Charging the M8 in the car issues

[tshirttan408]

Hi Guys,

So me and my gf recently bought a new car which comes with a USB port to charge your phone. Sounds great but when I plug in my phone to use as a GPS, even with the screen at brightness one the battery still drains! Annoying as we plan on using the phone as a GPS for long journeys so it's not ideal that you could run out of battery whilst doing so.

I assume that the usb port doesn't provide enough power which sounds funny to me (it says it's slow charging when you plug in) so I was wondering is there anything I can fiddle about with in the settings, and if not will buying a charger that fits into the cigarette lighter provide more power?

Thanks guys!

 

[808Mobi]

I agree, sounds like the inboard charger is low voltage. Look on Amazon for a cigarette lighter charger that is Smart Charger 2.0 certified. You can usually find one on sale for $15 or less.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

 

[Super Dave426]

I grabbed an Anker on Amazon, 2 ports and 4.8 amps, voltage is irrelevant the higher the amp the faster the charge . My phone charges real quick.

 

[Mooncatt]

My guess is the car's USB port isn't strong enough for one. The phone is designed for 1.5A on a standard charger, so make sure the car's port is rated for that. The GPS does suck a fair bit of juice, so even an OEM equivalent charger may have trouble keeping up. If the phone is on your dash, the sun can also be heating it up even more, which causes it to limit the charging rate.

Look on Amazon for a cigarette lighter charger that is Smart Charger 2.0 certified.

You mean "Quick Charge 2.0" certified. I do have one now for driving and it's great, but the higher charging rates also heat up the battery more than normal charging. If you're going to get one, I recommend trying to keep the AC blowing on it somehow to keep it cool. Otherwise it will limit the charging rate and you may be better off without it. On the up side, even when mine has got hot, the QC2.0 charger could still trickle charge it whereas a standard 1.5A charger would have it losing power.

I grabbed an Anker on Amazon, 2 ports and 4.8 amps, voltage is irrelevant the higher the amp the faster the charge . My phone charges real quick.

Not quite true. The phone is designed to accept a certain charge current and voltage. Most phones are 5V rated input and then regulate the amp draw. The M8 is designed for up to 1.5A input. Sticking it on a standard 5V charger with a higher amperage rating won't change that. It'll still only draw 1.5A from the charger. Where the M8 is different is being QC2.0 compliant to accept higher voltages and current, but it requires a QC2.0 compliant charger. You may also need a charging/sync USB cable because the phone and charger talk to each other to know it can use the QC2.0 rates. Otherwise you get standard 5V charging.

When comparing the two, a standard charger gives me just over an amp at best with screen brightness on low and Wi-Fi/mobile data turned off (reported by Gsam). Under normal use, it's closer to 700-850mA at best and often in the 500's when I'm actively using the phone. That's both when using the OEM charger and a stronger 2A standard charger. My QC2.0 charger can pump out up to 2.2A (as reported by Gsam) with the same low screen brightness and radios turned off. The battery level flies at that point. Under normal use, I still get charge rates of 900mA-1.6A with no problem as long as I keep the battery under 37°C. Above that and I get about 200-250mA regardless of my use.

 

[808Mobi]

The Aukey Quick Charge 2.0 Dual port USB car charger is available from Amazon for $9.49 with coupon code ZSBP8QMP.

Sent from my HTC One M8 Harman Kardon Edition

 

[Slick051079]

The Aukey Quick Charge 2.0 Dual port USB car charger is available from Amazon for $9.49 with coupon code ZSBP8QMP.

Sent from my HTC One M8 Harman Kardon Edition

I have this charger and it works great!

You don't need to have the AC blowing on your phone to keep it cool while driving. Don't drive with the phone on the dash for one. Second, hit the power button to turn your screen off on long stretches of straight highway while driving. If you aren't turning you don't really need to screen on. Not to mention Google Maps/Nav will blurt out the turns to you even if the screen isn't on.

Without your screen on the phone will actually charge while plugged in opposed to not gaining or losing the rate of charge.

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[Slick051079]

The Aukey Quick Charge 2.0 Dual port USB car charger is available from Amazon for $9.49 with coupon code ZSBP8QMP.

Sent from my HTC One M8 Harman Kardon Edition

I have this charger too and it's amazing.

Tip #1: Hit the power button on your phone or get the Screen Off/Lock app. While driving on long stretches of highway or roads there is no need to have the screen on. Especially since Google Maps/Nav will verbally tell you when to turn or exit with your screen off. The app runs in the background.

#2: You don't need to have cold air blowing onto your phone. Just make sure your phone isn't on the dashboard while driving during the day or in direct sunlight.

#3: Also, invest in an Android Wear watch. The watch will buzz your wrist, a map will appear, and tell you where to turn. I love it! My screen on my phone stays off because I can get all the information from my watch.

Posted via the Android Central App