Charger Compatibility - 550mA vs. 700mA - Captivate General

I have older chargers for that output 5.0v / 550mA and have noticed that the Captivate outputs 5.0v / 700mA.
1. Can I safely use the older, 550mA chargers with the Captivate and what will the effect be?
2. Can I safely use the Captivate's 700mA charger with the older phones and what will the effect be?
Thanks.

1. Yes, you can use it. But it will charge slower.
2. Yes, you can use it. I believe that just because the charger output is higher amperage doesn't mean that it will affect the phone adversely. Think of it this way: A lamp is plugged into the wall outlet at your house. That outlet is rated at 120v 15A. The bulb isn't using all 15 amps, so no problem. But if you were to turn the voltage up or down, the lamp will get brighter or dimmer respectively.
The Captivate can take up to a 1A (1000 mA) charger.

Truceda said:
1. Yes, you can use it. But it will charge slower.
2. Yes, you can use it. I believe that just because the charger output is higher amperage doesn't mean that it will affect the phone adversely. Think of it this way: A lamp is plugged into the wall outlet at your house. That outlet is rated at 120v 15A. The bulb isn't using all 15 amps, so no problem. But if you were to turn the voltage up or down, the lamp will get brighter or dimmer respectively.
The Captivate can take up to a 1A (1000 mA) charger.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Another question. You sound smart on this so how about using the nexus one car charger on this? Fits perfect and I don't see why not, but still Leary. .. what do you think?

As long as it puts out 5v, (which is USB standard), you are fine. The amperage is only relevant if the device REQUIRES it. For instance if the device draws 1A and your charger could only handle 550mA your device will charge very slowly.
On the other hand if your charger can handle 1.2A and your device only draws 700mA, then your charger will only output 700mA.
The important thing is the voltage, it needs to be 5v +/- 3% ...
I actually use a generic car charger I bought at walmart with 2 USB ports on it, and it works well for every USB powered device I own ... ZUNE, iPOD, phones etc.

OK. Thanks for the reply. I had read that a phone requiring 700mA that uses a 550mA charger could damage the charger and possibly the phone. That's what made me wonder. And that's what led to the question.
Let's make this a bit more interesting. There's a local, highly-reputable cell phone repair store that has stopped selling car chargers because, they say, the rapid charge is not good for the phone's battery. Their recommendation is to use an inverter (no, they don't sell them) so that you can then plug a standard wall charger into it or a USB cable if the inverter is so equipped. The AC current that results from utilizing the inverter is more consistent than the current flowing from a car charger. So...I purchased an inverter for less than $20 and use it to charge the Captivate in my car.

OK ... not sure we need to get this far down in the weeds on this but here goes ....
The USB2 standard for power distribution is 5v and the thresholds are 4.4-5.25V.
Power is supplied in units of 5v power ... 1 unit is 5v at 100mA, no device can draw more than 5 units from any one port. If you have ever seen a portable hard drive with 2 USB connectors it is because it requires more than 500mA to operate and by using 2 ports the device can draw up to 1A. For dedicated chargers the 4.4-5.25v still applies but shorting the D+/- and disabling the data connection allows the device to detect that it is connected to a dedicated charging port and draw a maximum of 1.8A.
In keeping with the above guidelines, when connected to your computer the Captivate can draw no more than 1 unit of power which is [email protected], when connected to a dedicated charger the phone can draw [email protected] and stay within the standard. (yes, it caps itself at 1A, I know).
OK ... the next bit is going to be hard to digest because there are plenty of examples to the contrary ... there is a standard for mobile USB chargers, and it requires wiring them as dedicated charging ports. What this means to us is that, in theory anyway, a mobile USB charger should allow a device to draw up to 1.8A from it (highly unlikely ... but that's the standard as written).
Here is the problem, if the device is plugged into a dedicated charging port and tries to draw it's maximum rated current, that amount of current may not always be available or it may fluctuate. This fluctuation is what causes problems. Have you ever turned you car stereo up real loud and seen your headlights dim in beat with the music? Same thing, the power system is being drawn down. There are a couple of ways to stabalize your power system ... install a large capacitor (mine is 2 Farad) to provide "conditioning", or go the transformer route.A tansformer provides conditioning, but only on its own outputs... while a large cap will condition the entire power system if installed correctly.
So yes, using a quick charger on your phone can cause issues if your car has a ****ty power system or a large stereo system which is not set up properly (again, ****ty power system). Make sure your charging device is within the standard, and you should be fine wether it is USB via a cigarette lighter port or a 110V transformer.

I appreciate your detailed, helpful reply.
Other than the important 5v parameter, what I've taken away from your information is that a car charger can be used in a vehicle with a power supply that is known to be stable, and that either a whole-car conditioning system or an inverter should be used on one with a, shall we say, "less than stable" power supply (PG version ).

Jack45 said:
I appreciate your detailed, helpful reply.
Other than the important 5v parameter, what I've taken away from your information is that a car charger can be used in a vehicle with a power supply that is known to be stable, and that either a whole-car conditioning system or an inverter should be used on one with a, shall we say, "less than stable" power supply (PG version ).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Pretty much ...
There's more than one way to skin a cat, and that Transformer will cost you a whole lot less than a 2 Farad capacitor. I hate cats, but they serve a purpose.

@Battlehymn - one more question for you
I have converted from iPhone to the captivate (no haters please) - finally found a physical form factor with specs i like and the captivate rocks.
Anyway, I have some extra external batteries I used with my iphone that i want to use with my Captivate. I just bought a Female iPod connector and I am planning to connect it to a micro USB connector - the pinout is straight forward, but here is my question:
Should I connect the D+/- (short them together)? That is my plan. My batteries are 1900 or 1000 mAH - I assume that even if the phone tries to the draw 1.8A, the batteries have a circuit to only discharge so fast.

Related

Use iPhone charger for Nexus One?

Hi guys,
since the charger of the iPhone has an USB connector, my question is if I can use that charger for the Nexus One too??
Since it supplies actually the same energy level (both can get energy from a PC USB instead), does this mean that also the charger delivers current with good specifications for the N1?
thanx in advance
exelero
How are you going to plug the iPhone 30 pin in to a micro USB? Maybe I'm not understanding you correctly.
to plug the microUSB-to-USB cable of the Nexus One into the USB socket of the iPhone charger.
moto1907 said:
How are you going to plug the iPhone 30 pin in to a micro USB? Maybe I'm not understanding you correctly.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think (s)he means the mains adapter part with the USB socket in it - in which case yes it will work, you just need the right cable - which came with your N1
Looking forward to when all manufacturers standardised on micro usb, for a while I thought that mini usb was micro, so I was surprised to see that the n1 was different then I found out....
ok, now i see. Not enough coffee yet,lol
scote said:
in which case yes it will work
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yeah, from the connection part, I know it will work. my question was more related if the iPhone charger delivers the appropriate current (tension/amperage) conditions for the N1 and, let's say, it won't burn the N1 due to a too high voltage, or mess up the battery due to an incorrect tension input.
I was just having a conversation on chargers with a friend of mine the other day and googled around on the subject on amperage/current/Ma of chargers..
I stumbled upon these posts (either here on XDA, Androidforums or other forums):
1. "The current rating on a voltage source is the maximum amount that the power
source can deliver without exceeding its saftey rating.
What this means is that if you are using some device that has a power supply
with a current rating of 500mA then its best not to use a different power
supply(at the same votlage rating) with a lower max current rating. i.e.,
anything < 500mA. Now ofcourse you might be able to get away with it but if
it burns down your house then its your fault.
A device will only pull the amount of current that it uses(assuming it is a
voltage controlled device) and this is true regardless of the current
rating(hence the saftey issues I discussed above). If a device
says(sometimes they don't) it uses 500mA then it uses 500mA. Maybe it
doesn't use 500mA all the time but the engineers have put that rating there
for a reason. Using any power supply with the right voltage and a current
rating of anything more than what the device uses is ok because the device
will only pull the current it uses.
Now, about the voltage rating: The voltage rating does not have to be exact
and different devices can tolerate different voltage ratings. The problem
usually is one of current. By increasing the voltage, say, you increase the
current the device uses and then you have changed the parameters that the
device was created with."
2. "And as far plugging your phone into a charger that outputs well over 850mA, don't worry about that either. Unlike voltage, the more amperage the merrier because the device will only take what it needs of the available resources."
3. "Moral of the story. Match the Voltage (5.1Volts) Meet or Exceed the 850mA rating. (which is .850 Amps) and you'll be fine."
4. "amps are not pushed but drawn
amps is the max the charger can provide
before it get pressured and lover the volts
you could use a 5volt 10000MegaAmp charger
and the device would only draw the amps the device
was made to draw all the rest of the amps would stay
at your electricity company
ohms law state Amps == volts / residence"
5. "amps are not pushed but drawn
ohms law state Amps == volts / residence
In other English:
P = VI, where
P = Power of device (watts) and is fixed
V = Voltage used by device (volts) and is fixed
I = Current (amps) and is decided by P/V (a fixed ratio)
So the device cannot draw more current than the fixed ratio. It may draw less current if the charger cannot supply the highest amount, but then as in one of the above posts, it simply takes longer to recharge.
With these devices, milliWatts/miliAmps are the scale, 5V is generally the fixed Potential Difference.
Used in a vehicle, the device is generally both drawing and expending energy (ie. charging and running say, GPS) simultaneously. This in/out situation when prolonged is the cause of the observed overheating with the original X1 battery."
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Bottom line... Make sure the voltage is 5V, the amperage doesn't really matter.
thanx for your feedback.
both chargers have the same output (5V, 1A) - so I am already successfully using it.
blackberry storm also has micro-usb
hello two chargers and an extra usb-cable
To answer the OP's question...
yes it works fine. I have one in my car and charge my ipod and nexus at the same time without issue. The advanced zune car adapter also works (in case one of the 5 who own a zune are reading this ).
I have been using my old Iphone white plug -> USB adapter for almost a month now and I haven't had any issues.
I tried using the iPhone charger but it charges slow...it does not quick charge. Am I doing something wrong?
uhohhotdog said:
I tried using the iPhone charger but it charges slow...it does not quick charge. Am I doing something wrong?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
no. If i'm up to date, and i think i am, you'll only get the 'fast charge' if you use the charger that came with your phone. the usb to usb micro chargers all charge slow
Can i use X10 mini charger (5v DC 850mA output) on nexus one by the things i read i understand that i can't but my english is not very good. Thanks
if youre talking about using the iphone usb cable on your n1, HAHAAHHAAHAHAHAH
if you mean using the usb-to-AC adaptor then yea you can use any usb cable to charge anything pretty much..

Fast charging N1

It seems the only way to fast charge a N1 is with the supplied wall charger. Standard Micro USB chargers whould only allow at much as 450mA of charge current regardless of the adapter current capacity.
The bundled charger however, manages to push 900mA into the N1. I made a cut in the charger wires and measured the current draw to make sure.
Now.. I'd like my car charger to be able to do the same. There must be some hack in the plug of the N1 charger since there are only 2 conductors from the case to the plug. You can see that the plug is somewhat longer than similar Micro USB plugs..
So I tried to see if one of the 3 unused pins can tell me anything but.. they seem unconnected as far as I could tell. Diode measurement (to test for any digital part inside) also did not produce any results. The next obvious step is to take the molded plug apart but I'd rather not...
Does anyone have any clue as to what makes that plug so special?
And please - I did my tests with a bench power supply - not the car chargers - so don't go around telling me it has to do with charger current capacity.
Thanks,
Nir
are you sure the micro usb cords you are using are able to handle the amps? most chargers made prior to now, only push about 450mA, the G1, and N1 chargers i have push a full amp though. I just ordered a car charger that pushes an amp too. There is nothing "special" about the plug.
followinginsanity said:
are you sure the micro usb cords you are using are able to handle the amps? most chargers made prior to now, only push about 450mA, the G1, and N1 chargers i have push a full amp though. I just ordered a car charger that pushes an amp too. There is nothing "special" about the plug.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I beg to differ. All the cords can easily supply 1 AMP. It is the phone itself that decides how much to draw from the charger based on something IN THE PLUG.
I am an electronics engineer so do understand I know perfectly what I am talking about
And your 1A car charger does not supply anything over 0.45A to the phone.. you will see that if you are using the phone while it charges (say nav or phone call) the phone actually looses some charge albeit it being charged... This will not happen with the stock wall charger.
I have a 900mAh car charger that I use and it does in fact give 900mAh to the phone while charging. I can tell because I used a 450mAh charger at home before and it was slooow and I could drain my phone while charging it. With the car charger I can stream music with spotify, use the GPS, have the screen on full brightness and the battery % will still go up.
I also bought a new wall charger recently, which is 850mAh on the USB port and has a 350mAh charger for a loose battery as well, works quite nice.
Has anyone measured the voltage or put a scope on the output of the stock charger?
maybe stock charger has a slight variance in voltage over USB chargers or some signalling going on and this tells the N1 to take more current from it?
I would like a solution to this too I've seen my phone discharge while on a supposedly 1A car charger using co-pilot.
SBS_ said:
I have a 900mAh car charger that I use and it does in fact give 900mAh to the phone while charging. I can tell because I used a 450mAh charger at home before and it was slooow and I could drain my phone while charging it. With the car charger I can stream music with spotify, use the GPS, have the screen on full brightness and the battery % will still go up.
I also bought a new wall charger recently, which is 850mAh on the USB port and has a 350mAh charger for a loose battery as well, works quite nice.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Forget the numbers on the chargers - what counts is what really goes into the phone and that needs to be measured with a current meter (test equipment). What you may think to be fast might not be that.
Original HTC chargers obviously do the trick of fast charging but this comes at a price compared to the $3-$4 garden variety on Ebay and the likes.
now I cannot help you with the electronics at all, but, my old HTC Touch Pro charger seems to charge the same as the one which came with the phone, is this correct?
(suits me if it is, as then I have a charger for home and work)
my blackberry bold 2 charger only says it outputs 700MAh, but both the google and htc chargers both say 1.0A
dnts said:
Forget the numbers on the chargers - what counts is what really goes into the phone and that needs to be measured with a current meter (test equipment). What you may think to be fast might not be that.
Original HTC chargers obviously do the trick of fast charging but this comes at a price compared to the $3-$4 garden variety on Ebay and the likes.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, it is just anecdotal evidence as I don't have any equipment to measure it. But my phone no longer discharges when I use it while charging, which it used to do with the old charger I used. So while I can say for a fact that the charger I use now is faster, I can't say by how much (this goes for both the car charger and the one I put in the wall socket).
I ordered this charger a few weeks ago and it charges my phone as fast as the original charger. The label says 5v / 1200mA.
Genuine Nokia Mini AC-10U US Type AC Charger (100~240V)
$7,25 and free shipping. (Takes a while before you get it tho.)
GazzaK said:
now I cannot help you with the electronics at all, but, my old HTC Touch Pro charger seems to charge the same as the one which came with the phone, is this correct?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
HTC Touch Pro = mini USB
Nexus One = micro USB
Not an engineering here, but I am guessing the phone not always drawing more than 500ma may be is to do with the charger itself.
There is this "fast charge" USB standard where a wall plug has the USB data pins shorted to indicate that it is a wall plug and hence the phone knows when to draw more power. So even if the charger is rated 1A, the phone might not know if it could utilize that if those pins aren't shorted. Try doing a quick Google on this ....
If someone can test if the stock charger that came with the phone in fact does have those pins shorted that would confirm part of this theory.
For all practical purpose - I used two cables/plugs with a bench adjustable power supply. Simple micro USB plug would only let me draw 450mA regardless of power supply voltage in the range 4.5-5.5V. Tried shorting data pins - nothing. Tried shorting spare pin to VCC or GND or any of the other pins - nothing.
Used original cable and plug - draws 900mA at voltages from 4.9-5.5.
So it's in the plug somehow.
Tried (very difficult) to see if the pins on the plug are shorted and all 3 spares (except for 5V and GND) seems unconnected.
Next step is the irreversible hot knife...
I'm bugged by this, too. I tested with my desktop dock connected to my car charger (which states 1000 mA): it loads slowly and my battery widget reports USB- instead of AC-charger.
Might it be that the phone tries to load more than 1000 mA at the beginning to be sure that it doesn't overload the charger? And if that fails, it falls back to 500 mA?
Could N1 use a simple logic of:
- always watch the voltage
- start drawing 500ma (or whichever is the lowest current as per USB spec)
- increment in say 50ma steps
- if voltage drops below 4.x V, back off and stay at that level
I just did a little test of my own. I have a Palm Pre car charger (actual Palm brand one labeled as 1000ma output) and I plunged my N1 into it on my way home from work. In twenty eight minutes, my battery went from 47% to 70%. Much faster than plugging into my computer, which is 500ma max. I don't have any fancy test equipment, and don't claim to know a whole lot about electronics, but seems pretty fast to me.
I have a 4-port 2A 5v USB charger, and connecting it to my Nexus OR Milestone with a MicroUSB cable (the one that shipped with either phone, or the one from my Kindle) yields painfully slow charging - it basically won't charge if you are using the phone.
Connecting the Nexus One charger yields fast charging on either phone - so it is not HTC (or Motorola) proprietary.
The Milestone comes with a 900mA USB plug, and connecting THAT to either phone with either of the MicroUSB cables yields fast charging.
I have another aftermarket 2 port 2A 5V USB wall charger (brand: T'nB) AND I have an iPhone USB plug, and both give fast charging on the Milestone, and I have not yet tried them on the Nexus One.
Breakdown (on things I've tried):
FAST CHARGING on Nexus One AND Milestone:
Nexus charger (either in the US (110v/60hz) or in France (220v/50hz) through an adaptor)
Milestone wall French USB plug (which I think is something odd like 850mA at 5.9v) with ANY microUSB cable (in fact, it seems to charge both of the phones faster than the stock Nexus One plug)
SLOW CHARGING on Nexus One AND Milestone:
USB plug on computer
One aftermarket 4 port 2A 5V USB charger (NOT a hub, only a charger)
FAST CHARGING on Milestone, untested with Nexus One
T'nB 2 port 5v 2A USB wall charger
Apple iPhone 1 port 1A 5v USB wall adaptor
Seems found the answer for Fast Charging N1
I had just do some test for Charging N1 With Original AC Charger , Other band USB Charger and PC USB charger.
1. Orginal Charger give N1 from 0% to 100% at about 2 hour and something.
2. The other band AC charger and PC USB Charger can only finish the same job over 5 to 6 hours.
The Fast Charging is Due to 5.1V (Measured at N1) and 5.2V(Measured inside AC charger). 0.1V Drop is due to resistance of USB cable.
The Slow charged is due to 4.8V (measured at N1) and 5.0V (measured on PC USB and Other AC Charger)
i.e. Original Charger mod from 5.0 V to 5.2V (about 10% increase in Voltage)
Looks my theory is correct then ? N1 watches the voltage and if it droops too much, it backs off the current.
So the key would be: get a charger than can maintain at least 1A @ 5.2V, use
a decent gauge, short wire from the brick to N1.
Has anyone tried a Blackberry charger on the N1? Will they work to full capacity as well? (They're on Amazon for a fiver)
Because the nokia charger is working
http://pinoutsguide.com/CellularPhones-Nokia/micro_usb_connector_pinout.shtml
see info under table.
I tested also HP charger + standard USB cable delivered with Nexus, and it is charching cca 1A.
Then I tested one noname Carcharger + standard USB cable delivered with Nexus, and also charging cca 1A.
I dismantle the noname carcharger and here is a result:
data line (pin2+3) is shorted and connected do + (pin1 ,Vcc) thrue resistor cca 630kOhm.
1 - 4 = 5.1V
2,3 - 4 = 3.2V
rashid11 said:
Looks my theory is correct then ? N1 watches the voltage and if it droops too much, it backs off the current.
So the key would be: get a charger than can maintain at least 1A @ 5.2V, use
a decent gauge, short wire from the brick to N1.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I try to use power supply 5.2V 2A with cable without dataline (pin 2and3 not connected) and it is charging 480mA only.
I have now tested with an HTC car charger for the HD2. It's fast charging (tested with Waze running, two bluetooth connections and playing mp3 - and it's still loading the battery, whereas before it would be stuck at the current percentage) and even shows AC power instead of USB.

Not all charging methods created equal?

I am really frustrated with charging my phone.
From the wall, using the stock 700mA Samsung charger, I get 5% every 10 min.
From a USB cigarette lighter charger modified to source 750mA, I get 3% every 10 min.
From a USB cigarette lighter charger that can source 3A, I get hardly anything.
I assume from these findings that one or more of the following is true:
1. The phone knows when it is plugged into a stock charger.
2. The phone has a current limiter that prevents overcharging.
Does anyone have a charger, other than stock, that they recommend?
I'm half tempted to hook my stock charger up to a cigarette lighter inverter and power it that way.
(I'm also half-tempted to grab a current probe tomorrow and measure what the device is pulling.)
i havent really used my oem samsung wall charger much, but i know when i try to charge from my computers usb it takes 4EVER, thats why i jumped on this ebay deal
IBNobody said:
(I'm also half-tempted to grab a current probe tomorrow and measure what the device is pulling.)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'd probe the chargers and see how accurate their ratings are as well....
does anyone know if using a 1mA charger would be okay? i have one left over from my evo.
The phone won't draw more than 500mA from a charger unless the USB data pins are connected.
Be careful, though... 99.9% of the chargers from China that claim to be 700mA (the nominal value of Samsung's) or 1A will overheat and die (or worse) if you try to actually draw that much current for any sustained length of time. I'd almost go so far as to say that it's SO EASY for a manufacturer to support high-power mode, I'd be automatically suspicious of any allegedly high power charger that doesn't ship with the pins shorted together.
Manufacturers know that most consumers don't know the difference (hell, most users HERE don't know the difference, and XDA is the upper crust elite of the Android phone universe), so they omit the shorting bridge and ship a charger with quoted power capacity that it MIGHT be able to sustain for a couple of minutes if you operated it in a walk-in freezer, knowing that most phones will never draw more than 500mA and it'll work fine for them. It lets them sell the charger for 99 cents AND pretend to be better than the others on the rack because it has a bigger "max power" value.
It's "RMS-vs-Peak" all over again.
Yeah I'm one of those that don't know much about the charging. I did figure there was a different charge rate when plugged into the wall and when plugged into usb or a usb converter like powerjolt.
I also found that one of the usb to micro's that I bought for using with my car powerjolt coverter won't let me connect via debugging/adb shell. was a little surprised at this... is it just a bad cord?
bitbang3r said:
The phone won't draw more than 500mA from a charger unless the USB data pins are connected.
Be careful, though... 99.9% of the chargers from China that claim to be 700mA (the nominal value of Samsung's) or 1A will overheat and die (or worse) if you try to actually draw that much current for any sustained length of time. I'd almost go so far as to say that it's SO EASY for a manufacturer to support high-power mode, I'd be automatically suspicious of any allegedly high power charger that doesn't ship with the pins shorted together.
Manufacturers know that most consumers don't know the difference (hell, most users HERE don't know the difference, and XDA is the upper crust elite of the Android phone universe), so they omit the shorting bridge and ship a charger with quoted power capacity that it MIGHT be able to sustain for a couple of minutes if you operated it in a walk-in freezer, knowing that most phones will never draw more than 500mA and it'll work fine for them. It lets them sell the charger for 99 cents AND pretend to be better than the others on the rack because it has a bigger "max power" value.
It's "RMS-vs-Peak" all over again.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
D+ to D- must be shorted to get the high power mode? Maybe that was why my 3A supply was not handling it.
The Epic pulls 380mA when charging from a USB port from a Dell T3400 workstation. The result was steady at 40% and 80%.
I'll try out my other charging methods later and find out everything.
Stay tuned!
EDIT 1:
380mA is the magic number. It draws 380mA from all USB sources, including my two car chargers.
It draws 600mA from the wall adapter.
The wall adapter does indeed have D+ and D- shorted. My other chargers did not.
Here is the pinout for a USB port: http://pinouts.ru/Slots/USB_pinout.shtml
Here is the "beefy" USB charger I've been using:
http://www.wagan.com/index.php?page...ategory_id=22&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=98
This charger is rather nice because the step-down supply (AX3002) has a large heatsink soldered to the ground tab.
It currently pulls up/down the D+/- lines via resistors. Each port is pulled down separately.
What I plan on doing next is to remove the pull resistors from one of the ports and short D+/- together.
Well, this explains a lot. This was really getting frustrating. I bought a "high-curent" charger for my car and the phone blows through the battery when I'm driving around with Maps running.
Im always on the road and for me an inverter in cigarette lighter with stock wall charger works best.the slowest charge is using stock usb cable since theres a slot for it on the inverter.2nd was radio shack car lighter in inverter.the inverter was from radio shack as well
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA App
IBNobody said:
Here is the pinout for a USB port: http://pinouts.ru/Slots/USB_pinout.shtml.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
that is the official spec but there are actually not just four but six connectors on usb micro, which is how samsung can create a whole mess of pinut jumps for various amperage draws as well as data, entrainment dock and car dock.

1 Amp Apple wall charger

Are all of Apple's OEM iPhone wall chargers (the white little square looking one's) rated at 1 amp? They're cheap on eBay and I like their small form factor and want to pick one up for my Captivate. Thx
I use one and they work fine.
^If you have your charger on hand, would you mind checking to see if it outputs 1Amp?
On your phone, go to Settings->About Phone->Status->Battery Status. If it says "Charging (AC)", it is charging at the max amperage the charger can offer (up to 1A). If it says "Charging (USB)", it is only charging at 500mA, the max a PC USB can offer. I'm pretty sure for iPhone/iPod chargers, it will show later case on our phone because it is not wired according to Samsung's AC charging requirement. I knew this because I had a 3rd party Car charger that was designed for iPhone/iPod and it won't let my Captivate to charge in AC charger mode. I have to open the charger and make a few mod myself to let Captivate to recognize this is an AC charger, not PC USB.
On the other hand, my 1A charger from Kodak Zi8 flash cam works w/o problem with Captivate.
foxbat121 said:
On your phone, go to Settings->About Phone->Status->Battery Status. If it says "Charging (AC)", it is charging at the max amperage the charger can offer (up to 1A). If it says "Charging (USB)", it is only charging at 500mA, the max a PC USB can offer. I'm pretty sure for iPhone/iPod chargers, it will show later case on our phone because it is not wired according to Samsung's AC charging requirement.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ty for the reply. I modded a usb retractable cable by shorting the middle connectors and when I go into settings it shows it's "Charging AC". This is with a generic 700mA usb wall charger I got with a cheap connector kit for my old iPhone.
Anyway, I recently got my Captivate and I find myself constantly playing with it, but it kills my battery doing so. I just want to charge my phone as quickly as possible so I can continue playing with it some more (in a good way).
I like Apple's wall charger because it's small.
From what I have read they are rated at 650 mv so fox is right that they will show as a usb connection. I have never really paid attention and am making a relatively uneducated, yet randomly tested, through my own purely subjective method of simply plugging my phone into anything that will allow my usb cord access, guess that anything with a female usb connection is fine.
Li-ion batteries are kinda dangerous so I am pretty sure there is some sort of idiot proofing built into the charging circuitry in the phone as well.
I'm pretty sure the Captivate will only draw the amps it needs so there should be no danger whether the wall charger is 1 or 2 Amps or more.
The difference is simply the charge time. The phone needs about 3 to 4 hours to get a full charge on the stock 700mA charger. When using generic USB chargers, it will be limited to 500mA max regardless what the charger is capable of and the full charge time will be proportionally longer. The bigger problem is that when your battery is really really low, 500mA may not be enough to even start the charging. That's why you need always keep the OEM charger handy for emergency.
BTW, for a car charger, 500mA won't keep your bettery from draining if you run navigation app that needs to power GPS chip, keep the screen on and download map from 3G connection at the same time. It requires 700mA or more. That is why it is very critical for a car charger be recognized by the phone as AC charger to draw more juice.
Ok, as I stated in my previous post I modded a USB cable by shorting the two middle data connectors, which tricks the Captivate into thinking it's charging with AC through my generic 700mA wall charger. It also says in settings it's "AC Charging" when I looked.
I just wanted to know if the iPhone's wall charger is rated at 1A or was it 650mA?? as newter55 stated.
thx for everyone's help.
Edit: My mistake, I thought I posted this in the Q&A section.
For some new PC motherboard with USB3.0,
they can output 900mA~1000mA(1A) in one single USB port.
You may check this out http://goo.gl/TUaef
If your PC is already 2 years old or older, the usb will only output 500mA in the max.
And, most Li-ion charger are smart enough.
In fact Li-ion charger circuit need to be well design in current control and over current/charge control.
The circuit will not pump full current to the battery in the beginning,
and it will not draw too much, so no need to worry about burn it up.
However if the current is too high let's say 10A.... it may possibly burn the circuit.
Maybe it is a bit difficult to measure current, you need to cut the wire and plug it to ampmeter....
Here is some reference.
500mA - full charge need over 3hrs
700mA - around 2hrs
1A - ~1.5 hr
johan8 said:
For some new PC motherboard with USB3.0,
they can output 900mA~1000mA(1A) in one single USB port.
You may check this out http://goo.gl/TUaef
If your PC is already 2 years old or older, the usb will only output 500mA in the max.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It is not about USB port side. The phone itself also detects and determines how much current it will draw. If it detects it is a PC USB, it will only draw 500mA max as Captivate is designed following USB 2.0 spec.
Ok, thanks for everyone's help. I was able to find out on my own after scouring the internet and talking to someone who has the Apple wall charger and it is indeed 1Amps. I believe all wall chargers that come with the iPhone 3g and all iPhone models after are 1Amps. Not sure about the original iPhone 2g.
Also, for curiosities sake, the iPad USB wall charger is 2Amps.
foxbat121 said:
It is not about USB port side. The phone itself also detects and determines how much current it will draw. If it detects it is a PC USB, it will only draw 500mA max as Captivate is designed following USB 2.0 spec.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Maybe.
I don't know the control circuit inside GalaxyS.
But USB2.0 doesn't means it is just 500mA.
iphone is just usb2.0, but it is the only thing can draw 1A from USB ?
http://goo.gl/GVqKl
(with designated m/b)
johan8 said:
Maybe.
I don't know the control circuit inside GalaxyS.
But USB2.0 doesn't means it is just 500mA.
iphone is just usb2.0, but it is the only thing can draw 1A from USB ?
http://goo.gl/GVqKl
(with designated m/b)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're missing the point. The charge port on the phone can draw more than 500mA but only if it detects it is connected to a AC charger. Like mentioned above, you have to short the data PINs on the USB port or cable to let the Captivate think it is connected to AC charger. For iPhone, the data pins need to be connected to certain specific voltages in order to let iPhone know it is connected to an Apple AC charger.
When the phone can not detect AC charger characteristics, it falls back to PC USB 2.0 spec which is 500mA max.
I use one to charge my Zune. Haven't had a problem.
foxbat121 said:
You're missing the point. The charge port on the phone can draw more than 500mA but only if it detects it is connected to a AC charger. Like mentioned above, you have to short the data PINs on the USB port or cable to let the Captivate think it is connected to AC charger. For iPhone, the data pins need to be connected to certain specific voltages in order to let iPhone know it is connected to an Apple AC charger.
When the phone can not detect AC charger characteristics, it falls back to PC USB 2.0 spec which is 500mA max.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I fully understand what you're saying.
In iphone3, it can only draw 700mA from USB,
IP4 can draw nearly 1A from "computer" USB.
While iphone are just USB2.0 !
GalaxyS can draw 1A in max.
But does it like iphone4 can draw 1A from PC USB ? I don't know.
Or just like IP3 can draw only 500~700mA ?
I don't have new m/b and ampmeter so can't testing on it.

[Resolved] Can i charge headphones with higher mA without issues?

I spent much time to research, ask sony support, google... but i dont have answer yet...
I have got: (Everything is 5.0VDC)
Xperia Tablet Z (It comes with 1500mA charger)
MDR1-RBT BT Headphones (It comes with no charger, charge only via USB PC port - 500mA?)
MW600 BT Headset (It comes with 350mA cherger)
Can i charge all with 1500mA charger without ANY issues?
Please help me i can't get answer for long...
Please help.
BUMP
It'll eventually damage it
Sent from my Karbonn A15 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
Will damage the headphones
Sent from my GT-I9100G using xda app-developers app
arvin07143 said:
Will damage the headphones
Sent from my GT-I9100G using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So i can charge it only via USB to PC?
Sony supporter said i can charge it with adaptor with specs 1500mA...
I don't understand it at all...
BUMP!
This one is not quite so straightforward without knowing about the internal circuitry of those devices you have in regards to how they charge.
Now, in general, it is safe to say that you must always match the voltage and polarity of the device you are charging, often you can use a higher rated current charger or power supply.
Why?
A device typically only draws how many amps it needs in order to function.
Take your TV for example, it probably only needs 2-3 amps to run yet it is plugged straight into the mains which has the capability of supplying many hundred of amps yet your TV doesn't "fry", it simply draws what it needs.
When it comes to charging its a bit more complicated and depends on the device (does it have internal charging circuitry or is the the item you plug into the wall and actual charger and not simply an AC/DC converter).
Most small electronics which contain a battery and are simply supplied with an AC/DC converter, say, Input 120V 1A output 5V 100ma have their own current regulating charging circuitry inside. This means that the thing you plug into the wall isn't actually a charger, its an AC/DC converter.
In that case the converter can have a higher rated amp output than your device states it needs because your device will only draw what it wants.
If what you are plugging into the wall is an actual charger which has the job of regulating the current flow to the device that needs charging then you will want to get one as close to spec as the original so as not to damage your device.
All the devices you list seem to charge via 5V, most likely a USB type interface.
This means that they are not supplied with actual chargers, simply power supplies, the charging and current limiting mechanism is inside each device.
In theory therefore you should be able to 'charge' all your devices via the 1500mA AC/DC converter, the products you have will only draw what they need in order to charge, the 1500mA will not be pushed or forced upon each device.
Also, think of this, you have been smart and come to ask for advice, how many people simply use the USB 'charger' of their husband/wife/sister/brother to charge their phone or product when they can't find their own and those devices aren't damaged.
The only thing is if the current is too low then it will either not charge or take much longer.
I hope that helps.
zasy99 said:
This one is not quite so straightforward without knowing about the internal circuitry of those devices you have in regards to how they charge.
Now, in general, it is safe to say that you must always match the voltage and polarity of the device you are charging, often you can use a higher rated current charger or power supply.
Why?
A device typically only draws how many amps it needs in order to function.
Take your TV for example, it probably only needs 2-3 amps to run yet it is plugged straight into the mains which has the capability of supplying many hundred of amps yet your TV doesn't "fry", it simply draws what it needs.
When it comes to charging its a bit more complicated and depends on the device (does it have internal charging circuitry or is the the item you plug into the wall and actual charger and not simply an AC/DC converter).
Most small electronics which contain a battery and are simply supplied with an AC/DC converter, say, Input 120V 1A output 5V 100ma have their own current regulating charging circuitry inside. This means that the thing you plug into the wall isn't actually a charger, its an AC/DC converter.
In that case the converter can have a higher rated amp output than your device states it needs because your device will only draw what it wants.
If what you are plugging into the wall is an actual charger which has the job of regulating the current flow to the device that needs charging then you will want to get one as close to spec as the original so as not to damage your device.
All the devices you list seem to charge via 5V, most likely a USB type interface.
This means that they are not supplied with actual chargers, simply power supplies, the charging and current limiting mechanism is inside each device.
In theory therefore you should be able to 'charge' all your devices via the 1500mA AC/DC converter, the products you have will only draw what they need in order to charge, the 1500mA will not be pushed or forced upon each device.
Also, think of this, you have been smart and come to ask for advice, how many people simply use the USB 'charger' of their husband/wife/sister/brother to charge their phone or product when they can't find their own and those devices aren't damaged.
The only thing is if the current is too low then it will either not charge or take much longer.
I hope that helps.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I know that Xperia tablets and phones won't take more mA than it needs but does MDR1-RBT has the same thing? I did a lot of research but i still can't find the 100% answer. I don't want to try unless 100% sure. (Its expensive headphones)
EDIT:
Few sony supporters said: You can charge it only via USB cabble to Personal computer
Few sony supporters said: You can charge it only via USB cabble to PC or Adaptor (Linked me to USB/AC Adaptor with THE SAME specs like XTZ charger - 1500 mA)
Is Adaptor same as XTZ?
I found this on OFFICIAL Sony eSupport
http://docs.esupport.sony.com/portable/MDR1RBT_guide/en/contents/01/03/01/01.html?search=charg
OFFICIAL TIPS:
Tips
If the micro-USB cable is connected to a computer while the headset is turned on, the headset will be turned off automatically.
To charge the headset from an AC outlet, use USB Charging AC Power Adaptor* (sold separately). For details, refer to the manuals supplied with the USB Charging AC Power Adaptor.
The headset cannot be turned on while charging the battery.
* Refer to the Reference Guide on the recommended adapter.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
BUMP
Zas99 answer is spot on.once the voltage matches to your device your ok.most phone chargers you can pull out the usb charging cable. u could use that or buy a another usb charger at 1500ma to 2000ma.
Sent from my HTC Desire S using xda premium
E7ite: You should be fine, the fact that it charges via USB means that it must have its own internal charging circuitry.
I bet your Xperia tablet also charges via a USB type cable right, on a USB port?
All my USB 'chargers' have different mA rating yet they charge my products just fine as long as the mA rating is at LEAST what the device needs, not less, and hey, if its a little less it also works, just takes longer.
Look at it this way, the USB specs are always changing as is their current handling capability, now we are at USB 3.1, just recently we were at USB 3.0 which bumped up maximum device current usage during data transmission to 900mA or for dedicated charging 1.5A.
For USB 1.x - 2.0 it was 100mA before negotiation, up to 500mA thereafter, also with a dedicated charging capacity of 1.5A if the D- & D+ pins are shorted.
I bet Sony doesn't tell you that you can only charge via a USB 1.x - 2.0 port do they? Nope, that means if your computer has a USB 3 port that its has the potential to deliver more, remember, that's the key, it CAN deliver more if needed but it won't, it will only give the device what it draws.
The cable they supply with your headphone is most likely not a data cable but rather a so called charging cable so therefore is rated up to 1.5A or 1500mA but your headphones will only draw what they need to charge.
Everyone uses the term charger which is so wrong, when you put your AA or AAA batteries into the little black box and plug it into a wall, that is a charger, when you connect your car battery via the +/- terminals and clamps to the charger, that is also a real charger, they are directly responsible for charging the batteries.
All these other things we use to 'charge' our little electronic devices do nothing other than take the 120V A/C and convert it into for example 5V DC. The current rating they indicate next to the 5V is simply the max current handling capability, nothing more, it not what is pushed to the device, its what the device can request up to to be delivered. The actual charging goes on inside the device.
By the way, as the batteries charge the device reduces the current and sometimes also the voltage, batteries typically charge faster when they are low and able to absorb more current then as they fill up and can absorb less the charger adjusts to a more or less trickle such as 100mA or less in order to maintain but not overcharge the battery.
By the way, this is what I found on Amazon in about 2 minutes, a review from someone else who bought the headphones.
"For the price, sony should have included a wall charger. Instead they included a USB cable. The headphones will charge on any computer, but using a generic USB wall charger will show a blinking amber error light--but the headphones still charge."
Also, the link you indicated to the sony manual about charging gives absolutely no information at all.
You are over thinking it, just try it
If you are really worried why not get a regular cell phone USB charger and use that, one that states like 500mA on it and has a female USB plug on it. That way you can use your headphone USB cable and plug it into the 5V 500mA phone 'charger'.
One last thing, just don't use Apple product 'chargers' to charge non Apple products, why you ask, because Apple does strange things with the pins on their 'chargers' in order to indicate the supply current. This can sometimes lead to adverse effects for non Apple devices.
Good luck.
zasy99 said:
E7ite: You should be fine, the fact that it charges via USB means that it must have its own internal charging circuitry.
I bet your Xperia tablet also charges via a USB type cable right, on a USB port?
All my USB 'chargers' have different mA rating yet they charge my products just fine as long as the mA rating is at LEAST what the device needs, not less, and hey, if its a little less it also works, just takes longer.
Look at it this way, the USB specs are always changing as is their current handling capability, now we are at USB 3.1, just recently we were at USB 3.0 which bumped up maximum device current usage during data transmission to 900mA or for dedicated charging 1.5A.
For USB 1.x - 2.0 it was 100mA before negotiation, up to 500mA thereafter, also with a dedicated charging capacity of 1.5A if the D- & D+ pins are shorted.
I bet Sony doesn't tell you that you can only charge via a USB 1.x - 2.0 port do they? Nope, that means if your computer has a USB 3 port that its has the potential to deliver more, remember, that's the key, it CAN deliver more if needed but it won't, it will only give the device what it draws.
The cable they supply with your headphone is most likely not a data cable but rather a so called charging cable so therefore is rated up to 1.5A or 1500mA but your headphones will only draw what they need to charge.
Everyone uses the term charger which is so wrong, when you put your AA or AAA batteries into the little black box and plug it into a wall, that is a charger, when you connect your car battery via the +/- terminals and clamps to the charger, that is also a real charger, they are directly responsible for charging the batteries.
All these other things we use to 'charge' our little electronic devices do nothing other than take the 120V A/C and convert it into for example 5V DC. The current rating they indicate next to the 5V is simply the max current handling capability, nothing more, it not what is pushed to the device, its what the device can request up to to be delivered. The actual charging goes on inside the device.
By the way, as the batteries charge the device reduces the current and sometimes also the voltage, batteries typically charge faster when they are low and able to absorb more current then as they fill up and can absorb less the charger adjusts to a more or less trickle such as 100mA or less in order to maintain but not overcharge the battery.
By the way, this is what I found on Amazon in about 2 minutes, a review from someone else who bought the headphones.
"For the price, sony should have included a wall charger. Instead they included a USB cable. The headphones will charge on any computer, but using a generic USB wall charger will show a blinking amber error light--but the headphones still charge."
Also, the link you indicated to the sony manual about charging gives absolutely no information at all.
You are over thinking it, just try it
If you are really worried why not get a regular cell phone USB charger and use that, one that states like 500mA on it and has a female USB plug on it. That way you can use your headphone USB cable and plug it into the 5V 500mA phone 'charger'.
One last thing, just don't use Apple product 'chargers' to charge non Apple products, why you ask, because Apple does strange things with the pins on their 'chargers' in order to indicate the supply current. This can sometimes lead to adverse effects for non Apple devices.
Good luck.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you for reply.

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