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Home made car charger discharges!

Hello:
I built myself a car charger a while ago and it all seemed to work fine. A couple of times however my unit has 'died' after a particularly long journey in the car. I have recently discovered that it was actually getting flat enough to turn off and not turn on until charged; even though it was indicating it was charging.
Further experiments have revealed that if the battery in nearly full (eg 84%) and I use my car charger, the percentage of battery full increases over time indicating it is indeed charging.
However; if the battery is quite empty eg 24% - over time the battery charge decreases until the unit turns off, and needs to be attached to the mains to charge it - even thought it still indicates it is charging!
Soehere in the middle of the two battery states ( 84% - 24%), my charger seems uable to charge my XDA for some unknown reason, I suspected it could be due to current drain - a flatter battery may need more current to charge which the charger cannot provide, but the same situation occurrs even if the unit is turned of and therefore taking very little current from the car charger - obviously leaving nearly all the current available to charge the battery.
Any ideas why this should happen? I am completely stumped - I do not wish to buy a charger as my charging system also incorporates a connection to my GPS unit, and no commercially available chargers provide this at a reasonable price.
Any help or suggestions much appreciated.

BTW: The PDA will only charge if at least one of the pins 16,17,or 18 isconnected to ground and at least one of the pins 20,21 or 22 are connected to +5V. Otherwise, though the XDA may say it is charging, it will actually just drain the battery.
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icarusbop,
Have a look at the charger I made for my XDA II, for use with the in-car kit I also made. The schematics are on my web site - follow the link from my signiature below.
This charger works 100%, and the state of the battery has no effect on charging performance. Mind you, it is capable of supplying > 2 Amps which is sufficient to fully charge the battery while watching movies, and the screen brightness turned all the way up. Charging times are the same as using the plug pack supplied with tyhe XDA II, if not a tad quicker.
The only draw back is the heatsink required for the +5 volt regulator. For the smallish one I have chosen (for the car kit - see pic on my site) it is capable of 2 Amps, but with a larger heatsink (see the first attempt pic of this charger) a full 5 Amps is easily achievable over extended use. It all depends on how much juice your set up requires.
Hope this helps.
Recrem...

I have the same issue but I have an original car kit which was working fine. After I upgraded to 2.06.00WWE i noticed that although when plugged into car kit it says charging, it actually discharges. Although I like this version, I'm in the car quite a bit and need the device to charge, and am thinking about rolling back to the latest rom from the club imate site.
It appears to be a software issue more than a hardware issue....
:?

update,
I've discovered that if charged to atleast 90% when plugged into car kit then it charges.
at some level below this (don't know where yet) it discharges.
welcome to the twilight zone

I haven't tested this with my car kit, and haven't noticed any problems when I had SE installed, although my wife said that her device wasn't charging while in the car, and when she got home after a fair drive, her battery was indeed flat!
I rolled back from 2.02 + 2.06 merged SE to my origional ROM of 1.66.00.WWE purely because some problems became more and more evident - like being unable to connect to ActiveSync unless I reset the device numerous times, and spontaneous hard resets. I have all the same software on my device now with the origional ROM and no problems...
We will be moving this week, and it would be a good test for my ROM and charger to see if it charges when below 90%....
Recrem...

microphone
Hi, did you manage to get the mic working on you carkit? I cannot get the mic working when connected with pins 1 and 5. sound output is working however!
Thanks,
Rob Boerman

Did you design and build your own car kit, or did you follow my design from my web site? I am curious if anyone has used the info I have posted there...
Haven't had a chance to try the mic. I only know it will require a good pre-amp to get it working, and I have been too busy to build one yet - perhaps when I have settled down into our new home after this week-end...
Recrem...

let me know
If you find time this weekend let me know
cheers,
Rob Boerman

All
Just to give my two-pennies worth...
I bought a USB cable when purchasing my O2 XDA II from the O2 shop. When using this cable, if the existing charge is below 85% then the device discharges when connected, however, if it is above 85% then it charges quite happily.
Get this.. if I use my USB CRADLE to charge (in the same USB port etc..) then it charges from below 85% without any problems whatsoever!
Is there a possibility that the USB cable and the USB cradle are wired differently? Are we missing a trick here?

My charging issue has deteriorated to the point that it dosn't charge at all in the car kit, it does charge in the pc usb hub and on mains. I down graded to 1.72.00WWE last night and tested it in the car kit this morning and it still discharged, so the software appears to have nothing to do with it.
I think the earlier statement by indecided may yeild results:
"The PDA will only charge if at least one of the pins 16,17,or 18 isconnected to ground and at least one of the pins 20,21 or 22 are connected to +5V. Otherwise, though the XDA may say it is charging, it will actually just drain the battery."
I will pull my gear apart this weekend and test it out. Possibly I've got a bad connection.

davidberrysmith said:
I think the earlier statement by indecided may yeild results:
"The PDA will only charge if at least one of the pins 16,17,or 18 isconnected to ground and at least one of the pins 20,21 or 22 are connected to +5V. Otherwise, though the XDA may say it is charging, it will actually just drain the battery."
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Click to collapse
[Theory] The pins are quite thin, it's hard to think you can push 2+ Amps thru one of them without melting it down (at least the insulation). Maybe this is the problem: if you need a big loading current - like when the battery is below 85% - and you don't have more than one pin pair connected to +/- 5V the phone is not charging, although it may say so.
Solution: connect ALL three of pins 16-18 to GND and ALL three pins 20-22 to +5V.
[/theory]

Solved my problem,...
pin 22 had come away from the circuit board. So I sweated it down and just for good measure sweated down all other connections as well.
Put the phone back together and threw it in the car kit, charge ingreased from 78%.
time to upgrade the os again.
:wink:

david... perseverance does pay off... cool.

3rd party charger screwing with touch screen?

So I've got a bunch of these cheap ebay USB chargers. I was using them with my HTC Kaiser but now I have my desire - When the phone is on charge using one of these, the touch screen won't work properly. It goes crazy, registering its own "touches" so menus fly about, etc. and if I try touching it, it either doesn't register it, registers the touch about 10 times or in the wrong place!
As soon as I unplug, back to normal!
The HTC charger says output: DC 5v, 1amp
This charger says output: DC 5v+- 0.20v, DC500mA +- 30mA
Does this mean these chargers arent quite powerful enough or something? Could I be damaging my phone by using these? They do charge ok but seem to take longer than the HTC charger.

I had exactly the same problem with the G1 and after a fair amount of time researching that issue, I read, and was told that the voltage on many 3rd party charger are not as well regulated as on HTC charger's or pc's USB ports.
On my G1 the problem stayed even after unplugging the charger.
You'd be much better off with a genuine HTC charger or just using your pc's USB ports.

I have the same problem with my phone .. the problem still remained after unpluging and using my own charger.
Does it go away in some time? is your phone ok now?

Well, on my Dream, the problem wasn't constant, but it was there very often, it seem to occur less when I was swapping with some spare charged batteries.
On my Dream the trick was to turn the screen on and off, and it would work most of the time...
I suggest you try to charge of your computer, the voltage output is regulated properly and I was told several times that the opposite, i.e. cheap chargers, were messing with capacitance screens.
I have been charging my Desire with the HTC charger and my PC and haven't had any issues yet.
Better safe than sorry, I wouldn't have got an upgrade if my Dream didn't have that problem in the first place, and it quickly becomes a massive pain! Especially when you have no keyboard.

Problem didn't go away, so I sent my phone to the waranty service.
Using the original charger and original usb cable everything was ok, the problem appeared when I used an usb extender with my computer. First, windows didn't recognize my device, and then the touchscreen problem appeared.

I had the same problem with charger and usb extender but the problem doesn't stay when I take it out. I Won't be using it again that's for sure...thanks for the heads up

manks said:
I had the same problem with charger and usb extender but the problem doesn't stay when I take it out. I Won't be using it again that's for sure...thanks for the heads up
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i was having screen freezes and stuff with my HD2 HTC desire rom using a 3rd party charger
my guess is , STAY AWAY

I have a JMB branded car charger ([email protected]) with a mini USB connector, but with a Force branded mini USB to micro USB converter. I have no issues whatsoever.

I use a Samsung Micro USB charger and I notice no problems whatsoever, it's like an older version of the charger that comes with the Galaxy S in Europe.
Straight from the plug as it were, it's great, no issues and charges extra fast

Charger getting hot | Controller for quake

Hi guys, I got 2 subject so I thought I'll just make one thread for this.
I'm from EU so I used my US charger with an other plug. Seemed to
work great, doesn't complain like it does with my HTC phone charger.
But now the charger gets pretty hot, along with the USBplug that is in the charger. Should I be worried? I would say its about 50-70celsius.
_______________________
So I got Quake from preware, but it doesn't work with touch only (even tho there r touch controls?) so Im wondering if its possible to get it working with this:
http://icontrolpad.com/
That would be nice with the snes emulator also so I might buy it, its very expensive tho but I like the oldschool'ness of it.

You're likely to burn it out if you keep using it, don't leave it on unattended.

Troute said:
You're likely to burn it out if you keep using it, don't leave it on unattended.
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Sure? Does your get hot?
The charger should handle ~220v as we got here. So I don't get why this shouldn't work.

Isnt there a way to find a compatible European charger without paying 30$ for the travel pack?

Pretty much any micro-USB charge will charge the Touchpad, it is just some will be quicker than others. I am charging from the USB port on my laptop at the moment and it has upped the charge by 8% in the last hour or so with the screen off.

dmarchant said:
Pretty much any micro-USB charge will charge the Touchpad, it is just some will be quicker than others. I am charging from the USB port on my laptop at the moment and it has upped the charge by 8% in the last hour or so with the screen off.
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Yeah but the normal one gives about 30% on that time. But as I said, it should work, no problem. I don't think its uncommon for it to get hot but I'm not sure tho

My official charger gets quite warm, together with the USB plug. Clearly that is the only device that will charge at full speed and without a warning on the screen. However, as I was trying to point out, you don't have to go down the official charger route if you are prepared to either accept the on-screen warning or a slower charge rate. The Blackberry Playbook charger gives 5V 2A and although it comes up with the on-screen warning charges almost as quickly as the official unit.

I bought one of these http://www.mymemory.co.uk/iPod---iP...s-USB-Charger-and-Socket-for-iPod_iPhone_iPad the other day, rated at 2.1 amps (though the unit shows 3 amps). I get the dire message about not enough voltage or current but it works fine and quickly. Obviously I don't use the supplied Apple cable...

[Q] Car charger 5v 2000mA good or bad?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/5V-2000mA-U...pt=US_Tablet_Accessories&hash=item5d3 2a6631c
Will it be ok to buy it or will it harm the phone and I should just stick to 1A charger?

It will work without any issues. I am using Nokia charger that is 1,5A without any issues.

Just want to make sure there's no chance its gonna fry my phone phone somehow, 2A is still 25% higher then 1.5A .

I bought a 2.1A dual charger from Fry's last night.
Freakin thing is even worse at charging than my .7A single charger is.
I'm not buying anymore chargers unless they have written reviews from people stating they work properly.

CZ Eddie said:
I bought a 2.1A dual charger from Fry's last night.
Freakin thing is even worse at charging than my .7A single charger is.
I'm not buying anymore chargers unless they have written reviews from people stating they work properly.
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Click to collapse
If you run into a good charger pm me. If I'll buy this charger and it works out to be good I'll let you know.

Having a power supply greater than what u need is actually a good thing, it'll provide a more stable. current, assuming its of decent quality. Your phone will only draw as much power as it needs, in this case 1A.

I will say that cheap DC power adapters appear to wildly vary in actual current delivered. I am a little skeptical of a charger sold from Hong Kong.
And, in my experience, you WILL need a full 1A of power when doing something like GPS navigation since my 750mA (well, thats what it says on it) charger can't keep up with that level of power draw.
Anyone who is good with electronics know a good way to test the output of these chargers directly?

multimeter

icenight89 said:
multimeter
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Well yes, but which output pins, etc. But thanks for the constructive answer
I don't own a multimeter, but my dad always had one (that was likely older than I am) and it always seemed to come in handy. Wonder if Radio Shack still has them or if its all just cell phones and toys now...

jslanger said:
Well yes, but which output pins, etc. But thanks for the constructive answer
I don't own a multimeter, but my dad always had one (that was likely older than I am) and it always seemed to come in handy. Wonder if Radio Shack still has them or if its all just cell phones and toys now...
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Same is with my dad, try this http://pinoutsguide.com/PortableDevices/micro_usb_pinout.shtml I guess you gotta measure the red and black.
2 informative threads about this subject:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=844284 - This method might prove useful to your 2.1A new charger.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/archive/index.php/t-787906.html

kishke said:
If you run into a good charger pm me. If I'll buy this charger and it works out to be good I'll let you know.
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This thread links to a supposedly good charger.
It also discusses that the USB cable itself can be the difference between a .5A and 1.0A charge.
http://forums.androidcentral.com/ga...8605-car-adapter-charges-while-using-gps.html
I bought a 120V AC/DC converter for my car for charging my laptop and it also has a USB plug. Even it wasn't able to charge my phone up while I was using GPS.
So I'm going to try a stock Samsung micro-USB cable instead of the Radio Shack collapsing micro-USB cable I've been using, to see if that helps.

Just ordered the charger, 3$ is not a big hit, I'll report back in 2-3 weeks after I receive it and let you know how well it's working.

kishke said:
Just ordered the charger, 3$ is not a big hit, I'll report back in 2-3 weeks after I receive it and let you know how well it's working.
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I hope you don't expect too much from a $3 charger. Remember the old saying people, you get what you pay for!
Sent from my SGH-T989 using Tapatalk

kishke said:
Just ordered the charger, 3$ is not a big hit, I'll report back in 2-3 weeks after I receive it and let you know how well it's working.
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Just have to say that I love your screen name Kishke. Only my grandmother uses that word still
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I727

So I just got my charger today, had 1 drive with it so far with gps on and the phone actually got charged without exploding ^^
This is the charger for the lazy people http://www.ebay.com/itm/400281723676?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1497.l2649
It come without a cable and from first impression it looks pretty good.

Thanks, I just bought one. Hope it doesn't take ~30 days to get to me like it did you.

A little update:
Yesterday I had 2 drives with the phone the charger connected and the gps on, first was 50 minutes second was 35, both times everything worked great and the phone got charged.
Today as I was driving back home after the phone on with the gps and the charger for 10 minutes I received a "battery temperature too hot, stopping charging".
I can relate a few factors to this, first when i entered the car it was scolding hot, second probably the car mount was also hot and 3rd my case is really cheap and chocking.
I downloaded a battery temperature widget and I'll check the battery and the charger in a few different situations, with and without the case when the car is hot.
Edit: I checked the current the phone takes while being connected to the wall and the cat charger and they are both approx 860mA so the issue comes to the phone itself.

Overheating
When I had my Nexus One I had overheating problems.
It happened when doing all of the following together:
- connected to car charger
- gps
- navigation
- screen on full brightness
- on dashboard on very hot day
The phone was never the same after the first time it overheated (unstable). Eventually got HTC to replace the motherboard to resolve the issues.
My point being that when you do all this stuff at the same time you have a lot of current flowing through a pretty tight space with very little cooling.
I am paranoid about my i727r getting fried this way as well ... so I am constantly checking to see if it is getting too hot when I am navigating.

I'm guessing at our hot summer I'll have to cut back on the charger or the gps.
Still now before it's really hot its a good time to experiment with everything icluding pointing the air conditioner on the phone ^^
Edit: I checked the current the phone takes while being connected to the wall and the cat charger and they are both approx 860mA so the issue comes to the phone itself.

kishke said:
I'm guessing at our hot summer I'll have to cut back on the charger or the gps.
Still now before it's really hot its a good time to experiment with everything icluding pointing the air conditioner on the phone ^^
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Click to collapse
One solution could be to buy a genuine Samsung battery charger with a spare battery and charge only the spare one while driving
Look for Samsung-Battery-Charger-Stand-Galaxy
Mine arrived today, quality seems to be ok but haven't tested it yet.
kishke said:
Edit: I checked the current the phone takes while being connected to the wall and the cat charger and they are both approx 860mA so the issue comes to the phone itself.
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Click to collapse
Could you tell me how to check the current the phone takes without root access? My GS2 doesn't show current in widgets like CurrentWidget.

[Q] Forever to charge...

Hopefully I don't get flamed for this as I have been doing searches but so far nothing...
I got my HTC OneXL and that night I flashed Viper onto it. I don't know if it's the ROM or the phone itself, but it takes a really long time to charge. I plugged it in 2 hrs ago at 50% and I'm only now at 60%.
Battery life is hard to know length as I've had the phone a week and have been customizing and setting it up etc.
Is the charging a known issue to the phone or is it the ROM? I'm coming from the Iphone 4S and that thing charged up really fast.
Any help is greatly appreciated!!

Charging it from the pc or from the wall? Using the cable and power adapter it came with?
10 percent in 2 hours is slow. Typically in 2 hours I'll get about 50 percent or more.
If you have a 30 day faulty return policy I would take advantage and make sure they replace the power adapter too. Typically they would of course but I thought I'd specify just in case they wouldn't want to for whatever reason.
If you don't have a return policy available, I would try another usb power adapter for a couple hours as that would be my first guess as the culprit for this though it could also be an issue within the phone.
Sent from my HTC One X using xda app-developers app

I had the phone given to me and it didn't come with the original cord. I'm using the cord from my Xoom so that could be it...
Sometimes I use the wall charger, sometimes my pc and sometimes the USB port in my car. Guess I'll have to try and track down the actual cord and see if that works. It'd be cool if those dots on the back had an actual charger that worked for them!

ChandraKoo said:
Sometimes I use the wall charger, sometimes my pc and sometimes the USB port in my car.
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Click to collapse
Charging from a PC is slow, and from a car is extremely slow. If the 10% in 2 hours is from car charging, it would not surprise me, and pretty normal.
MicroUSB chargers or cords from most phones will work just fine on the this device, but don't know about the Xoom. I suspect either the charge source (car, PC) or cord may be the issue here.
Also keep in mind, that after a ROM flash, the battery meter is not completely accurate. You have to do a charge cycle to full, then drain to 10-20% for the high/low "flags" to be properly set. This might be part of the issue. But I haven't seen it cause such a slow increase in readings while charging, so I don't think its your main problem.