Panel USB Power

[lr172]

Originally Posted by humptybump

(as Charlie said) for those planning to use the USB to power / charge an iPad, it requires 2.1A. I would not be surprised to find some of the Android tablets with a similar requirement

In addition, I believe there is some circuitry that sends some output in order for the ipad to take the full 2.1A. Therefore, a simple regulated 5V supply won't get the ipad to take more than 1A, regardless of what is available.

EDIT: Oops, I see this is an old thread.

Larry

[lr172]

Originally Posted by Deweyclawson

This is the dual outlet I used.
https://www.aircraftspruce.com/catal...alusbpanel.php
part # 11-13502 $24.95
I have had no noise problems and it is 2.1a each side.

If you read the reviews, you will see that this unit will not charge an Ipad at the rapid rate. I searched a lot and the only one that I could find that would do it was the Anker 2.4 unit but it plugs into cig lighter (ended up gluing into the lighter adapter, as it kept popping out due to vibrations). Even the modified Stein unit wouldn't rapid charge my ipad air 2, though they were noise free.

Larry

[Deweyclawson]

In looking for a charger, keep in mind that the charging function is probably not the most important consideration. In my mind, There were four considerations in adding a usb port. In this order.

1. EMI - The first one I bought would wipe out the radios.
2. Size - I already had a round hole waiting to be filled.
3. Cost - $200+ seemed excessive. $24.95 much better.
4. Charge power -

I put power last because this is not a "charge station" but is a "power station". The idea being to provide power to the unit being used in flt so as to have it available for the entire flt. Arriving with the unit more charged than you started is a slight plus, but a much smaller consideration than the other 3 items.

Your mileage may vary.

[BillL]

Originally Posted by lr172

If you read the reviews, you will see that this unit will not charge an Ipad at the rapid rate. I searched a lot and the only one that I could find that would do it was the Anker 2.4 unit but it plugs into cig lighter (ended up gluing into the lighter adapter, as it kept popping out due to vibrations). Even the modified Stein unit wouldn't rapid charge my ipad air 2, though they were noise free.

Larry

There is one I have not installed yet. It is set up for the apple protocol. The information is not handy right now, but will send via email to you. It is a little bulky on the backside due to a heat sink, but has good documentation for it's performance. Small US manufacturer.

EDIT: http://www.commitlift.com Outstanding new presentation on this site, a 30 minute read.

[bkervaski]

I tested a bunch of these ... I really wanted the simple look of this one:

(a) $5-$15ea - https://www.aircraftspruce.com/catal...alusbpanel.php

But the one that ultimately worked best and provided true 5A (2.4 per jack) consistently was this one:

(b) Blue Sea Systems - $45ea - https://www.steinair.com/product/dual-usb-panel-jack/

I tested by draining an iPad and iPad mini to dead and then plugged them both into the charger. "B" charged them both simultaneously as fast as the large Apple wall charger. "A" took hours and one of the iPads constantly dinged because it was loosing a connection. I did this 3 times for each charger, just started a test nightly before I went to bed.

I didn't stop there and really wanted the simple clean look of the "A" type chargers so I ordered a half dozen different brands, different sites. Some actually were different, however, most were just the same (Chinese?) unit repackaged and rebranded. All of them did the same thing in tests, the ones that worked anyway.

With a two place airplane and both people having smart phones and iPads, I extended the test by connecting two chargers to one 12V regulated source, 4 USB ports total.

The "A" units performed the same, horribly. After a few hours of constant disconnect "dinging" I just stopped the test.

The "B" units took whatever I threw at them like a champ, at one point having 2 dead iPhones, and 2 dead iPads sucking on them like a newborn, didn't skip a beat! The 100% charge times were within a few minutes of the solo test and they never even kicked the fan on from the power supply, highest draw was just over 10 amps as expected, average was around 4 amps.

The final test was all 4 devices playing video for an hour, surprised to say the chargers kept them at 95-100% power the entire time. I just stopped at an hour concluding that I was at that point just being excessive in my testing.

The "B" units (I purchased from SteinAir) just didn't have any issues at all. The bevel is larger and there is undesirable branding that I don't like, I doubt anyone but me would notice.

While very slow charging, most the other units did fine with just one device connected, but just one port at a time, the secondary port would simply drop to half an amp or lower.

Not scientific or exhaustive, but close enough, hope it helps!

[kaweeka]

Stein has them. Check his site www.steinair.com

David

[BillL]

Originally Posted by bkervaski

I tested a bunch of these ... I really wanted the simple look of this one:

(a) $5-$15ea - https://www.aircraftspruce.com/catal...alusbpanel.php

But the one that ultimately worked best and provided true 5A (2.4 per jack) consistently was this one:

(b) Blue Sea Systems - $45ea - https://www.steinair.com/product/dual-usb-panel-jack/

I tested by draining an iPad and iPad mini to dead and then plugged them both into the charger. "B" charged them both simultaneously as fast as the large Apple wall charger. "A" took hours and one of the iPads constantly dinged because it was loosing a connection. I did this 3 times for each charger, just started a test nightly before I went to bed.

I didn't stop there and really wanted the simple clean look of the "A" type chargers so I ordered a half dozen different brands, different sites. Some actually were different, however, most were just the same (Chinese?) unit repackaged and rebranded. All of them did the same thing in tests, the ones that worked anyway.

With a two place airplane and both people having smart phones and iPads, I extended the test by connecting two chargers to one 12V regulated source, 4 USB ports total.

The "A" units performed the same, horribly. After a few hours of constant disconnect "dinging" I just stopped the test.

The "B" units took whatever I threw at them like a champ, at one point having 2 dead iPhones, and 2 dead iPads sucking on them like a newborn, didn't skip a beat! The 100% charge times were within a few minutes of the solo test and they never even kicked the fan on from the power supply, highest draw was just over 10 amps as expected, average was around 4 amps.

The final test was all 4 devices playing video for an hour, surprised to say the chargers kept them at 95-100% power the entire time. I just stopped at an hour concluding that I was at that point just being excessive in my testing.

The "B" units (I purchased from SteinAir) just didn't have any issues at all. The bevel is larger and there is undesirable branding that I don't like, I doubt anyone but me would notice.

While very slow charging, most the other units did fine with just one device connected, but just one port at a time, the secondary port would simply drop to half an amp or lower.

Not scientific or exhaustive, but close enough, hope it helps!

With all that work, you should be very entertained by this presentation.

[bkervaski]

With all that work, you should be very entertained by this presentation.

Wow, that's a great read, thanks!

My testing just kind of happened, wasn't really planned

[lr172]

Originally Posted by BillL

There is one I have not installed yet. It is set up for the apple protocol. The information is not handy right now, but will send via email to you. It is a little bulky on the backside due to a heat sink, but has good documentation for it's performance. Small US manufacturer.

EDIT: http://www.commitlift.com Outstanding new presentation on this site, a 30 minute read.

Thanks Bill! I have been thinking about what to put in the 10 and would like a behind the panel setup, if I can find one that works.

Larry

[Robert Anglin]

We found that the Blue Water ports are very good and compact units. They are very robust and there are two and three port 2.4 Amp units. You can find them on E-bay and don't have to go to Boat USA to get them. Just a thought. Yours, R.E.A. III # 80888