2 USB car chargers, trickle charge, what gives? - Atrix 4G Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

OK, I read some of the threads but it seems none apply to my Atrix.
I purchased 2 USB car chargers, one has auto mA from 1A to 2A and the other is a 2.1A Kesington charger. I plugged to both. The phone says A/C charge, but it charges 10% in 40 minutes.
I used the wall chargers. Stock 850mA, it charges about 10% in 10 minutes. Iphone wall charger 1A, fast too. Blackberry 750mA, fast too.
All of them are 5v output, both car and wall.
So whats the problem? The phone doesnt like anything over 1A? what the hell is up with the phone?
I tried the Battery Monitor Widget and the readings are all over the place, but I can tell you for sure that with the wall chargers it shows A/C at over +1200, with the car chargers it shows +150 to +200, +250 at best.
I dont want to go over $100 trying stupid car chargers, so do you guys know of any limitation on the damn Atrix that decides to sip power instead of chugging.
Thanks

Related

USB car charger

Hey guys,
I was wondering if these USB car chargers are compatible for the TP2?
http://cgi.ebay.com/Dual-2-Ports-US...Accessories?hash=item518f99b7a9#ht_3242wt_958
and
http://cgi.ebay.com/DC-Car-Cigarett...wItemQQptZPDA_Accessories?hash=item3a567814a2
and
http://cgi.ebay.com/Silver-Mini-Uni...Accessories?hash=item414bbc871c#ht_2000wt_958
I'm asking because I remember in the past I used a HTC charger to charge the O2 XDA Flame and it charged. However, the phone started acting VERY weird and freeze a lot. I ended up having to hard reset it
Thanks!
I think any USB charger for electronic gaget that has a output of 5.0 v should work. It does not matter if it is an AC charger or and car lighter charger. I got one of these AC and another car lighter charger. There are all 5.0 v output. I use them to charge Ipod and phones.
chompx2 said:
I think any USB charger for electronic gaget that has a output of 5.0 v should work. It does not matter if it is an AC charger or and car lighter charger. I got one of these AC and another car lighter charger. There are all 5.0 v output. I use them to charge Ipod and phones.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you
It's best to choose one that can supply enough current (I think the wall charger supplies 2A, but 1A should be ok). Some devices will still trickle charge with a lower current, but others just won't trigger the charging circuits at all.
I had a cheap car charger that seemed to work ok most of the time, but it got worryingly hot after a while.
My TP2 came with an official HTC charger, so I use that now and it's great.
I have noticed that if the phone is OFF then 1A is not enough and usually stops charging but if the phone is ON it completes the charge..but takes for ever.
Has anyone experienced the charging overheat situation where the led flashes orange and green? I dont know if that is the situation but it only happens when I am charging in the car and the unit gets hot.
My old "OEM HTC" charger I got on ebay (the one with the blue HTC light) just stopped charging my phone after about 10-15 uses.
It lights on (charger), but my phone doesn't catch any charge lol
I got a 1A one, and unfortunately it cannot produce enough juice when running the GPS (copilot), after a while the phone shows a message telling the charge current is not enough.
The wall charger that came with the original box is 1A too, thus the problem might be with the cheap car charger.
Brando sells a 2A car adapter that should do the trick. They're out of stock right now, but it may be worth a look.
Hey!
Mine is a cheapo but does the trick. Charges the phone with satnav running, today went from 23% to full in less than 3 hours. Plus it's really tiny so I can keep my ashtray closed all the time. Using it with mini retractable cable, it all fits in the ashtray and it's handy to use.
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Micro-Nano-Ti...daptors_SM?hash=item5638c26773#ht_1747wt_1165
3waygeek said:
Brando sells a 2A car adapter that should do the trick. They're out of stock right now, but it may be worth a look.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The manual states that the output of the AC charger is 5.0 volts and 1 amp. That means the output of the DC/car charger should be the same. Using a 2 amp current might be charging the device faster but it would probably generate more heat and might shorten the battery life.
one tip, regardless of which charger you end up with, is to not leave the phone plugged in while starting the car. my understanding is that there can be be large voltage surges or fluctuations during the startup. depending on the design on the voltage converter inside the charger, some of that may be making it through to the phone.
i once had a AA NiCd battery smart charger that went wonky after using it in the car a lot, but that was with a straight-through 12V car to charger connector.
I made my own charger for using as a GPS on my motorcycles.
There is a charge select line in the plug. If the phone detects that it is connected to a USB port, the phone will not 'pull' more the 500ma. If that line is set to indicate a non USB port, then the phone will pull 1 amp. MAX (I never saw more then 900ma myself).
If you have the wrong charge plug, it may only charge at 500ma. If you have the correct plug and the charger can manage 5 amps, the phone will still only take 1 amp max.
For a while I used the phone in a waterproof box called an Aquabox. It would overheat during charging. I now only charge the phone when it is not in an enclosed hot space.
I'm still using the off-brand 'for Blackberry' car charger I got back when I had my Kaiser. Seems to be working just fine with this phone as well.

USB Car Charging Bracketron

http://maxborgesagency.com/press/bracketron-launches-dual-usb-charger/
$24.99 dual USB Cigarette lighter adapter 1 & 2 amp
Reeves360 said:
http://maxborgesagency.com/press/bracketron-launches-dual-usb-charger/
$24.99 dual USB Cigarette lighter adapter 1 & 2 amp
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Unfortunately, worthless.
Transformer needs 11v-15v to charge reasonably well. Any 5v charger, even at 1000000 amps, will not charge the TF with screen lit, or charge takes days with TF turned off.
Much harder to find auto chargers in the 11v-15v range, some that say 12v are actually not. I found one advertised as 12v (that measures 9.8v actually) and it also did not charge TF. Good luck.
Wont work. Unlike most devices the Transformer does not use 5v to charge like the iPhone and many other Android devices. It does use USB but it will only charge via Asus's special chargers. This is because our Transformers charge via 15volt and the charger cable is actually a USB 3.0 cable that has extra pins in back, and the 15volt pin is one of these extra pins the USB 3.0 layout provides.
Edit Bob Smith42 beat me to it by a few seconds lol
Be aware that it's incorrect to say that the TF won't charge from a standard USB charger. It does charge however it only trickle charges and therefore takes much longer. So let's make sure we are clear when we respond about what works and what doesn't. I used my iPad 2 amp charger on the TF and went from about 30% charge to about 85% charge in about 6 hours (screen off). The absolute fastest way to trickle charge from a generic adapter is with the TF powered off. Hopefully Asus will come out their own car adapter for the TF.
The charger that the original poster mentioned WILL trickle charge the TF. Also new TF users should know that the TF will not give any charging indications when plugged into anything other than the Asus charger - but it is trickle charging none-the-less.
w4rmk said:
The charger that the original poster mentioned WILL trickle charge the TF. Also new TF users should know that the TF will not give any charging indications when plugged into anything other than the Asus charger - but it is trickle charging none-the-less.
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Click to collapse
One thing to mention that you can do if you have the tock is trickl-echarge THAT while still using the pad... then in 5-6 hours when the padd is getting low, you can dock it, and it will charge off of the dock while you keep using it. Once fully charged, undock it again, etc. This is what I want to do, and why I want a second USB cable.

Special Charger?

Anyone know if there is any advantage of the charger that comes with the phone compared to a generic micro USB charger?
Sent from my HTC_Amaze_4G using XDA App
They all seem to charge the phone slowly (even the included one). The stock charger is a 1 amp charger, as long as you're using a 1+ amp charger, you'll be fine. Some aftermarket chargers may be lower, they will also work but charge even more slowly. Worth mentioning is that a higher amperage charger will work, but will only charge at the same speed as the included charger.
Same..........
Just bought a new charger cause I left my other in another state, it's the dual usb 3.1 amp charger and it took me from 0 - 90% in 45 minutes. Picked it up at tmo
jre1981 said:
Just bought a new charger cause I left my other in another state, it's the dual usb 3.1 amp charger and it took me from 0 - 90% in 45 minutes. Picked it up at tmo
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Which charger is this exactly?
Is this the 'Universal Micro USB 2-in-1 Charger' listed on TMobile's website?
I also got a cheap micro USB charger off of amazon.com and its a trickle charge and it also makes the screen unusable as in it doesn't take touch input at all it came with a data cable for the computer as well and it actually drained my battery instead of charged it.

No rapid charge using non-HTC chargers?

Hi all,
When I use the charger that came with the HTC One my phone charges great, rapid.
But when I use any other charger that I have in my home/office it charges very slow. Even with a 2.1 amp charger!
The charger that comes with the phone has an output of 1 amp.
I've tried multiple other chargers (1 amp and 2.1 amp) and they all trickle charge.
Anyone else noticing this?
Thanks
Joe
I'm using old charges at home and in the office and it did seems slow but had not heard of rapid charge. Will the phone indicate this rapid charge mode? If not, is it real?
I'm getting slow charging even on the stock HTC charger. Not sure how I can enable this rapid charge cause 4+ hours from 0-1% to full is a bit ridiculous.
use orginal charger is best , maybe it has some relationship with your battery life
If anyone is coming from phones with smaller batteries, remember the larger the capacity the long it takes to charge.
I use the cable and charger from my Nexus 7 and it charges fast. Off my USB it is slow.
Real AC chargers have two pins shorted. You can hack a USB to micro USB cable and short the same two pins to enable AC charging with any adapter, wall, USB, or car. Should be pins 3+4, but don't hold me to that.
Sent from my HTC One using xda app-developers app
flooty333 said:
Hi all,
When I use the charger that came with the HTC One my phone charges great, rapid.
But when I use any other charger that I have in my home/office it charges very slow. Even with a 2.1 amp charger!
The charger that comes with the phone has an output of 1 amp.
I've tried multiple other chargers (1 amp and 2.1 amp) and they all trickle charge.
Anyone else noticing this?
Thanks
Joe
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Try to change your phone
c5satellite2 said:
Real AC chargers have two pins shorted. You can hack a USB to micro USB cable and short the same two pins to enable AC charging with any adapter, wall, USB, or car. Should be pins 3+4, but don't hold me to that.
Sent from my HTC One using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i've done exactly this, and damned if the One still refuses to draw more than ~500 ma off of anything but the 2.1 A wallwart it came with (i don't have any others to try with). i'm about to dig out an old inverter to see if that will actually work. wish i'd paid more attention to my EE dad when i lived at home; i've gotten a serious crash course in this stuff while trying to get my One to charge in my car, when it's on.
edit: so i got my old inverter out, and spent about 15 minutes testing. i used the 2.0A adapter that came with my Nexus 7 to test, as well as the 3.1A Mediabridge adapter i got here. my phone was at about 45% when i started testing. unplugged, Battery Monitor Widget reported a drain of anywhere between 500ma and 650ma (running Ingress, wifi on). plugged in to the Mediabridge adapter showed, at best, a drain of 50ma. the Nexus adapter plugged in to my inverter charged at a fairly consistent ~120ma. i didn't touch my phone the entire time.
i left my Nexus 7 at work so i can't use it to repeat the test, but i will do so tomorrow. the cable i'm using is this one. i'm not crazy about having a ridiculous DC-AC inverter in my car for my phone, but if that's what i have to do so it can be used and not drain, then so be it. admittedly, i don't really understand these things enough to explain these variations, but i plan on learning ASAP. perhaps somebody else can shed some light on why the device charges different, and how it identifies an AC-USB adapter vs a DC-USB adapter.
sluflyer06 said:
If anyone is coming from phones with smaller batteries, remember the larger the capacity the long it takes to charge.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Math doesn't support what is happening though. Phone has a 2300mAh battery. The OEM charger outputs 1A (1000mAh)
At most, it should be around 3 hours for full charge, when in fact it is closer to 4-4.5 hours. It's the last 10% that is the issue, it will trickle charge to 100% rather than rapid charge.
nest75068 said:
Math doesn't support what is happening though. Phone has a 2300mAh battery. The OEM charger outputs 1A (1000mAh)
At most, it should be around 3 hours for full charge, when in fact it is closer to 4-4.5 hours. It's the last 10% that is the issue, it will trickle charge to 100% rather than rapid charge.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, I think that's exactly what the HTC does... I read a pretty good article recently about Li-Ion batteries that talks about how trickle charging is the best for battery life, and it wouldn't surprise me if HTC got a little aggressive the way the this phone charges since we can't swap the battery ourselves.
I'm trying one last car charger, which matches the wattage of my Nexus 7's 5Vdc/2A AC adapter (which I've had the best luck with, when charging the phone while in use): http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B009TBF7IG/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
If that doesn't work, I'm going to put a 300W inverter in my car with the AC adapters themselves and stop buying stinking DC adapters. This phone clearly pays very close attention to the wattage available from whatever it's plugged in to.
veener79 said:
I use the cable and charger from my Nexus 7 and it charges fast. Off my USB it is slow.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same here, 2a Nexus 7 brick with a long Logitech USB cable, much faster than stock (and longer)
Harbinger1080 said:
Yes, I think that's exactly what the HTC does... I read a pretty good article recently about Li-Ion batteries that talks about how trickle charging is the best for battery life, and it wouldn't surprise me if HTC got a little aggressive the way the this phone charges since we can't swap the battery ourselves.
I'm trying one last car charger, which matches the wattage of my Nexus 7's 5Vdc/2A AC adapter (which I've had the best luck with, when charging the phone while in use): http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B009TBF7IG/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
If that doesn't work, I'm going to put a 300W inverter in my car with the AC adapters themselves and stop buying stinking DC adapters. This phone clearly pays very close attention to the wattage available from whatever it's plugged in to.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm fortunate my car has a built in inverter that I use for charging my phone.
nest75068 said:
I'm fortunate my car has a built in inverter that I use for charging my phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My next car will too, because I can only imagine that power requirements for these devices is going to increase.
That said, I think I have a winner, and instead of retyping my posts, I'll just link to that thread instead: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=41797839&postcount=6
Since the snap Dragon 600 has fast charging capabilities, why didn't HTC Include it in the kernel??? I've noticed my 2500 mAh note battery charges faster than my 2300 MAH HTC one
Sent from the Sexiest Android Device (HTC One)

[Q] Galaxy S4 Fast Charger

Can the charger bundled with the Galaxy S4 'fast charge' other phones, or is it something to do with the phones/batteries themselves that allow the quick charging? I heard that the charger charges at 2amp as opposed to 1amp like most chargers. I dont want to explode someones phone battery because it cant handle being charged that fast, lol
shanimal92 said:
Can the charger bundled with the Galaxy S4 'fast charge' other phones, or is it something to do with the phones/batteries themselves that allow the quick charging? I heard that the charger charges at 2amp as opposed to 1amp like most chargers. I dont want to explode someones phone battery because it cant handle being charged that fast, lol
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
im using an aftermarket car charger with a random micro usb and it charges just as fast...i think its the phone/battery that allows fast charging
Using a 2A charger on an older phone won't hurt the phone. The phone will only draw 1A or however much current it's setup for, even if the charger is capable of delivering more.
Other devices will pull the full 2A from the charger if they can detect that the charger is of the right type to deliver it. Different chargers tell the device that in different ways. Apparently, Apple tablet chargers put a certain voltage across the data pins. Samsung high current chargers supposedly put a different voltage across the data pins. That is how the phone or tablet can tell what kind of charger it's connected to, so they will know whether to pull 2A, 1A, or 500mA (or whatever).

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