cheerful

Does anyone know the USB port is capable of charging tablet at 2A? Mine appears to work on phone only (1A).

Thanks

vic viper

It doesnt even charge 1A, the USB outlets are used for data only, not charging.

cheerful

It charges my phone fine.

BenzC400

Are you sure Vic? I just plugged my iPhone 6 in with the car off and the phone says it's charging. I've never tried to charge the phone in the car, or use the USB ports, before. I'll try later today as my charge dissipates and see if I can fully charge the phone.

pdp8

The USB ports have to do at least the 0.5A of the USB spec, otherwise devices like memory sticks would not work and MB would not be able to use the UBS logo.

Generally 0.5A is going to be enough to charge a phone, it just won't be as fast as a 1A charger.

0.5A will charge tablets too, but it will be *very* slow. I don't bother unless I am desperate for a charge. Your best bet at that point is to turn the tablet off. Also I would leave the other port unplugged (often ports share a power supply).

vic viper

Yes, as mentioned above, it might charge, but very slow.

BenzC400

I asked MBUSA about the power output of the USB ports. It took 3 levels of support, but I finally got an answer, max output is 500mA.

From MBUSA:

We have been able to confirm the max current for the USB is 500mA. If you have any further questions or issues please let us know.

Sincerely,
David
MBUSA,LLC.

Xzer0

isn't that too weak? only 500?

Does anybody know if there's a way to keep the usb outlet working after you turn off the car? I noticed this today when I turned off the car the usb outlet and the 12V outlet stopped working so they stopped charging my iPhone

Is there a way to keep outlets working after turning off the car?
its not like charging my iPhone will drain my battery

pdp8

500 mA is the USB 2.0 (and 1.0, and 1.1) standard. It will work fine for a phone. 500 mA is the most likely current your phone will get if you plug it into a computer, USB hub, or a cheap 3rd party USB charger.

Until 3.0 there wasn't any specified way to send more power to a USB device, Apple, Samsung, etc. have extended the standard in various and different ways so their chargers can recognize their devices and send more power.

There is of course now a cottage industry of smart chargers that try to guess what is plugged in and send it more power. Maybe MB should have done this too, but I am not sure I would fault them for not doing it.

mihaelb

500mA is terrible. Like the old Blackberry chargers! It would take forever to charge a modern phone, and if it has its screen on or that's running Waze and a music app, I think it would even discharge (ie using the phones with Android Auto or Carplay, where the phone does the processing would drain the battery).
Most phone chargers have been 1A and up for years.

Also, I don't believe that these companies' chargers actually do any sort of detection. I use 2A Samsung and Apple chargers at home with Motorola and Sony phones, and they definitely charge them at least at the same rate as 1.5A (which the stock Sony charger does), possibly faster. I think the phones themselves regulate how much power they draw...

XPS

My Sony phone has the cool fast charge feature! I charge it for a good 10-15 minutes and the battery could last me a few hours easily. Wish the car would support the amp

vic viper

If charging is an issue why not route your own power cable from the ashtray 12V socket to the armrest console?

Finish with a new 12V socket or a dedicated full charge USB outlet.


Removing the center console is a breeze.

XPS

^Yeah, the built in USB isn't a deal breaker for me, since you could easily bring your own ashtray socket charger. I also would prefer the wires to be hidden inside the armrest as well.

cidtek

Except they were 700mA and did the job back in the day especially considering they only needed charging every 2 days, but still inadequate for new phones. BBRY now ships 1800mA chargers.

pdp8

I over simplified things a bit and implied the reverse of the actual direction. Here, where we are talking an actual data port (not just a charger) there is a negotiation between the source and the device. In the context of the 1.0, 1.1, and 2.0 spec the most the device is going to be able to negotiate is 500mA. The device can try to pull more, but the source will cut it off.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USB#Power has a lot more detail, including the various post-2.0 enhancements. A lot of this only applies to dedicated charging ports and how the device knows its safe to pull more than 500mA. There is a "charging downstream port" spec which can pass both data and up to 1.5A, but it can only pull 900mA if doing high speed data (in principle should only need "full speed" to do good audio, but I don't what is used in practice).

There is a lot of complexity and options in the USB specs, with a lot of ways for "tab A to miss slot B", if charging at the max possible rate is important to you vic viper has the right advice. Get a 12V based cigaret lighter type adaptor that is compatible with the device in question and use that. For my part, with my uses I don't expect 500mA to be a problem.

Xzer0

I use this for charging my devices
it has an output of 2.4A in each usb outlet and that's 7.2A
2.4A is equivalent to the iPad wall charger
it also have the smart charge feature which detects what output your device needs

what I like about it is that it is aesthetically pleasing and it matches the aluminum thats all around the car

I realized that when I turn off the car and leave it, every electrical output stops working including the 12V outlet and the weak Usb outlets.
I left my phone in the car hoping that it would be charged by the time i get back, but I was surprised that it didn't

mihaelb

interesting...didn't know that.

yes, routing the cable there solves part of the issue, but the part is connecting the phone via data cable to the system (as opposed to just power), rather than bluetooth, for extra functionality, and (future) Carplay/Android Auto (if they ever make it to these systems, and if they don't end up being the wireless varieties)

getto

mine too

cheerful

I just used it to charge my Android phone for an hour. The draw is about 750 mA. The other port has a flash drive plugged in for MP3 playing at the same time.

So I think it's much better than the 500 mA

RemmyZero

It has to be above 500mA because it will charge an iPad mini no problem. The iPad mini will not physically charge unless it's receiving more than .5A power input. I wouldn't be surprised if it's 750mA or even 1A. It charges my iPhone very fast.

Ninjadom

Old thread, I know.

Just got an C63 125 edition (W204, not W205). I have the USB port in the arm rest compartment.

Got a brand new Anker 6ft long Lightning Cable and an official Apple Lightning Cable. The port doesn’t charge my iPhone 11 Pro Max.

When I plug either cable in, it begins charging then immediately stops. Any ideas??

Thanks.

diamondsilver16

I have same issue with the wife's Pro Max. Had to buy a 2A power port (cig lighter) charger to keep her happy.

fabbrisd1

Absolutely correct - if you plug in a phone that just needs slow charge - then center console ports will do fine - if you plug-in-a-phone that needs heavier charging use a USB adapter in the cig lighter socket.

The new USB_C ports charge awesomely...

jonesj03

hi do you know what power output the media interface output has? compared to the usb output being 0.5a
if i buy a media interface to lightning connector will it charge iphone 11?

fabbrisd1

This is the W205 forum - no - for your W204 buy a cig adapter buddy..