Kyros Car Charger?

Heya guys,

What do you guys recommend for a car charger for the Kyros? Even though I own 2 mini-usb car chargers, none of them allow me to turn on the tablet when its battery is completely drained like I can other devices. Is there a specific voltage minimum I should look for? Bought this as a video player for my daughter in my car.

Thanks for any help...

 

Power adapter says 5v - 2 amp. Standard cell phone chargers only put out around 5v - 850mA. It's not going to be able to push a charge into the battery or maintain what charge it has. You're going to need to Frankenstein something together if you want to do it cheap. Hit up a thrift store and find a car charger that puts out something as close to the 2A needed. I don't think it has to be spot on, but keep it on the underside of 2A. like... like say... 1.5A-2A range would be fine, but don't go over 2. Find another charger that has a plug that will fit the AC plug on the Kyros. Chop and splice (MAKE SURE YOU GET THE POLARITY RIGHT) and you should be good. Only cost you 2 bucks and some electrical tape.

If you want to get really lazy, click here.

Just need to find a plug that fits that bad boy and you're golden. Hell, who knows. That plug that it comes with might fit.

Just don't go and try to charge this thing through USB. I don't don't know if the chip could handle 2 amps coursing back in through the USB port....

Hope that helps.

 

The charger that came with the my Coby MID7015 delivers 5.2V per my multimeter.
I tried a RCA AH55N universal car adapter ($10 at Menard's). It has several connector pins, one small enough for my Coby. It also has several voltage settings, none 5V though! So I tried it set to 4.5V, which my voltmeter shows as 4.6V. The Coby's red charge light comes. At 23% battery strength it charged it to 28% but seemed to stall there, perhaps due to the 300mA output. The car adapter has a 6V setting but I didn't try it.
Another option is a 12V to 120V converter. Plug it into the car then plug the original 120V charger into that. 5V x 2A = 10 watts which is very small. I have a car 12 to 120 converter that claims 400 watts. It had no trouble hitting 98% for battery level. The car was not running so I didn't test long.
You can read your battery stats in "Spare Parts" -> Battery Information
I have a 120V USB power charger that delivers 5.1V and claims 2A. I'm thinking of creating a cable with USB to power pin since there are also car to USB adapters now.
Let us know what you do. Thanks.

 

As mentioned above, you can get a 120v adapter for your power outlet from any major retailer or online. I bought one from "best buy" last summer while on a road trip for $40. It has the 120v and 2 USB ports. I'm pretty sure you can get one much cheaper now. I was on a pinch and needed it then and there.

 

+1 for that.

Totally forgot about the adapter. And i have one sitting in my glove box, lawl. Walmart has them for around $15. My original suggestion is still viable, but a power inverter is a much safer way to go. They typically have a little fan built in along with some extra precautions/faults built in to avoid damage.

@Ridgeland: I'm pretty sure you are spot on about the charging coming to a halt at 28%. The charger just couldnt push more through into the battery.

 

Thanks for the information guys. I will try the ideas you mentioned and report back. I hope I can find the $15 option, because I really wanted this to be a DVD-player replacement and its turning out to be more expensive than I thought

1. http://www.amazon.com/DBTech-Portab...QFUM/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1294282737&sr=8-8
or
2. http://www.amazon.com/Capacity-Travel-Power-Inverter-Charger/dp/B00144KS6W/ref=pd_cp_e_1

Would something like that work?

 

Yes, those should work fine... But.....

You might want to go with a name brand. Why take the risk? They look great, but you never know. Mine is a black and decker and i paid something like 15-20 for it. It's been working like a champ for years.

This is the one i have.

Amazon.com: Black & Decker 100-Watt Inverter VEC1044BD: Patio, Lawn & Garden

 

Buy.com - Car Power Adapter for iPad / Archos 9, 7, 5, 101 / Coby Kyros / Zenithink / Augen Gentouch Tablets

 

Or this: Walmart.com: Stanley 100 Watt Plug Inverter: Auto Electronics
Looking at the 5V 2A Starmate adapters. They look close.

 

I think there is some confusion on electricity, voltage, current and Ohm's Law here. The most important thing is the voltage and it should be 5v or pretty close to that. My guess is since we're not talking regulated power supplies, it could be about 4.5 to 5.5v and it wouldn't make much difference. However, when it comes to the current rating, the power supply that comes with the Kyros is rated at 2A but we do not know what the Kyros actually *draws* from it's power supply. In reality, a 1A power supply with adequate voltage would probably work but just charge much slower whereas a 5A power supply *should* just supply whatever the unit draws. If the unit draws 2A, then a 5A power supply is more than adequate but *should* not hurt anything seeing the voltage remains constant. The power supply will only feed as much current as the unit draws from it. In other words, your house doesn't use electricity from the power company until you use things in your house that consume electricity.

That said, I will say that a 5V 500mA power supply may be so weak that when you connect something like a Kyros to it, Ohm's Law causes the non-regulated voltage to drop significantly and may not even be enough to charge the battery over a long period of time or even power the unit on. Likewise, if the Kyros doesn't have proper controls built in and is connected to a 5V 5A power supply, it could pull too much current and harm the unit or battery. Damage from the current rating is NOT very likely and if the power supply is worth a crap at all, it will supply the voltage at "up to" the rated amperage (whatever the unit draws). A power supply will typically just burn up if too high of a demand is placed upon the electrical current supplicant.

I can tell you the connector for the Kryros appears to be the same size as a Samsung WEP180 Bluetooth Headset charger. I have several of these. I have not tried to charge the Kyros with the car charger, but if I do, I will post the results here.

 

I bought the duracell pocket inverter from amazon, here's a link to the site

Amazon.com: Duracell 813-0291-07 175 Watt DC to AC Pocket Power Source Inverter: Patio, Lawn & Garden

This one got very good reviews and it's so quiet. I also like it because of the cord, I drive a cargo van, pretty basic so there's only 2 power outlets both near the steering wheel. The others tend to stick out and become a problem when steering. Hope this helps.

 

It worked!

The iPad requires 2.1A and can charge through a USB port. So the after-market starts selling 2.1A USB 12V car chargers. I got this one:
Newegg.com - Kensington K33497US PowerBolt Duo USB Auto Adapter & Charger for iPad/iPhone w/ Sync Cable
from NewEgg for $7.99 (after $10 rebate). That plus the cable I made as explained here:
http://www.androidtablets.net/forum...t/6206-hardware-usb-cable-charge-mid7015.html
and now I can charge the Kyros in the car without a DC-AC converter with fan that run a AC transformer that runs the Kyros. Just a small power plug and a cable.
My test today was about an hour of riding, playing on the Kyros while my wife drove (NOT using the Kyros while driving!) The battery went from 45% to 71%. Sounds like about the same charge rate I see at home from AC.

 

I just ordered a Duracell 813-0291-07 175 watt car inverter. I will let you know if it works on my MID7015.

 

I am going to pull the trigger on that charger...I will report back if the plug fits.

 

Just get a Kindle 1 "first generation only" car charger off ebay. I got one for like $3.00 shipped. Works fine.