Rapid charging and appropriate cables

[zerkms]

Hi all,

I have 2 nexus 5x (mine and my wife's). And I have really a problem finding a cable that can handle the "rapid charge" mode.

Detailed explanation: long ago I purchased a good cable on ebay, it was just randomly chosen one. But accidentally I received a decent one, thick and looking solid. With it I always see the "rapid charge" when either of phones is connected.

Now I need another that would be capable of charging rapidly as well, and I have just received the 3rd (I refunded the previous 2) one from ebay that claims to be of rapid charge but it does not: when I plug it it simply shows "charging" (and charges the device slower as well). And visually all those 3 cables are noticeably thinner.

So my question is: am I really unlucky and just received 3 different cables from 3 different sellers that cannot handle it or there is something I am missing?

The cables are connected to a proper 3A charger, and the "problem" (of not seeing "rapid") is reproducible on both phones.

If it really is a cable that must be of a really good quality to handle it - could someone please share a link, since I really am desperate to try it for the fourth time and to eventually get rubbish.

Thanks

 

[hallux]

Are you getting USB-C to USB-C cables? That is the only way to properly get the "charging rapidly" indicator.

 

[zerkms]

Nope, it's a "normal" USB-A to USB-C, and I certainly get "charging rapidly" with that thick cable.

 

[hallux]

Nope, it's a "normal" USB-A to USB-C, and I certainly get "charging rapidly" with that thick cable.

Which goes against EVERYTHING Benson Leung (a Google engineer) has said about USB-C and the "charging rapidly" indicator.

Every single USB-A to USB-C cable on this sheet that says it is "approved" will NOT display "charging rapidly" when used to charge your phone. That is because they are built without a resistor of a particular value that "tricks" the phone into thinking it has a proper USB-C PD connection. When talking about the USB-C charging spec as used in the Nexus 5x and Nexus 6P, if there is ANY plug other than USB-C in the chain anywhere you should NOT see "charging rapidly" as the devices utilize the USB PD spec for rapid charging, which is ONLY available with USB-C chargers and cables.

Here's his Google+ page, do a little reading up, the guy appears to know what he's talking about, and he was involved in the development of USB-C devices from Google. https://plus.google.com/+BensonLeung

 

[zerkms]

Well, here are the pics:



On one there is a phone being charged rapidly, on the other it's a comparison of the fast (white) cable with some other I have bought somewhere else. (the photo is taken from the usb-c side, presumably).

I am not arguing that Benson Leung is a brilliant hardware engineer that knows what they say, I'm just sharing my personal experience.

 

[hallux]

I'm not saying it CAN'T happen, as there are cables out there that don't comply with USB-C standards. I'm saying that SHOULDN'T be the case. Read some of his reviews on Amazon for the cables he doesn't recommend, he says WHY he doesn't recommend it, with a technical explanation.

The only cables I have used with my 6P are either Benson-Approved USB-A to USB-C or straight USB-C cables with a USB-C charger on the other end.

For what it's worth, he even had an improperly-built cable damage the device he was using for testing because it was such a poor design. Sure, that may not prove that a cable that doesn't comply with USB-C specs/standards is inherently dangerous, but it does show that some of those cables ARE dangerous.

By the way, the USB-IF asked manufacturers not to use the USB logo on the packaging of they did NOT comply properly with USB standards. So, if Benson couldn't run it through his testing protocol and get a pass they should NOT have the logo. I'm 99% sure those cables you have would not be on the approved list from Benson.

Believe what you want, but the phone will try to pull power from the power adapter at the highest rate the phone can pull, when plugged into a connection indicating USB-PD compliance. However, that's a 15W draw, most of the USB-A chargers output a little over 11W (5V at 2.4A), trying to draw more can damage those chargers, if not result in a thermal issue.

So my question is: am I really unlucky and just received 3 different cables from 3 different sellers that cannot handle it or there is something I am missing?

So, to answer this question, again, those cables that do NOT report "rapid charging" are built properly and if they're on Benson's list they'd be approved. If you can find the ones that DO report "rapid charging" on Benson's list I'll bet you'll find they're not approved.

 

[zerkms]

For what it's worth, he even had an improperly-built cable damage the device he was using for testing because it was such a poor design. Sure, that may not prove that a cable that doesn't comply with USB-C specs/standards is inherently dangerous, but it does show that some of those cables ARE dangerous.

...

Believe what you want, but the phone will try to pull power from the power adapter at the highest rate the phone can pull, when plugged into a connection indicating USB-PD compliance. However, that's a 15W draw, most of the USB-A chargers output a little over 11W (5V at 2.4A), trying to draw more can damage those chargers, if not result in a thermal issue.

And I must admit, that this had rung some bells and now I do know that the reason why my laptop was fried when was shut down but was charging a phone, was a cable (it happened few months ago).

Thank you.