USB charging vs AC adapter charging

[justing943]

Hi!

I've read a couple times about the rumour that charging via AC adapter will provide a longer battery life than charging via USB. I guess without thinking about details, it's a somewhat valid assumption.

Can anyone confirm or assume from personal experience this is true?

Thanks,
-justin

[NSX]

Hi!

I've read a couple times about the rumour that charging via AC adapter will provide a longer battery life than charging via USB. I guess without thinking about details, it's a somewhat valid assumption.

Can anyone confirm or assume from personal experience this is true?

Thanks,
-justin

Myth, it may shorten your charging time by a few minutes but the way you charge it will not matter.

[Chief Ten Beers]

All I know is that charging via the USB causes the clock to lose time.

Great feature guys! [rolleyes]

[justing943]

Okay cool thanks :)

What I would like to know though, if there would be any potential damage if I used a third party USB-AC charger. It's basically just an adapter that plugs into the wall on one end and has a usb-slot on the other. Not the official one, some random one I bought from a little tech store a while back. I don't see why it would harm any device like that, but just asking to be safe.

P.S. I've used this third party adapter with several other devices before, no noticeable damage was noticed. XD

EDIT: Wow! You hit the reply button before I did :P One moment there was one reply, the next, two. XD. Ah, that was sarcasm, right? Excuse my inability at detecting online sarcasm xP

-Justin

[NSX]

Okay cool thanks :)

What I would like to know though, if there would be any potential damage if I used a third party USB-AC charger. It's basically just an adapter that plugs into the wall on one end and has a usb-slot on the other. Not the official one, some random one I bought from a little tech store a while back. I don't see why it would harm any device like that, but just asking to be safe.

It should be safe, my phone charges with a setup like that, and when i get my J3 ill use it.

[NFS-974]

I don't think your player will be damaged if you don't use Cowon's adapter. I personnally use the one from Apple without any problem. (I admit it's not a really cheap one xD)

[justing943]

Okay thanks NSX and NFS! LOL, that's good to hear! XD, when I said cheap I didn't mean I found it trampled on the street or anything :P Still cost $10 or so, I'm sure it's usable, hasn't given me problems in the past, haha.

Random unimportant question: Hmmm, black or white :P [for J3 32gb]

-Justin

[NSX]

Okay thanks NSX and NFS! LOL, that's good to hear! XD, when I said cheap I didn't mean I found it trampled on the street or anything :P Still cost $10 or so, I'm sure it's usable, hasn't given me problems in the past, haha.

Random unimportant question: Hmmm, black or white :P [for J3 32gb]

-Justin

IDK if there is a 32 gb White ver...

[justing943]

Oh! Even easier if there's only black then. Sexier and less dirt/dust/dirty prone xD. I think protection-wise I'm going to ask a friend who often makes custom denim cases for electronics to make me one. All the Cowon cases on the net seem overpriced...$50 for a leather case? Please. xD

Thanks,

-Justin

[NSX]

Oh! Even easier if there's only black then. Sexier and less dirt/dust/dirty prone xD. I think protection-wise I'm going to ask a friend who often makes custom denim cases for electronics to make me one. All the Cowon cases on the net seem overpriced...$50 for a leather case? Please. xD

Thanks,

-Justin

Get it on Jetmall here (http://www.jetmall.net/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=577) and get a free leather case for it

[justing943]

=O

Thanks for the heads up!

[NSX]

=O

Thanks for the heads up!

No problem, its what i do. im like superman. but less gay.

[zotof]

Robin?

:p

[NSX]

Robin?

:P

i didnt say "gayer" i said "less gay".

[zimbuzki]

i think it's like this: Ac->USB adapter gives the same amount any USB should give out, so plugging in you'r Cowon/any other USB dongle wont harm the device.

[NFS-974]

IDK if there is a 32 gb White ver...
I think it does exist, otherwise mine would be a fake [laugh]

[ramzax]

If anyone's buying unofficial AC USB chargers, do note the amperes it outputs. PC USB usually outputs at 500mA or 0.5A. Official AC chargers have 1000mA or 1A outputs. So it's more effective / faster. So if Cowon says it's fully charged at 3.5 hours, then it's estimated twice as long with PC. Then again, if you're the type of person charging every night, does it matter? :P

In another case, when I bought a HTC mobile phone, the shop assistant told me to make sure I'm buying a 1A AC USB chargers, as I'm not buying the official one. They told me, apparently charging at less than 1A slowly damages the battery. This also applies to car chargers. Most of those you see on ebay are 500mA, unless stated 1A [yes]


Originally Posted by NSX http://iaudiophile.net/forums/images/buttons/viewpost.gif (http://iaudiophile.net/forums/showthread.php?p=298026#post298026)
IDK if there is a 32 gb White ver...

Originally Posted by NFS-974
I think it does exist, otherwise mine would be a fake [Laugh]+1 I've got the white 32GB too. It's not white for the whole device though. Only the back (+ half of sides) plastic covering is white, plus a champagne color metal strip below the screen instead of black.

[orionph05]

Any charging process if fastened heats the battery and life of battery reduced.
Slow charge is preffered , Any one has experienced J3 getting heated up while charging ?
May be it is better to have charge direct from AC adapter after every 3-4 charges done from USB port , any takers[yes]

[justing943]

My J3 came today! :)

Uh-oh, my unofficial charger has these specs printed on it:

Input: 100-240v
0.15max 50-60Hz
Output: 5.0v --- 0.5A

=/

Should I stop using this and buy a 1A one ? :S

Thanks,
-justin

[NFS-974]

Maybe you can try with this one. If there's a weird behavior I suggest you to look for a 1A output adapter :)

[ramzax]

Should I stop using this and buy a 1A one ? :S

Thanks,
-justin


Maybe you can try with this one. If there's a weird behavior I suggest you to look for a 1A output adapter [smile]

Same opinion as NFS, but I've found and bought a few 1A ones from Dick Smith and even Myers for AUD$10 each (Sydney, Australia) because I have several other USB-charged devices.

But yeah, don't think 0.5A will kill the device in short term, otherwise there'll be a warning on Cowon's manual not to charge often using PC's USB. ;)

[justing943]

Okay cool thanks :D

Yeah good point, it's in a sense the same as using the USB slot to charge, except using the AC adapter...if that made sense. I'll look out for any cheap 1A USB AC chargers and make the purchase when I come across them.

Cheers,
-justin

[soundchaser]

I disagree with the assertion that charging at a lower current slowly damages the battery. In fact the opposite is true, especially when charging at a rate of over 1C (C is defined as the mAh rating on the battery, which as shown here (http://iaudiophile.net/forums/showthread.php?t=36770) is 1120mAh for the J3). The only difference you'll get using a 200mA, 500mA, or 1000mA charger is the time it takes to charge the battery since they are all below the 1C rate. I think 500mA, which is close to .5C (which is what many battery manufacturers recommend) for the J3 would be the best.

The biggest enemy to a lithium ion/polymer battery is a combination of full charge and high temperature. If you want to shorten your battery life, charge your J3 in a hot car. If you leave your J3 in a hot car on a regular basis, then only charging to 95% will be better for it.

One of my work projects involved designing a battery powered device that is used primarily in automobiles and based on research, I designed the charger to charge at a slightly lower voltage. We get great battery life as a result (5-8 years).

[justing943]

Ah, even better, sweet :)

I guess I'll just stick with my 0.5A AC-USB charger then. Thanks!

-Justin