[Q] Cheap replacement USB cable?

miemens · Jan 22, 2011 at 11:50 PM

Hi guys, I accidentally left my charger and USB cable at a friend's house 700 miles away during a visit. She sent it back to me, but it's been a bit over two weeks and I'm tired of being Nookless, especially with all of the new stuff developing (cyanogen on the way? AWWW YEAH!!).

Neither of the two BN stores near my house have replacement charger/cables in stock and it appears that the BN website does not either (not even a price listed, just a pic/description).

What is the cheapest way for me to get some power in this thing? I wouldn't mind charging solely through USB. Is the stock NookColor USB cable any different than a normal micro-usb cable? Can I just order a normal $2 cable from amazon and expect it to charge?

manchucka · Jan 23, 2011 at 1:32 AM

The cable that comes with the NookColor differs from a standard micro usb in a couple of important ways: It has extra pins to deliver a higher charge. OK, I guess by "a couple" I meant "one that I am aware of." Alright, maybe one more: The charger itself is rated at .5A, which is higher than the standard plug for usb chargers.

You might be able to trickle charge from a standard usb. I was able to get some power, but not much.

Here's one more thing to do:
Ask the manager at B&N if she has any extra chargers and cables in the back. Here's why I say this: I had to return my cable yesterday because it wasn't making proper contact with the pins and thus was not properly charging. The manager told me that he has a heap of NookColor plugs and cables in a box because when they send units back to wherever they send them for repair or reconditioning, they are instructed to send only the Nook, and not the cables.

It's worth a try.
Good luck.

spikey911 · Jan 23, 2011 at 2:28 AM

It does charge very slowly when connected to the PC...It will charge overnight if not in use..

Podcasterin · Jan 23, 2011 at 12:01 PM

I have some Nokia cables (from my mobile) with Micro-USB, they are loading the Nook nearly as fast as the original one. Very handy for charging in the car.

ron_e · Jan 24, 2011 at 1:51 PM

I have been charging my nook with only a standard cable since day one. My nook came with a bad cable and at the time was one of the last nooks in my area. I have been calling B&N almost weekly for over a month and they keep saying they will send me a cable but I have not received it yet. I have had no problems charging my Nook overnight. I even emptied the battery once and it still charged fully over night.

riffrafff · Jan 25, 2011 at 12:02 AM

A regular microUSB cable will eventually charge the NC, if it's sleeping. No 3-hour quick-charging, though.

mageus · Jan 25, 2011 at 5:25 AM

Does the slow charging really have to do with the cable?

On high draw devices (e.g. iPhone or Palm Pre) the charger shorts the data pins to signal the capacity for higher current draw. The cable has nothing to do with it.

I have noticed the Nook plug is longer than a standard micro USB plug, but that only means you can't use the Nook cable on another device's micro USB port.

TainT · Jan 25, 2011 at 2:00 PM

Anybody know the potential problems trying to root with a non-standard Cable?

drp1 · Jan 25, 2011 at 3:26 PM

mageus said:
I have noticed the Nook plug is longer than a standard micro USB plug, but that only means you can't use the Nook cable on another device's micro USB port.

Is this confirmed to be true? If so, what allows a non-Nook USB cable to be used with the Nook?

I'm sure the cable itself is different, either by using the data lines as additional power lines for higher current capacity, or perhaps by adding some resistors to pull the data lines to certain voltages so that the Nook can identify when the "right" cable is connected, so that fast-charging can be enabled. I just can't quite grasp the idea that the cable is not physically compatible with other micro-USB devices.

likearaptor · Jan 25, 2011 at 7:45 PM

I am able to use the original nook usb cable, my samsung moment usb cable, and others for data purposes, no issues

nootered · Jan 25, 2011 at 8:41 PM

I have two other devices that also use M-USB for data transfer, and they work just fine.

I picked up a few of these a while back and they work as well:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...&cm_re=micro_usb_cable-_-12-119-265-_-Product

danbutter · Feb 1, 2008 212 3 0

It seems that you can call B&N support for a new one if you had issues with your original. Not the OP's problem, but Some have had the issue.

Here is a thread about it:
http://bookclubs.barnesandnoble.com...t-to-slide-charger-into-Nook-Color/m-p/809920

markiejones · Dec 27, 2010 72 8 0

nootered said:
I have two other devices that also use M-USB for data transfer, and they work just fine.

I picked up a few of these a while back and they work as well:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...&cm_re=micro_usb_cable-_-12-119-265-_-Product

So the idea is that these could be used only for data and trickle-charging? Even if it's connecting the Nook to its official power-thingy (is there a name for those?)

nootered · Jan 26, 2011 at 3:33 PM

markiejones said:
So the idea is that these could be used only for data and trickle-charging? Even if it's connecting the Nook to its official power-thingy (is there a name for those?)

I am just using it for data transfer and charging with the stock wall unit. As far s using these cables or other USB devices that using the MicroUSB interface would require some type of software driver (USB Host) in order to make that work. As far as I know at least.

AmnChode · Jan 26, 2011 at 5:55 PM

manchucka said:
Alright, maybe one more: The charger itself is rated at .5A, which is higher than the standard plug for usb chargers.

Actually... .5A is the minimum for all plain jane USB ports.

If I remember right, when I flipped the charger over when I first got the NC, it is rated at 1.9A, which would make sense considering the size of the battery we are charging and at the speed we are charging it at. Hell, my Epic uses a 1A charger and it is only 1500mAh battery vs the NC's 4000 mAh.

nadafinger · Dec 29, 2010 24 1 0

danbutter said:
It seems that you can call B&N support for a new one if you had issues with your original. Not the OP's problem, but Some have had the issue.

Here is a thread about it:
]

Wow thanks for that link. From the day I got my Nook I couldn't use the included USB cable to move data, but it would charge like a charm. Now I'm getting a replacement.

ron_e · Jan 27, 2011 at 2:28 PM

danbutter said:
It seems that you can call B&N support for a new one if you had issues with your original. Not the OP's problem, but Some have had the issue.

Here is a thread about it:
http://bookclubs.barnesandnoble.com...t-to-slide-charger-into-Nook-Color/m-p/809920

True but.... I have been calling for well over a month and first they could not ship me one because I bought it at Best Buy and they did not have the warranty info yet from Best Buy. I finally got past that and since the week after Christmas they have been shipping me one each time I call. I have yet to receive one. I am going on 2 months now trying to get the cable shipped to me.

Chuck6993 · Feb 13, 2011 at 9:20 AM

TainT said:
Anybody know the potential problems trying to root with a non-standard Cable?

I don't think there are any.. I do all my ADB work using a "non-standard cable". The usb cable that came with my nook wont let ADB work right. When I type ADB devices with my factory cable I get the serial number but instead of device it shows suspended or something like that.

RDI · Feb 13, 2011 at 9:34 AM

http://www.rdi.us/USBCC.pdf
Here is a link for a Hi - Power USB Car Charger. It's 2100mA and can run and charge an Android Tablet or iPad at the same time. Also the microUSB cable they offer, shows "Charging ( AC) ” When plugged into my Captivate. Most just showed "Charging ( USB) ".

Sent from my Samsung Captivate with Perception 10.3, Firebird2 v0.8 #77 Kernel, Firmware 2.2.1, Modem T959TLJL3 using XDA App

dbpaddler · Feb 14, 2011 at 5:00 AM

.5A is nothing. Most phone chargers now are rated at 1A with ones for tablets going above 2 as someone else mentioned. Most BT headset chargers are rated at .2-.5A in comparison. Some GPS units have charges rated over 1.5A. My Dash unit had a 2A.

And if I'm not mistaken, if you're connected to a computer you will only get a tricklish charge as it's limited to .2 or .25A (I believe).

In regards to actual cables, any microUSB cable will work. I've used stock ones from Samsung and Palm phones as well as cheap 50 cent ones from Meritline. And if the Nook one is actually longer? Why wouldn' it work in something else? The cable will just stick out further.

manchucka said:
The cable that comes with the NookColor differs from a standard micro usb in a couple of important ways: It has extra pins to deliver a higher charge. OK, I guess by "a couple" I meant "one that I am aware of." Alright, maybe one more: The charger itself is rated at .5A, which is higher than the standard plug for usb chargers.

You might be able to trickle charge from a standard usb. I was able to get some power, but not much.

[Q] Cheap replacement USB cable?

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