Evo 4g Touchstone wireless induction charging mod.

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asmd6230

Senior Member
Feb 14, 2011
232
27
I recently got a HP Touchpad bundle and while the Touchpad is pretty darned decent and definitely worth a hundred bucks, what really impressed me was the touchstone charging dock. Its brilliant.

I looked into it and found the the palm pre also had this and some chap on the net had figured out how to shoehorn the unit into an evo.

I did the mod to mine and its amazing. No more charging cables. Yay!

This is my take on it - tutorial with pictures: http://asmd.wordpress.com/2011/09/26/evo-4g-wireless-induction-charging-modification/

This should come standard in all wireless devices!
 
Last edited:

mbaseball3

Senior Member
Nov 20, 2008
892
170
the oc
Nice mod! Looks better and I'm sure doesn't fail as bad as the powermat charger.

Sent from my Gruesomes Rom using Tapatalk
 

haroldgv

Member
Oct 29, 2008
28
1
Heredia
Hi, this is a great mod!

Noob question: I noticed the charging light but the charging icon does not change on your screen. Just curious if once that the battery is completely charged, the icon will turn green. If so I wonder if the charging unit from the Pixi will stop charging the battery once it's full.

Also, compared to charging it directly from the AC Adapter, how long does it take to get a full charge? Is it the same aprox?

I'm planning on taking a look at my Inspire and see if the back cover allows me to put the charging unit there.

Thanks in advance
 

uniquenameevo

Senior Member
Jun 18, 2010
369
10
I did this about a week after launch. Very cool...but over time the novelty wore off.

I got sick of the bulge and ripped it out.
 

jdgiotta

Senior Member
Mar 29, 2010
85
2
Richmond
Nice! I wonder if I do the same with the Powermat case...

I have the Powermat, but the only caveat is that it requires a bridge connector between the case and micro-usb port.
 

asmd6230

Senior Member
Feb 14, 2011
232
27
Hi, this is a great mod!

Noob question: I noticed the charging light but the charging icon does not change on your screen. Just curious if once that the battery is completely charged, the icon will turn green. If so I wonder if the charging unit from the Pixi will stop charging the battery once it's full.

Also, compared to charging it directly from the AC Adapter, how long does it take to get a full charge? Is it the same aprox?

I'm planning on taking a look at my Inspire and see if the back cover allows me to put the charging unit there.

Thanks in advance

Im running MikG v2.5 Rom and the charging icon flashes between the lighting bolt charging icon and % so you can see at what % the battery is at while charging. When i took the picture, it was showing %, but rest assured it flashes between the two just as if it was plugged in the usb cable.

The Induction charging puck is dumb, it only supplies power much like a usb cable. The charging circuit in the Evo decides when the battery is fully charged and stops charging. The Evo for all intensive purposes acts and behaves exactly as if the usb cable was plugged in. It cant tell if power is coming from the puck or the usb cable. I wouldnt plug in the cable while its on the puck though. Although the voltage will remain the same, about 5 volts, the amperage will increase, a doubling in amperage shouldnt break anything but i havent found out the hard way.

The puck takes the same amount of time to charge as the usb cable. I havent seen any significant difference between the two. :)

There really isnt much of a bulge of the back case with using 30 awg wire. Just seat it flat and make sure nothing from the cover crimps on it, and its pretty much neat and tidy.

Ive seen this mod done with flat ribbon cable which would work just as well, although in not sure how it was routed through the phone.

regards,
asmd.
 
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asmd6230

Senior Member
Feb 14, 2011
232
27
I did this about a week after launch. Very cool...but over time the novelty wore off.

I got sick of the bulge and ripped it out.

30 awg wire or flat ribbon cable solves the bulge problem. Ive got pucks everywhere, several at home, several at work... and its great not to have to plug it in. :)

It serves as my phone holder and charging unit. i've set the phone screen not to go to sleep while charging, so it makes for a nice display as well. With the screen left on, it does take longer to charge though.

regards,
asmd.
 

Childofthehorn

Inactive Recognized Developer
Jun 6, 2010
260
185
DFW, Texaaas
Yeah,

I did this a Loooooong Time ago using the Palm Pixi touchstone cover.
http://doesitpew.blogspot.com/2011/03/htc-evo-4g-mods-beyond-stock-and-one-of.html
Here is what it looks like with a custom clear back cover.
ImageUploadByTapatalk.jpg


The Pixi cover is substantially thinner than the Pre cover and can be fit easily without bulge.

It actually held my phone up hovering in the car while driving.
 
Last edited:
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asmd6230

Senior Member
Feb 14, 2011
232
27
Nice! I wonder if I do the same with the Powermat case...

I have the Powermat, but the only caveat is that it requires a bridge connector between the case and micro-usb port.

Its been done. Apparently its quite easy to replace the powermat induction unit with the pixi unit. and the cover fits perfectly.

I opted not to get the powermat case as i wasnt keen on the bridge with the usb dongle sticking out the bottom.

Ive havent heard many good things about it, pretty much nothing but complaints about the powermat induction charging unit which is why i decided on this mod and i can tell you it works, it simply works, perfectly every time. :)

dscf5279i.jpg
[/URL]

Uploaded with ImageShack.us[/IMG]

regards,
asmd.
 

jdb78

Senior Member
Nov 17, 2008
203
24
What about adding a diode to prevent damage from accidentally plugging in USB while charging on the puck? I really like this mod great stuff...:)
 

asmd6230

Senior Member
Feb 14, 2011
232
27
Yeah,

I did this a Loooooong Time ago using the Palm Pixi touchstone cover.
http://doesitpew.blogspot.com/2011/03/htc-evo-4g-mods-beyond-stock-and-one-of.html
Here is what it looks like with a custom clear back cover.
ImageUploadByTapatalk.jpg


The Pixi cover is substantially thinner than the Pre cover and can be fit easily without bulge.

It actually held my phone up hovering in the car while driving.


Nice work!!
I would love to know hwere you wired the pixi induction charger to?
Im really curious about what you said "Inductive charging back was wired into the test points for the USB power as opposed to attaching directly to the resistors as it is safer and easier to remove if there is an issue with the phone otherwise and needs servicing."
 

gamefreakgcb

Senior Member
Jan 8, 2007
365
34
Well, this post finally got me moving on modding my Nexus S to charge via induction. I just got my HP Touchpad with the touchstone charging dock and it is very very cool. Can't wait to get my Nexus S that way too. And the Palm Pre/Pixi covers are pretty cheap. The Touchstone dock is only $8 too. I can have multiple units for work, home, relatives and will probably mod it to be in my Car phone holder. The possibilities are endless. Wish me luck.
 

DroidFreek

Senior Member
Apr 11, 2010
780
81
New York
Ok this power thingy(name doesnt come to mind) uses a cord to power it right so doesnt it defeat the purpose of being wirless if you know were im coming from. But hey I maybe wrong its probably battery powered? So dont sun me.
 

amahabir

Senior Member
Oct 27, 2008
63
9
Charlotte
I have mine fitted with this case. It's a TPU plus hard plastic back. I have great phone protection and touchstone charging.... It's no more bulkier than any case out there.
 

Childofthehorn

Inactive Recognized Developer
Jun 6, 2010
260
185
DFW, Texaaas
Nice work!!
I would love to know hwere you wired the pixi induction charger to?
Im really curious about what you said "Inductive charging back was wired into the test points for the USB power as opposed to attaching directly to the resistors as it is safer and easier to remove if there is an issue with the phone otherwise and needs servicing."

Actually...

This is easy to do since the screw hole surrounding areas are grounded = ground since its pretty universal in this phone, like most mobile devices.

There are a few test points next to the Micro USB port that you can directly test by simply plugging in a USB cable and "buzzing" for the connection of the 5v line.

I get your concern, but there really need not be one and these are the best spots to attach because they are the easiest and safest to remove later. Also, there is a regulator onboard with a shutoff/on ciruit within the inductive charging circuit. It will not turn on or allow voltage to pass under 4.5V (shuts off) from the outputs. Connecting the inductive charger to the 5V input line of the USB directly means that it treats it like USB charging. The onboard current and voltage regulators and charging circuitry of the Evo make it pretty darn hard to ruin it. At any rate, the inductive charger won't ever get up to 1Amp anyway because of power loss due to physics. It is pretty much 500ma in most circumstances from the Pixi receiving end.

The test points are far enough for skilled hands to hit with s solder braid or suck up after a rework airing anyway.

For those who skipped the technical mumbo jumbo, they basically made it impossible for you to screw up (unless you decided to connect your inductive charger at 5V to your Li-Ion battery at 3.7V - DO NO DO THAT!). The picture shows the wire going at the edges of the battery because that is the best place with room, they both route to the same hole at the back of the battery. Use 28AWG or 30AWG teflon-coated stranded wire for slimmest results. Great quality wire will mean that you don't have power loss (the traces are thinner than the wire is anyway so its not an issue).

If you have some detailed questions, post them up or send me a message. I will try to be prompt!
 
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jjvw

Member
Nov 8, 2010
11
5
I remember last year when this mod first showed up, the addition of the Palm induction coil screwed up the evo's internal compass which then caused problems with navigation. Is this still an issue?
 

Nburnes

Senior Member
Sep 4, 2010
1,330
977
Google Pixel 5a
Ok this power thingy(name doesnt come to mind) uses a cord to power it right so doesnt it defeat the purpose of being wirless if you know were im coming from. But hey I maybe wrong its probably battery powered? So dont sun me.
Ha. You are totally right, simply switching one wire for another. Then, if you need to usb mount or sync or whatever, you still need a regular micro usb cable to do so...

1 cable for plug/charge/sync

or

1 Charging stone for power
1 Regular cable for das syncing/usb mount/charge.

Hmmmm :p
 

asmd6230

Senior Member
Feb 14, 2011
232
27
I remember last year when this mod first showed up, the addition of the Palm induction coil screwed up the evo's internal compass which then caused problems with navigation. Is this still an issue?

the induction coil and the metal discs in the phone are not magnetic. When off the charging puck, everything works like it should. Truth be said ive never used the compass app. (im not sure if i even have one), i exclusively use gps which works just fine. :)
 

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    I recently got a HP Touchpad bundle and while the Touchpad is pretty darned decent and definitely worth a hundred bucks, what really impressed me was the touchstone charging dock. Its brilliant.

    I looked into it and found the the palm pre also had this and some chap on the net had figured out how to shoehorn the unit into an evo.

    I did the mod to mine and its amazing. No more charging cables. Yay!

    This is my take on it - tutorial with pictures: http://asmd.wordpress.com/2011/09/26/evo-4g-wireless-induction-charging-modification/

    This should come standard in all wireless devices!
    2
    Nice work!!
    I would love to know hwere you wired the pixi induction charger to?
    Im really curious about what you said "Inductive charging back was wired into the test points for the USB power as opposed to attaching directly to the resistors as it is safer and easier to remove if there is an issue with the phone otherwise and needs servicing."

    Actually...

    This is easy to do since the screw hole surrounding areas are grounded = ground since its pretty universal in this phone, like most mobile devices.

    There are a few test points next to the Micro USB port that you can directly test by simply plugging in a USB cable and "buzzing" for the connection of the 5v line.

    I get your concern, but there really need not be one and these are the best spots to attach because they are the easiest and safest to remove later. Also, there is a regulator onboard with a shutoff/on ciruit within the inductive charging circuit. It will not turn on or allow voltage to pass under 4.5V (shuts off) from the outputs. Connecting the inductive charger to the 5V input line of the USB directly means that it treats it like USB charging. The onboard current and voltage regulators and charging circuitry of the Evo make it pretty darn hard to ruin it. At any rate, the inductive charger won't ever get up to 1Amp anyway because of power loss due to physics. It is pretty much 500ma in most circumstances from the Pixi receiving end.

    The test points are far enough for skilled hands to hit with s solder braid or suck up after a rework airing anyway.

    For those who skipped the technical mumbo jumbo, they basically made it impossible for you to screw up (unless you decided to connect your inductive charger at 5V to your Li-Ion battery at 3.7V - DO NO DO THAT!). The picture shows the wire going at the edges of the battery because that is the best place with room, they both route to the same hole at the back of the battery. Use 28AWG or 30AWG teflon-coated stranded wire for slimmest results. Great quality wire will mean that you don't have power loss (the traces are thinner than the wire is anyway so its not an issue).

    If you have some detailed questions, post them up or send me a message. I will try to be prompt!
    1
    Hi, this is a great mod!

    Noob question: I noticed the charging light but the charging icon does not change on your screen. Just curious if once that the battery is completely charged, the icon will turn green. If so I wonder if the charging unit from the Pixi will stop charging the battery once it's full.

    Also, compared to charging it directly from the AC Adapter, how long does it take to get a full charge? Is it the same aprox?

    I'm planning on taking a look at my Inspire and see if the back cover allows me to put the charging unit there.

    Thanks in advance

    Im running MikG v2.5 Rom and the charging icon flashes between the lighting bolt charging icon and % so you can see at what % the battery is at while charging. When i took the picture, it was showing %, but rest assured it flashes between the two just as if it was plugged in the usb cable.

    The Induction charging puck is dumb, it only supplies power much like a usb cable. The charging circuit in the Evo decides when the battery is fully charged and stops charging. The Evo for all intensive purposes acts and behaves exactly as if the usb cable was plugged in. It cant tell if power is coming from the puck or the usb cable. I wouldnt plug in the cable while its on the puck though. Although the voltage will remain the same, about 5 volts, the amperage will increase, a doubling in amperage shouldnt break anything but i havent found out the hard way.

    The puck takes the same amount of time to charge as the usb cable. I havent seen any significant difference between the two. :)

    There really isnt much of a bulge of the back case with using 30 awg wire. Just seat it flat and make sure nothing from the cover crimps on it, and its pretty much neat and tidy.

    Ive seen this mod done with flat ribbon cable which would work just as well, although in not sure how it was routed through the phone.

    regards,
    asmd.
    1
    Yeah,

    I did this a Loooooong Time ago using the Palm Pixi touchstone cover.
    http://doesitpew.blogspot.com/2011/03/htc-evo-4g-mods-beyond-stock-and-one-of.html
    Here is what it looks like with a custom clear back cover.
    ImageUploadByTapatalk.jpg


    The Pixi cover is substantially thinner than the Pre cover and can be fit easily without bulge.

    It actually held my phone up hovering in the car while driving.