Looking for a Reliable Powered OTG Adapter

[Siliconhobbit]

So for some time now I have been looking for a reliable powered OTG adapter for my Tab S 10.5.

The MAIN reason why is because the WIFI in my house is downright horrid and the tablet just does not stay reliably connected to the internet if it is using WIFI from my bedroom.

I DO however have an Ethernet connection in the bedroom so I can use that reliably.

Unfortunately I have yet to find any reliable powered OTG adapter that can be paired with a USB Ethernet adapter and power/charge the tablet at the same time.

My first choice was the SimulCharge OTG adapter from LAVA. I purchased it from Newegg.com for approx. $35 USD. It lasted for about 1 month before my Tablet no longer recognizes the adapter at all. It doesn't recognize the adapter or anything plugged in to it, including a power cord. So that was a waste.

My next choice was a "Samsung Galaxy Tab S 10.5 WiFi POWERED (OTG) Micro-USB to USB 2.0 Adapter High Speed Data-Transfer Cable" I was able to find on Amazon.com for just under $5.00 USD. I placed NO FAITH in the reliability of this item to actually work properly and since I spent less than $5.00 for it...I didn't care. I was right as well. It works as a Micro-USB to USB adapter, but will not charge the tablet at the same time if a power cable is plugged in.

So...I need some help. I'm looking for a RELIABLE Powered OTG cable/adapter to use for my Tab S 10.5 while I am using an Ethernet adapter at the same time. The OTG adapter needs to be able to power the tablet at the same time I am using the Ethernet adapter.

The Ethernet adapter I am using is: Plugable USB 2.0 to 10/100 Fast Ethernet LAN Wired Network Adapter - available on Newegg.com

So, I just need a Powered OTG Cable/Adapter that works RELIABLY, so I can use a USB Ethernet Adapter AND power/charge the Tablet at the same time. For a Samsung Galaxy Tab S 10.5

Any ideas or suggestions?

Side note: There is nothing wrong with my tablet. The WIFI works just fine (just with really poor connectivity in my bedroom). The tablet charges just fine with just about any cable I use plugged in to it normally. There is nothing wrong with the micro-USB connector either. I can connect just about any device to it, via the Micro-USB connector or any regular Micro-USB to USB adapter and those devices work fine (for example a USB thumb drive).

 

[wms3]

Instead of fooling around with OTG adapters why don't you just set up a Wi-Fi repeater in your bedroom?

 

[Siliconhobbit]

Problem with that is that it's not my house. I just rent a room here so I am kinda stuck with what is available. On top of that, I'm not at all familiar with Wifi repeaters, what is good to go with, or even how to set them up. The bedroom is also on the opposite side of the house from the room with the router in it.

I DID at one time purchase an Amped Wireless TAP-EX High Power Touch Screen Wi-Fi Range Extender through Newegg.com but I was unable to get it working, even after spending more then an hour on the phone to the company's tech support.

 

[Rukbat]

Unfortunately I have yet to find any reliable powered OTG adapter that can be paired with a USB Ethernet adapter and power/charge the tablet at the same time.

That's because in OTG mode, the power pins on the phone become output pins, not input pins, so you can't both charge the phone and use OTG at the same time.

It's not the adapter, it's how OTG works.

So...I need some help. I'm looking for a RELIABLE Powered OTG cable/adapter to use for my Tab S 10.5 while I am using an Ethernet adapter at the same time. The OTG adapter needs to be able to power the tablet at the same time I am using the Ethernet adapter.

Can't happen. About the best you could do is somehoe provide external power to the tablet, and that would require opening it up.

(There's no way to make it run OTG and be charged at the same time, unless you rewrite the kernel yourself.)

As wms3 said, a repeater may be your best bet. Move the tablet around and see if there's any spot, even near the ceiling, that gets a decent signal. Place the repeater there.

Or offer the landlord to set up a repeater in the middle of the house to give HIM better wifi coverage.

To see how it's done, see Wireless Routers with one SSID.

 

[Siliconhobbit]

That's because in OTG mode, the power pins on the phone become output pins, not input pins, so you can't both charge the phone and use OTG at the same time.

It's not the adapter, it's how OTG works.

Can't happen. About the best you could do is somehoe provide external power to the tablet, and that would require opening it up.

(There's no way to make it run OTG and be charged at the same time, unless you rewrite the kernel yourself.)

As wms3 said, a repeater may be your best bet. Move the tablet around and see if there's any spot, even near the ceiling, that gets a decent signal. Place the repeater there.

Or offer the landlord to set up a repeater in the middle of the house to give HIM better wifi coverage.

To see how it's done, see Wireless Routers with one SSID.

I'm going to assume that when you mention 'phone' you also mean Tablet, as that is the issue I am working with, not a phone.

You make mention that how 'I' need an OTG adapter to work, is not how they are made. I find this a bit odd, as the OTG adapters I have, that were advertised as working in the manner I describe and need them to work, do not, for one reason or another. If an OTG adapter is not made to 'draw-in' power at the same time it allows a USB device to be read, then this contradicts their use and construction to begin with.

Why would the manufacturer attach a 'secondary' cable to the OTG adapter I got from Amazon.com to charge devices at the same time, and advertise it this way, if this is not what it is used for.

Why would LAVA place a micro-USB slot on the side of their SimulCharge Micro-USB to USB adapter and then advertise that it can charge a device at the same time as it utilizes a USB device.

There are plenty of Micro-USB to USB adapters out there...all labeled or sold as "OTG": On The Go.

There are only a few OTG adapters labeled as "powered" and purport to charge the device they are plugged in to, AND at the same time read or make use of the USB device plugged in to the other end, such as a USB Thumb Drive, or in my case, a USB Ethernet adapter.

In fact, the SimulCharge adapter from LAVA that I purchased from Newegg.com worked EXACTLY as I described and needed it to...for approx. 1 month before it became a tiny little plastic brick hanging off the side of my Tablet, not working in any manner and not being recognized by the tablet at all tells me that "powered OTG adapters" do indeed work as I need them to do.

If there is any confusion here, please look up the devices I put in bold on my first post. As I am not able to post links until I reach 10 posts, you'll have to do the leg work. Both of those devices purport to 'charge' and 'read' simultaneously. One of them did for a month (SimulCharge from Newegg) one of them did not (the one from Amazon. it was cheap anyway and I did not expect that one to work. Got a refund as well on that).

 

[Siliconhobbit]

As a follow-up to my previous posts and to give a little more information on what exact device(s) I am using, go ahead on over to Youtube and take a look at this video titled:

"Demo of wired ethernet on a charging Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 with the LAVA USB Host/Charging Adapter"

These 2 items (the ethernet adapter, and the LAVA adapter) are the exact same Items I purchased on Newegg. The only difference is my tablet is the Galaxy Tab S 10.5.

As I mentioned, the above 2 items worked like a charm, exactly as seen in the video, for approx. 1 month, then died (the LAVA adapter. The Ethernet Adapter works fine still.) My tablet however, still works perfectly.

That is the type of powered OTG Host/Charging adapter I am looking for, although something thats actually reliable.

So I suppose a secondary question to all of this is: Could I have ruined the adapter because I used it on a Galaxy Tab S 10.5, as opposed to the Tab 4 seen in the video?

The description of the adapter on Newegg states: "Simultaneous OTG host and charging for Samsung tablets; Designed for Galaxy Tab 4, Tab PRO, Note (2014 and later), Tab S"

 

[Rarry]

As you do have a WiFi signal but it's weak it would be well worth trying the very simple option of using a tin foil reflector on the router WiFi antenna. I know from experience this can easily double the signal strength. Just Google it for design tips.

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[mavrrick]

Do you have a desktop. I would suggest you don't use a repeater, but simply add a Access Point. There are 2 ways to do this. You could buy a switch and access point or simply buy a router and not use the lan port on the router.

I would suggest the router option. But you will need to customize how it is used from the standard setup. Basically you take the router but turn off some of the features so it only acts as a integrated access point and network switch.

Basically the setup would be to get a router. Turn off DHCP on it. Configure wifi on it. Plug the ethernet cable you have into a lan port on it. Then plug your desktop into the lan port on it.


The key is don't use the Wan port.

Posted via the Android Central App