Power2U AC/USB Wall Outlet

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Normally we don't cover stuff like this but the Power2U AC/USB wall outlet looks like it could be pretty handy to have around the home/office. Head on over to Overclockers Club for the full review.

Two things come to mind. I noticed Newer Technology sells this product in 2,10,20, and 100 unit packs, So I can see the Power2U lining the wainscot of conference rooms. Secondly, I am occasionally reminded that some folks actually shut their PCs off at night. So how does it charge? Well I ran my wife's phone to shutdown twice. I charged it once with a standard PC USB port and with the Power2U Wall Outlet. The results were comparable and within what I would call the margin of error. I left my review sample installed next to the microwave and found it to be a very functional and quality product.
 
Normally we don't cover stuff like this but the Power2U AC/USB wall outlet looks like it could be pretty handy to have around the home/office. Head on over to Overclockers Club for the full review.

Install these somewhere useful, and the USB ports will be broken within a month or two.

It is a whole lot easier to break the stupid little plastic tab in a USB port than it is to break an outlet when you brush up against it.

Give me a wall wart USB charger any day over this.

If this is used in a business, and the usb port breaks, you then have to coordinate with users around the office in order to cut power in order to replace it... unless you like replacing sockets with live wiring... not super fun.
 
Nice indeed. I wonder if you can plug in a dongle for more than one USB devices per port, seeing how the review says 3 times more power output than your standard USB charger adapter. I have too many devices to charge - Kindle Fire, AT&T Elevate mi-fi, my iPhone 4s, my girlfriend's Galaxy S3, one of our daughter's LG cell phone. We could just put a table by that socket to put our devices on without having to run around the house looking for which wall we plugged it into last. :-P
 
Install these somewhere useful, and the USB ports will be broken within a month or two.

It is a whole lot easier to break the stupid little plastic tab in a USB port than it is to break an outlet when you brush up against it.

Give me a wall wart USB charger any day over this.

If this is used in a business, and the usb port breaks, you then have to coordinate with users around the office in order to cut power in order to replace it... unless you like replacing sockets with live wiring... not super fun.

Use a dongle and then cap the outlet with an outlet cover to keep anyone from unplugging and plugging it all the time. Tape the charger cable to the dongle with an electric tape or glue it with silicone so users will only unplug from the device, not from the dongle.
 
Nothing like having a permanently connected 120V -> 5V transformer draining power... :rolleyes:
 
Zarathustra[H];1039132623 said:
Nothing like having a permanently connected 120V -> 5V transformer draining power... :rolleyes:

I note that the review mentions a spring-loaded switch in the USB port that prevents vampire draw when there is nothing plugged in.... Although the above dongle idea would invalidate that. Was that what you were referring to?
 
Is the draw all that much? What are we looking at? An extra $10 a year?
 
Zarathustra[H];1039132623 said:
Nothing like having a permanently connected 120V -> 5V transformer draining power... :rolleyes:

That and it's only outputting 200mAh? PASS!
 
Use a dongle and then cap the outlet with an outlet cover to keep anyone from unplugging and plugging it all the time. Tape the charger cable to the dongle with an electric tape or glue it with silicone so users will only unplug from the device, not from the dongle.

At which point...why not just leave the outlet an Edison grounded 120V and even bother with USB? The whole point I think is to make less ugliness and need to tote wallwarts...when in trying to safety against the inevitable you cause inconvenience, the whole point of the exercise is lost.

In my dept. we have wheeled media cabinets with big old cable snakes...and moreons wonder why the video to the projectors is flaky when you can look at the snakes and see bare copper wire in cables due to the cables being run over. If there is a point of failure, end-users will find it like a magnet and break it quickly.
 
OMG you have to open your wall plate to install it!!!! :eek:

I don't care if I remembered to turn the breaker thing off, I'd totally end up electrocuting myself by trying to install one of those things. :(
 
i love how buying it in bulk doesnt save you money at all.

they are still too expensive like 25 dollers per outlet, i been looking at this type of stuff for a while now.
 
These have been around for a few years now... Not really front page news.
 
My g/f got me a charger/caddy that plugs into an outlet and offers two outlets and two USB chargers. Similar in concept to what's here, except it sticks out a bit. That's not a problem since it's mounted in a nook in the entryway.

http://www.frys.com/product/6713765
 
https://www.thinkgeek.com/product/e81a/?srp=2

Almost the same price but each port provides up to 2100mAh as opposed to this one which does up to 200mAh. Really pointless submission, IMNSHO.

Sometimes, less is a better idea. If you can stand waiting for stuff to take longer to charge, it's not as hard on batteries to charge them more slowly and they generally last longer that way.
 
Sometimes, less is a better idea. If you can stand waiting for stuff to take longer to charge, it's not as hard on batteries to charge them more slowly and they generally last longer that way.

The phone takes what it desires, it does not have 2100mAh forced down upon it. You always want to have as much amperage as possible. The transformer will also run cooler when it's not 100% loaded.

Wall outlets themselves, if they had stickers for their ratings, would say "120v 15A"

Does everything you plug into it use 15A? No. But it's there if you need it. Devices draw what they need and only that. Draw more than what the transformer or outlet can provide? You trip a circuit or melt it down. 200mAh is essentially useless.

FYI: My phone won't charge, at all, if the outlet or port is incapable of putting out more than 500mAh. (750mAh was the magic number) I brought my old travel charger (for a different phone) with me because it was smaller and the phone's battery continued to drain overnight even though it said it was charging. The old travel charger was rated for 500mAh.
 
The transformer will also run cooler when it's not 100% loaded.

More than meets the eye!
baby-transformer.jpg


Wall outlets themselves, if they had stickers for their ratings, would say "120v 15A"

Does everything you plug into it use 15A? No.

It's an industrial strength hair dryer and I can't live without it!
5587768_std.png


But it's there if you need it. Devices draw what they need and only that. Draw more than what the transformer or outlet can provide? You trip a circuit or melt it down. 200mAh is essentially useless.

Jet Li did that too!
MV5BMjUzOTY5ODY0OV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTYwOTMyNDE5._V1._SX261_SY475_.jpg


FYI: My phone won't charge, at all, if the outlet or port is incapable of putting out more than 500mAh. (750mAh was the magic number) I brought my old travel charger (for a different phone) with me because it was smaller and the phone's battery continued to drain overnight even though it said it was charging. The old travel charger was rated for 500mAh.

My Dell Axim isn't as picky about the whole charging thing. As long as I plug in something that gives it power, it'll try to charge and the custom WinMo 6.1 ROM I loaded on it's *cue echo effect* Intel StrataFlash can sense the battery temperature. It spikes as it gets close to fully charged but not as much if I give it a more lamer-er charger. It's not my fault your phone is new and stupid. Get rid of that and go buy an Axim so you can be Skribbel-y too. :)
 
At which point...why not just leave the outlet an Edison grounded 120V and even bother with USB? The whole point I think is to make less ugliness and need to tote wallwarts...when in trying to safety against the inevitable you cause inconvenience, the whole point of the exercise is lost.

In my dept. we have wheeled media cabinets with big old cable snakes...and moreons wonder why the video to the projectors is flaky when you can look at the snakes and see bare copper wire in cables due to the cables being run over. If there is a point of failure, end-users will find it like a magnet and break it quickly.

I'm thinking behind a lamp stand or a night stand that'll table all of the devices, so you won't even see the outlet and dongle. I think each of us have our own ideas what we can do with this.
 
Did anyone see the spec sheet or RTFA?

I RTFA where it said 200mAh.

1LmHz.png


Now, if the spec sheet says 2A... that makes the article even more dubious as they say "These are the same charging specifications you will find as a standard USB port on your PC,..."

When the reality is 150mAh unnegotiated, 500mAh negotiated and no higher.
 
When the reality is 150mAh unnegotiated, 500mAh negotiated and no higher.

That changed in 2010 when the charging specifications were updated:

The Battery Charging Specification 1.2 of 2010 makes clear, that there are safety limits to the rated current at 5 A coming from USB 2.0. On the other hand several changes are made and limits are increasing including allowing 1.5 A on charging ports for unconfigured devices, allowing high speed communication while having a current up to 1.5 A and allowing a maximum current of 5 A.

That's from Wikipedia here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USB

It's really not a big deal either way because the ninjas can use the vibration from their electric guitars to inductively charge any battery instantly with the power of awesome. People who have disagreed and said that ninjas just carry around spare batteries and replace them when no one is looking usually disappear for unexplained reasons. So yeah, its electric guitar awesomeness.
 
I'd put this in my kitchen.

Wonder if I could ever USB connect my entire house, have one mass USB hub with connectors everywhere hooked up to my home server. Would be better then just power, but it would suck up more juice over time but at least give me connect options too.
 
I RTFA where it said 200mAh.

http://i.imgur.com/1LmHz.png

Now, if the spec sheet says 2A... that makes the article even more dubious as they say "These are the same charging specifications you will find as a standard USB port on your PC,..."

When the reality is 150mAh unnegotiated, 500mAh negotiated and no higher.

The article also says 10W. Last I did the math, 200 mA * 5.2 VDC = 1.04 W, not 10W. So, it's pretty easy to see somebody slipped and missed a 0.

Also, 2nd page of the article.

"DC Description: 5 Volt, 2000mA (10W) Duplex USB Charging Receptacle, With Integrated On/Off Safety Switch for USB Power"

Though, it's funny how people still think a shut down (not off) computer can't charge phones. Guess what, they can :)
 
I'd put this in my kitchen.

Wonder if I could ever USB connect my entire house, have one mass USB hub with connectors everywhere hooked up to my home server. Would be better then just power, but it would suck up more juice over time but at least give me connect options too.

Why in the kitchen?

And wasn't USB supposed to be a networking standard too when it was originally designed? I kinda vaguely recall reading something about how it was supposed to be magically able to act as a network interface between a couple computers for super easy file transfers as a replacement to like serial and parallel port direct interfaces.
 
Personally, I prefer breakout box type socket that attaches to normal wall socket. Simple to install and move if needed. I like the linked Frys one with the little shelf attachement, neat idea, I should get one of those next time I'm there.
 
Why in the kitchen?

And wasn't USB supposed to be a networking standard too when it was originally designed? I kinda vaguely recall reading something about how it was supposed to be magically able to act as a network interface between a couple computers for super easy file transfers as a replacement to like serial and parallel port direct interfaces.

Because thats where most of my USB stuff goes to die? durr.

Yea USB started as a point to point networking system, prior to being the defacto peripheral standard. I used it a lot to connect my systems together when I was swapping files right after a system wipe. All you had to do was plug it in with an OS and you would see the other computers hard drive. But later on this became insanely hard to do and I think MS just eventually blocked the USB P-T-P file sharing in their OS. Plus there was some problems attenuation and length of cables. Wonder if all thats fixed...
 
Hmm, I guess if you're going to be installing new outlet plugs in your house, why not this. But I couldn't see myself intentionally buying this because I wanted USB in a wall outlet. At least, in my house, wall outlets are not generally near where my devices would sit--they eventually plug into an extension cord or power strip--where you generally end up getting surge/fault protection as well.
 
I have the uSocket one in my kitchen next to our primary entrance. Pretty handy. But it won't charge my Nexus7 FYI...
 
Because thats where most of my USB stuff goes to die? durr.

Yea USB started as a point to point networking system, prior to being the defacto peripheral standard. I used it a lot to connect my systems together when I was swapping files right after a system wipe. All you had to do was plug it in with an OS and you would see the other computers hard drive. But later on this became insanely hard to do and I think MS just eventually blocked the USB P-T-P file sharing in their OS. Plus there was some problems attenuation and length of cables. Wonder if all thats fixed...

Wow, that's strange. I don't have much USB charging stuff, but it stays out of the kitchen. There are knives and foods and liquids and a cat that likes to randomly attack dangling wires. I guess the cat does that everywhere else too...

Anyway, USB can go out to 16 feet before it needs a repeater. There actually are signal regeneration cables too. I have some at my office that we bought to do...I don't remember what, but it required a really long USB cable. Anyhow, I haven't tried to network over USB ever. Though I know what I'm gonna do when I order stuff from Amazon next time.
 
Though, it's funny how people still think a shut down (not off) computer can't charge phones. Guess what, they can :)

Depends on the computer and BIOS.

My desktop always leaves its USB ports powered up, even when powered off, as long as the power cord is plugged in.

My laptop doesn't (presumably to preserve battery life).

Personally I'd prefer if the USB ports shut off when powered down. It's annoying that the super bright LED in my USB microphone stays on when the computer is shut down, and I am tired of unplugging it all the time...
 
I'd put this in my kitchen.

Wonder if I could ever USB connect my entire house, have one mass USB hub with connectors everywhere hooked up to my home server. Would be better then just power, but it would suck up more juice over time but at least give me connect options too.

USB has quite limiting distance restrictions (I think its around 15' but i could be wrong off the top of my head). However if you did want to do this seriously Extron sells something that would work for this. They are extenders that convert to Cat5 cabling and allow up to 450 feet. I use them at work and they work quite well. However, cheap they are not.

http://www.extron.com/product/product.aspx?id=usbextender
 
Install these somewhere useful, and the USB ports will be broken within a month or two.

It is a whole lot easier to break the stupid little plastic tab in a USB port than it is to break an outlet when you brush up against it.

Give me a wall wart USB charger any day over this.

If this is used in a business, and the usb port breaks, you then have to coordinate with users around the office in order to cut power in order to replace it... unless you like replacing sockets with live wiring... not super fun.

What about airport, i just flew from SLC to Detroit, and both airports had usb power stations, just like this.
 
Wow, that's strange. I don't have much USB charging stuff, but it stays out of the kitchen. There are knives and foods and liquids and a cat that likes to randomly attack dangling wires. I guess the cat does that everywhere else too...

Anyway, USB can go out to 16 feet before it needs a repeater. There actually are signal regeneration cables too. I have some at my office that we bought to do...I don't remember what, but it required a really long USB cable. Anyhow, I haven't tried to network over USB ever. Though I know what I'm gonna do when I order stuff from Amazon next time.

Well your cat seems to be devil reincarnate. But yea I use mp3 players and my phone in the kitchen all the time, outside too, but these plugs dont seem weather resistant either.

I'll try to wire my next house for usb drops as well as cat 5, see how that works.
 
Well your cat seems to be devil reincarnate. But yea I use mp3 players and my phone in the kitchen all the time, outside too, but these plugs dont seem weather resistant either.

I'll try to wire my next house for usb drops as well as cat 5, see how that works.

He is evil, but he's soooo cute too! *squee* I'll have to go find a pic or two to upload of him sleeping or something. I never knew such a cute little ball of fuzz could also be so sinister, but the cuteness makes up for it completely. :)

I wish I could do more wiring type stuff. I don't really like having everything on WiFi, but I don't wanna leave messy network cables everywhere and I'm pretty sure making those kinds of modifications to the inside of the apartment is a no-no. Powerline networking might be doable though.
 
I run cabling under the the baseboards in my apartment. Isn't that what the gap between the wall and the spike strip is for?

Use a fishtape and run it under the carpet to cross doors and halls.

Unless you have hardwood floors... then you're SOL.
 
He is evil, but he's soooo cute too! *squee* I'll have to go find a pic or two to upload of him sleeping or something. I never knew such a cute little ball of fuzz could also be so sinister, but the cuteness makes up for it completely. :)

I wish I could do more wiring type stuff. I don't really like having everything on WiFi, but I don't wanna leave messy network cables everywhere and I'm pretty sure making those kinds of modifications to the inside of the apartment is a no-no. Powerline networking might be doable though.

Having a hardline everywhere is awesome, more so then stupid wifi. What tomwisp linked is the answer and looks awesome.

Don't fall for thr cute ness of cats, its most likely plotting your death to steal your laptops.
 
Having a hardline everywhere is awesome, more so then stupid wifi. What tomwisp linked is the answer and looks awesome.

Don't fall for thr cute ness of cats, its most likely plotting your death to steal your laptops.

But I love the cute kitty and if he really wants a laptop, I'm sure he would just take one from me. I don't mind sharing with him. :)
 
But I love the cute kitty and if he really wants a laptop, I'm sure he would just take one from me. I don't mind sharing with him. :)

Cats don't share, if it did beware if all kitty porn malare on it our it will infect your network!
 
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