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
Jan 15, 2019, 1:05 pm
#122
Join Date: Oct 2003
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I have some usb micro female to usb-c male adapters which were "Benson tested" and don't come with a lanyard loop. I used some 3M vhb tape and thin flat elastic to make a leash. Tie a loop on one end of the elastic, slide over adapter, stick a thin cut of VHB tape under it to keep the elastic on, and tie the other end of the elastic to the cable.
A SoundCozy or LightningCozy might work https://cozy-industries.com/products/sound-cozy if you want something which looks nicer or some thin string through a Nite Ize Cord Collar https://www.niteize.com/product/Cord...Protection.asp
Jan 15, 2019, 11:07 pm
#123
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https://www.zmiusa.com/products/zmi-...e-wall-charger but I'm based in HK so I'm not sure what stateside availability is like.
Thanks.
Jan 19, 2019, 1:28 am
#124
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Jan 21, 2019, 9:39 am
#125
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USB Type-C receptacle to USB legacy adapters are explicitly not defined or allowed. Such adapters would allow many invalid and potentially unsafe cable connections to be constructed by users.
Last edited by chx1975; Jan 21, 2019 at 9:47 am
Jan 21, 2019, 10:03 am
#126
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Jan 21, 2019, 12:16 pm
#127
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https://www.kickstarter.com/projects...e-yet-powerful
Nice design but $105 and it doesn't cover all regions, you have to choose UK, EU or US/AU?
Is it even PD?
Nice design but $105 and it doesn't cover all regions, you have to choose UK, EU or US/AU?
Is it even PD?
Jan 21, 2019, 12:23 pm
#128
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https://www.kickstarter.com/projects...e-yet-powerful
Nice design but $105 and it doesn't cover all regions, you have to choose UK, EU or US/AU?
Is it even PD?
Nice design but $105 and it doesn't cover all regions, you have to choose UK, EU or US/AU?
Is it even PD?
Jan 21, 2019, 4:56 pm
#129
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Hmm if I can plug my laptop charger as well as camera battery charger, that may be all I need.
i have a couple of battery packs that charge up in 4-5 hours using a 30 watt PD charger. My guess is only one of the USB C ports will do PD, not both.
i have a couple of battery packs that charge up in 4-5 hours using a 30 watt PD charger. My guess is only one of the USB C ports will do PD, not both.
Jan 21, 2019, 5:16 pm
#130
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It does claim that both will do PD. However, that might not be the case when using the type A port at the same time (as the total power rating of both USB-C ports + USB-A exceeds the 63W total that the brick can do).
Jan 21, 2019, 6:32 pm
#131
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Hello CHX,
The new power wattage will be 45+18+12=75W
Here is the break down
45W for type-c port 1
18W for type-c port 2
12W for both USB A to share
For MARU, you can choose one adapter ( UK or EU or US/AU)
Alternatively the choice of MARU traveller bundle shall include all the adapters, ideal for overseas vaccations.
Cheers,
TOFU TEAM
The new power wattage will be 45+18+12=75W
Here is the break down
45W for type-c port 1
18W for type-c port 2
12W for both USB A to share
For MARU, you can choose one adapter ( UK or EU or US/AU)
Alternatively the choice of MARU traveller bundle shall include all the adapters, ideal for overseas vaccations.
Cheers,
TOFU TEAM
Jan 24, 2019, 1:21 am
#132
Join Date: Nov 2003
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https://www.kickstarter.com/projects...e-yet-powerful
Nice design but $105 and it doesn't cover all regions, you have to choose UK, EU or US/AU?
Is it even PD?
Nice design but $105 and it doesn't cover all regions, you have to choose UK, EU or US/AU?
Is it even PD?
Jan 24, 2019, 6:13 pm
#133
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Did I mention the Maru & Masa kickstarter here? The Maru is smaller on one dimension compared to the Satechi, one dimension a bit larger and has similar portage https://i.imgur.com/h21sd1V.jpg although the larger USB C is only 45W (the USB A ports are 15W) but then again it's an entire power strip in that same size... and of course it's not yet available. Masa is a power bank again with two USB C (45W, 18W) and Qi and a little kickstand. I really can't wait.
I like the fact that it has a retractable plug that won't weigh down the wall outlet and also allows you to plug in behind a desk or nightstand easier.
Also the Qi battery pack with PD and the kickstand is absolutely brilliant!
Jan 28, 2019, 1:06 am
#134
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What are people using for hubs?
It seems USB-C hubs are either to provide some USB A ports supporting USB 3.0 or kind of do-everything, with a couple of USB-A ports, HDMI, memory card slots and maybe ethernet as well as a USB-C PD port.
Seems like the do-everything hubs would be redundant for people who have laptops which have dedicated power ports (instead of relying on USB-C to charge like the MacBooks), HDMI and memory card slots already.
I am curious about those with PD ports though. It would be lighter than laptop power brick but then again, you need a wall USB-C charger which is smaller than a laptop power brick but not a whole lot smaller.
I do have a need to connect a portable HDD to back up my RAW photo files and my Spectre X360 only have one USB-A port for a bluetooth mouse dongle (the trackpad still sucks).
Looks like nobody is making a USB-C hub with multiple USB-C data ports as well as some USB-A ports.
It seems USB-C hubs are either to provide some USB A ports supporting USB 3.0 or kind of do-everything, with a couple of USB-A ports, HDMI, memory card slots and maybe ethernet as well as a USB-C PD port.
Seems like the do-everything hubs would be redundant for people who have laptops which have dedicated power ports (instead of relying on USB-C to charge like the MacBooks), HDMI and memory card slots already.
I am curious about those with PD ports though. It would be lighter than laptop power brick but then again, you need a wall USB-C charger which is smaller than a laptop power brick but not a whole lot smaller.
I do have a need to connect a portable HDD to back up my RAW photo files and my Spectre X360 only have one USB-A port for a bluetooth mouse dongle (the trackpad still sucks).
Looks like nobody is making a USB-C hub with multiple USB-C data ports as well as some USB-A ports.