charging from computer USB port is too slow

[trayanh]

It started from last Friday, when I plugged the droid into my computer USB port to charge it. The charging couldn't keep pace with the power consumption, and eventually the phone shut down automatically without waking up on itself for about an hour. From then on, I cannot even rely on car charger or computer charging to make a phone call when the battery is below 5%. Today, I left the phone charging via computer for an hour. After I came back, it still showed 40%, no increase at all, but the upper part (guess where the CPU is?) is hot.

I felt something is just not right.

 

[mikecolorama]

mine is the same way. when charging on my comp, it goes very, very slow. when i plug in to the call, it flies

 

[jimnutt]

A USB port is limited to 500ma max. That's not enough to quickly charge the phone (although it will usually maintain the charge). A USB power adapter can supply a lot more current, making it able to charge the battery more quickly. A USB device can tell it's connected to a charger and not a USB port because the data pins are shorted on a charger.

 

[NVash]

I charge it via an outlet lately. I used to do it on my laptop all the time but thatd take hours. Using an outlet it can be done in about an hour.

 

[aaf709]

If I have the phone connected to the computer at work, it take a couple of hours to go from 70% to 100%. At home the same amount of time would be 70% to 60%. That's because I don't get a good cell signal at home. I have one of the multimedia stations, so I just slip it in when I get home. It'll be at 100% pretty quickly.

 

[SigSoldat]

Yes, the power output on the computer USB port is much lower than a wall outlet. I've been charging exclusively off my USB ports. If I play Pandora while plugged into the USB, it would probably take a full day to reach a full charge.

If you're limited to USB charging, consider installing one of these babies in your wall!

$10 USB power outlet leaves no plug behind -- Engadget

 

[droidtom]

Yes, the power output on the computer USB port is much lower than a wall outlet. I've been charging exclusively off my USB ports. If I play Pandora while plugged into the USB, it would probably take a full day to reach a full charge.

If you're limited to USB charging, consider installing one of these babies in your wall!

$10 USB power outlet leaves no plug behind -- Engadget

That's pretty cool. I didn't see what the spec was on how much output they had, but a really neat idea. I may have to get a couple of those when they are available.

 

[christim]

My iPod has always taken longer charging through the pc. In fact, I can recall sometimes when the battery was so low it wouldn't connect to iTunes until it had charged for a while.

 

[SigSoldat]

I've found similar devices on the internet and they push over an amp. That's twice what you get from a computer USB port, I believe. So it should charge much faster than hooking to your laptop.

I personally would get one just so I wouldn't have to have different types of chargers laying around the house. Same charger by the computer and by the bed, or I could even use the same one.

 

[theonuts]

hmmm no issues with mine charging it from my computer. usually goes from 50-60% to 100% in about 2 hours.

 

[AnneDroid]

The wall charger and the car charger are the best options to charge quickly. Charging with the USB cable is only a trickle charge and takes considerably longer.

 

[Jaybird61176]

Exactly...the USB is only basically a trickle charger @ 500mA max. My phone has always charged more slowly than the wall charger. However, I did notice a slight improvement once I downloaded the Motorola PC Tools driver (including charging) at:
USB and PC Charging Drivers - Motorola USA

 

[Jaybird61176]

OH, also....I use my Droid via tethering (as I've used all my phones in the last few years) as a broadband modem for my laptop when away from a WiFi signal such as when I'm at my season-long campsite. Right now I'm using a wireless tethering mode for 3G service but still plug the phone into my laptop and get decent battery life from that combined power source that way. Of course if running the laptop via it's battery instead of AC power or vehicle power while it's maintaining my droid's charge, it's a lower laptop battery time (generally still almost 1.5 hours). I'm just grateful for the ability to do so with the phone

 

[dunefreak91910]

Yes, the power output on the computer USB port is much lower than a wall outlet. I've been charging exclusively off my USB ports. If I play Pandora while plugged into the USB, it would probably take a full day to reach a full charge.

If you're limited to USB charging, consider installing one of these babies in your wall!

$10 USB power outlet leaves no plug behind -- Engadget

This looked real promising until I looked at the specs.

Specifications:
Input voltage: AC 100 to 240V 50/60Hz
USB input current: 80mA
Output voltage: USB: DC 5.0V 600mA
Operation temperature: -15 to 45 Degrees Celsius
Relative humidity: < 95%
Air pressure: 86 to 106kPa

It will have a similiar slow charge rate as a usb port on a computer.

 

[m21knight]

Yes, the power output on the computer USB port is much lower than a wall outlet. I've been charging exclusively off my USB ports. If I play Pandora while plugged into the USB, it would probably take a full day to reach a full charge.

If you're limited to USB charging, consider installing one of these babies in your wall!

$10 USB power outlet leaves no plug behind -- Engadget

This looked real promising until I looked at the specs.

Specifications:
Input voltage: AC 100 to 240V 50/60Hz
USB input current: 80mA
Output voltage: USB: DC 5.0V 600mA
Operation temperature: -15 to 45 Degrees Celsius
Relative humidity: < 95%
Air pressure: 86 to 106kPa

It will have a similiar slow charge rate as a usb port on a computer.

This will still be much faster than the computer charge. The issue with the Computer Bus is that it shares 500 mA with all of the ports, so if you have more than one device using power, you are hosed.