[Official] Qi Wireless Charging Discussion Thread - Galaxy S III Accessories

There were a couple of threads pop up about the Qi wireless charging. Unfortunately, they turned out to be members (not just one) just trying to sell their products. This will serve as an official discussion thread about the Qi Wireless Charging System for people with inquiries about it. You may post a review video if you have the system, but we will be watching closely. If we see that you are trying to run a business off of XDA's back, you will be infracted/banned for good. XDA is not a place to promote your business. Part 11 of the forum rules:
11. Don’t post with the intention of selling something.
Don’t use XDA to advertise your product or service. Proprietors of for-pay products or services, may use XDA to get feedback, provide beta access, or a free version of their product for XDA users and offer support, but not to post with the intention of selling. This includes promoting sites similar/substantially similar to XDA-Developers.com.
Do not post press releases, announcements, links to trial software, or commercial services. unless you’re posting an exclusive release for XDA-Developers.com.
Encouraging members to participate in forum activities on other phone related sites is prohibited.
Off-site downloads are permitted if the site is non-commercial and does not require registration.
Off-site downloads from sites requiring registration are NOT encouraged but may be permitted if the following conditions are met:
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B) the site is a relatively small personal website without commercial advertising/links (i.e. not a competitor forum-based site with purposes and aims similar to those of XDA-Developers.com.)
So please keep this in mind while you discuss it. Have a good time guys!

I'd like to start it off with a wireless charging kit I purchased that comes with a receiver and transmitter.
The manufacturer is called Yijieneng.
The receiver fits underneath the battery door with no modification required.
From what I've noticed about it, it charges a little faster than USB but not as fast as an AC adapter. (according to the receiver, it charges at 700mAh)
NFC works with this kit.
As far as I've noticed, the range is about 4mm (from transmitter surface to battery case) for there to be a successful charge.
The transmitter emits a small beep when it starts the charge. I've had it next to my bed for the past few weeks and I don't hear it when I sleep if it goes off. It does keep my phone at 100% in the morning.
At this time I'm also creating a custom dock that will put the phone up at an angle like a dock. I have finished the core part of it, but still waiting to finalize the ridge that will hold the phone. I'm waiting to get a certain bumper case before I create the final ridge.
Here's a few pictures of the dock in its current form (it still needs to be sanded and have the surface reworked):
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/4bcgiapslrawvcs/yIOWW5Fybz#/
Here's a video of the kit that I shot showing how it works as well as NFC function.
FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)
Charging range and case choices:
*
kraminc said:
1SiK1500 said:
is it possible to use Cases Such as Otterbox Commuter with the QI PAD? Does the signal transmit through?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes I am currently using the defender with the dual energizer pad nightly with no issues.
Sent from my SPH-L710 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
* Ballistic SG Maxx Case as well as the Ballistic SG
* UAG (Urban Armor Gear)
Are Qi products intercompatible?
chrootz said:
I bought a Nokia wireless charging plate uses Qi standards, I got it from Verizon Wireless online with my work discount, It cost me for 40 dollars and I am using Yijieneng Qi pad.
My s3 use UAG case (Urban Armor Gear), It does transmit the wireless charging through the case and It runs like charm.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As far as I know, the charging distance is between 4mm to 4cm (if the transmitter is based off the newer standard)
Charging speed
Depending on the receiver it can range from 500ma to 700ma (this is roughly the speed of usb charging or a little faster)
Does NFC Work?
I can't vouch for ALL the Qi kits out there, but the Yijieneng one that I do posses, works. Reference the above video to show that it works.
Available Products
Wireless Charging Kits (This includes both receiver and charger):
Yijieneng kit. Comes with a receiver pad that fits underneath the battery door and a transmitter.
Warning: I highly suggest getting just the receiver pad from them rather than the whole kit. Apparently the 2nd version seem to be problematic and requires an exact placement. You can find the transmitter at your local phone store like AT&T and Verizon or get it from sites like Amazon and such for the Energizer Qi charging pad.
As for those who are asking how to purchase this, this is what some of the members have done.
grubia said:
redslumber said:
Just read through the thread and I think I might consider the Yijieneng receiver and charging pad. For those of you that have successfully purchased the kits from Yijieneng: How was the communication service and shipping promptness from them, and what's the price for the charging pad and the receiver (as they don't have any price listings on their site).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi,
Communication is slow, use messenger links on their site.
Price of the unit is 55$ + shipping cost. Mine shipping was 30$ via DHL.
Took them more than a week after completed payment to send the item. I was about to contact paypal to help me get my money back ...
grubia said:
The prices are from their pricelist which you can request and the prices are for "sample". Prices for bulk are more than half way down ...
With the pricelist they've send me 2 pdfs with company presentation. They seems to be big oem manufacturer for the most of QI enabled charging pads (incl energizer). But this is only if you can trust what is written in presentation pdfs and in my experience with Chinese companies like this is that the truth in presentations is less than 40% ....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Zens wireless charger. They sell the whole kit for something around $80 or $90 (I think). Comes with a case and transmitter.
Droidax EzyCharge
Here's the link to their review: http://www.androidunite.com/2012/11/15/droidax-ezycharge-wireless-charger-for-galaxy-s3/
Comes with a case and transmitter.
Speed
New HK brand. Seems to have a full kit available. Receiver backing goes for ~25 USD (208 HK$). Transmitter goes for ~$50 (388 HK$).
http://www.speed-charger.com/en/home
Disclaimer: Touchstone, Qi, and Powermat are not compatible with each other. As of this edit (12/15/2012), none of these charging standards and their products will work with the other's product no matter what anyone tells you. In the future, there might be a universal charger, but right now, none exist.
Kits to AVOID
Kaneda Wireless Powerbank
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=35679928&postcount=125
EDIT: Added some extra info
EDIT 2: There are many members who have asked me where I got this kit from and the best I can and am allowed to disclose is that you would have to look up the manufacturer and contact them yourself. As far as I was reading, various members have actually directly contacted the manufacturer through their website and did their own transaction there. I personally have not done it before so I can not guarantee anything. I also do not know how much they charge nor do I know what kind of payment they take so your best bet is to talk to them. I only have this one kit that I have shown in the video and no it will not be sold to anyone (I like it too much and use it too much for me to even think about giving it up)
EDIT 3: Added info on other Qi chargers. Will add more info and pictures of other chargers and/or receivers as I find them.
EDIT 4: added more info based on what I missed previously .
EDIT 5: Added a Kits to avoid section.
EDIT 6: Added warning on 2nd gen Yijieneng transmitter issue. Added new kit

I have the same kit as above. Works great. Going to picking up a couple extra charging pads for around the house.
Sent from my A510 using Tapatalk 2

Same here!
Using this with a couple of energizer qi pads.
Also modified the receiver that goes under the battery door so that it works with the 4200mah extended battery and battery door.
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda premium

I'm such a sucker for stuff like this. But I have a hard time spending what looks like 85 for the pad and receiver for something that I most likely won't be able to use on my next device. This would be high on my list if I was capable of keeping a phone for over a year! :silly:

pdubcramp said:
I'm such a sucker for stuff like this. But I have a hard time spending what looks like 85 for the pad and receiver for something that I most likely won't be able to use on my next device. This would be high on my list if I was capable of keeping a phone for over a year! :silly:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The charging base can be used for other qi compatible phone, so it's not a waste, while the receiver, it can be modded to support other phones.

kms108 said:
The charging base can be used for other qi compatible phone, so it's not a waste, while the receiver, it can be modded to support other phones.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Absolutely valid points. However I think I'll let the technology mature and adoption to increase a bit more. I'm sure prices will drop drastically.

Just wanted to post a walkthrough video of the Droidax EzyCharge Wireless Charging kit. I'm really considering opening the case up and seeing what kind of receiver is inside and possibly fitting it under the back of my phone and if I do it I'll update this post. Otherwise, I think its a great 3-purpose combo (case, wireless charger and backup battery) especially for the price when compared to the competition. The pad can be sold seperately and charges any device thats Qi compatible so thats always a plus. If anyone finds a cheap and slim Qi receiver being sold stateside let me know I really want to get a couple. Thanks!
---------- Post added at 11:14 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:09 AM ----------
By the way, If I may, I'd suggest making this post a sticky since it gets brought up a lot.

pdubcramp said:
Absolutely valid points. However I think I'll let the technology mature and adoption to increase a bit more. I'm sure prices will drop drastically.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The technology is already actively used in Japan, but it has yet to receive a wider audience. Some phones also come built in with with Qi wireless charging like the Droid DNA and the Lumia 920. Hopefully there will be more and more devices that have it built in and then hopefully the "battery covers" for those phones will be sold on sites like amazon or ebay that comes w/ the qi receiver that you can remove and mod into the s3..

I also have the kit in the first post. I like it well enough. I use it at work all day. I am having an issue where I cannot receive phone calls while charging on the pad. Anyone else experience this? I have the leaked jelly bean k1 build. Just stock leak. No mods. Any ideas?

i get calls all the time even while it's charging (especially those damn telemarketers) .. i can take a ss later of my screen when I have it in the base.
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda app-developers app

EDIT: attached is a ss of my phone when it's docked.
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda app-developers app

khtims said:
I also have the kit in the first post. I like it well enough. I use it at work all day. I am having an issue where I cannot receive phone calls while charging on the pad. Anyone else experience this? I have the leaked jelly bean k1 build. Just stock leak. No mods. Any ideas?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I actually tested this out on the S3 and note 2, both on stock kies updated, everything works fine except you cannot use speaker phone.
SMS send/receive ok,
call in/out ok,
BT call in/out ok,
handfree in/out ok,
speaker phone other party ok, phone on charger too much loud reoccuring echo.
someone else also mention this, he was also on custom rom, so it seems like custom rom may affect the functionality.

Thread has been stuck.
Sent from my SPH-L710 using xda premium

Dose it matter what charging pad I use? seems like you can get a back plate off ebay for $16 but dont want to spend the 50 on a QI pad.
so Can I just get any charging pad or dose it have to be the QI to work or are they just universal?

If the backplate is a Qi compatible backplate, then yes it will work. If you're talking about the palm touchstone mod, then no. They operate on a different frequency.
This applies to all the different standards. As far as I've read, no standard are intercompatible with the other.
i.e: Qi will not work with Touchstone or Powermat. Powermat will not work with Qi or Touchstone. Touchstone will not work with Qi or Powermat.
They send out a different set of frequencies that the other standard does not use/accept.

thanks. that kinda sucks because they sell the other powermat for $10 bucks but QI is 50.ill have to check out the frequency it uses and see if I can find an alternative.

I remembered that Powermat claimed it will work with Qi back in early/mid 2011, but doing a search has shown me nothing. If you order from amazon, you can probably try the powermat transmitter and see if it works, then return it if it doesn't, but I highly doubt it considering they're competing standards.

I'd love it if Samsung came out with a Qi charging kit since it seems to work so well but at this point I'd be happy with anything from them.

samsung is too busy flip flopping between 2 different standards. the contact points are there, you should be able to purchase a zens or yijieneng receiver and get a cheap transmitter from energizer or something.
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda app-developers app

Related

[HMOD]Wireless Charging for home and on the go

This has already been done for the EVO 4g using Palm Touchstone capable scraps but I want to take it to another level. Since i'm not much of a programmer I can add to the community in this way.
Please let me know how many of you are interested in this. I'm going to put up full walk throughs as I move along but I will also sell some off (in the marketplace) for those that don't want to go through the hassle. I'm going to start ordering parts and building mock-ups and doing some design work during slow downs at work. I'll have a donation link up eventually if any one wants to help cover the initial costs.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
CURRENT DEVELOPMENT STAGE: 1- INDUCTIVE CASE RESEARCH, see #1​
PLEASE KEEP AN EYE ON THIS POST (general updates) AND POST#3 (useful links and eventually tutorial)
:good:KEEP DISCUSSION AROUND THE FOLLOWING DESIGN INTENTIONS/ ABOVE DEVELOPMENT STAGE:good:
Design Intents are as follows:
1) A case for housing the inductive coil/wiring
This just requires compatible cases with necessary clearance for the inductive coil and wiring to the male micro usb. Cases with oversized bumpers would be best since they will keep drops from damaging the micro usb plug that will be sticking out of the bottom of the phone. This may not be ideal so if anyone is decent and making plastic molds maybe we could come up with an attachment to a case.
2)NO Hard wiring inside/to the phone
This involves using low profile male mirco USB type B connectors, like this, and mounting and wiring to the case. This will keep your plug always covered and keep you from trying to charge your phone with both inductive and regular usb to the wall/pc. The main design issue here is protecting the male connector to the phone. Suggest usb connectors, wiring, how to boost the amperage, does the palm pre coil protect from over voltage, etc.
3)A car kit.
I will start with my car, A nissan sentra SR, for the car kit. Others are encouraged to come up/share your solutions as well! This should be a hard wired solution using the palm pre/pixi round touchstone dock. Kind of like a dash mount. I think the magnet should hold the phone ok being that my car isn't one of the most powerful things on the planet but for you hot rodders out there keep that possible issue in mind.
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Current Progress: CASE​Alright I have the cases in hand! I got three of them in the mail and will be tearing these apart this weekend. The pucks (touchstone bases) should be here sometime next week.
I'm also looking at the following cases
Ballistic
Ballistic 2
Clear S Case
The ballistic I am hoping will give clearance for the micro usb. They will be a bit heavier though... we'll see.
I going to order 2 cases for starters, what should they be?
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**ANY ORIGINAL IDEA/METHOD/MODIFICATION DISCUSSED IN THE THREAD IS THE SOLE INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY OF THE CONTRIBUTOR AND IS NOT OPEN FOR COMMERCIALIZATION WITH OUT THE DIRECT CONSENT OF THE ORIGINAL CONTRIBUTOR- In other words... don't rip off your buddies ideas and give credit where due**
Wrong thread
Useful Links and Resources
Useful Links and Resources
This post will provide you with the knowledge necessary to learn what you need to complete this project. Any helpful links your share in this thread will be copied here.
General Info
What is Electromagnetic Induction? - HERE
A little about wireless power distribution - HERE
Other Mod References
ManiacMagic's E4GT Soldered Inductive Mod - HERE
darrenf's from android central Soldered - HERE
(thanks DaisyPlucksta for the links)
Helpful Videos
qianqinde's how-to for International GS2 (soldered) - HERE thank's rwilco12
Regarding the thread, this would be hardware development which i believe belongs in the general section. As for the idea, it seems like as long as its not too bulky most users wouldn't mind if it extended battery life substantially like 24 hours or more. Could make you rich with over 9.million sgsIII owners. But Im pretty sure there are already many types of chargers on the market so unless i missed something perhaps you should submit this to a patent office so no one steals the idea or design. Just my two cents dinner no one else has posted. But ya not software development so I would move three thread before you get flamed too bad.
No flaming allowed.
Sent from my "I didn't text you last night… Jack Daniels texted you" using xda premium
Maybe in accessories? Good luck. Sound fun. I might be interested once your done.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk 2
abw0046 said:
This has already been done for the EVO 4g using Palm Touchstone capable scraps but I want to take it to another level. Since i'm not much of a programmer I can add to the community in this way.
Design Intents are as follows:
1) A case based solution, the ET4G is too damn thin!
This is just require compatible cases with necessary clearance and materials
that are least obstructive to the magnetic field.
2)NO Hard wiring inside/to the phone
This involves ordering male mirco USB type B connectors and mounting and wiring to the case. This will keep your plug always covered and keep you from trying to charge your phone with both inductive and regular usb to the wall/pc. The only issue here is protecting the male connector to the phone. I've some ideas for this but will be very dependent on the case we use.
3)A car kit.
I will start with my car, A nissan sentra SR, for the car kit. This will be a hard wired solution using the palm pre/pixi round touchstone dock. Kind of like a dash mount. I think the magnet should hold the phone ok being that my car isn't one of the most powerful things on the planet but for you hot rodders I'll keep that possible issue in mind.
Please let me know how many of you are interested in this. I'm going to put up full walk throughs as I move along but I will also sell some off for those that don't want to go through the hassle (is that ok on here? or do i need to set up donations?). Either way let me know because I'm going to start order parts and doing some design work during slow downs at work.
Thoughts? Concerns?
Oh and if you have other devices you would like this type of solution for I'm cool with that. Just ask and we'll work through it!
OH man... here we go!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm game! I tried doing it myself but I could only find the one spot on the USB plug to hook up to. I opted but to do it because there was some massive dismantling and soldering I would've had to do. I've still got the parts ready for when someone smarter than me figures out an easier way to do it though!
playingbball20 said:
Wrong thread
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Technically, he is developing something. Just not code.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using XDA
great idea. i have 4 touchstones kicking around. would love to be able to use them.
Technically, this IS "development"
Anyway, I would be interested in this myself. Seems like a great idea. I'm pretty handy & I have a welder/soldering station at my job. Would be happy to help out.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using XDA
I would pay money for this...
Sent from my SPH-D710 using XDA
This sounds very cool. And technically this is development. Just not software related. So I don't see where else this could go.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using XDA
abw0046 said:
This has already been done for the EVO 4g using Palm Touchstone capable scraps but I want to take it to another level. Since i'm not much of a programmer I can add to the community in this way.
.......
Please let me know how many of you are interested in this. I'm going to put up full walk throughs as I move along but I will also sell some off for those that don't want to go through the hassle (is that ok on here? or do i need to set up donations?). Either way let me know because I'm going to start order parts and doing some design work during slow downs at work.
Thoughts? Concerns?
Oh and if you have other devices you would like this type of solution for I'm cool with that. Just ask and we'll work through it!
OH man... here we go!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just a thought.
What would be the charging time using touchstone/conductive charging; or in other words, what would be the output voltage/current provided to the phone. It takes a while on regular chargers to charge the phone compared to HTC phones.
haha I actually did this too my I500. Literally car kit and everything. Even had it play music through Bluetooth. except I hated cases on that phone so I hardwired it. looked so much sexier. But the case is easier. Built like that too just didn't have the car cradle
sent from aokp tablet sgs2
lickarock said:
Technically, he is developing something. Just not code.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using XDA
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
True
How much would this be for a car charger and home charger wireless
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium
I have 2 palm touchstones, 2 old fried pre & pre2, and 2 phone backs for the touchstone charger to integrate with the phone..
I would absolutely love to know how to integrate the "guts" of the battery cover with the needed parts into the e4gt innards to make the wireless charger .. but I'm not sure how yet.. :/ I will keep reading and post here if I get it working..
I assume that the physical connection is totally possible but the OS will most likely need to be able to control voltage and jazz so I'm not sure what would be needed for that part..
sj
Sent from my E4GT on AoKPm5 FF02 OS4.0.4 w/ dpi @ 128 with [email protected] 2.1.1 Pro
Thanks for all the interest and offers for assistance. Being that its my friend's birthday as well as my own on top of fathers day weekend I won't start any design research until Monday.
I have ordered some parts which should be here late next week. I am still trying to find a source for some type B micro USB plugs. Guess I'll shoud stop throwing away those electronic component magazines. I did a quick search and found some but they were $6.50 each with $10 shipping. If any of you have a source for these let me know. Hell you can send me spare cables and I'll deconstruct them if I have to, but that's not very fun.
When I get on my PC I'll add a poll to see where you all would like this topic to be. Then I'll ask you how do I move it
Sent from my SPH-D710 on Rubix using XDA
Lets do it!
I actually got the touchstone and pre back and ripped out the inductive charging circuit just for this (I actually got it for my evo, but I upgraded before I had the chance to follow the evo guide). I'm excited for this!
Anyway - some heads up - the E4GT is MUCH heavier and bigger than the pre. Don't expect it to stay firmly attached. It will stay okay, but you need a really thin back face of the case. You may also try replacing the thin magnets with thicker rare earths. I actually got it under the stock cover okay, and that worked decently, but no good way to attach it. That's where I quit (after thinking about soldering to the board, but not having a good place on the USB connector without taking the phone all of the way apart. I also didn't fins another point on the board to solder to (like the charging circuit), although I'm sure it's there somewhere.
Also, you need to mount the inductive charging circuit a little low because the phone is so long that it will hit the table and not mount properly if you put it in the middle. Furthermore, be ware that if you add a connector to the USB port, this will exacerbate this problem, perhaps to the point of requiring landscape or stronger magnets.
The USB connector you want are available at a number of places. Ebay has some cheap micro usb adapters (including right angle) that you might play with. If you just want the connector itself, it will likely be more expensive, but I suggest checking mouser or digikey.
Good luck! This will be AWESOME!
---------- Post added at 12:59 AM ---------- Previous post was at 12:51 AM ----------
Whoa! Just got curious enough to do a quick google search. You may want to czech these out real quick:
Soldering route: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1451684
again: http://forums.androidcentral.com/ep...c-4g-touch-stone-mod-details-lots-photos.html
DaisyPlucksta said:
I actually got the touchstone and pre back and ripped out the inductive charging circuit just for this (I actually got it for my evo, but I upgraded before I had the chance to follow the evo guide). I'm excited for this!
Anyway - some heads up - the E4GT is MUCH heavier and bigger than the pre. Don't expect it to stay firmly attached. It will stay okay, but you need a really thin back face of the case. You may also try replacing the thin magnets with thicker rare earths. I actually got it under the stock cover okay, and that worked decently, but no good way to attach it. That's where I quit (after thinking about soldering to the board, but not having a good place on the USB connector without taking the phone all of the way apart. I also didn't fins another point on the board to solder to (like the charging circuit), although I'm sure it's there somewhere.
Also, you need to mount the inductive charging circuit a little low because the phone is so long that it will hit the table and not mount properly if you put it in the middle. Furthermore, be ware that if you add a connector to the USB port, this will exacerbate this problem, perhaps to the point of requiring landscape or stronger magnets.
The USB connector you want are available at a number of places. Ebay has some cheap micro usb adapters (including right angle) that you might play with. If you just want the connector itself, it will likely be more expensive, but I suggest checking mouser or digikey.
Good luck! This will be AWESOME!
---------- Post added at 12:59 AM ---------- Previous post was at 12:51 AM ----------
Whoa! Just got curious enough to do a quick google search. You may want to czech these out real quick:
Soldering route: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1451684
again: http://forums.androidcentral.com/ep...c-4g-touch-stone-mod-details-lots-photos.html
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Awesome find DP! Looks extremely promising! I will see if I can get it working as soon as I have the time.. hopefully sometime this week
sj
Sent from my E4GT on AoKPm5 FF02 OS4.0.4 w/ dpi @ 128 with [email protected] 2.1.1 Pro

Monster Watts Wireless Charging Kits for Gs3

Just found this as i was reading on the wireless charging the new S4 is supposed to get...
Apparently this company as of today is selling three options for wireless chargers for the gs3.
http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/samsung-galaxy-s3-gets-3-wireless-charging-options.
for 45$ ill give it a try and i get to keep my otterbox...
Hamspiced said:
Just found this as i was reading on the wireless charging the new S4 is supposed to get...
Apparently this company as of today is selling three options for wireless chargers for the gs3.
http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/samsung-galaxy-s3-gets-3-wireless-charging-options.
for 45$ ill give it a try and i get to keep my otterbox...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Very cool. I wonder what the charging pad looks like.
Also, while this will fit under your otterbox I don't know if it will actually charge it through it. Worth the $45 though!
for 45$ and a drop in solution i am willing to try and test it...
This looks like a damn good price tbh. $68 for a receiver and charger is cheaper than any qi combo that I know of currently.
The bonus is that it's also Qi technology so even if you change your s3 out, you should be able to get another phone that has qi tech in it or even modify that charging pad to work on other electronic devices (with some copper tape/wire)
mputtr said:
This looks like a damn good price tbh. $68 for a receiver and charger is cheaper than any qi combo that I know of currently.
The bonus is that it's also Qi technology so even if you change your s3 out, you should be able to get another phone that has qi tech in it or even modify that charging pad to work on other electronic devices (with some copper tape/wire)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thats exactly what i was thinking.. The odd fact that i just so happend to find this today and apparently it just went live today i am pretty excited to snag it at this price.
But As im sure the capabilities to wirelessly charge are inevitably going to be included in future phones it isnt like this tech is likely going to be easily replaced. And it also seems like Samsung is going to abandon using our phones tech as wireless charging.. or at least thats what i gathered from thsi article..
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/03/11/samsung_s4/
the thing w/ samsung and wireless charging is that they really have no idea who the hell they're really going to back. Yes, Samsung co-founded A4WP, but they're also member of Qi's group as well.
To me, it just looks like they're sitting on the fence and waiting to see who will come out as the standard before going all in. I also don't think Samsung will build it into the phone itself due to its current ambivalence on the 2 standards and most likely leave it open like the s3 and note 2.
While the article talks about a4wp having a few cm of range, he also did not mention that a newer revision of Qi offers up to 4cm of range as well (last I checked).
I don't care much for too much range for wireless charging, just enough so that any non-ferrous case will charge regardless of thickness. I have a Qi set and it has so far worked with the ballisitc SG (although it Can get picky, but that's due to the fact that I also modified the charger to be at a 45 degree angle and the case's bottom lip [on the hard plastic side] curved up a little for no reason)
mputtr said:
the thing w/ samsung and wireless charging is that they really have no idea who the hell they're really going to back. Yes, Samsung co-founded A4WP, but they're also member of Qi's group as well.
To me, it just looks like they're sitting on the fence and waiting to see who will come out as the standard before going all in. I also don't think Samsung will build it into the phone itself due to its current ambivalence on the 2 standards and most likely leave it open like the s3 and note 2.
While the article talks about a4wp having a few cm of range, he also did not mention that a newer revision of Qi offers up to 4cm of range as well (last I checked).
I don't care much for too much range for wireless charging, just enough so that any non-ferrous case will charge regardless of thickness. I have a Qi set and it has so far worked with the ballisitc SG (although it Can get picky, but that's due to the fact that I also modified the charger to be at a 45 degree angle and the case's bottom lip [on the hard plastic side] curved up a little for no reason)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Right that much i understand...
I was holding out for the wireless charging where i didnt need to have it directly on the base. and every few months i search around for a viable option.
So far, since my free time is limited, this seems like the best all in one solution that doesnt require me to change my case, and its a good price.
Hamspiced said:
Right that much i understand...
I was holding out for the wireless charging where i didnt need to have it directly on the base. and every few months i search around for a viable option.
So far, since my free time is limited, this seems like the best all in one solution that doesnt require me to change my case, and its a good price.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
in you case it seems to be a cheaper and more reliable solution imo.
all in all, it's a good find. although I should've ask if it affects nfc as well..
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda app-developers app
The stealth one, and the one built into a battery cover can be found on a different site for only about $15.
this one comes with a charger as well.. which would cost 50-60 usd more. so it's a good deal.
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda app-developers app
Well.. I bought mine for $47.90 with the charger and receiver, so if your willing to spend just another $2 then you can get that with less of the wait.
that's great. any link for others who might be interested?
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda app-developers app
Hm.. I like how there is radio silence as soon as there is a mention of link to provide proof.....
I wonder if the smart one works with those thin protective cases?
mputtr said:
that's great. any link for others who might be interested?
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What do you mean link for others? i ordered mine the day i posted.
Hamspiced said:
What do you mean link for others? i ordered mine the day i posted.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That was for Tenchuboy, not you.
He claimed he got a set that was cheaper and all that, so I asked a link so he can prove it. So far, complete silence from him.
OOOhhhhhhh....
i got it. i know i could make a set with the palm pixie stuff, i priced it out on amazon and total with a charging dock its like 20$... but i dont have the time to. im only actually home about 3 days a month. id rather be lazy..
Just an FYI i got my wireless charging kit from this company and it works great. Its a small device that attaches to the back of the stock battery. Its very small and it fits perfectly, very small buldge from the device but the back case fits on fine and my otterbox fits it perfectly.
the best part, it works with the stock otterbox. there were no issues with wireless charging whatsoever.
How is this one any different than any of the other wireless IQ receiver pads & chargers for the s3?
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747
That it works with all variants, doesnt require you to change out your battery door, although they offer a solution for it, and its pad and reciever for 40$

Who's Interested in a Auto Dock?

I'm designing a dock for the N7v2 for use in a car. It will have Qi wireless charging and Bluetooth audio receiver, with a standard 3.5mm audio output. It should be compatible with most cases.
I am also currently designing a mounting method that should be close to universal between different cars, and should not fall off like most other docks in the market.
I designed one for the N7v1 using the Pogo pins, and I can never go back to not having a dock for my tablet in my car. It's amazing the difference it made for me.
I want to know a couple things.Please reply with the following template:
1. Would you want a dock like this?
2. How much do you expect to pay for it?
Thank you everyone, in advance!
lorddralnu said:
I'm designing a dock for the N7v2 for use in a car. It will have Qi wireless charging and Bluetooth audio receiver. It should be compatible with most cases.
I am also currently designing a mounting method that should be close to universal between different cars, and should not fall off like most other docks in the market.
I designed one for the N7v1 using the Pogo pins, and I can never go back to not having a dock for my tablet in my car. It's amazing the difference it made for me.
I want to know a couple things.Please reply with the following template:
1. Would you want a dock like this?
2. How much do you expect to pay for it?
Thank you everyone, in advance!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sounds like a great idea. Do you have any links showing your work with N7v1? Heck, I may be interested in that version since the v1 tablet can be had for cheap these days and is more than capable for the limited functions needed in a car. At any rate:
1. yes, would be interested
2. no idea what a fair price would be, but $50-$100 seems like a fair ballpark
I would think very carefully why you need a wireless charger in a car.
Heat kills batteries; tablets in cars get hot. Why add heat to your woes?
The tablet is likely to be busy playing music and navigating, often in full sunlight. Why add to the heating problems by using a wireless charger when a 5v cord charger attached to the car supply will do the trick?
The wireless car mount/charger iterations for the Nexus 4 were a failure, I recall.
rant said:
Sounds like a great idea. Do you have any links showing your work with N7v1? Heck, I may be interested in that version since the v1 tablet can be had for cheap these days and is more than capable for the limited functions needed in a car. At any rate:
1. yes, would be interested
2. no idea what a fair price would be, but $50-$100 seems like a fair ballpark
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've attached 4 pictures of the dock I made for the first Nexus 7. You'll notice that it inst exactly a dock you can put in just any car. I realized I made a little too rugged... and big!
croques said:
I would think very carefully why you need a wireless charger in a car.
Heat kills batteries; tablets in cars get hot. Why add heat to your woes?
The tablet is likely to be busy playing music and navigating, often in full sunlight. Why add to the heating problems by using a wireless charger when a 5v cord charger attached to the car supply will do the trick?
The wireless car mount/charger iterations for the Nexus 4 were a failure, I recall.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, that's why I don't leave the tablet in the car, I keep it with me. While I'm in the car, if it's hot out I will have the A/C on anyways, so heat has not been an issue.
Most of my broken devices are dead because the USB port broke because of wear and tear. One of the points of this dock is to reduce that. Plugging in a device everytime I get in the car is partly to blame for such failures. I would have used Pogo Pins, like with the first Nexus 7, but they don't exist on the second.
Shared app developing ideas
Hey everyone,
my name is joseph and i am new to this website. I am also new to the whole rooting phones as well as i am learning the basics of computer science-- os, rom, ram, eprom, android, custom roms.....etc.
I honestly have no idea what i am looking to read and study up on so if you have any ideas than please let me know so i can educate myself. I end goal is to be a program developer.
Also i have an amazing ideas of a great new app. I have the layouts for the app but don't have the knowledge to build the app myself. If you are interested in learning more about my idea and possibly collaberate pleae let me know and we can possibly exchange numbers.
Another thing, i am an inventor and creator.
-----trickyspartan
lorddralnu said:
Most of my broken devices are dead because the USB port broke because of wear and tear. One of the points of this dock is to reduce that.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Look at active Brodit car mounts - say for a Nexus 4. There the device is supported and aligned as it glides onto or off the USB. There is no possibility of twisting or yawing.
I think your proposal maybe over-kill - simplest solutions are always best IMHO. A guy in the Nexus 4 forum came to no good end and had a lot of unhappy 'subscribers'. Just saying.
croques said:
Look at active Brodit car mounts - say for a Nexus 4. There the device is supported and aligned as it glides onto or off the USB. There is no possibility of twisting or yawing.
I think your proposal maybe over-kill - simplest solutions are always best IMHO. A guy in the Nexus 4 forum came to no good end and had a lot of unhappy 'subscribers'. Just saying.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would normally agree. I was hoping to make one that doesnt require a case to be removed to use. I designed my previous dock the way you describe (except it used the Pogo pins on the side), but I always had to remove the case and eventually the first case was showing signs of damage from being removed so often.
My hope is that the base platform of the dock I want to build will be compatible with multiple models of smartphones and tablets that are Qi capable. That'll require a lot more planning, but may be worth it.
lorddralnu said:
.
My hope is that the base platform of the dock I want to build will be compatible with multiple models of smartphones and tablets that are Qi capable. That'll require a lot more planning, but may be worth it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well if you're set on the route you've described; ... I see you've picked up on the Peltier pump in another thread. Credit me somewhere if you make it!
But I might consider an approach made by Philips in an Android Bluetooth Speaker and dock. The adjustment for USB and its placement on an edge, plus 180 degree rotation needed for some models, was catered for physically. A much cheaper approach which copes with tablets and phones!
croques said:
Well if you're set on the route you've described; ... I see you've picked up on the Peltier pump in another thread. Credit me somewhere if you make it!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think I will use a Peltier pump. And yes, I'll make sure you get credit for that idea I'll mount the transmitting coil onto the cold side (probably with a layer of copper in between, we'll try several things) and have the hot side of the pump mounted to the aluminum/sheet metal of the back plate (probably with thermal paste as well). I'll have the pump on a simple thermostat. Good thing I have an EE helping me with this project
Hopefully the final product won't need a Peltier pump, but I will definitely have it in the prototype.
croques said:
But I might consider an approach made by Philips in an Android Bluetooth Speaker and dock. The adjustment for USB and its placement on an edge, plus 180 degree rotation needed for some models, was catered for physically. A much cheaper approach which copes with tablets and phones!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I haven't had very good experiences with using that type of dock The results of daily use tend to be USB ports that are stretched and loose. At least that's how it has been in my experience.
lorddralnu said:
I'll mount the transmitting coil onto the cold side (probably with a layer of copper in between, we'll try several things) and have the hot side of the pump mounted to the aluminum/sheet metal of the back plate (probably with thermal paste as well). I'll have the pump on a simple thermostat. Good thing I have an EE helping me with this project
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Don't forget to talk to your EE about eddy current loses in any conductors (copper, aluminium) you have nearby to your induction coil.
Interesting read, but with the cooler this is going to be a very expensive dock. Without it, look to Canada for your market.
I rigged up one for my Nexus 4 last Winter. Based on some testing, I used the most efficient charger I could find for that phone (the LG wcp-700). It worked very well... until late spring when the mercury broke 70. To make a long story short, I pulled it last month as the phone was getting too hot. This in a suv with a 4 liter v6 with plenty of air conditioning, front and rear.
Without the cooler, the tablet needs to be located directly in front of a vent, or even in moderate climates the unit will get hot enough to significantly reduce charging current.
One more thing to consider... the Nexus 7 is polarized vertically. This means that it is invisible in landscape orientation for anyone wearing polarized driving glasses, which I am willing to bet is a large percentage of your prospective market (tech savvy, auto enthusiasts). Most displays designed for vehicles are polarized at 45°, making this not such an issue.
While the tinkerer, software developer, and electronic geek in me wanted a fully integrated tablet in my truck, I soon came to the conclusion that it was simply not practical. What is really needed is a properly done appRadio, where a head unit can mirror the display of a mobile device (ideally wirelessly - miracast, etc.) with a control link set up to pass touches on the head unit back to the mobile device. We're about 30% there now, but a lack of standards, and major players wanting proprietary solutions is a problem.
I wish you much success with your endeavor, but just wanted to share my experience and feelings that this will not be all that marketable a product.
The problems you had with the nexus 4 does not necessarily effect the nexus 7. The nexus 4 was pretty terrible at wireless charging. I had a car setup with a qi charger with the lumia 920 and it worked great even in hot weather. I am not saying the nexus 7 will work, but it might.
Sent from my HTC One using xda app-developers app
txaggies07 said:
The nexus 4 was pretty terrible at wireless charging.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What makes you say that? I ask as I have seen relatively similar performance with both the N7 and N4. The tricky thing about the N4 is that the coil is not centered in the vertical dimension, so for folks making the assumption that it is, there will be quite a bit of offset.
Solutions Etcetera said:
What makes you say that? I ask as I have seen relatively similar performance with both the N7 and N4. The tricky thing about the N4 is that the coil is not centered in the vertical dimension, so for folks making the assumption that it is, there will be quite a bit of offset.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I say that because of all the issues people had with car docks. It also had issues with the dt-900 qi chargers when it shouldn't have. It heated up excessively with most chargers.
I wonder if there will be an Official dock that lets you:
1. Charge
2. Expand TV HDMI out
3. USB port for Hard drive access
I really want the Nexus & FHD to be a Home entertainment player...may be a remote/ Or Kinect like gesture control app built in with the dock
Hope this comes true...it will be the best Combo for a home unit!

Owl Carpad

I was looking for a Qi compatible cardockingstation and i found the Owl Carpad, it looked good and was according the site compatible with the nexus 4, now the question: will it work with a Nexus 5? i found different stories all over the internet, has enyone tried it?
Because i'm a new forummember i can't place a link here..
Or do you recommend a different carmount?
Also i was thinking of placing a NFC-sticker on the inside of the charger so that if i place my phone it will automaticly start my navigation, bluetooth an spotify but will it work? because of the field generated by the charging.
Tomorrow i will be replacing my N4 with a N5!!!(Sorry i'm just happyXD)
Sorry i my grammar isn't wat it's supposed to be
i believe as long as it states Qi, that it will be compatible. Qi is a universal standard so it should work with all Qi compatible devices.
envizion58 said:
i believe as long as it states Qi, that it will be compatible. Qi is a universal standard so it should work with all Qi compatible devices.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok true, but the location of the coil for charging is lacated different to the nexus 4 i think, of it's a couple of mm to hight i won't charge i'm affraid
Check their site, they have an upgrade pcb you can install.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk
There was alot of talk about this in the Nexus 4 forums, and one of the devs was acting as a US distrobutor of sorts as well to help save on shipping costs. Someone over there probably has a Nexus 5 by now and could probably answer your questions with first hand knowledge.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2029734
KevinWolfs said:
I was looking for a Qi compatible cardockingstation and i found the Owl Carpad, it looked good and was according the site compatible with the nexus 4, now the question: will it work with a Nexus 5? i found different stories all over the internet, has enyone tried it?
Because i'm a new forummember i can't place a link here..
Or do you recommend a different carmount?
Also i was thinking of placing a NFC-sticker on the inside of the charger so that if i place my phone it will automaticly start my navigation, bluetooth an spotify but will it work? because of the field generated by the charging.
Tomorrow i will be replacing my N4 with a N5!!!(Sorry i'm just happyXD)
Sorry i my grammar isn't wat it's supposed to be
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey, I live in Korea so I got mine real quick. I ordered the Nexus 5 bundle kit where they sent a desktop QI charger, the car QI charger with both suction and vent mounts. They've both been great, but also keep in mind I've only had them for a few hours. My daily commute is about 30 minutes so I'll get a better feel of the car dock in the coming weeks. The Nexus 5 slides/clips in real smooth and easy and is easy to get out. We'll see how it holds up to bumps and whatnot.
I've read some people saying it cuts off charging at around 90%, so I'll be testing that plus how it holds up with navigation software running. For my purposes, I don't really expect it to charge the battery while running navi, but at the very least, to prevent drain. So far, I like.
dipson626 said:
Hey, I live in Korea so I got mine real quick. I ordered the Nexus 5 bundle kit where they sent a desktop QI charger, the car QI charger with both suction and vent mounts. They've both been great, but also keep in mind I've only had them for a few hours. My daily commute is about 30 minutes so I'll get a better feel of the car dock in the coming weeks. The Nexus 5 slides/clips in real smooth and easy and is easy to get out. We'll see how it holds up to bumps and whatnot.
I've read some people saying it cuts off charging at around 90%, so I'll be testing that plus how it holds up with navigation software running. For my purposes, I don't really expect it to charge the battery while running navi, but at the very least, to prevent drain. So far, I like.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you. Will be keeping n eye on your reports. :thumbup:
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
dipson626 said:
Hey, I live in Korea so I got mine real quick. I ordered the Nexus 5 bundle kit where they sent a desktop QI charger, the car QI charger with both suction and vent mounts. They've both been great, but also keep in mind I've only had them for a few hours. My daily commute is about 30 minutes so I'll get a better feel of the car dock in the coming weeks. The Nexus 5 slides/clips in real smooth and easy and is easy to get out. We'll see how it holds up to bumps and whatnot.
I've read some people saying it cuts off charging at around 90%, so I'll be testing that plus how it holds up with navigation software running. For my purposes, I don't really expect it to charge the battery while running navi, but at the very least, to prevent drain. So far, I like.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you, do you have a link where i can order one? i don't see it on the official website?
I'm seriously considering designing and 3D printing car dock with USB in it so you can just drop your phone in. Not enough of such products... None in fact.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
undercover said:
I'm seriously considering designing and 3D printing car dock with USB in it so you can just drop your phone in. Not enough of such products... None in fact.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah but wireless is a bit nicer, in the car and you will not make the dock work the first time, you wil spend hours drawing, printing and fitting, and i will probably look not as nice.
I just ordered the nexus 5 charging pack from Owl, it was €80, with taxes from Holland it's €100 for 2 wireless chargers what is a lot of money, i sure hope the Qi standard will work with my next devicesXD
KevinWolfs said:
Yeah but wireless is a bit nicer, in the car and you will not make the dock work the first time, you wil spend hours drawing, printing and fitting, and i will probably look not as nice.
I just ordered the nexus 5 charging pack from Owl, it was €80, with taxes from Holland it's €100 for 2 wireless chargers what is a lot of money, i sure hope the Qi standard will work with my next devicesXD
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Oh, I can make things look nice, worry not. It is a lot of work to design it though.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
KevinWolfs said:
Thank you, do you have a link where i can order one? i don't see it on the official website?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Here's the main site (all in Korean): http://owllus.net/index.php
I did everything in Korean, but now that you asked, I dug a little deeper, and I found this: http://owllus.com/
If you go to the top, you'll see the different options, the ~/all is what you want. I like it so far, but still too early to make a final call. Let me know if you have any questions! Happy to help.
[Edit: Oops, I just saw that it said you already ordered one. If case anyone else was wondering, here you are.]
dipson626 said:
Here's the main site (all in Korean): http://owllus.net/index.php
I did everything in Korean, but now that you asked, I dug a little deeper, and I found this: http://owllus.com/
If you go to the top, you'll see the different options, the ~/all is what you want. I like it so far, but still too early to make a final call. Let me know if you have any questions! Happy to help.
[Edit: Oops, I just saw that it said you already ordered one. If case anyone else was wondering, here you are.]
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'll be very interested in your report - if it works OK I'll get one, but I can wait a week or 2 to see how those of you who have one go with it.
I've had one for the Nexus 4 for almost a year now. I'll be getting my Nexus 5 tomorrow so I can update you guys.
I've used the Owl Carpad with my N4 for the past 6 months or so and while it works okay as a wireless charger, it doesn't quite cut it as a car dock. With constant screen-on with nav running it could not increase charge and even lost charge most times unless the phone was completely idle. On longer trips with music streaming and nav running (Waze or Google Nav) I would have to kill the screen constantly to cut battery drain.
Regardless of that, my N4 Owl Carpad does not work with the N5 due to the coils being aligned differently between the phones, something to keep in mind with any wireless charger which doesn't allow for adjusting placement of the phone -Tylt, Nokia Dt-910, etc.
I love wireless charging at the home and office but I haven't seen a mobile solution yet which can stand up to the intensive battery drain phones experience while used as a HUD while driving. My 2cents.
dwaltuberalles said:
I've used the Owl Carpad with my N4 for the past 6 months or so and while it works okay as a wireless charger, it doesn't quite cut it as a car dock. With constant screen-on with nav running it could not increase charge and even lost charge most times unless the phone was completely idle. On longer trips with music streaming and nav running (Waze or Google Nav) I would have to kill the screen constantly to cut battery drain.
Regardless of that, my N4 Owl Carpad does not work with the N5 due to the coils being aligned differently between the phones, something to keep in mind with any wireless charger which doesn't allow for adjusting placement of the phone -Tylt, Nokia Dt-910, etc.
I love wireless charging at the home and office but I haven't seen a mobile solution yet which can stand up to the intensive battery drain phones experience while used as a HUD while driving. My 2cents.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm actually toying with the idea (working with several ideas actually, this is just one) of picking up the Owlpad and swapping out the half bridge coil most of these qi chargers use for a full bridge and balance out the power to increase output slightly so that I can actually charge the phone effectively under heavy load. If I end up doing it then I'll obviously post a tutorial and required items, but it feels like there's a really weak spot in the market for effective qi car chargers. Either that or I'll crack it open and adjust the coil positioning for the N5 and use the new board they offer to make it work with the N5 and offer a tutorial for that. We'll see, still exploring ideas and seeing which ones come out on top for time vs. cost of materials.
I like the mount for the owl pad but the charger is worthless. It overheats the phone unless mounted over a vent and only slows the drain if navigation is on along with the screen.
I was trying to find a small charger I can tear down and insert into the owl pad mount. I know that they offer a new PCB but there's no way I'm going to give them more money for their crap.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
I've had the Owl CarPad for over a week now and after seeing some other complains and comments and running my own tests, I've come to the conclusion that it's perfect for me. For my uses, it's exactly what I want.
Mount: Excellent
The phone is super easy to slip in and out of the holder. Being able to get my phone in and out with one had was really important for me. With my old car mount, I always had to lean over and use two hands.
Performance: Acceptable
As others have said, and as they say on their blog, with navigation running and screen at 100%, the phone does lose charge, but a lot slower than it would without any sort of charge of course. I find this acceptable because:
1) A byproduct of wireless charging is wasted energy in the form of heat. I've used four different QI chargers now, and only two have been able to increase the battery's charge while still running navigation software. The problem? While using both of those chargers, the phone heated up to about 47 Celsius. Not good. Using the CarPad, the highest I've seen it go is 42. Still high, but when running navigation + USB charging, it got up to 39, so I'm okay with that. I'm sure the CarPad could probably charger faster to prevent drain, but that would get way too hot.​
2) I use navigation about once a month at most. The main reason I wanted this car dock was for convenience. My daily commute is about one hour each way, so it's nice to keep the phone topped off. I opened it up and added an NFC sticker to the inside so that it turns on Play Music and Bluetooth when I slide it in the dock. So, 99% of the time, I'm just using my phone to stream music to my car stereo, and the CarPad is able to charge my phone while that's going on. I still have the old USB charger from my GNexus, so I can use that in a pinch. Again, I'm okay with this.​
Conclusion: I like it; I'm happy.
I've used a few other QI car mounts (borrowed from friends, didn't spend/waste money), and this is the best one I've come across. I think the customer service I've received has also been excellent. Due to time zone differences, it may be about 24~48 hours before hearing back, but they're happy to answer any questions and concerns you have. I can see why some people have complained about the charging performance of the Owl products, but for what I use it for, it's perfect.
Quick Edit: Forgot to add, they do have an upgraded version they send you for the Nexus 5. It's not the same internals as the one for the Nexus 4.
dipson626 said:
I've had the Owl CarPad for over a week now and after seeing some other complains and comments and running my own tests, I've come to the conclusion that it's perfect for me. For my uses, it's exactly what I want.
Mount: Excellent
The phone is super easy to slip in and out of the holder. Being able to get my phone in and out with one had was really important for me. With my old car mount, I always had to lean over and use two hands.
Performance: Acceptable
As others have said, and as they say on their blog, with navigation running and screen at 100%, the phone does lose charge, but a lot slower than it would without any sort of charge of course. I find this acceptable because:
1) A byproduct of wireless charging is wasted energy in the form of heat. I've used four different QI chargers now, and only two have been able to increase the battery's charge while still running navigation software. The problem? While using both of those chargers, the phone heated up to about 47 Celsius. Not good. Using the CarPad, the highest I've seen it go is 42. Still high, but when running navigation + USB charging, it got up to 39, so I'm okay with that. I'm sure the CarPad could probably charger faster to prevent drain, but that would get way too hot.​
2) I use navigation about once a month at most. The main reason I wanted this car dock was for convenience. My daily commute is about one hour each way, so it's nice to keep the phone topped off. I opened it up and added an NFC sticker to the inside so that it turns on Play Music and Bluetooth when I slide it in the dock. So, 99% of the time, I'm just using my phone to stream music to my car stereo, and the CarPad is able to charge my phone while that's going on. I still have the old USB charger from my GNexus, so I can use that in a pinch. Again, I'm okay with this.​
Conclusion: I like it; I'm happy.
I've used a few other QI car mounts (borrowed from friends, didn't spend/waste money), and this is the best one I've come across. I think the customer service I've received has also been excellent. Due to time zone differences, it may be about 24~48 hours before hearing back, but they're happy to answer any questions and concerns you have. I can see why some people have complained about the charging performance of the Owl products, but for what I use it for, it's perfect.
Quick Edit: Forgot to add, they do have an upgraded version they send you for the Nexus 5. It's not the same internals as the one for the Nexus 4.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How long did it take to ship? I received my shipping conformation last week, but haven't been able to pull up any tracking information.
Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk 4
undercover said:
I'm seriously considering designing and 3D printing car dock with USB in it so you can just drop your phone in. Not enough of such products... None in fact.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
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KevinWolfs said:
Yeah but wireless is a bit nicer, in the car and you will not make the dock work the first time, you wil spend hours drawing, printing and fitting, and i will probably look not as nice.
I just ordered the nexus 5 charging pack from Owl, it was €80, with taxes from Holland it's €100 for 2 wireless chargers what is a lot of money, i sure hope the Qi standard will work with my next devicesXD
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Why not design a holder that the LG pucks can sit in then you will have wireless and a holder.

car accesories?

i opened this thread for discussion about car accesories for the pixel 3.
i'm specially interested in a dual 12v charger (one slot good for the pixel 3, another for standard usb smartphones); and too i'm looking for a phone holder.
anyone having experience with any of these?
miguelAr52 said:
i opened this thread for discussion about car accesories for the pixel 3.
i'm specially interested in a dual 12v charger (one slot good for the pixel 3, another for standard usb smartphones); and too i'm looking for a phone holder.
anyone having experience with any of these?
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I use this one from Aukey. It's half the price of the Anker.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01E764DXM/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1
And no distracting LEDs
I'm using this one from wicked chili.
Looks sleek in my opinion and has just a minor LED. Also not that expansive.
https://www.amazon.de/dp/B07CQSHMJ2/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_EPFeCb8FFDQVE
May be just interesting for Europeans, don't know if it's available in the US
Gesendet von meinem Pixel 3 mit Tapatalk
I'm using one of these: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071WYF9HP
And one of these: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07D9FYBMJ
Liked the combination so much that I bought another set for my other car. They go on sale all the time, so I'd recommend waiting so you don't have to pay full price.
I grabbed this one:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07GZ78R6D/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
since I've had good luck with other Anker accessories
Looking for a BT system that doesn't have the 1-2 second delay like the one built into the car.
USB Type C Car Charger, Nekteck 5.4A USB-C Car Charger Adapter with Integrated Built-in Type-C 3.1 Cord for Google Pixel 3 2/ XL, Galaxy S9/ S9 Plus/Note 8/ S8/ S8 Plus More, Black - Coiled Cord https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01CH9NEM2/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_m.vfCbV0RKYPA
That's the best car charger I could find. Built in coiled USB C cable (for compactness/neatness) with a regular USB slot to charge additional devices when needed.
Got one of these in mine and the wife's cars and they've worked great since my Nexus 5x days.
Looking for a cable usb a to usb c works well (fast charges) in a qc 3.0 car charger for pixel 3. Any suggestions?
scoliosis said:
Looking for a BT system that doesn't have the 1-2 second delay like the one built into the car.
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I have been using this one in the MINI
https://www.amazon.com/Bluetooth-Re...r=8-6&keywords=roav+bluetooth+adapter+for+car
Are any of these fast charge compatible?
tony1208 said:
Are any of these fast charge compatible?
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You need something like this which had USB power delivery and QC3.0
GearMo 75W QC 3.0 & USB Type C... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07115BLPP?ref=yo_pop_ma_swf
Note10.1Dude said:
I have been using this one in the MINI
https://www.amazon.com/Bluetooth-Re...r=8-6&keywords=roav+bluetooth+adapter+for+car
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Thanks, I'll check it out and see how well it works.
scoliosis said:
Thanks, I'll check it out and see how well it works.
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I see that thing is BT 4.1. If it's low latency you're after, look for something that supports BT 5.0. Also if you're looking to use a BT receiver for music or the highest quality sound available right now, look for ones supporting both BT 5.0 and APTX HD.
miguelAr52 said:
i opened this thread for discussion about car accesories for the pixel 3.
i'm specially interested in a dual 12v charger (one slot good for the pixel 3, another for standard usb smartphones); and too i'm looking for a phone holder.
anyone having experience with any of these?
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Click to collapse
I saw several options in the thread, but any of them are from amazon. I personally prefer the source - China, where everything from amazon actually is manufactured. Just've got car charger with dual sockets - USB-A and USB-C. It cost me $4.99 at sale, now $6.99:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Baseus-30W-Dual-USB-C-PD-Quick-Charge-QC-4-0-Car-Charger-For-Mobile-Phone/32919769665.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.17524c4dQHBim9
It's Baseus 30W Dual USB C PD Quick Charge QC 4.0 Car Charger. Nicely packed (perfect as a gift). Checked how it works - perfect for Pixel 3 and Pixelbook. Tested both sockets, no surprises, it USB-С rapid charge, in USB-A just charge. It comes pretty fast - ordered Dec 29, delivered Jan 11. It's not overnight, but you know - time is money. About phone folder I use simple one, without any build-it charger for $1.59 or even $1.19 for weird color:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Car-Phone-Holder-Air-Vent-Mount-Holder-Pop-Universal-Holder-For-Phone-in-Car-Mobile-Phone/32883695237.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.27424c4dJZghQu
Pretty strong spring, good grip. Again, similar thing at amazon cost way more. This is why if I see something interesting at amazon, I search similar thing at aliexpress and almost always find exact the same thing at approximately half price. Hope it helps.
Agree with Che. Most things on Amazon are overpriced. There's pro's and con's to buying overseas though.
My biggest concern when going through stores like Aliexpress or Wish is quality and customer service (in case you have questions, received the wrong product, etc.) They either take a week or more to get back to you, or don't get back to you at all.
The other issue is the obvious one. Shipping speed.
Other than those things, I've noticed the reviews on those sites seem completely fake. There's a lot of the same type of comment, someone's verbatim, for certain types of products. As an example, check out the comments for bluetooth receivers on Wish. It's easy to spot if you look for it.
Now even with all these things considered and even if they're all true, it doesn't mean the product isn't worth the price. It also doesn't mean the product isn't a high quality one. But how do you really know what you're getting?
NoXion1 said:
My biggest concern when going through stores like Aliexpress or Wish is quality and customer service (in case you have questions, received the wrong product, etc.) They either take a week or more to get back to you, or don't get back to you at all.
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The customer service is actually pretty good. Only twice nobody answered my questions, but they just silently refunded in full as I requested. Mostly they reacted literally in hours. I've never tried Wish, I use only Aliexpress or other sites from Alibaba group (you can see list of them at the bottom of their page).
NoXion1 said:
The other issue is the obvious one. Shipping speed.
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Yeah, this is the real issue if you need something fast. Usually it is in a month, but in holiday season can be way longer (the worst case was 3 months, but I wasn't in rush). Again, as I mentioned - time is money. I was surprised this season - despite of warning of 60-day delivery, they delivered in less than 20 days (ordered Dec 10 2018, delivered before Christmas - wow!). Now many Aliexpress stores have warehouses in the US, so it can be even several days.
NoXion1 said:
Other than those things, I've noticed the reviews on those sites seem completely fake. [...]
Now even with all these things considered and even if they're all true, it doesn't mean the product isn't worth the price. It also doesn't mean the product isn't a high quality one. But how do you really know what you're getting?
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About quality and reviews - just use your common sense, like at ebay. As I mentioned, "if you see something interesting at Amazon" - so use Amazon's reviews to get a real review. The brandname at a gadget can be different, but remember OEM - they print whatever name you'd like, so if items look alike, they usually identical. Don't forget Google search, including image search. Also don't forget basic research of a seller - how long the store is active, how many positive reviews, what sort of negative reviews they have - some customers are just inadequate. Also positive reviews can be faked, negative - less likely. And. of course, you are right - it's easy to spot a fake one in both categories.
About returns - have never returned anything there, so have no idea how it works if it does. If something's wrong, a seller at Aliexpress in my case prefer to refund and leave you with a defective item. Once there was a shipping charge, so I discussed with the seller that issue and politely pointed that is illogical to pay for delivery of an non-working gadget and they agreed, refunding a half of the delivery charge, as I offered (I had two identical gadgets in my order and one was dead).
A little experience of interacting with Chinese stores - they value their names pretty much. They don't like to "lose face", so if you have a problem - contact them first instead of opening a dispute right away. Almost always we reached mutually acceptable solution. In case of Aliexpress, as I know, they have pretty strict policy there - if a seller hit 95% or less of positive feedback, Aliexpress will kick them out. This is why they are attentive, expecting your high (5 stars) feedback in return. It's better to lose some bucks, than whole business. Also keep in mind cultural differences - it's normal for a Chinese to see business relations as friend's relations. So don't hurt their feelings - it pays back. As everywhere.
Hope you are not bored to death by my long note.
NoXion1 said:
I see that thing is BT 4.1. If it's low latency you're after, look for something that supports BT 5.0. Also if you're looking to use a BT receiver for music or the highest quality sound available right now, look for ones supporting both BT 5.0 and APTX HD.
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Yeah I end up not getting it as Mazda actually made a retrofit kit available to enable Carplay and Android Auto in the CX9. So I went that route instead and it works really well now.
scoliosis said:
Yeah I end up not getting it as Mazda actually made a retrofit kit available to enable Carplay and Android Auto in the CX9. So I went that route instead and it works really well now.
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I don't blame you there. I'd much rather go with something that is built in than an extra box you have to plug into a jack and hide somewhere.

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