten hot, but it quit staying hooked to the phone. I have to move it around to get a connection and set it down carefully. Thanks for the info I am going to get new one tomorrow!

Hi, I have the Htc desire that uses the same stock micro usb cable as the evo, I have wanted to change the cable for ages because for some reason it comes out if the phone or any device without any effort, but I am wary of putting a cheap £1-2 cable in the wall socket charger thing in case it blows or something, so to just have piece of mind, is it defiantly ok to use any micro usb cable in the charger please? Thanks

I've seen a lot of customers recently with this problem but none before about a month ago. Maybe they just recently switched how it's manufactured, but literally no customers complained about it breaking before.

Hi,
cant believe what iam reading here. I had the same issue 2 weeks ago and I thought that iam the only one, but not with an EVO or Sprint rather with my !HD2!.
Apparently this is a HTC manufacturing problem :/

This makes me worry, but I have to admit, I'm also lazy.
That being said, do you have any links for a proper source for "a nice BlackBerry or Motorola or basically any proper cable. $5?"
I don't like going into the stores, as they try to sell me much more BS than I have patience for. A link to a known, proper substitute would be greatly appreciated.
(I understand if you detest my lazy butt, but if you have links, you'd be considered a Ninja, and would get a "Thanks" point from me. L'chiam.)

does this apply to other htc devices (the cable for my wildfire is identical)

danielsf said:
Hi, I have the Htc desire that uses the same stock micro usb cable as the evo, I have wanted to change the cable for ages because for some reason it comes out if the phone or any device without any effort, but I am wary of putting a cheap £1-2 cable in the wall socket charger thing in case it blows or something, so to just have piece of mind, is it defiantly ok to use any micro usb cable in the charger please? Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
should be - i often charge my wildfire off my (powered) usb hub using the cable for my WD passsport

I have trouble with my charger for my Evo. The very tip underneath the port that connects to the phone, the wires are loose. I have to play with the wire and then set the phone down slowly just to get a charge. I actually can see the wires. I believe there is a malfunction in these cables.
Anyone else experience this?

scooter1979 said:
This makes me worry, but I have to admit, I'm also lazy.
That being said, do you have any links for a proper source for "a nice BlackBerry or Motorola or basically any proper cable. $5?"
I don't like going into the stores, as they try to sell me much more BS than I have patience for. A link to a known, proper substitute would be greatly appreciated.
(I understand if you detest my lazy butt, but if you have links, you'd be considered a Ninja, and would get a "Thanks" point from me. L'chiam.)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i recently bought this for my friend, whose ex-wife took his charger and everything else but hes been hanging out at my place so he can at least charge his phone lol. So I bought him this, he hasnt had any issues with it.
http://cgi.ebay.com/Car-Wall-AC-Cha...737680?pt=PDA_Accessories&hash=item45fa19ca90
Its for a Droid X, but its the same port as an Evo, or in my friend's case, a Samsung Moment.

I threw mine away b/c it was useless...wont even stay plugged in.

Otterbox Beltclip Modded into Car Mount -learn with me

I couldn't find a mount for my otterbox. I built a car mount and painted it black. I ended up making it from the belt clip on my otterbox and an old garmin window-mounted GPS. Here's some pictures of the build process.
My first attempt was to try to fiberglass the outside of the otterbox to make a mount....
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This ended up being too much work and I came up with a better idea.
1 remove belt clip portion from otterbox
2. Saw down Otterbox beltclip so that the unit can be slid into place with USB cable
3. slide phone into otterbox case and insert USB.
4. first superglue USB in proper position, then epoxy for extra hard durability
5. saw back part off of old window mounted unit
6. superglue back plate in place
7. epoxy backplate in place
Ok... so now for power... I used a USB port and a regulator... This was an epic failure because pins 2 and 3 on the USB port should have been pulled HIGH to represent this is a charging device. I left them open and the unit appeared to go into USB Powered device mode where my phone was supplying 5V to the charger..... Anyways... this would have worked if I had read up on USB standards first but I ended up going with a 12V adapter stuck into a 12V socket in my ceiling.
Circuit made (should have added a resistor from 5V to the middle two pins)
Covered with non-conductive, flexible glue to keep everything in place and make sure it would not be able to short circuit.
Finally I painted the entire thing black. It looks great now. Everything is wonderful. After 3 days of drying it was able to be used.

I forgot to add finished photos.
The unit separates so the suction cup mount can be adjusted easily.
You can see on the back, it's not too bad once it's painted
This large cutout allows the otterbox cable cover to be opened and just slide right in.
Now, if I had this to do over again, I would have applied a 619Kohm resistor between pins 4 and 5 on the mini-usb. This would have enabled car mode. Car mode automatically brings up car home. As it is, this is simply a car-charger circuit.
Overall, this project is awesome!. This allows me to have my phone mounted above eye-level which is great for GPS

http://cgi.ebay.com/SlipGrip-Car-Ho...658168?pt=PDA_Accessories&hash=item5d2cdd48f8

please dont spam that ebay crap. this is a homemade-how-to!

That thing is big, and has no charging capability.
If you took the belt clip off and put on suction cup instead, that's what you get from that Ebay link. There's no charging capability there. Mine has about 2-3 inches of exposed cable. The rest is tucked neatly into the headboards of the car.

TRusselo said:
please dont spam that ebay crap. this is a homemade-how-to!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmm im not spamming anything. He stated that he couldn't find a car mount for the outterbox case. Was just posting it for reference. Just giving my 2cent's or w/e they call them up north. No need to get nasty.
I appreciate what he's done and for the walkthru. Everyone has their own opinions and if someone happens upon this post in the future and in interested in a carmount for a otterbox they can follow OP's wonderful how-to and they will have more options...
Just trying to be helpful to be honest.

How easily does the phone slide in and connect with the usb? I've been thinking of how to make a dock that you slide in similar to yours, but been worried how quickly/simply it works (i often have a difficult time plugging it in even after owning it for half a year!).
I also kinda wanted to make the usb mount adjustable in case I took the phone's case off or used a different case all together. Any ideas on that, or is the permanent epoxy mount the way to go?
Nice job and thanks for posting it!
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App

I slides in easy. The phone must just be against the back of the dock and slid into place. It's one hand operation unlike using a USB cable.
Just super glue the connector in place and let it dry. Once it dries, it will always be in the right position. Then you can remove the phone and apply epoxy to really strengthen the connector.
I don't know how you'd make the mount adjustable. I really just made this because there's no car dock available for the Otter Box.
Again, for full dock capability, use a 619Kohm resistor on the back side of the micro usb connection, between pins 4 and 5.

Thanks for the help

AdamOutler said:
Ok... so now for power... I used a USB port and a regulator... This was an epic failure because pins 2 and 3 on the USB port should have been pulled HIGH to represent this is a charging device. I left them open and the unit appeared to go into USB Powered device mode where my phone was supplying 5V to the charger..... Anyways... this would have worked if I had read up on USB standards first but I ended up going with a 12V adapter stuck into a 12V socket in my ceiling.
Circuit made (should have added a resistor from 5V to the middle two pins)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
pins on usb should have been "pulled high"? care to clearify, ive never heard of that term..
with the middle 2 pins open wouldn;t it be the same as powering by USB thru aftermarket charger? I modded my aftermarket charger, pins 2-3 were open, i closed them ( no resistor ) and now it thinks its AC (oem charger).
why would yours output 5v to the cable?
just asking not criticizing...

TRusselo said:
pins on usb should have been "pulled high"? care to clearify, ive never heard of that term..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry, I do electronics for a living, I use jargon without explaining alot and it looses people.
Pulling a pin high means to apply 5V behind a resistor. It's a digital logic term. Digital logic has only 2 states, high and low (sometimes a 3rd state is Open). In order to maintain a high state on a pin, you use a pull-up resistor. If you've got voltage without current flow, then ohms law does not apply and 5V behind a resistor will be 5V on the other side of the resistor. The reason for the resistor is because if for some reason the pin is pulled low (ground is applied) then there is not a short between 5V and ground.
with the middle 2 pins open wouldn;t it be the same as powering by USB thru aftermarket charger? I modded my aftermarket charger, pins 2-3 were open, i closed them ( no resistor ) and now it thinks its AC (oem charger).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Here's an excerpt from a good page on USB. http://www.beyondlogic.org/usbnutshell/usb2.shtml
A USB device must indicate its speed by pulling either the D+ or D- line high to 3.3 volts. A full speed device, pictured below will use a pull up resistor attached to D+ to specify itself as a full speed device. These pull up resistors at the device end will also be used by the host or hub to detect the presence of a device connected to its port. Without a pull up resistor, USB assumes there is nothing connected to the bus. Some devices have this resistor built into its silicon, which can be turned on and off under firmware control, others require an external resistor.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
why would yours output 5v to the cable?
just asking not criticizing...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I really couldn't tell you. I just know I did a search and found out that my charger violated USB standards. Also, when unplugged from wall power, I was receiving 5V on the charger which was illuminating an LED. Don't just leave those pins open. Pull them high.

why would you have to set device speed for a charging circuit?
the usb standards seemed to be assuming a data device (whether it be a mouse or hdd), not just something charging...
and why not close the pins, and enable (poorly worded) "AC" charging mode, for rapid charging?
or add the resistor between the 2 to enable car dock mode automatically?

In Battery Charging Specification, [40] new powering modes are added to the USB specification. A host or hub Charging Downstream Port can supply a maximum of 1.5 A when communicating at low-bandwidth or full-bandwidth, a maximum of 900 mA when communicating at high-bandwidth, and as much current as the connector will safely handle when no communication is taking place; USB 2.0 standard-A connectors are rated at 1500 mA by default. A Dedicated Charging Port can supply a maximum of 1.8 A of current at 5.25 V. A portable device can draw up to 1.8 A from a Dedicated Charging Port. The Dedicated Charging Port shorts the D+ and D- pins with a resistance of at most 200 Ω. The short disables data transfer, but allows devices to detect the Dedicated Charging Port and allows very simple, high current chargers to be manufactured. The increased current (faster, 9 W charging) will occur once both the host/hub and devices support the new charging specification.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Source: http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_Serial_Bus
I've personally done this to all manner of chargers, including external batteries, car chargers, wall chargers, even made a small make to female dongle that shorts the data pins. All that matters is that the pins being shorted indicates to the phone that it may draw > 500ma, I believe the most this particular device will draw is around 750ma. Note that if this is done, the phone will always indicate ac charging, even if the actual charger is supplying less current.
Also, the desk/car mode resistor goes between pins 4 and 5, not 3 and 4 for those who are wondering
Forgot to mention, nice mod. I have some spare otterbox holsters (they sent me three when my clip broke) so I've got some plans for them, including a car dock.
Sent from my SGH-I897 using XDA Premium App

TRusselo said:
why would you have to set device speed for a charging circuit?
the usb standards seemed to be assuming a data device (whether it be a mouse or hdd), not just something charging...
and why not close the pins, and enable (poorly worded) "AC" charging mode, for rapid charging?
or add the resistor between the 2 to enable car dock mode automatically?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yep. makes sense.
The 6 to 24V regulator would handle a maximum of 1A, which is what you can expect out of most wall chargers and well above the expected input of the device. I just trashed my regulator/USB project when it started powering my 12V bench power supply LED for fear it may damage the phone. If anyone wants to recreate this, the 5V regulator is available at Radio Shack and you'll have to either tear apart a charger/computer/other device or order a USB port. I installed a 12V port near the sunroof in the headliner of my car, then I installed a generic USB car charger and ran a USB cable out of it to my dock.

Cool project. Good to seem someone else using torque. Have you had any success in the 0-60 timing? If i don't dog it, I can get a reading. Once the tires slip, tc kicks in, it is a nogo. (Noticed some updates to the program and t was a complaint on his forum, so I should try again to be fair.)

Modding the Uselss Dock into the Ultimate Media Dock!

Ok, I ordered my first useless dock also from NewEgg.com, only to discover that the HDMI output is (as later specified on the website), only a passthrough HDMI and the HDMI adapter is sold separetly!!!. But none the less, I did received my UD and at least I have the 10.1" slider into which the tab can fit. I will connect this to the new 7" True HDMI dock I also ordered. Wasting money??, well, I'll limit my amount of StarBucks coffees and make up for it.
That was besides the point Have anyone every opened the Dock (7" or useless 10.1") too see what is inside? I got as far as removing the four screws from the bottom on my UD (useless dock) and probably need to pray it open a bit. But have not gotten that far yet, before I started typing ('cause I did a search with not any applicable results) - next time someone is going to ***** at me again for 'have you tried search????' - I'm gonna tell them to let the forum know to get a better search engine - one that actually works. - Again, off the topic. (LOL)
My whole idea is the make the "Ultimate Multimedia Dock" (**** Samsung for selling everything separately if they darn well know it could be one device!) I especially need a SD-card reader (since I sit now with two 32GB cards and a 10.1" tab that cannot read them!)
My idea is to add a USB surface mount female plug inside the dock (after I prayed it open, I will get picks and let you know if it will work) - Something like this.
Slimmer if I can get one - still needs to shop around a bit more. If anyone knows of anything slimmer than the above one let me know, please.
But that is not what I need help with so much..... According to this thread, one can create your own USB Host dongle. I want to build that into the dock.
So that means that whatever the connectors are between the two 30-pin connectors of the dock, needs to be intercepted with the USB connector (pins 1,3,4 &6) and the 20K resistor between 13 & 15.
The idea is mainly to have access to the USB female port as a card reader, while the tab is on the dock and maybe while the charger is connected. I am not so much interested to use the USB port while the HDMI is playing (modding the 7" dock). I would hate to send my 50" TV up in smoke - or the tab for that matter, if both devices are both connected and does not like being together......
Anyone have some diagrams or experience to help figure this out - it is highly appreciated.
Thanks guys & gals!

Got some pics to share.....
Useless dock, inside and out........
Guys, Let's take this thing apart and make it better.....
(will upload soon...)

bert269 said:
Useless dock, inside and out........
Guys, Let's take this thing apart and make it better.....
(will upload now - first have to reboot to get my FTP server on my laptop working.....wbrb)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Samsung has another new Media dock coming, its not like the one thats currently out which sells for $34.99
The new one is supposed to have HDMI out so you don't need the adapter to use it.
The new dock will run $50 and should be available in the fall along with the new bluetooth keyboard case and some new attachments.
This is what Engadget has to say:
Today's Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 event in NYC wasn't just about software -- okay, it was mostly about software, but the company also unveiled a slew of accessories for its slick Android tablet. High atop the list is a number of new docks for the slate, including a $50 Multimedia Dock, which props the device up in landscape mode while charging it and offering HDMI out. The $80 Ultra Productivity Tool, meanwhile, also charges the device and includes a full-sized keyboard with Android shortcut keys. The $150 Premium Protective case turns the Tab into a makeshift notebook with a full-size Bluetooth keyboard and a hinge that lets the user adjust the tab's viewing angle.
A new $40 HDTV adapter gives the tablet full 1080p HDMI output. The company also announced a $40 SD card adapter and a USB adapter for easy accessory input. For $60, Tab owners can pick up the Premium Book Cover, a high end case for the device that lets you prop it up for typing or viewing movies. And somewhere in the distance, you could hear Steve Jobs audibly shudder when the company unveiled a pen stylus for the device. The stylus has an aluminum body and a silicon tip, for when you need to give your fingertips a break. It'll run you $20, and sadly won't include meat.
Engadget sucks with pictures lately, here's a pic of the new dock:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g4avPDtNJ30&feature=player_embedded
New accessories galore!
Including a speaker dock!?

Pictures as promised...of the opened dock....
OK here are some pictures. I'm sure you all know how the media dock looks, So, I'll skip that one.
Here is a picture of the dock opened. See the huge piece of metal to add some weight not to flip over once the tab is inserted. This will probably need to be replaced with something else (lead?) if I am going to use some room of that for the FemaleUSB socket.https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/J7Inf00abt9o0Nf-Gm7gg_Ix_Iq3rFxo94LvnO8xF0c?feat=directlink
Next, a closer look at the bottom of the dock - the part we are actually more interested in, right?https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/CwqnYp8FNvxAY4kue68JU_Ix_Iq3rFxo94LvnO8xF0c?feat=directlink
Now I removed the three black screws that keep the metal weight in place - not hard at all:
https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/8O15xTNYWKv5LgWhSsAnXvIx_Iq3rFxo94LvnO8xF0c?feat=directlink
Ah-ha - this opens up a new dimension to the project. Now we can actually see what we are dealing with.
https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/zXx7uDAbMHMuaFHn1cJ5d_Ix_Iq3rFxo94LvnO8xF0c?feat=directlink
Look at the space at the bottom of the circuit board...hmmmm, I am sure we can fit a 1/4Watt 20k resistor in here (or more if we need to). But let me first remove that circuit board to see what's cook'n down there:
https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/zrInv-Skb5adgNjayj0MZvIx_Iq3rFxo94LvnO8xF0c?feat=directlink
And the circuit board flipped over.....
https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/1LbhnrVErUO7TqINqazybvIx_Iq3rFxo94LvnO8xF0c?feat=directlink
I can't really decide what is better, to solder onto this board or to make the USB Host adapter cable directly onto the 30-pin plug. I already messed up one connector for trying to solder onto those microscopic, tiny pins (and ended up with a piece of solder INSIDE the connector). I almost think here are more work-space on the bottom of this circuit board - for a resistor - or two-
What does the experts think ??
Look at that - my prediction was right. Look at all the space underneath the board:
https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/tsndKQRzvPv2mOjS3dau-vIx_Iq3rFxo94LvnO8xF0c?feat=directlink
OK, so where do we go from here?
NOW I need some experts to tell me the best option to get the USB host adapter connected between the two 30-pin connectors.....
!!!! HELP !!!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

Some good news.....surely....
NCX Designs said:
Samsung has another new Media dock coming, its not like the one thats currently out which sells for $34.99
The new one is supposed to have HDMI out so you don't need the adapter to use it.
The new dock will run $50 and should be available in the fall along with the new bluetooth keyboard case and some new attachments.
This is what Engadget has to say:
.....
Engadget sucks with pictures lately, here's a pic of the new dock:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g4avPDtNJ30&feature=player_embedded
New accessories galore!
Including a speaker dock!?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
...and spending more money while limiting yourself......only one device at a time connected - you cannot add the sd-card adapter AND charge your device at the same time - or watch a movie when the juice is low.....That is why I want to expand the USB Host cable idea a bit further, by getting that into the dock. The dremel tool can do wanders.
But first I need to know what to do, then I can decide where. As you can see from my pictures, there are space in there to park a Ferrari also....LOL
Thanks for this update - appreciated.

bert269 said:
OK here are some pictures. I'm sure you all know how the media dock looks, So, I'll skip that one.
Here is a picture of the dock opened. See the huge piece of metal to add some weight not to flip over once the tab is inserted. This will probably need to be replaced with something else (lead?) if I am going to use some room of that for the FemaleUSB socket.https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/J7Inf00abt9o0Nf-Gm7gg_Ix_Iq3rFxo94LvnO8xF0c?feat=directlink
Next, a closer look at the bottom of the dock - the part we are actually more interested in, right?https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/CwqnYp8FNvxAY4kue68JU_Ix_Iq3rFxo94LvnO8xF0c?feat=directlink
Now I removed the three black screws that keep the metal weight in place - not hard at all:
https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/8O15xTNYWKv5LgWhSsAnXvIx_Iq3rFxo94LvnO8xF0c?feat=directlink
Ah-ha - this opens up a new dimension to the project. Now we can actually see what we are dealing with.
https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/zXx7uDAbMHMuaFHn1cJ5d_Ix_Iq3rFxo94LvnO8xF0c?feat=directlink
Look at the space at the bottom of the circuit board...hmmmm, I am sure we can fit a 1/4Watt 20k resistor in here (or more if we need to). But let me first remove that circuit board to see what's cook'n down there:
https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/zrInv-Skb5adgNjayj0MZvIx_Iq3rFxo94LvnO8xF0c?feat=directlink
And the circuit board flipped over.....
https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/1LbhnrVErUO7TqINqazybvIx_Iq3rFxo94LvnO8xF0c?feat=directlink
I can't really decide what is better, to solder onto this board or to make the USB Host adapter cable directly onto the 30-pin plug. I already messed up one connector for trying to solder onto those microscopic, tiny pins (and ended up with a piece of solder INSIDE the connector). I almost think here are more work-space on the bottom of this circuit board - for a resistor - or two-
What does the experts think ??
Look at that - my prediction was right. Look at all the space underneath the board:
https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/tsndKQRzvPv2mOjS3dau-vIx_Iq3rFxo94LvnO8xF0c?feat=directlink
OK, so where do we go from here?
NOW I need some experts to tell me the best option to get the USB host adapter connected between the two 30-pin connectors.....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Based on what you can find in this thread that discusses the creation of a USBhost/USBpower combo from the 30pin male connector you can buy, the MHL pins, which is what transports the HDMI signals, are left unused. The HDMI adapter samsung sells has the MHL chip that decodes to HDMI. I have been unable to find a female 30pin connector, but if you had that, you could pass those pins, probably with a connection to power and ground (from the same pins that are used for USB power, through to the samsung hdmi adapter. This would give you a connector that had the ability to charge, use usbhost, and still pass through HDMI, all at the same time. If I could find that female connector, I would build that in a heartbeat.
The other option you have is to take a razor, or something equally as sharp, and start cutting traces on the board that go to the female port on the back of the useless dock. You could then install the previously mentioned host and charging ports on the dock and solder them to the cut traces inside the dock. Then you would just need the hdmi adapter outside of the dock.
I'm gonna look at your pics again, and then I'll post one other idea I have.

used2hvatreo said:
...I have been unable to find a female 30pin connector, but if you had that, you could pass those pins, probably with a connection to power and ground (from the same pins that are used for USB power, through to the samsung hdmi adapter. This would give you a connector that had the ability to charge, use usbhost, and still pass through HDMI, all at the same time. If I could find that female connector, I would build that in a heartbeat.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I contacted Kineteka (who sells the male connector and pin-out connector right now) and here's the reply on the female connector:
Female Galaxy Tab connectors are not available at the moment. When they are we will have them.
Regards,
Mike Eber
www.kineteka.com
800-635-6058

cleblanc92 said:
I contacted Kineteka (who sells the male connector and pin-out connector right now) and here's the reply on the female connector:
Female Galaxy Tab connectors are not available at the moment. When they are we will have them.
Regards,
Mike Eber
www.kineteka.com
800-635-6058
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thats hilarious, I just called them to ask the same question.

thanks for your valueable feedback
used2hvatreo said:
Based on what you can find in this thread that discusses the creation of a USBhost/USBpower combo from the 30pin male connector you can buy, the MHL pins, which is what transports the HDMI signals, are left unused. The HDMI adapter samsung sells has the MHL chip that decodes to HDMI. I have been unable to find a female 30pin connector, but if you had that, you could pass those pins, probably with a connection to power and ground (from the same pins that are used for USB power, through to the samsung hdmi adapter. This would give you a connector that had the ability to charge, use usbhost, and still pass through HDMI, all at the same time. If I could find that female connector, I would build that in a heartbeat.
The other option you have is to take a razor, or something equally as sharp, and start cutting traces on the board that go to the female port on the back of the useless dock. You could then install the previously mentioned host and charging ports on the dock and solder them to the cut traces inside the dock. Then you would just need the hdmi adapter outside of the dock.
I'm gonna look at your pics again, and then I'll post one other idea I have.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am much more interested in the second option you have mentioned, since I do not care that much about HDMI at this stage. (I have ordered the 7" true HDMI device for this). My main plan is to add the USB Host into the useless dock. Since it looks like there will be more than enough room for the 20K resistor, my concern was if it is going to work, to intercept the signal between the two 30pin adaptes currently in the useless dock, using the plans for the USBHost?
I will see if I can find the time this weekend to work on it.
Again, thank you!
Curious to know what other idea you have too - let me know.

I'm going to follow this. because I had the same thing in mind. I've got 2 of those desktop dochs an the keyboard dock.
If I sucessfully mod one of the desktop docks I would also consider doing the same to the keyboard dock.

so, the 10.1 useless dock is just a pass through on a blank circuit board with breakouts for the power adapter.
you can easily put the usb host port on to this doc. i would probably solder to either of the connectors' mount points.
the hdmi dock and dongle etc use a silicon image chip which you can't get without signing an NDA
semiconductor store
however, there are several generic micro usb to hdmi dongles which were created for the mhl compatible phones. you can rip off the micro usb port and map it to the mhl pinouts on the 30pin connector. you're pushing $20 at that point which is near the best prices of what you can buy the 7" dock for.

This project looks like a great idea, I have just ordered related componenets from Kineteka to build this up my self. I have 2 questions though - can anyone confirm if there is any issue plugging in a USB MicroSD/SD card reader into the USB host?
My intention:
Mod the Dock - USB Host /w Charging Capabilities
1x USB Female Port -
1x SD/MicroSD Card reader
Im aware that having 2x USB reliant ports will require external power onto a USB Hub but to have this functionality would be worth having extra power.
Second question slightly related - Im looking at buying the samsung book cover case for this device - can anyone confirm if it fits within the UD with the cover attached?
Any comments/ideas welcome.

tff2011 said:
This project looks like a great idea, I have just ordered related componenets from Kineteka to build this up my self. I have 2 questions though - can anyone confirm if there is any issue plugging in a USB MicroSD/SD card reader into the USB host?
My intention:
Mod the Dock - USB Host /w Charging Capabilities
1x USB Female Port -
1x SD/MicroSD Card reader
Im aware that having 2x USB reliant ports will require external power onto a USB Hub but to have this functionality would be worth having extra power.
Second question slightly related - Im looking at buying the samsung book cover case for this device - can anyone confirm if it fits within the UD with the cover attached?
Any comments/ideas welcome.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Book cover case does not fit the standard dock, I had to chop mine up to make it fit.

bert269 said:
Ok, I ordered my first useless dock also from NewEgg.com, only to discover that the HDMI output is (as later specified on the website), only a passthrough HDMI and the HDMI adapter is sold separetly!!!. But none the less, I did received my UD and at least I have the 10.1" slider into which the tab can fit. I will connect this to the new 7" True HDMI dock I also ordered. Wasting money??, well, I'll limit my amount of StarBucks coffees and make up for it.
That was besides the point Have anyone every opened the Dock (7" or useless 10.1") too see what is inside? I got as far as removing the four screws from the bottom on my UD (useless dock) and probably need to pray it open a bit. But have not gotten that far yet, before I started typing ('cause I did a search with not any applicable results) - next time someone is going to ***** at me again for 'have you tried search????' - I'm gonna tell them to let the forum know to get a better search engine - one that actually works. - Again, off the topic. (LOL)
My whole idea is the make the "Ultimate Multimedia Dock" (**** Samsung for selling everything separately if they darn well know it could be one device!) I especially need a SD-card reader (since I sit now with two 32GB cards and a 10.1" tab that cannot read them!)
My idea is to add a USB surface mount female plug inside the dock (after I prayed it open, I will get picks and let you know if it will work) - Something like this.
Slimmer if I can get one - still needs to shop around a bit more. If anyone knows of anything slimmer than the above one let me know, please.
But that is not what I need help with so much..... According to this thread, one can create your own USB Host dongle. I want to build that into the dock.
So that means that whatever the connectors are between the two 30-pin connectors of the dock, needs to be intercepted with the USB connector (pins 1,3,4 &6) and the 20K resistor between 13 & 15.
The idea is mainly to have access to the USB female port as a card reader, while the tab is on the dock and maybe while the charger is connected. I am not so much interested to use the USB port while the HDMI is playing (modding the 7" dock). I would hate to send my 50" TV up in smoke - or the tab for that matter, if both devices are both connected and does not like being together......
Anyone have some diagrams or experience to help figure this out - it is highly appreciated.
Thanks guys & gals!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Interesting. I was just having a conversation in a different thread about this. I'm considering design the HW for this. I'm going to create a block diagram and then a schematic. My thought is exactly what you are saying. Being able to us a USB Hard drive while the device is charging from the wall. I think that will also give you the ability to use a non powered USB hard drive with this as well. I can't say for sure. I still have to look some things up but I think its possible.

Bxsteez said:
Interesting. I was just having a conversation in a different thread about this. I'm considering design the HW for this. I'm going to create a block diagram and then a schematic. My thought is exactly what you are saying. Being able to us a USB Hard drive while the device is charging from the wall. I think that will also give you the ability to use a non powered USB hard drive with this as well. I can't say for sure. I still have to look some things up but I think its possible.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You might run into an issue power wise. I have not looked thru the threads in awhile, but my guess would be that the power you need to run the hard drive (amps wise) might be too much and cause the tablet not to charge at regular speed. I can help with a power circuit design if you need any help.

used2hvatreo said:
You might run into an issue power wise. I have not looked thru the threads in awhile, but my guess would be that the power you need to run the hard drive (amps wise) might be too much and cause the tablet not to charge at regular speed. I can help with a power circuit design if you need any help.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That is sorta what I thought but i'm not 100% sure of the current output of charger and at the same time I'm thinking a 500mA draw would be like charging the device through any USB port which I agree would be slower but might still be adequate for this use since i'm thinking if you are using this configuration it will be sitting for a while. Maybe if I could even balance the power draw with the power output. Then it wouldn't charge but it would die either. Who knows....
I'm trying to get some information on the signals on the 30pin. I'm not sure if the pin 7 and 8 are inputs for the charging circuit. I might just have to buy a cable and break it down and find out.

Bxsteez said:
That is sorta what I thought but i'm not 100% sure of the current output of charger and at the same time I'm thinking a 500mA draw would be like charging the device through any USB port which I agree would be slower but might still be adequate for this use since i'm thinking if you are using this configuration it will be sitting for a while. Maybe if I could even balance the power draw with the power output. Then it wouldn't charge but it would die either. Who knows....
I'm trying to get some information on the signals on the 30pin. I'm not sure if the pin 7 and 8 are inputs for the charging circuit. I might just have to buy a cable and break it down and find out.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is this information what you are looking for?

I've found this so that pretty much answer my questions. I will get started on a block diagram and schematic. I have to do a little research on the power consumption of USB Hard drives.
---------- Post added at 09:44 AM ---------- Previous post was at 09:44 AM ----------
used2hvatreo said:
Is this information what you are looking for?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
haha that is hilarious. That is exactly what i was just posting about lol..

Let me know what you think of this.... It is a rough idea of how I think the circuit should work.
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Bxsteez said:
Let me know what you think of this.... It is a rough idea of how I think the circuit should work.
****EDIT***(FIXED ERROR)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I didn't completely analyze it, but with a quick look, it looks pretty good.
I don't see any serious circuit issues that could really mess something up. (there could be data connectivity issues, i don't know much about all that)

DIY docks & hacking docks tripping dock mode & AC charging mode

Update: Desk dock resistor value found & additional connector sources found thanks to mikejr83
I went through all of this with my Captivate a year or 2 ago, and figured it might be nice for Galaxy S 3 owners as well. You can see the history at http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=12169590
Dock mode
Samsung phones will trip their dock mode when they sense a resistor of a particular value between the ID (pin 4) & Ground (pin 5) pins on the micro USB connector
Car mode - 619k ohm (Validate on my Galaxy S 1 & Galaxy S 3)
Desk mode - 365k ohm (confirmed finally thanks to mikejr83 cracking open the SGS3 dock his wife got him. 1k ohm for SGS1 & 1k or 365k for the SGS2)
Parts
The only appropriate solution I was able to find (a year or 2 ago messing with my old Captivate) was a USB MicroB Plug Breakout Board which was pretty decent at $4 + shipping.
mikejr83 found some slightly different micro USB connectors at Digi-Key ($0.66 each + reasonable shipping, $2 is the minimum Digi-Key order) and on E-bay (10 for $4 + $1 shipping) as well.
The Zenis SGS2 dock fits the SGS3 reasonably well & runs about $10 on Ebay (free shipping, but it takes about 2 weeks to come over from asia), It does not trip dock mode & just has micro USB passthrough connectors. According to this XDA thread it's easy to pull appart & looks to be very hackable.
Chopping up a micro USB connector will not work, they only have 4 wires & the pin #4 you need access to is buried inside the connector at the end so far you have to destroy the whole connector to get to it
I have a roll of maybe a couple hundred 619k resistors I picked up from a local electronics recycler in my Captivate days. I might start packaging em up and selling them off after I get back from DEFcon if anybody is interested & having a hard time finding them.
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For just dock mode & no other usefulness (like actually charging), you can see what doing a poor job of jamming the resistor in there on the Spark Fun breakout board for testing gets us (photo of my old Galaxy S1 because I'm to lazy to get dig it up and transfer the photos if I take any of my Galaxy S 3 showing the same thing).
AC charging
In order to get "AC charging" which goes up to 750ma instead of "USB charging" which only goes up to 500ma, you merely need to short out the 2 data pins (pin 2/white & pin 3/green) on a normal USB cable. Most people find it easy to short them (the center 2) on the big flat rectangular end (Type A) of a normal USB cable. Given my approach with the breakout board I just soldered a jumper across the 2 data pins on the board.
For my first (and only properly documented) dock build I used Friendly Plastic. Technically called Polycaprolactone it's really easy to work with and melts at around 60 degrees Celsius (140 F), also known as almost the temperature of the dash of my grey truck on a 70-80 degree day.... Oops. It would make a good desk dock, but not a car dock.
Commercial docks & potential mods for them
Given the dirt cheap Infuse dock I picked up I probably won't be working on another car dock unless I decide to put a case on my phone making it not fit in the dock. I have some oven bake modeling clay I'll probably try for that.
At $10-15 it's hard to beat the Zenis dock. On the 2nd page somebody cracked it open and the micro-USB plug looks very similar to the SparkFun one. I don't believe it trips any dock mode, but soldering in the appropriate resistor would be pretty easy. I hope to find the value to trip Desk or Media center dock mode & use Tasker to turn off E-mail and other non-essential noise during the night so as to not roust the wife.
Further information needed
If anybody has any more resistor values for various dock modes or other information to add, let me know.

Can you do both car mode and AC mode at the same time? And any idea if that would be a bad idea off a USB port that's built into a car?

KeithLM said:
Can you do both car mode and AC mode at the same time? And any idea if that would be a bad idea off a USB port that's built into a car?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Standard USB is rated up to 500ma.
AC mode is rated up to 750ma.
You need to make sure your power supply is rated to at least 750ma to safely trigger AC mode. You will have to check with the manufacturers specs on what that USB port is rated for. You can trigger AC mode and any of the dock modes at the same time (verified on my old SGS1 Captivate and I'm 99% sure the SGS3 is the same), they don't use the same pins.
If you are plugging into anything that actually expects data (USB port on a stereo as opposed to just a USB charger) I would disconnect the data (center 2) pins from that end, leave them shorted at the phone end.

Thanks for the info. My car reportedly has an extra USB port behind the dash I was hoping to use, but I can't locate it. So I might have to resort to using a power adapter. If I do that I'll use the 2.1A model from monoprice.com. So I'll use the power option based on which port I end up using.

Let me make sure I'm getting this straight: Using the two values for resistance you have you were only able to get the S3 to trigger into car dock mode, correct? There could possibly be another value which triggers desk dock mode.
My thought would be to get a rheostat and chop up a micro USB cable and adjust the level of resistance till the effect was achieved. Obviously I may have to get more than just a rheostat to achieve the correct range of resistance to try, but eh...
Once I figured out the resistance level I could then make a "desktop dock cable" by placing the resister inline in the micro USB cable. That would be a great solution for me. Thoughts?

mikejr83 said:
Let me make sure I'm getting this straight: Using the two values for resistance you have you were only able to get the S3 to trigger into car dock mode, correct? There could possibly be another value which triggers desk dock mode.
My thought would be to get a rheostat and chop up a micro USB cable and adjust the level of resistance till the effect was achieved. Obviously I may have to get more than just a rheostat to achieve the correct range of resistance to try, but eh...
Once I figured out the resistance level I could then make a "desktop dock cable" by placing the resister inline in the micro USB cable. That would be a great solution for me. Thoughts?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The SGS1 resistor value for car dock worked on the SGS3, no luck with the desk dock resistor.
Resistors are used in that location for non dock stuff too... Jigs to trigger bootloader and recovery mode, etc. I wouldn't try the rhestotat thing personally. Previous values were found in Samsung or the CPU vendors documentation somewhere. I'd start there or use an OHM meter on a dock we know trips desk or media mode.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using Tapatalk 2

Fallon said:
Resistors are used in that location for non dock stuff too... Jigs to trigger bootloader and recovery mode, etc. I wouldn't try the rhestotat thing personally.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the heads up! :good: I got out my breadboard last night. Had a bit of down time at work and was just getting ready to call a few RadioShacks around town to see if they had some pots in stock (didn't expect them to, but they list a few on their website) so I could hack up a cable this weekend.
One question though, if I had the phone powered on and was to start with a linear taper pot and go from 0 to say 1M ohms (found one that would cover the entire range without me having to add resisters in there) I could possibly trip the phone into bootloader or recovery mode?
It would seem to me that in essence what I would be "doing" is plugging in various USB cables which had a different resistance in that location. It seem odd to be able to take a powered on (even screen unlocked) phone and have it just dump to recovery or bootloader with the plugging in of a cable (assuming that I had the real version of the cable/dock/jig).
That said, I'm glad you gave me a heads up as I might want to do a bit more research on this before I just sit around with my multimeter and a pot going through various resistances just to see what happens. I suppose what "happens" might be something I really, really do not want! Or, maybe I end up finding a way to unlock a VZW phone by accident! Yea, like that'd ever happen!
EDIT:
This new phone has me not writing code and doing more searching around the internets for information! I found this post http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=20710266&postcount=14 The poster shows that they use a 365k resistor for car dock. Preceeding posts indicate this was for a S2. I still have to go through my resistor "collection" to see what I have sitting around. I may still hack up a cable this weekend.

Ok. So I got a pot and was setting up a test bed when I cut the end of a mini USB cable. I realized it only has 4 pins. My thought was to use one of the dozens of mini USB cables instead of my limited amount of micro ones for my first tests. Basically I was going to take the A side and plug it into the charger to power my breadboard.
When I saw that there were only 4 pins on the mini B side and hence four wires inside the shielding it got me thinking about the micro B end. Both the micro's and mini's A side have 4 pins. If the micro B side has 5 pins where does that 5th id pin go? Does a micro cable have 5 conductors the length of the wire which the id conductor terminates to ground at the A side?
Now I'm confused on how the accessories are manufactured so as to make the phone go from USB charge mode to A/C mode. I'd really like to sit around now that I have this pot to test various resistances in order to see the outcome. Quick Googling hasn't found any negative side effects (yet...).
Sent from my SCH-I535 using xda app-developers app

Micro USB has 5 pins with the new 5th pin only existing on one end to use as an ID pin for what end of the cable it is. Makes it easy for the resistors that Samsung uses to trip the various modes.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using xda premium

I was just looking into what all the pins do because I planned to make a small board with A and B connectors and wire the resistor in there. Now I see that's pointless. I figured the shielding on other connectors was equivalent to the 5th pin.
I'm going to have to strip down a micro USB cable and see what I find in there.

I'd recommend looking at that breakout board from Spark Fun I linked up top.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using xda premium

http://forums.androidcentral.com/epic-4g-accessories/64959-what-triggers-car-dock-mode.html#anb
Mentions 365k as well as 1k to trigger desk dock. will try it when I get a chance.
Sent from my Transformer TF101 using Tapatalk 2

I've stripped down a micro-USB connector on one of my monoprice.com cables. I've found that the pin is there on the backside of the connector and just not connected to anything. Unfortunately I did too much damage in the process to try and reuse it. I think if I can strip another and be more careful I can expose just the one pin I need, then expose some of the wiring further from the connector and very carefully slice open the ground and connect the two with the resistor. It's also possible the shielding is connected to ground, so I might be able to attach it directly to that. Unfortunately my voltmeter is out of commission so I can't check that at the moment.

KeithLM said:
I've stripped down a micro-USB connector on one of my monoprice.com cables. I've found that the pin is there on the backside of the connector and just not connected to anything. Unfortunately I did too much damage in the process to try and reuse it. I think if I can strip another and be more careful I can expose just the one pin I need, then expose some of the wiring further from the connector and very carefully slice open the ground and connect the two with the resistor. It's also possible the shielding is connected to ground, so I might be able to attach it directly to that. Unfortunately my voltmeter is out of commission so I can't check that at the moment.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok. To clarify, the ID pin doesn't have a wire/conductor that runs the length of the wire?
Sent from my SCH-I535 using xda app-developers app

mikejr83 said:
Ok. To clarify, the ID pin doesn't have a wire/conductor that runs the length of the wire?
Sent from my SCH-I535 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Definitely not in the cable I pulled apart. I've looked around for a micro-USB extension cable, but haven't found one so far. Potentially such a cable would have the fifth wire.

Straight from the land of the rising sun! Straight from China! http://www.ebay.com/itm/10Pcs-USB-T...ltDomain_0&hash=item20c49dfc46#ht_2925wt_1163
DIY Micro 5pin male USB connector! $4 for 10 of them. I just ordered a set. Once I get these it should be easy to build a test connector that will run through my pot so we can try different resistances.
This is what I was hoping of finding. I wanted to take a 1.5-3ft USB cable and put an end on it that would put the phone into desk dock mode. That way I could connect the cable to my keyboard and set my phone in a cradle that I previously purchased.
EDIT:
Shipping is a $1. Total paypal amount was $4.99
EDIT 2:
I'm a tard. Also got shipping confirmation. Could take up to 30 days . Hopefully it's on the shorter side of their estimate of 7 days. I guess that gives me some time to put together a monoprice order for some cables.

mikejr83 said:
Straight from the land of the rising sun! http://www.ebay.com/itm/10Pcs-USB-T...ltDomain_0&hash=item20c49dfc46#ht_2925wt_1163
DIY Micro 5pin male USB connector! $4 for 10 of them. I just ordered a set. Once I get these it should be easy to build a test connector that will run through my pot so we can try different resistances.
This is what I was hoping of finding. I wanted to take a 1.5-3ft USB cable and put an end on it that would put the phone into desk dock mode. That way I could connect the cable to my keyboard and set my phone in a cradle that I previously purchased.
EDIT:
Shipping is a $1. Total paypal amount was $4.99
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Japan is the land of rising sun but otherwise great find

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_Serial_Bus#section_4
USB 1.x/2.0 Mini/Micro pinout
Pin Name Cable color Description
1 VBUS Red +5 V
2 D− White Data −
3 D+ Green Data +
4 ID None Permits distinction of host connection from slave connection
* host: connected to Signal ground
* slave: not connected
5 GND Black Signal ground
So definitely only 4 wires in a standards compliant cable, not 5. Pin gets left free or shorted directly to ground (or shorted via a resistor in Samsung's case for dock mode)
Nice find on the cheap micro USB connectors.
Sent from my Transformer TF101 using Tapatalk 2

Now that I'm at work and doing nothing really important I've had time to dig through digikey for a similar part. I just don't think I can wait that long to get those other pieces!
The only thing I've been able to find that is close is this:
http://www.digikey.com/scripts/dksearch/dksus.dll?lang=en&mpart=10104109-0001LF&vendor=609&cur=USD
I ordered 3 and had them shipped USPS First Class. That will give me something to test with hopefully by the end of the week.
BTW, it's been such a long time since I ordered anything from digikey that I didn't realize they dropped their minimum order size requirement. It's awesome that they'll ship a $2 order!

Check GPS USB cables... they have all 5 leads
The USB extension cable is common for GPS units. My car radio has garmin built in, and when I added the fm traffic antenna, I needed a Mini USB (not micro) cable and quickly found out that "standard" off the shelf cables only have 4 wires, when the mini and micro usb ends actually have a 5th pin, but it either gnd or n/a at all - the standard extension cables off the shelf are extremely cheap, but useless for an application where the 5th pin is needed. BUT when I search for a GPS cable, it has all 5 pins. Its also about 5x more expension - When I bought mine it was like $25 or something online, but I can't remember where... it was from a GPS outlet place I found online. Just posting my limited experience for those to consider, and maybe prices have changed since then?
GOOD LUCK
(btw: I love this thread, I love building stuff too....)

Mod for sony liveview stock watchband to facilitate charging

Hi,
I have here a simple mod for the stock sony liveview watch band to facilitate charging without taking out the liveview at its retaining base. I would just like to share this simple mod so that anyone with a broken tabs that clips the liveview in place can use their stock watchband again (Mine broke the other day ,the engineer who design this thing must be fired) or for those anybody that would like to use their stock watchband and was tired of constantly taking out their liveview for charging. This mod will allow the liveview to be charged still attached to the stock watchband. (Caution; Pics are very huge....sorry). Liveview app has a recently updated so it improves connectivity but no auto connect yet. Otherwise I'm enjoying it more now on jellybean than previously where it stays more of its time inside my desk unused, so for now will be using it more frequently.
Materials needed are the following:
a. Long nose flier (preferred as it allow small length bending of the paper clip)
b. paper clip
c. super glue (for those with broken tabs)
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http://i1223.photobucket.com/albums/dd501/gorgycuads/IMG_20121008_105705.jpg?t=1349708425
Steps:
1. Cut, measure and shape the paper clip according to the image shown. Remember to measure the lenght of the clips and its bending in proportion where the retaining pin is attached to the watch base. ( I would not explain further as a picture is worth a thousand words)
http://i1223.photobucket.com/albums/dd501/gorgycuads/IMG_20121008_105715.jpg?t=1349708412
2. when done, remove the stock retaining pin from the watchband. You will have to enlarge the hole where the retaining pin is attached to the base of your live view by using the extra paper clip and heating the tip of it using a gas stove, a candle or anything at your own convenience. (Be careful with this procedure, take extra caution). While the tip of the paper clip is still red hot immediately insert it to the hole and take it out afterwards and do the opposite side.
3. Now that the hole is larger, and your modded paper clip pin is ready to be inserted to the notch. Now replace the stock retaining pin with your modded paper clip retaining pin and place it back. Put your liveview back. For those with broken tabs super glue on the back of your liveview and put it back allow the glue to dry for several minutes.
Here are some pics in action: You still retain factory look and gain some convenience charging with the port without removing anything( except for the rubber cover which you will still have to open). Enjoy (Sorry if I have made some grammatical error or did not explain properly as english is not my primary language).
http://i1223.photobucket.com/albums/dd501/gorgycuads/IMG_20121004_184024.jpg?t=1349708444
http://i1223.photobucket.com/albums/dd501/gorgycuads/IMG_20121004_184101.jpg?t=1349708435
http://i1223.photobucket.com/albums/dd501/gorgycuads/IMG_20121008_110238.jpg?t=1349708665
http://i1223.photobucket.com/albums/dd501/gorgycuads/IMG_20121008_110338.jpg?t=1349708656

nice idea... i'll try how to think how to do it on my watch strap

Good Job. I have to look for a technician to do it for me .

superb job! i am doing this right away! wish me luck
---------- Post added at 03:17 AM ---------- Previous post was at 02:43 AM ----------
wooaahhh done! great idea... and quite easily achievable

Thank You!
Thank you so much for this tip,
without it i would have to struggle to remove the watch from its strap everyday as on my one it is way to stiff,i found i didn't have to make enlarge the hole for the paperclip and is quite sturdy :good:

just did this and I didn't had to enlarge the hole

Could use some advice.
This thing has a TINY battery and doesn't use that much power.
As a watch mode it's in the light all the time. What if we never had to plug it in to charge it again... but instead kept it plugged in the whole time to a solar watch strap?
ebay has these (which, two, in series relation might work)
http://www.ebay.com/itm/PowerFilm-F...00918136469?pt=UK_Gadgets&hash=item2ec7a77695
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Thin-Film-F...489?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3a81313771
and my favorite (one of these might work... don't think their calculation can be right: e.g. 2V *420mA = .84W
So if we .84W / 5V = .168 = 168ma that's more than standard usb @ 100ma and should give enough juice over 8 hours of office and sunlight right? Plus this thing is waterproof and looks sick (they even have a black one now too).
for dirt cheap that puts out decent charge ... anyone have any ideas how to fashion one of these (or two) into a watchstrap?
Perhaps solder on a male micro usb that will couple to liveview on that side and then a regular watch pin on the other side.
Wouldn't this generate enough energy to never have to plug in and allow unlimited use?
50ma * 8hours a day??? for a 100mah ish battery?
Am I missing something here?
The only issue I see is the voltage... usb needs 5V +/- .25ish?
Would one use a voltage regulator?
Any input greatly appreciated. I'm more software than EE.
Thanks,
Frank

FYI: Liveview mn800 Sony $18 free shipping! Just wanted to pass it along.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Sony-Ericss...er_Cell_Phone_Accessories&hash=item589938963b

Nice idea

IT WORKS! IT'S ACTUALLY CHARGING!
Just need to clean it up a bit and do some testing. But it is indeed charging.

How did you do that???
willfck4beer said:
IT WORKS! IT'S ACTUALLY CHARGING! View attachment 2015449
View attachment 2015450
Just need to clean it up a bit and do some testing. But it is indeed charging.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nice!
Just ordered a liveview the otherday for $20 from amazon. Can't wait for it to get here! How did you get the solar strip to charge it, that's a great idea?

Just need to get a solar band to be about 5v. Ebay has cheap voltage converters with usb outputs. I'm soldering on a male micro usb and removing female full size usb port. I cut the end of the charger that came with the live view off... only two cables inside. Having some weird results though. Will report more after some more tinkering.

Goddamnit. I cant figure it out. It doesn't seem to be working. The charging indicator light comes on and the screen charging icon indicator shows charging. But even when the device is off and left on the charger... no charge seems to accumulate in the battery.
Not sure if the voltage regulator efficiency is to blame resulting in sub 100ma output??? (This seems to be the case as my phone doesn't report charging). But why would liveview report charging but never charge?
The other possibility is that I need to incorporate a diode, like an led, inline to keep current flowing back from liveview to boost converter when a cloud goes over? Oddly, if I disconnect solar cell... liveview seems to illuminate an led built into regulator. Odd!
This morning I charged for about twenty minutes and when I disconnected, the charging light stayed illuminated for several minutes and liveview would not respond.
Anyone have any ideas?
I'm hoping I don't have to incorporate a tiny rechargeable coin battery intermediate to liveview and the solar cell.

I don't know much about electrical setups but it sounds like the current is flowing into the liveview, then back to the converter and is circulating in and out. Basically, the solar strip is charging the liveview, and at the same time the liveview is powering the converter. This would explain the led staying on after it had been disconnected as the remaining charge in the battery was sent to the voltage converter. Did you try disconnecting everything (usb cable and all) after charging it?

Not yet. Been busy at work. But dying to try. I agree with your assessment. Wish I had an extra led to isolate so there was no backwards flow.

I'm hitting 59.6milliamps on an overcast day with a portion of the panel covered.
Usb provides 100ma max non-negotiated. I'm seeing the liveview pulling 74ma from a usb computer outlet. Getting close!
There seems to be some accumulation. I'm thinking of incorporating a tiny rechargeable nimh coincell to balance everything out and provide more current. I don't see any negative current flowing from live view beyond the voltage converter to the ammeter. Successfully charged my bt headset. Getting there.
I've got, what I hope, is a more efficient converter on the way.

Never run out of battery again on liveview:
Charge from your phone!!!
Otg male micro to micro usb will charge the live view from note2 usb.
3300mah note2 battery at about 100ma to live view's 100ish... while liveview provides an awesome second screen! And remote control/ game D pad plus select. Sick!!! Fxuck yeah
Phone remote.
My note 2 is so big... I need a remote.
In the hood don't even need to whip out note2. There's some serious benefits here.
Schematic attached for my idea of male to male plug to charge liveview from phone:
*Data (D+/D-) generally green and white wires not needed.
*Depending on the orientation of your phone port and whether you want second screen face up (as I do) then there's this difficult twist.
Use the shield to send GND and maybe a conductive ink pen to draw a trace from 1 to 5.
*4 and 5 on OTG side must be coupled for phone to detect OTG.
*Not sure how the phone will react to seeing pins 2/3 D+/D- as open. Hope this works. I think it will.
My phone charges the liveview using a 2 conductor cable... so they should show open anyway.
*if your phone connector is reversed or you don't care about the orientation (which might be nice in some configs)... this is a **** ton easier. Only need to couple two male micro-b to male micro-b with all connectors going straight through. (and couple 4 and 5).
Schematic up just FYI FWIW.
ONE CAVEAT to this. Without the data cables you can't negotiate for higher current above 100mA. But for bluetooth peripherals and liveview... this should be quite sufficient.

Solar charger wrist band working on smartwatch1! They are going to have to build their own for smart watch 2 as I believe it's proprietary connection.
Best news ever just hit... Sony OPENS up dev on smartwatches; home brew friendly behavior? Hell yeah sony! This is such a relief, if this is the new Sony, I'm getting ps4 *****es! The boycott is over! I'm totally getting smarter watch 2 when it comes down to a reasonable price...Cannot wait for full multitouch.
Does anyone have specs fir smart watch 2 plug? Its not microusb is it?

OR - the really easy way if you don't need structural coupling:
$5
http://hakshop.myshopify.com/products/micro-to-micro-otg
Male to male
micro-b to micro-b
with OTG (on the go) enabled.
Already all the work is done... great cable to charge liveview directly from phone!
Also works with your bluetooth headset, mouse, keyboard, and the like.
One improvement on this would be to couple in a resistor across the data lines to allow charging the phone while derivatively charging the liveview.
I'll leave that to the other threads.

Direct phone to liveview charging. 100ma @ 5v
Usb micro to usb micro
Micro-b
$5 from hackify