gkgeiger Posted December 4, 2007 Share Posted December 4, 2007 I read somewhere that you can use a cell phone USB car power cord on a new style Garmin with USB port. Can anyone positively verify this. I hate to plug it in and ruin a brand new unit. By the way it's a Etrex Vista HCX. Thanks in advance for your help. Gene Quote Link to comment
+YeOleImposter Posted December 5, 2007 Share Posted December 5, 2007 I read somewhere that you can use a cell phone USB car power cord on a new style Garmin with USB port. Can anyone positively verify this. I hate to plug it in and ruin a brand new unit. By the way it's a Etrex Vista HCX. Thanks in advance for your help. Gene Do it all the time, didn't even give it a second thought. Quote Link to comment
+Chuy! Posted December 5, 2007 Share Posted December 5, 2007 As long as the output power is 5 volts or less, you'll be okay. I got two such power coords from WalMart for both my Venture Cx and Vista HCx. The voltage output is not listed on the package nor on the manufacture's website, but I looked up the power requirements of the phones listed on the package and all were less than 6 volts. I've been using them for about four months now and have occasionally left the GPS connected overnight, and have not had a problem. Quote Link to comment
gkgeiger Posted December 5, 2007 Author Share Posted December 5, 2007 I read somewhere that you can use a cell phone USB car power cord on a new style Garmin with USB port. Can anyone positively verify this. I hate to plug it in and ruin a brand new unit. By the way it's a Etrex Vista HCX. Thanks in advance for your help. Gene Do it all the time, didn't even give it a second thought. As long as the output power is 5 volts or less, you'll be okay. I got two such power coords from WalMart for both my Venture Cx and Vista HCx. The voltage output is not listed on the package nor on the manufacture's website, but I looked up the power requirements of the phones listed on the package and all were less than 6 volts. I've been using them for about four months now and have occasionally left the GPS connected overnight, and have not had a problem. I checked Motorola website and couldn't find the info I need, but I'm going to Verizon and see if they can tell me. Thanks to all. Quote Link to comment
xxgg Posted December 5, 2007 Share Posted December 5, 2007 (edited) There should no be any problem as long as those car adapters are USB. USB is rated for 5v. So wether you plug in from car via adapter or from PC. It's all same. http://www.hardwarebook.info/Universal_Serial_Bus_(USB) Than again... I don't have a usb car adapter myself. but if I did, i would try it no problem. Hmmm.... That just got me thinking why Garmin bother to have a power adapter on GPS unit (60CSx in my case) when they could have just used USB port ? Same some money on their side,,, save some design room on gps unit... etc.. ya know what i mean ? It's not like it's got a rechargeable capability or anything. Edited December 5, 2007 by xxgg Quote Link to comment
eaparks Posted December 5, 2007 Share Posted December 5, 2007 The Motorola Razr 12v car cord has the same USB connection as the Etrex Vista HCx. Have used it without ever having any problems. Can be bought at Walmart for around $10.00. Quote Link to comment
gkgeiger Posted December 5, 2007 Author Share Posted December 5, 2007 The Motorola Razr 12v car cord has the same USB connection as the Etrex Vista HCx. Have used it without ever having any problems. Can be bought at Walmart for around $10.00. There should no be any problem as long as those car adapters are USB.USB is rated for 5v. So wether you plug in from car via adapter or from PC. It's all same. http://www.hardwarebook.info/Universal_Serial_Bus_(USB) Than again... I don't have a usb car adapter myself. but if I did, i would try it no problem. Hmmm.... That just got me thinking why Garmin bother to have a power adapter on GPS unit (60CSx in my case) when they could have just used USB port ? Same some money on their side,,, save some design room on gps unit... etc.. ya know what i mean ? It's not like it's got a rechargeable capability or anything. I know I sound paranoid, and I know the plugs are the same. What concerns me is the voltage coming from that 12v cig lighter. What reduces it to 5v? I know the PC does it, but this thing looks just like any cig plug adapter. Thanks again. Quote Link to comment
picrthis Posted December 6, 2007 Share Posted December 6, 2007 The Motorola Razr 12v car cord has the same USB connection as the Etrex Vista HCx. Have used it without ever having any problems. Can be bought at Walmart for around $10.00. There should no be any problem as long as those car adapters are USB.USB is rated for 5v. So wether you plug in from car via adapter or from PC. It's all same. http://www.hardwarebook.info/Universal_Serial_Bus_(USB) Than again... I don't have a usb car adapter myself. but if I did, i would try it no problem. Hmmm.... That just got me thinking why Garmin bother to have a power adapter on GPS unit (60CSx in my case) when they could have just used USB port ? Same some money on their side,,, save some design room on gps unit... etc.. ya know what i mean ? It's not like it's got a rechargeable capability or anything. I know I sound paranoid, and I know the plugs are the same. What concerns me is the voltage coming from that 12v cig lighter. What reduces it to 5v? I know the PC does it, but this thing looks just like any cig plug adapter. Thanks again. Voltage on a USB connector is 5v no matter who makes the whatever device, it's a standard; to answer your question it's down converted inside the cigarette plug, plug-in adapter. The only real difference in these adapters and also the ones you buy for your home to convert household voltage to DC 5v USB plug, is the amount of amperage they put out, it can vary greatly. Look for output 5v DC @ 1A Max (1000ma). 5v DC @ .5A Max (500ma) would probably work. If the adapter gets really hot, then it usually means it's not supplying enough output and you then should go with a higher ampere model. I have a Garmin one sitting right here and it says output 5V DC @ 1A MAX it runs ice cold. I also have 2 different ones from Motorola 1) 5V DC 1A MAX, ice cold & the other is 5V DC 850MA a tiny bit warm. Most adapters also have internal fuses, IF that blows then you definitely overloaded it, rare though especially using brand name adapter like Moto. Help this helps. Quote Link to comment
+JSWilson64 Posted December 6, 2007 Share Posted December 6, 2007 Voltage on a USB connector is 5v no matter who makes the whatever device, it's a standard; to answer your question it's down converted inside the cigarette plug, plug-in adapter. Well, voltage on a USB connector should be 5v, but there's nothing about the plug to guarantee that. There's no telling what some wacky engineer will do. That's why it's best to check the spec on the device from which you're re-purposing the charger. (or just check it with a meter) A cheaper adapter might have lower voltage tolerances, allowing greater spikes and sags (say when you start the car). If your device's voltage regulation circuitry isn't capable of handling such spikes (because the manufacturer intends you to use it with their adapter only), it can get fried. Short answer: use a quality adapter and check the spec. Quote Link to comment
+DesertDweller Posted December 6, 2007 Share Posted December 6, 2007 Voltage on a USB connector is 5v no matter who makes the whatever device, it's a standard; to answer your question it's down converted inside the cigarette plug, plug-in adapter. Well, voltage on a USB connector should be 5v, but there's nothing about the plug to guarantee that. There's no telling what some wacky engineer will do. That's why it's best to check the spec on the device from which you're re-purposing the charger. (or just check it with a meter) A cheaper adapter might have lower voltage tolerances, allowing greater spikes and sags (say when you start the car). If your device's voltage regulation circuitry isn't capable of handling such spikes (because the manufacturer intends you to use it with their adapter only), it can get fried. Short answer: use a quality adapter and check the spec. I like JSWilson's idea of checking the adapter with a meter. I have a Moto adapter for my cell phone and it has a mini-USB plug, but where would I check the power output with my meter? Do I put the test probes inside the mini-USB plug or touch the metal surrounding the plug? Quote Link to comment
+StarBrand Posted December 6, 2007 Share Posted December 6, 2007 Just to re-iterate - the 5V for those plugs is an industry standard. It helps define what the thing is and does. Should be no concern whatsoever. Quote Link to comment
+JSWilson64 Posted December 6, 2007 Share Posted December 6, 2007 (edited) I like JSWilson's idea of checking the adapter with a meter. I have a Moto adapter for my cell phone and it has a mini-USB plug, but where would I check the power output with my meter? Do I put the test probes inside the mini-USB plug or touch the metal surrounding the plug? According to pinouts.ru, the two outermost contacts of the 5 in the connector are for 5v dc power. You'd need either some pretty small probes or some alligator clips - just clip a needle or other small wire in each one. (edit- if it's a name-brand Motorola charger, I wouldn't bother checking) 5v may be industry standard, but I hesitate to trust that everyone follows it, especially the makers of cheap no-brand stuff... Edited December 6, 2007 by JSWilson64 Quote Link to comment
gkgeiger Posted December 6, 2007 Author Share Posted December 6, 2007 Let me start by saying that I'm 64 yrs old and still learning. I did finally get the b@lls to plug it in and guess what, it works fine. I just want to say thanks to everyone who tried to help me. Gene Quote Link to comment
+JohnTee Posted December 7, 2007 Share Posted December 7, 2007 Below is link to a combination that I've used for charging my Palm in the car and in the house using the USB cable. Now I've found that the 12V plug-in is great for powering my Vista HCx through its USB cable too. Deal Extreme USB/Car/AC Charger $6.40 shipped is pretty reasonable. JohnTee Quote Link to comment
picrthis Posted December 7, 2007 Share Posted December 7, 2007 I like JSWilson's idea of checking the adapter with a meter. I have a Moto adapter for my cell phone and it has a mini-USB plug, but where would I check the power output with my meter? Do I put the test probes inside the mini-USB plug or touch the metal surrounding the plug? According to pinouts.ru, the two outermost contacts of the 5 in the connector are for 5v dc power. You'd need either some pretty small probes or some alligator clips - just clip a needle or other small wire in each one. (edit- if it's a name-brand Motorola charger, I wouldn't bother checking) 5v may be industry standard, but I hesitate to trust that everyone follows it, especially the makers of cheap no-brand stuff... Better check all the batteries you buy too, no telling what some of the cheapies are really putting out. OK just kidding with you a little, I get what you are saying; but it is a standard and I believe the OP was talking about Moto. Quote Link to comment
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