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Hi guys,
I do a lot of hiking and walking, taking my trusty Touch Cruise/ Orbit2 with me, running GPS and phone. I use the GPS to run EveryTrail - which allows you to track and record your position to upload your route and pics to the site later.
Of course, with all this lot running all day... well, lets just say the batteries dont!
Come to use the phone at your desitination, and voila! you've got a dead battery....
I'm not interested in those "2300 mah" extended batteries, I want something that's going to last DAYS (under these conditions) and I dont mind if I have to have it on a belt or something.
My idea is this:
Build a case to hold whatever and however many rechargeable batteries to give maximum power - within reason (say 48 hours).
This would then go on a belt, with a fixed power cable going to the mini-usb charge port on the Touch Cruise.
In theory, it might be good if it was possible to "daisy chain" multiples of these battery packs to increase the capacity still further....
So, my questions would be:
1. What are the pin connections for power on the mini-usb interface for the Touch Cruise?
2. Can someone recommend a low-unit supplier? (i.e 5 mini usb connectors)
2. What type / spec batteries would I need?
3. What does anyone else think of the idea?
My dad's helping me to look at this - who knows a lot more about electronics than me!
Thanks in advance - I think this would be useful for other people with the same goals...
i think that it is a good idea except one thing i would be worried that i would break the mini usb connector on the bottom of the phone.
OK, this is a good idea, but the weak link is the mini USB connecter (guess how I know...) I think the best solution would be a sleeve that clips around the phone so that the mechanical stress is not borne by the USB connector.
You can get the mini USB connector from Maplin:
http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?ModuleNo=43998
Batteries should probably be NiMH as they have good capacity. Charging is going to be an issue, as you don't really want to have to charge 10 separate AA batteries...
Good idea though, I can only get about half a day out of my Kaiser under those conditions.
Hey, was thinking exactly about the same ;-)
My idea was to use:
1. A 5VDC switching regulator, so battery voltage doesen't matter and for example a 10V battery pack with 2000mAh will last as long as a 5V 4000mAh-battery
2. A complete Li-Ion battery pack with charger from an old camcorder,notebook,accu-driller, or whatever...
Good luck!
Hi there ,
I suggest you to buy 2 external battery pack of maybe 4000 to 5000 mah type suitable for your pda or your device , size like a normal cigarette pack , connection via mini usb cable or similiar , put these into your pouch and use it for your outdoor activities , it is easier than diy making all sorts of modification on wiring and so on . You can get these ext. battery pack with the right voltage and amps or omnhs - whatever from ebay and your local handphones and computer malls or outlets in most major towns in any country . Making a belt or an armband or a shoulder band or any sorts of diy is innovative but will take a lot of time , unless you are the type that likes to be really different or unique from others , then dont give up in making your special dream battery pack , cheers and best regards - jimmunsw
I have a setup like what you want, A 12v 12Amp SLA Battery with a 12v accessory plug that clips on that I just put my car charger in. To ad to this for my larger devices I have a 12v 46amp array in my car for my lappy, both supplemented by Solar panels.
Works well but there is a lot of weight.
Portable Power Supply
I've been interested in a similar setup for extended battery life. I've been increasingly interested in using Li-Po 18650 cells from dead laptop batteries. http://hackaday.com/2011/09/19/things-to-do-with-your-laptop-batteries-when-theyre-dead/ achieving 12v and using a cigarette car adapter to step the power back down to a constant 5.5v 2a It would be cool to finally test this out. dead battery packs from laptops are found many places so the parts could be fairly cheap.
Keep us posted on your DIY!
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.
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Unfortunately, the Xoom cannot charge via USB.
Hi All! So this is my first time starting a new thread so I hope I'm doing this right. I couldn't really find a thread specifically for battery banks or battery backups so I thought I'd start one.
I was wondering what is everyone's method of backing up/recharging your battery for your cellphones? For me, the battery that comes with my phone is enough to get me through the day usually and I just charge it every night while I sleep. If I go on trips, I use the Rav Power 10000 mah battery bank. I find this a bit bulky but it works great and lasts many charges before I have to recharge again.
Everyone's taste and preferences are different so I'm seeing what other options are out there that may be lighter in weight. I'm thinking of getting their smaller one, the 5200 mah, and have this in my backpack or car for just in case.
Any mini reviews of what you have would be great :good:
Wow, cool gadgets, I need to get a bank for just-in-case emergencies. Thanks Currently i use a solar powered charger, which is really slow and somethings doesn't work as desired. Looks similar to this http://www.amazon.com/External-Univ...=8-4&keywords=solar+powered+cellphone+charger
Ive bought one at sunsky from china battery about 4000mah, but it was year before, now there is a better.
I used to have a bank that looked like a GBA SP, with foldable screens. In the screens were two solar panels, which charged the battery of, I think, about 2000mAh or something like that. The thing is now broken though. Still looking for a nice (affordable) replacement
Mine is Anker 5600
I use the Belkin 4000, size similar to a ext HDD and look nice, pocketable too
http://www.techhypermart.com/belkin-f8m160ak-portable-battery-pack-4000.html
Charger considerations
Hi,
I need advise for the following:
Charger A (Li-polymer battery) output : 5V, 1A
Charger B (Li-polymer battery) output : 5V, 500mA
Device input: 5V, 750mAH (Li-ion / Li-polymer)
When using Charger A, some people comment that it will limit the current of 750mAH for the device and the device's battery should be fine since both the charger and device are at 5V. However, some people comment that this will shorten the battery life of the device since it will perform a 'quick charge' using 1A.
When using Charger B, some people comment that the device will draw more current than it can deliver and causes it to heat up and reduces the charger's life. However, some people comment that Charger B will extend the battery life of the device since it performs a 'slow charge'.
I also read that USB pins on the charger denotes if the charger is a PC or a dedicated charger. If it is a PC, the device will limit the drawing current. If it is a dedicated charger, the device will draw more current to charge itself.
I am confused as to who is right and which charger should i be using.
Can someone enlighten me ?
Thank you very much.
bought this one from Ebay, has not yet arrived, therefore I cannot tell if its good or not.
but for its price its quite a good bet, 12000mAh for 33 bucks (on sale until tomorrow)
not able to post links, just type w ww. before the following
ebay.com/itm/12000mAh-External-Power-Bank-Battery-Charger-iPhone-3-4S-iPad-3-2-Blackberry-/280947027345
Zagg sparq 2.0 highly recommended
Sent from my GT-N7100 using xda premium
I recommend Anker 5600 is very good for that stuff.
Hi, I use choiix power fort 10Wh http://www.coolermaster-usa.com/product.php?product_id=3001 it have 2700mAh and it's small and looks very nice. It can give one full charge for my SGSIII
I went on a trip this year and searched for a good bank, and this showed up.
http://www.sayes.co/20-powerbank.html
I tried it and it was really good, it has lots of adapters and it's cheap =P
I was able to order a RavPower 5600mAh on sale a while back ago, that was posted on slickdeals. here. I am pretty happy with the performance of the little backup, it defiantly gets the job done. My only complaint is that the body gets scratched up easily.
I was comparing the Ravpower and the Anker 5600 and they both look exactly the same except that both are branded with their logos. So I'm wondering if they're from the same manufacturer. Going to have to do some more research. However my current Ravpower power bank I do have is working great and I love this thing for trips.
I'm also thinking of getting a solar one for my 3day emergency/bug out bag. Thanks for all the suggestions.
Green Ranger said:
I was comparing the Ravpower and the Anker 5600 and they both look exactly the same except that both are branded with their logos. So I'm wondering if they're from the same manufacturer. Going to have to do some more research. However my current Ravpower power bank I do have is working great and I love this thing for trips.
I'm also thinking of getting a solar one for my 3day emergency/bug out bag. Thanks for all the suggestions.
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Yeah, can someone please let me know if they are the exact same manufactuers, except for the company logos on them? I am deciding between the two. Also, what do you guys think of their 2600maH stick version? Which manufactuer would you go for over the other and why? I am very interested.
I'm using a "Scosche SolBAT II Solar Powered Backup Battery and Charger" which I bought off Amazon for something ridiculous like $15 last year.
I bought it for hiking mostly as an emergency charger. I use a Huawei phone as a GPS out in the wilderness, and the GPS app (Androzic) is quite power intensive. I have also used the same device on an iPhone and an iPod touch. The Huawei phone will receive a full charge from this battery, but the iDevices will only go to around 75%.
The solar cell on the back of the battery isn't all that efficient and will take about two days to charge the internal battery, but having it there gives you more options should an emergency occur while in the wilderness. A half hour charging in full sunlight would provide enough power for a short call or a couple of texts to family or emergency services.
The device comes with suction cups and a small carabiner, so it can be stuck to the inside of your car window or clipped to the back of your rucksack. The device is lighter and smaller than the average smartphone and can be fully charged by USB in about three hours. Interestingly, the device has a LOT of bad reviews on Amazon, so maybe they simply sent me a good one.
I also have a very cheap and nasty handcrank USB charger from dealextreme which can be used to add a bit of juice to the solar battery pack at night or in cloudy weather or can directly charge the phone in an emergency. It's a little flimsy and takes a fair bit of cranking to get enough juice for even one call, but it weighs nothing, cost about $2 and is cheap insurance out in the boonies.
My list of power equipment for the phone/GPS and the iPod Touch for a multi-day walk are as follows:
Short Micro USB cable x 1
iPod USB cable x 1
Scosche SolBAT II battery/charger with alloy carabiner
DX hand crank battery charger
Total weight is less than 200 grams
nottellingeither said:
I'm using a "Scosche SolBAT II Solar Powered Backup Battery and Charger" which I bought off Amazon for something ridiculous like $15 last year.
I bought it for hiking mostly as an emergency charger. I use a Huawei phone as a GPS out in the wilderness, and the GPS app (Androzic) is quite power intensive. I have also used the same device on an iPhone and an iPod touch. The Huawei phone will receive a full charge from this battery, but the iDevices will only go to around 75%.
The solar cell on the back of the battery isn't all that efficient and will take about two days to charge the internal battery, but having it there gives you more options should an emergency occur while in the wilderness. A half hour charging in full sunlight would provide enough power for a short call or a couple of texts to family or emergency services.
The device comes with suction cups and a small carabiner, so it can be stuck to the inside of your car window or clipped to the back of your rucksack. The device is lighter and smaller than the average smartphone and can be fully charged by USB in about three hours. Interestingly, the device has a LOT of bad reviews on Amazon, so maybe they simply sent me a good one.
I also have a very cheap and nasty handcrank USB charger from dealextreme which can be used to add a bit of juice to the solar battery pack at night or in cloudy weather or can directly charge the phone in an emergency. It's a little flimsy and takes a fair bit of cranking to get enough juice for even one call, but it weighs nothing, cost about $2 and is cheap insurance out in the boonies.
My list of power equipment for the phone/GPS and the iPod Touch for a multi-day walk are as follows:
Short Micro USB cable x 1
iPod USB cable x 1
Scosche SolBAT II battery/charger with alloy carabiner
DX hand crank battery charger
Total weight is less than 200 grams
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That is a nice list of equipment. How is the solar powered charger coming along?
tgmeyer said:
Yeah, can someone please let me know if they are the exact same manufactuers, except for the company logos on them? I am deciding between the two. Also, what do you guys think of their 2600maH stick version? Which manufactuer would you go for over the other and why? I am very interested.
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Click to collapse
Honestly i went with pricing. I assume if they look the same they are from the same vendors/manufactures but different brand/company. Reviews for both sound very good too. Ravpower had a promo going on a while back and i tend to see them pop up from time to time on slick deals. The stick might give you one charge but since it looks smaller than the rest, it may be the easiest and lightest to carry around. I say get a decent sized one. Anywhere between 5600mah to 10000mah so you can go through a few charges without needing to charge again.
I have a 6600 mAh(well, in my experience it's not true, more like 4-4.5k), but I rarely use it after I bought a tablet with a fullsized usb port in it.
solar charger
I was looking for a solar charger. I bougth one but it crashed in two days. Therefore I returned it and now I am waiting for another one. In the place I live there are few options
It is a portable battery with usb output for charging gadgets
http://dx.com/p/universal-portable-2600mah-power-bank-for-ipad-iphone-ipod-mp3-mp4-more-black-150528
It can fully charge a Samsung Galaxy S2.
For only 7.8$.... what do you think?
Cheers!
Unless you turn the phone off for charging, it will not give you even one full charge. Not to mention the fact that cell quality in it must be realy bad.
I would rather get one with over 9000mah like this one http://dx.com/p/external-11000mah-e...-adapters-for-iphone-cell-phone-silver-131827
I have been designing a case for my phone that I will get 3d printed and I was wondering if it is possible to make a battery case. I know I can buy a battery and put it in the case I design but how do I wire it up to be able to charge the phone (and using usb otg will I be able to use the usb port while the cvase is on/plugged in?) or is it even possible to just' wire it up' or do I need some kind of chip in the case to moderate the charging? The battery cases that most people buy have a switch on them for charging and using the usb port ( a limit of usb otg im guessing, even though i cant find anywhere where it says that otg has such a limit and I have seen people reporting that they can use a charger and usb with a adapter [I know it has to do with providing enough power to the device plugged into the port, if it is possible does this need to be regulated?], also I was going to use an adapter in the case so that I can add expandable storage via micro sd or usb, hence why I wanted to be able to use the port while having the phoner plugged into the case), to have a switch like that (or the reason why they do have a switch)will I need to have some kind of controller?
Atm I am modelling a case that is normal and then has a clip on part for the battery pack (and usb hub, which limits when expandable starage can be used). I'm also modelling a non-removable battery section case.
So to some it all up, is it possible to make your own battery case and if so how?
P.S. This took me so long to write I forgot half of what I was saying, so feel free to ask questions if I dont make any sense.
Maybe mount a portable charger to your case?
Niiqht said:
Maybe mount a portable charger to your case?
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that's basically what I want to do but mounted the whole portable charger would be massively bulky and I don't want to buy a portable charger and take it apart because portable chargers are expensive (I might as well buy a professionally made portable charging case)
AlmightyBeing said:
that's basically what I want to do but mounted the whole portable charger would be massively bulky and I don't want to buy a portable charger and take it apart because portable chargers are expensive (I might as well buy a professionally made portable charging case)
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Well, manufactured battery cases are also bulky. There would not be a difference. Portable chargers are not expensive, as I bought mine from Marshalls for around $15. What's your idea of "expensive"?