Charging on the go...

[305Cane]

so i made a wonderful discovery this weekend that my phone will take a charge from my CD deck in my car that has a USB jack.


my concern is, that it may end up damaging the phone somehow and i was beyond paranoid. does anyone know if it is a safe thing to do? Does the USB standard have a standard power output?

im really curious as id love to not have to buy a car charger lol

 

[marctronixx]

yes there is a USB standard which is 5V.. im not sure on the amps but it will not harm your phone. i use my comcast DVR box connected to a belkin 4 port USB charge station that charges my PS3 controllers and the controller thumb keyboards i have on them... i also used the other DVR box to charge my phones (i have 3 phones) so yes you are totally fine. ive been doing this for years, so i would not expect your setup to be any different...

 

[Deleted User]

Funny... I charge my XBOX controllers off of my DVR's otherwise useless USB port.

I'm going to have to find a different way if this Dish Network installation works out next weekend, though. (DirecTV didn't work out because of a tree in the way)

 

[AmericanHero]

A lot of devices use the Type B Mini USB connector. BalckBerry, mobile hard drives, Garmin GPS etc. This type connector can be plugged into the the connector on the Hero and used to charge it. It will not transfer data however. In my work I travel from office to office doing service calls. I have borrowed a loose plug on a desk may times to get a little boost. You will not get in trouble as long as the other end is hooked to a Standard USB port. The plug is beveled on each side instead of just one side, but it fits nicely. My car stereo has a usb that works as well. If you have a 2 GB sd card installed try unmouting it while it is plugged into the car deck. My JVC deck was able to see the music directory on the phone SD. Fun, but not really practical. USB key is much cheaper and You dont tie up your phone. I have since installed a 16 GB card and this no longer works.

Jack

 

[tatonka_Hero]

I charge mine with my USB B charger in my car quite a bit. It works nicely for my ipod with the fm transmitter to keep the ipod charged, and if my hero's ever dead, I plug it right in. I use the cord that came with the phone to charge it off my laptop or in an outlet though, just because it stays in my laptop bag, and the laptop goes just about everywhere with me.

 

[hempwallace]

The Hero's AC adapter is rated at 5 volts and 1.0 amps. USB standard is 5 volts at 0.5 amps. Charging from USB won't hurt it at all but it will change at a slower rate.

 

[cooolone2]

The USB data connection power spec. Is standard. The charging rate is reduced and is noted in the phones manual, lol, I know... I never read instructions either. It states the USB charging is considered a trickle charge and slower times should be expected.