Knock-off Chargers

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I am hesitant to buy something like this since I have read that the USB Micro on the NC is non-standard.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Barnes-and-N...item19c71f2149

You're smart to worry about these. This one is a simple microUSB cable, not the Nook Color compatible cable which has a longer tip. It will still allow you to transfer data and trickle charge but because of the shorter tip it will not allow a quick charge.

The part that is also important is the plug/brick you plug this cable into. You have to make sure it outputs 1.9 amps so that it is capable of quick charging your Nook Color if you have the correct cable to use. Most usb plug/bricks (like the ones for your phones) will only output about a quarter or maybe half of that. Some Apple iPad/iPhone usb plug/bricks will put out more though.

sjmoreno is right, be wary on these. It shows it is shipping from the inside the United States, but that doesn't mean much as they buy these in bulk from China at a lower price and raise it a bit here. I have ordered a few of these micro USB cables from china eBay listings with varying luck. Some will actually fit, and others won't - some charge REALLY slow and I actually had one that melted on me because it was pulling too much current.

Hey,

If you are still under warrantly, you can call B&N or chat with them on the website and get a new cable, adaptor or a power kit with little or no trouble. Just tell them your current one is not working. You can also go to a Barnes and Noble store and speak to one of the nook guys and you can get a free one there too.

Originally Posted by sjmoreno

You're smart to worry about these. This one is a simple microUSB cable, not the Nook Color compatible cable which has a longer tip. It will still allow you to transfer data and trickle charge but because of the shorter tip it will not allow a quick charge.

The part that is also important is the plug/brick you plug this cable into. You have to make sure it outputs 1.9 amps so that it is capable of quick charging your Nook Color if you have the correct cable to use. Most usb plug/bricks (like the ones for your phones) will only output about a quarter or maybe half of that. Some Apple iPad/iPhone usb plug/bricks will put out more though.

Chargers (wall or vehicle) made for Apple products will only charge at the slower rate. The NC looks at the resistance on the USB data lines to see if it should charge at the fast rate. The resistance set on chargers for Apple products is different than for the NC. The only chargers I've come across for the NC that charge at the higher rate are those made by B&N. Other chargers can be modified to work, but that's a different topic.

wrong...

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Originally Posted by mrmark93

Chargers (wall or vehicle) made for Apple products will only charge at the slower rate. The NC looks at the resistance on the USB data lines to see if it should charge at the fast rate. The resistance set on chargers for Apple products is different than for the NC. The only chargers I've come across for the NC that charge at the higher rate are those made by B&N. Other chargers can be modified to work, but that's a different topic.

Wow, you actually sound like you know what you're talking about. (I kid... I kid...)

Here's a photo of my Apple USB plug which I've highlighted puts out 2.1A. I could use this plug with the official B&N Nook Color cable and it will get the quick charge since the extra length of the tip on the B&N NC cable will allow it to reach the 12 pins that are further inside the Nook's outlet. Although I wouldn't do it since it could (maybe, might, don't want to chance it) send too much current to the battery and possibly damage it or over-heat it.

I also have a Motorola usb plug for my Droid X and Atrix phones but that only puts out 850 mA (.85 Amps) which could trickle charge regardless of the cable I use.

Hope this explained it well enough.

Originally Posted by sjmoreno

Wow, you actually sound like you know what you're talking about. (I kid... I kid...)

Here's a photo of my Apple USB plug which I've highlighted puts out 2.1A. I could use this plug with the official B&N Nook Color cable and it will get the quick charge since the extra length of the tip on the B&N NC cable will allow it to reach the 12 pins that are further inside the Nook's outlet. Although I wouldn't do it since it could (maybe, might, don't want to chance it) send too much current to the battery and possibly damage it or over-heat it.

I also have a Motorola usb plug for my Droid X and Atrix phones but that only puts out 850 mA (.85 Amps) which could trickle charge regardless of the cable I use.

Hope this explained it well enough.

right back at ya!


Your Apple unit is rated at 2.1A, but will only 'put out' whatever the NC draws from it, up to a theoretical 2.1A (I never measured over ~1850mA during any of my testing). Have you measured the charge rate on your NC? How? Did you load the battery monitor widget, does it report 'AC Charge' with the Apple charger? Are you using the Nook Tweeks app and forcing the fast charge mode? Just curious.

You made some other comments that are misleading, so I'll say my 'opinion' on those:

You could hook your NC to a 5V, 10,000+Amp power supply and not hurt it. The NC regulates the rate of charge with an on-board charge controller, and even if it didn't, it still wouldn't harm the battery. USB is 5V by specification. Apply 5V to a battery currently holding a charge of less than 5V and it will be charged to 5V. When you first start charging, it will charge at the highest rate available (by supply restraint, charge controller, wire size, connector conductivity) and as the battery becomes more & more charged, the charge rate (current flow) will drop, and when fully charged, the current drops to zero (0). The chargers are rated at what they can safely supply, 1A, 500mA, 2.1A, 850mA, etc without damaging the charger itself-some chargers are smart and limit the current, others will supply what they can and suffer damage if more current is drawn than the charger is rated for (ex: Harbor Freight unit with shorted data pins put out 1.1A (rated 0.5A) and started melting parts before I shut it off). I tested an 'Apple compatible' charger rated at 2.1A and it would only charge at around 600mA unless I shorted the data pins, then it put out whatever the NC would draw, up to a measured max of ~1850mA.

Oh, Snap!

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Originally Posted by mrmark93

right back at ya!


Your Apple unit is rated at 2.1A, but will only 'put out' whatever the NC draws from it, up to a theoretical 2.1A (I never measured over ~1850mA during any of my testing). Have you measured the charge rate on your NC? How? Did you load the battery monitor widget, does it report 'AC Charge' with the Apple charger? Are you using the Nook Tweeks app and forcing the fast charge mode? Just curious.

You made some other comments that are misleading, so I'll say my 'opinion' on those:

You could hook your NC to a 5V, 10,000+Amp power supply and not hurt it. The NC regulates the rate of charge with an on-board charge controller, and even if it didn't, it still wouldn't harm the battery. USB is 5V by specification. Apply 5V to a battery currently holding a charge of less than 5V and it will be charged to 5V. When you first start charging, it will charge at the highest rate available (by supply restraint, charge controller, wire size, connector conductivity) and as the battery becomes more & more charged, the charge rate (current flow) will drop, and when fully charged, the current drops to zero (0). The chargers are rated at what they can safely supply, 1A, 500mA, 2.1A, 850mA, etc without damaging the charger itself-some chargers are smart and limit the current, others will supply what they can and suffer damage if more current is drawn than the charger is rated for (ex: Harbor Freight unit with shorted data pins put out 1.1A (rated 0.5A) and started melting parts before I shut it off). I tested an 'Apple compatible' charger rated at 2.1A and it would only charge at around 600mA unless I shorted the data pins, then it put out whatever the NC would draw, up to a measured max of ~1850mA.

You sound more invested in this. I'll go sulk in a corner now...

Originally Posted by sjmoreno

You sound more invested in this. I'll go sulk in a corner now...

Just trying to be helpful


Mess of technical crap from the 'car charger' thread:

http://forum.xda-developers.com/show...2&postcount=47

I spent half a day measuring crap to satisfy my curiosity. the reuslt: B&N should have standardized with normal (i-device) charging standards