Help can't charge via USB

[garybeck]

hi, I have a new Samsung Galaxy 2 7.0 tab I'm trying to set up.

when I plug the USB cord into the wall adapter it charges. But when I plug it into a usb port on a computer it doesn't appear to be charging.

is this a bug? or do I have a dud? is there a fix?

thanks

 

[FiOS Dan]

From Samsung Support:

The Galaxy Tab has the ability to charge while connected via USB to a PC. While it will charge, it will charge at a slower rate...We recommend that you use the wall charger to charge the device. If you need to use the PC to charge your device we recommend that you power Off the device so that it can charge while not attempting to use power.

 

[garybeck]

From Samsung Support:

The Galaxy Tab has the ability to charge while connected via USB to a PC. While it will charge, it will charge at a slower rate...We recommend that you use the wall charger to charge the device. If you need to use the PC to charge your device we recommend that you power Off the device so that it can charge while not attempting to use power.

thanks.... however, the charging icon does not show up when connected via USB and the battery state of charge seems to be going down instead of up.

I understand it's faster on the wall charger, but I'd be happy if it just charged slowly, or even maintained its state of charge so I could keep going.

is this normal?

 

[Fox Mulder]

Make sure the USB port it's plugged into is a powered port and not just a data port. On a PC with multiple ports you may have both types. Typically if there are ports in both the front and rear of the PC, the rear ones are usually the powered ones. And don't use a port on a hub, it won't charge from that.

 

[garybeck]

Make sure the USB port it's plugged into is a powered port and not just a data port. On a PC with multiple ports you may have both types. Typically if there are ports in both the front and rear of the PC, the rear ones are usually the powered ones. And don't use a port on a hub, it won't charge from that.

it's the same port I use to charge my android phone and it does quite well.

 

[jwither]

This is all normal behavior. iPads work the same way, except they display "not charging" if plugged into a computer's usb port. If the tab is off, it will charge. If you're using it, it will discharge, albeit slower than it would running on the battery alone.

 

[Fox Mulder]

There is only 500ma available from a standard powered USB port. The Samsung-supplied charger is rated at 2A output, the extra current is necessary to be able to charge the 4000mah battery in the tab both when it's off and when it's operating. The PC port just doesn't have the juice for charging and operating at the same time, and even with the tab powered off the charge will take a lot longer as already mentioned. Really the only reason to plug it into a PC is for data transfer.
I would imagine it's the same with most other tablets as well due to their higher current requirements and much larger batteries compared with phones and other smaller devices. Even some of the newer phones need at least 1A and won't rapid-charge off a PC or other 500ma source.