Feb 10, 2019, 10:52 am
Last edit by: cheltzel
If you want to use USB C for more than charging, then these two posts are useful: 1 2.
When planning your charger loadout, do note the charger your laptop shipped with is not a requirement, a lower one will be fine. For example, https://9to5mac.com/2018/09/25/60w-u...-all-macbooks/ says
On the other hand, most laptops are not built to use higher wattage even if available. It won't hurt your laptop, though.
Buy chargers on Amazon at your own risk, they are known to commingle stock from every third party sellers. But, the chargers here do not have fakes (yet?) so even Amazon might be safe.
The smallest USB C chargers:
Cabling wise, AmazomBasics and Monoprice is your friend. Do not use female USB C to USB A / micro USB adapters, these are explicitly forbidden by the USB C standard. Male USB C to USB A / micro USB is fine.
When planning your charger loadout, do note the charger your laptop shipped with is not a requirement, a lower one will be fine. For example, https://9to5mac.com/2018/09/25/60w-u...-all-macbooks/ says
the 87W charger filled up my 15-inch MacBook Pro battery more quickly than the 60W charger, but not by very much. After an hour and a half, the 87W charger added 76% battery while the 60W charger added 72%.
Buy chargers on Amazon at your own risk, they are known to commingle stock from every third party sellers. But, the chargers here do not have fakes (yet?) so even Amazon might be safe.
The smallest USB C chargers:
- Mu One. 45W. Comes with UK, US, EU folding plugs. 96 x 55 x 14mm, 82g with the UK plug attached. 3.78 x 2.17 x 0.55 inch, 2.89oz. Manufacturer shop, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07N1PK1RP https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07N1PK1RP
- RAVPower GaN 45W : 72 x 54 x 14.9mm / 2.83 x 2.12 x 0.59inch, 75g / 2.65oz. This is a similar charger to Mu One only without the nifty plug heads. It is marginally cheaper, but without the unique multi-region folding plugs it isn't as good of an option for international travelers. Manufacturer shop, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07H9WMW6N
- Innergie 60C (nee 55CC): 65W 60 x 30 x 30mm / 2.3 x 1.2 x 1.2 inch, 85g. While much thicker than the previous two, when the socket is hidden in a recess this has a much better chance to fit. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07GBYVF4Q Also, a cable is available to charge legacy laptops https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07GBYL5KZ only compatible with the Innergie 60C. This makes the Finsix Dart fully obsolete, it started as a legacy laptop charger and a USB C cable was planned and reviewed two years ago but never shipped.
- Satechi 75W: USB C 60W, USB C 18W, two USB A share 12W. 4" x 2.63" x 1", 11.14 oz. Manufacturer shop https://www.amazon.com/dp/B078864F15
- LVSUN LS-PD87-2C sold as Hyperjuice 87W charger: two USB C and one USB A all three share 87W. 4.33" x 3.86" x 0.79", 8.32oz Aliexpress Hyper https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07KLWDY9C
- Hyperjuice battery: 27000 mAh USB C 100W, USB C 60W, USB A 18W. 7.2" x 3" x 0.84" / 183.2 x 77.1 x 21.3 mm Manufacturer shop (although it goes through indiegogo, it is not crowdfunding, it's just a shop)
- Maru & Masa Kickstarter: Maru is a 82mm/3.23" diameter bagel, 28mm/1.1" thick, 7.4oz, USB C 45W, USB C 18W, two USB A share 15W, three international AC sockets, nifty interchangeable international plugs. Masa is a battery 80 x 80 x 28 / 3.15" x 3.15" x 1.1" , 11.3oz 18000 mAh, USB C 45W, USB C 15W, Qi 7.5W, kickstand. Promised shipping: April 2019 https://www.kickstarter.com/projects...e-yet-powerful
- SuperTank & SuperPort 4 Kickstarter: SuperPort 4 is a 114 x 100 x 24 / 4.5" x 3.95" x .95" charger, weight not disclosed, USB C 100W, USB C 18W, two USB ports share 18W. SuperTank is a 27000 mAh battery w/ lots of features, 4.7" x 2.8" x 1.6", 17oz USB C 100W, USB C 60W, USB A 18W, USB A 15W all ports share 138W Promised shipping: May 2019 https://www.kickstarter.com/projects...ek-recharge-in
- AlsterPlus Kickstarter: 7.4" x 3.28" x 0.85", 20oz / 568gr, 27000mAh battery with 2 x 100W USB-C + 2x 18W USB-A, lots of features. All ports share 156W.
- Anker Atom PD4. Two USB C, two USB A all share 100W, USB A per port is 12W max. 4.1" x 3.3" x 1.3", 13.5oz. https://www.amazon.com/Anker-Chargin.../dp/B07VSMK849
- MagicFox PD180. This is a DC-DC unit, it takes 12-28V 180W via a 5.5mm x 2.5mm jack or 100W max via USB- C input and provides three ports: USB C 100W, USB C 40W, USB A 40W. Size 3.15" x 2.76" x 0.53", 3.44oz. Possible interesting AC-DC choices: Lenovo 4X20Q88542 at 135W either from Encompass with very long ship times or from Japan via Rakuten, Lenovo-to-5.5mm plug adapter here. 4.65" x 3" x .83", 15.24oz. If that's not enough Razer has a 180W which, AFAIK has the right plug. Notably light at 14.82oz, 5.98" / 152mm x 2.87" / 73mm x 0.93" / 23.5mm. The MagicFox PD180 itself is, so far, China only, I had good experiences with Superbuy as proxy so https://www.superbuy.com/en/page/buy...832086035.html While the MagicFox PD180 itself is cheap, high wattage, quality, lightweight AC-DC adapters are anything but.
Cabling wise, AmazomBasics and Monoprice is your friend. Do not use female USB C to USB A / micro USB adapters, these are explicitly forbidden by the USB C standard. Male USB C to USB A / micro USB is fine.
Outfitting your travel kit for USB-C
Dec 15, 2021, 12:26 pm
#526
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: DAL
Posts: 1,447
We are a mixed-brand household, so the need to be able to connect to either Android Auto or Apple CarPlay is nice with just one cable. Ideally I want a retractable one to keep the center console clutter to a minimum, but the reviews for any that I've found are terrible.
Dec 15, 2021, 12:38 pm
#527
Join Date: Jun 2017
Location: SEA/NYC/IAD
Programs: UA 1K, Marriott Titanium, Hyatt Explorist
Posts: 1,921
I'm a one-bagger trying to cut down to 7kg so every gram counts. Not having to carry the matrix of each end to each end type of cable is a huge saver.
USB-C
USB-A
MicroUSB
Lightning
Battery Pack charges over MicroUSB (but also allows passthrough charging and does my Apple Watch).
So at a minimum I'd want either USB-A to Micro-USB.
Then I need USB-C to USB-C (or Thunderbolt 4 to Thunderbolt 4 in my case) for USB-C PD to fast charge my iPad Pro.
Then either USB-A to Lightning to charge my phone via battery pack (it'd be great if it had USB-C out instead)
I expect this to eventually consolidate into just Thunderbolt cables when Apple eventually (if ever) moves to USB-C on iPhones.
USB-C
USB-A
MicroUSB
Lightning
Battery Pack charges over MicroUSB (but also allows passthrough charging and does my Apple Watch).
So at a minimum I'd want either USB-A to Micro-USB.
Then I need USB-C to USB-C (or Thunderbolt 4 to Thunderbolt 4 in my case) for USB-C PD to fast charge my iPad Pro.
Then either USB-A to Lightning to charge my phone via battery pack (it'd be great if it had USB-C out instead)
I expect this to eventually consolidate into just Thunderbolt cables when Apple eventually (if ever) moves to USB-C on iPhones.
Dec 15, 2021, 6:01 pm
#528
Join Date: Jul 2014
Posts: 1,132
You can see how that looks here:
youtu.be/zNHz-C4PGgk?t=140
(Can’t disable FT’s embedded YT player when posting, so copy-paste.)
I think the Anker 3-in-1 cable is capable of 12W charging, just pair w/ a charger supporting Apple’s protocol (and a A-to-C adapter if a USB-C charger). At least some Anker USB-C chargers appear to do so, as do Nubia chargers, the Baseus and others.
(ChargerLab’s analysis before the teardown is great as they note supported protocols; the selection of tear downs is not huge, but covers a few suggested in this thread.)
(I have a 13 mini, the USB PD-driven 18W charging is definitely helpful vs. my other 5W charging option if I’ve got 15 mins before I run out the door. But when I’m travelling, I carry my battery pack and a short A-to-Ltng cable around, so fast charge is not needed.)
Last edited by crackjack; Dec 15, 2021 at 6:51 pm
Dec 15, 2021, 7:55 pm
#529
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: DEL
Posts: 1,057
So I guess what I've learned from my fellow FTers is that battery packs with USB-C ports and PD support are seriously lacking, which is a shame. I totally get the iPhone/Android connection for the car, though. When I used both, I just brought my charge cables but a 'combined' cable could've been nice. Sadly no one makes a small Android phone that's not bottom of the barrel spec-wise anymore :\
Dec 15, 2021, 8:43 pm
#530
Join Date: Jul 2014
Posts: 1,132
Indeed, full feature USB-C w/ PD power banks are not prevalent yet, I was looking and only a few met my criteria; >=12V on a 10,000mah or under pack is difficult to find.
I did recently get the Nitecore NB pack I was looking at, but still have my old A-to-L cords. Fast charging from the battery pack doesn’t matter to me (since I’d anyway be carrying it), so this older, short cord works fine.
Plus, using the USB A port for phone charging allows the battery to charge via its USB-C port (it does pass-through charging).
I did recently get the Nitecore NB pack I was looking at, but still have my old A-to-L cords. Fast charging from the battery pack doesn’t matter to me (since I’d anyway be carrying it), so this older, short cord works fine.
Plus, using the USB A port for phone charging allows the battery to charge via its USB-C port (it does pass-through charging).
Last edited by crackjack; Dec 15, 2021 at 11:12 pm
Feb 24, 2022, 9:54 am
#531
Join Date: Apr 2017
Location: WAS
Programs: Free Agent
Posts: 1,757
Has anyone found a good Power Bank with both PD and PPS? I'm expecting a new phone capable of 45W charging, and I'd love to have a bank capable of powering it. All my devices are USB-C at this point, so I don't need USB A support.
The only real contender seems to be the Elecjet PowerPie P20: https://elecjet.com/products/super-f...mah-power-bank
The only real contender seems to be the Elecjet PowerPie P20: https://elecjet.com/products/super-f...mah-power-bank
Feb 24, 2022, 6:34 pm
#532
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: New England
Programs: American Gold, Marriott Gold, Hilton Silver
Posts: 5,640
Had you asked earlier, this was on sale for $49.99 and is physically smaller than I expected.
https://www.bestbuy.com/site/insigni...?skuId=6459787
https://www.bestbuy.com/site/insigni...?skuId=6459787
Mar 4, 2022, 10:12 pm
#535
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: San Jose, CA
Posts: 460
I've never really understood the wattage ratings of cables meant for USB-C PD based charging. Lower resistance is obviously better to reduce voltage drop, especially for higher charging rates, but there is no spec for acceptable voltage drop that I am aware of.
So the only inflection point is whether a cable is rated for more than 3A of current which is signified by the incorporation of an E-Marker chip in a suitably designed cable. These are often marketed as 100W cables (5A times 20V equals 100W)
What am I missing?
So the only inflection point is whether a cable is rated for more than 3A of current which is signified by the incorporation of an E-Marker chip in a suitably designed cable. These are often marketed as 100W cables (5A times 20V equals 100W)
What am I missing?
Mar 4, 2022, 10:15 pm
#536
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: San Jose, CA
Posts: 460
...
(ChargerLab’s analysis before the teardown is great as they note supported protocols; the selection of tear downs is not huge, but covers a few suggested in this thread.)
...
(ChargerLab’s analysis before the teardown is great as they note supported protocols; the selection of tear downs is not huge, but covers a few suggested in this thread.)
...
https://www.chongdiantou.com/
Mar 5, 2022, 12:12 am
#537
Join Date: Jul 2014
Posts: 1,132
If you like charger analysis and teardowns, bring up the follwing website in Chrome with auto translate turned on
https://www.chongdiantou.com/
https://www.chongdiantou.com/
Mar 20, 2022, 3:27 pm
#538
Join Date: Jan 2008
Posts: 3,838
A general observation having resumed travelling in the last few months, I seem as far away from travelling only with USB C cables as ever. In particular hotels and rental cars still seem to be readily installing USB A connections and adapters don’t always work. My cable bag is larger than ever 🙄
Mar 20, 2022, 6:00 pm
#539
Join Date: Jan 2015
Posts: 2,918
A general observation having resumed travelling in the last few months, I seem as far away from travelling only with USB C cables as ever. In particular hotels and rental cars still seem to be readily installing USB A connections and adapters don’t always work. My cable bag is larger than ever 🙄
I'm debating whether to carry a 10' cable or not in case I get one of those painful hotel rooms where the plugs are not better placed. But that's only if I don't carry a power bar (which is unlikely)
Mar 23, 2022, 2:32 pm
#540
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: Denver, CO
Programs: UA Silver, Bonvoy Gold, Hyatt Discoverist
Posts: 21,544
My last two rental cars had a USB-C port (and a USB-A) available to use for Android Auto. '21 Toyota Camry and '22 Nissan Altima.
For headphones and such, I bring along a 4-in-1 cable to charge them on a slow USB charger (or any available charging port in the hotel room). I also use it to charge anything overnight (like a tablet that's low on battery). When not used for traveling, they are attached to wall chargers in the guest bedroom.
For headphones and such, I bring along a 4-in-1 cable to charge them on a slow USB charger (or any available charging port in the hotel room). I also use it to charge anything overnight (like a tablet that's low on battery). When not used for traveling, they are attached to wall chargers in the guest bedroom.
Last edited by pseudoswede; Mar 23, 2022 at 3:09 pm