okay, so i have half a dozen $1 chinese USB car chargers (one is a dual USB port, several are single USB ports, and then i have some micro and mini USB units)...the problem is that they're cheap chinese products and i'm not sure i trust them not to damage my thunderbolt as i start to use it more (i finally got rid of my tomtom and i'm using google nav as my GPS, so it'll be plugged in all the time)

what are y'all's thoughts on this? does it make sense to purchase a name brand unit? i want one of the smaller dual port USB chargers so i can charge both my and my wife's phones at the same time and have narrowed it down to two options:

http://www.amazon.com/Ultra-Compact-High-Output-Charger/dp/B00470C35E/

and

http://www.amazon.com/Griffin-Powerjolt-Dual-Universal-Micro/dp/B0042B9U8Q/

the advantage of the first one is that is offers two 2A ports, which charges ipads and the like...for futureproofing, i like this option...but isn't that bad for my phone (which uses the USB spec of 1A)?

10/19/2011 8:50:39 AM

It's my understanding that overvolting is bad, but if the device needs 500mA it will only pull 500mA despite what the rating on the charger is.

I use the 1A palm microUSB chargers for all of my HTC devices. It charges while powering the GPS and I never have to worry about the quality. They're just as cheap as the non-OEM devices on Amazon. But alas, only one port.

Stay away from using motorola and blackberry chargers as "universal". I've had ones that work fine, but I've also had ones that put the device into PC-mode and thus take hours to charge or do not charge at all.

[Edited on October 19, 2011 at 9:31 AM. Reason : MICROSD CHARGERZ]

Also, I've purchased about 10 of the usb chargers from monoprice just to "have around" and just about every single one has fallen apart. The build quality is terrible. I know they'll replace it, but it's not worth fucking with when they cost 50 cent. The cables and wall warts have been fine, but something about the springs and plastic housing of the barrel plugs just don't work together.

[Edited on October 19, 2011 at 9:34 AM. Reason : Monoprice chargers.]

10/19/2011 9:28:26 AM

I've always been able to find cheap moto chargers on amazon. at least they're labeled moto, have held up, and charge as fast as my moto chargers

10/19/2011 9:29:52 AM

Quote :

"It's my understanding that overvolting is bad, but if the device needs 500mA it will only pull 500mA despite what the rating on the charger is."

ah, this might be my lack of understanding, then...because i thought that the charger PUSHED 2A, not that 2A was available and the phone would only draw what was necessary

the second link has some images where one of the users opened the device and soldered two of the USB data pins so that it would be recognized as A/C...but if i'm going to spend $10, i'd rather not have to do that (though my thunderbolt seems to charge just fine on everything)

i suppose i was more concerned about dirty power as a result of using cheap chinese components (as opposed to expensive chinese components )

i had to glue my dual charger back together because the barrel housing where the spring and cylinder fuse sit wouldn't hold together well...it works, i suppose

10/19/2011 10:13:25 AM

^http://www.thewolfweb.com/message_topic.aspx?topic=601705

Quote :

"evan dr. pollskew 27615 Posts user info edit post Quote : "It will work. The adapter doesn't "shove" electricity through the router, it simply allows up to 1A to be drawn." picture a hose. think of current (the amperage you gave) as water and the voltage as water pressure. depending on the size of the nozzle at the end of the hose (resistance), a different amount of water comes out."

Feedback Forum:
Allow quick access to the post # and/or direct link.

10/19/2011 10:31:11 AM

ah...the more you know, then

also, doesn't this work for access to the post? ?topic=601705#14263562

yeah, that works...i like how other sites let you quote users and their posts through something like

[quote=evan;14263562]<automatically inserts quote here>[/quote]

10/19/2011 10:51:42 AM

How do you find the #14263562 part without searching a user's previous posts and copying that link?

10/19/2011 11:14:34 AM

hovering over the "edit post" link for that user gives you edit=######

10/19/2011 11:28:31 AM

10/19/2011 11:32:25 AM

Quote :

" http://www.amazon.com/Ultra-Compact-High-Output-Charger/dp/B00470C35E/ "

I actually bought this a few months ago and it works great for my thunderbolt and my garmin. I have not tried to charge dual cell phones but imagine the reviews are spot on which say

Quote :

""NOTE that if you're charging an iPhone, iPod or iPad (I have all three) the bottom slot won't charge iPad or iPod Touch 4th gen. The top slot will however charge all devices.""

My only gripe is the blue led lights up the whole inside of my car when there is no usb in the device. So I just keep it in the cigarette lighter hole, just not pushed in enough to get power.

10/20/2011 8:06:29 AM

i'm glad i was able to contribute to this thread without even knowing i was doing so.

11/22/2011 9:34:15 AM