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Trouble Charging with Docking station

I purchased one of those docking stations with additional battery charger off ebay. However, for some reason the unit isn't charging the device when it's docked. Instead it loses power. I waited almost 2 months for them to finally ship the item now this. I was thinking it may be the 1.5ma adapter that came with it. My test this evening will be to plug up the regular charger in the mini usb port and see if that will charge the unit. Is anyone else having this problem? I was trying to cut expense by purchasing this unit instead of the more expensive ones sold on expansys for a little over $100 usd. I even went as far as implementing a 3.5 mm plug for audio (stereo) and this took quite a few hrs to do. Please give some feedback.

I have the same docking station you have. It charges my phone if I turn the backlight down, and dont run any data programs (gps, wifi or anything like that) If I run much of anything it will drain down. I attributed it to the charger cable that comes with it. Let us know how your tests go. I can voice for the xtra battery spot, it charges my spare in less than an hour from empty.

touchlasvegas said:
I have the same docking station you have. It charges my phone if I turn the backlight down, and dont run any data programs (gps, wifi or anything like that) If I run much of anything it will drain down. I attributed it to the charger cable that comes with it. Let us know how your tests go. I can voice for the xtra battery spot, it charges my spare in less than an hour from empty.
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Thanks for the reply bud. I said I'll try the OEM charger in the mini port first, and if that works then I'll buy a higher milli amp charger for it (maybe 3 ma). I did a nice little audio mod to it as I discussed and I'll take pictures later when I get in. I really like the unit and the great thing about my audio mod is that it doesn't broadcast my calls over my A/V receiver, it goes directly to my BT headset (conversations stay private), and once I hang up the audio goes back to the A/V receiver, so I can continue listening to my music. The mod only cost me about $3 USD for the necessary parts and some soldering and drilling.

Here are the pics of the mod I did. The Audio works fantastic. I converted the 3.5mm plug to stereo output and well placed too as the device just slide right onto the docking station without any trouble. Now my next task is to find a 3 ma adapter to use as a charger. For some reason even when I use the OEM charger in the mini usb slot the device charges, but does it very slowly as if it was getting the charge from the computer's USB connection, and the 2nd battery slot doesn't charge at all with this method. If anyone would like internal pics (not that they would help much as I've soldered and hot glued all the wires in the device for stability) I will be more than happy to upload some.

charging with cradle
Had the same problem before so I just plug both chargers into the unit. (Athena and cradle adaptor) It now charges abeit slowly with wifi and screen at middle illumination but fast if I turn the screen off( 20% to 100% in 2.5 hrs.). avoid plugging anything else to the usb or any ports while charging. It will grain your battery even if you are not using them.
Can you take a picture of the internal part of the cradle? The part where you installed the audio jack and rca sockets. This is where I am having problems. I find the space too small to install those you installed. Maybe you could give me an idea how to install the same in my cradle.
Another thing, do you think it is possible to put in another USB slot and/or a memory card slot? I'm going to the province(the provincial life here is like 1980's there in the US except for mobile phones and a few computers with limited internet access) and I don't want to carry arround so many gadgets and attachments with me. I have 2 4G usb drives, 16G cf and a 2G mini sd. I keep my file both for business and pleasure outside of my athena for safety. As much as possible, I don't want to attach an external usb hub as it drains my battery. I would rather have an internal hub and changing the led to something smaller to consume less power but integrate them to the cradle.
As much as I want to bring my laptop to the province, the size of my ibm x40 is still to big and heavy for me to carry constantly everywhere.

yetdy said:
Had the same problem before so I just plug both chargers into the unit. (Athena and cradle adaptor) It now charges abeit slowly with wifi and screen at middle illumination but fast if I turn the screen off( 20% to 100% in 2.5 hrs.). avoid plugging anything else to the usb or any ports while charging. It will grain your battery even if you are not using them.
Can you take a picture of the internal part of the cradle? The part where you installed the audio jack and rca sockets. This is where I am having problems. I find the space too small to install those you installed. Maybe you could give me an idea how to install the same in my cradle.
Another thing, do you think it is possible to put in another USB slot and/or a memory card slot? I'm going to the province(the provincial life here is like 1980's there in the US except for mobile phones and a few computers with limited internet access) and I don't want to carry arround so many gadgets and attachments with me. I have 2 4G usb drives, 16G cf and a 2G mini sd. I keep my file both for business and pleasure outside of my athena for safety. As much as possible, I don't want to attach an external usb hub as it drains my battery. I would rather have an internal hub and changing the led to something smaller to consume less power but integrate them to the cradle.
As much as I want to bring my laptop to the province, the size of my ibm x40 is still to big and heavy for me to carry constantly everywhere.
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I will upload some pics in a bit. I thought about putting in a 2nd USB slot, however now that you've mentioned the internal USB hub, you gave me a new task for tomorrow. I will go to Rat shack and try to find the smallest hub they have and take it apart and somehow get that bad boy to fit into the cradle. If you've researched any that's pretty small post the link and I'll take a look at it. Give me about 30 mins to upload some pics as I have to take the unit apart and stuff. Oh btw I had to strip the 3.5mm down to the bare metal from a cheap headset I had laying around.

The yellow plastic piece is where the stereo adapter is located. I had to shave down a piece of plastic on the insde that was kinda blocking the space. I also made sure that the unit was able to close properly. As you can see in the pictures there's no other wires for the unit to short out on and everything's secured properly with the hot glue, and some soldering.

Is the audio not availble via the usb plug? I was led to belive the usb to 3.5mm headphone adaptors work with the ameo? If this is correct and all the pins have connectors then the audio should be availble without adding a 3rd plug.
The genuine htc cradle does have audio out but looks like it only has 2 plugs so it must be possible?
I have just got a 2nd dock station from ebay to try and make my own 4 in 1 plug for charging, tv out, and hdd connection for the car. Does any one have the mini usb headphone adaptor and the ability to test for continuity between the headphone socket and the usb plug?
regards

delboydell said:
Is the audio not availble via the usb plug? I was led to belive the usb to 3.5mm headphone adaptors work with the ameo? If this is correct and all the pins have connectors then the audio should be availble without adding a 3rd plug.
The genuine htc cradle does have audio out but looks like it only has 2 plugs so it must be possible?
I have just got a 2nd dock station from ebay to try and make my own 4 in 1 plug for charging, tv out, and hdd connection for the car. Does any one have the mini usb headphone adaptor and the ability to test for continuity between the headphone socket and the usb plug?
regards
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Click to collapse
Those 3 in 1 adapters do work, however I did the mod to eleminate the need to carry around any extra hardware. I used the 3 in 1 adapter in the usb slot from T-mobile wing phone and it worked just fine. It has the 3.5mm slot, and 2 mini usb slots. But again I did it this way to eleminate the need for that. I'm currently in the process of finding a small USB hub that I can strip down from it's housing and fit it inside the docking station. I already located a 3ma adapter with variable voltage settings. This should be good enough to run all the components and charge the batteries at the same time. Let me know how your mod goes or if you need some ideas.

I was considering this: http://www.upgradenation.com/Tripp_Lite_The_ultra_small_4-port/U222-004-R/partinfo-id-551698.html USB hub to implement into the docking station. Let me know what you guys think, I will check the size when I get home to see if it will fit. I drew it to scale on a piece of paper just to make sure before I order it. Now keep in mind that I will be taking it out it's housing to get it to fit inside the unit, hence eleminating the extra load. Oh btw problem solved with the charging. Feedbacks please.

tootallk2000 said:
I was considering this: http://www.upgradenation.com/Tripp_Lite_The_ultra_small_4-port/U222-004-R/partinfo-id-551698.html USB hub to implement into the docking station. Let me know what you guys think, I will check the size when I get home to see if it will fit. I drew it to scale on a piece of paper just to make sure before I order it. Now keep in mind that I will be taking it out it's housing to get it to fit inside the unit, hence eleminating the extra load. Oh btw problem solved with the charging. Feedbacks please.
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Got a USB hub that may work. It's a hybrid. I also attached pics of how I modified my cradle.

yetdy said:
Got a USB hub that may work. It's a hybrid. I also attached pics of how I modified my cradle.
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I got in late yesterday, and wasn't able to check the size against the cradle. I see you have slots for a flash card reader on yours, the question now is, have you found a spot to fit all that in there? The size of the one I saw looks like it would work, but it doesn't have the card readers in it. I think that would be very ideal to have in there too. Let me see pics of the final product, if you can get it to fit, if you can't no biggy i'll just do without the card reader in it.

tootallk2000 said:
I was considering this: http://www.upgradenation.com/Tripp_Lite_The_ultra_small_4-port/U222-004-R/partinfo-id-551698.html USB hub to implement into the docking station. Let me know what you guys think, I will check the size when I get home to see if it will fit. I drew it to scale on a piece of paper just to make sure before I order it. Now keep in mind that I will be taking it out it's housing to get it to fit inside the unit, hence eleminating the extra load. Oh btw problem solved with the charging. Feedbacks please.
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Click to collapse
What was the solution for charging? Have you talked with the folks at gpsforless or HTC to see if they could fix there design, by using the designs that you have developed so far? Or are you interested in making a couple extra docking stations for a fee? Sometimes we have more time than money and other times we are starved for time... Lately, I have been starved of time...
Thanks for taking the time to develop a solution that I have been dreaming about, while on the road traveling, ect...
Part of the work around that I was using was BT audio recievers, they have been a great work around, but also have some limitations as well...
I look forward to hearing and seeing good things from you in the future
v/r
Bob

yetdy said:
Got a USB hub that may work. It's a hybrid. I also attached pics of how I modified my cradle.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Have you gotten any of the hubs to allow for you to power and recharge the device or spare battery via USB?

the usb hub works but it literally drains my battery so much that i prefer not to use it anymore.

xperia cradle ?

has anyone seen an xperia cradle for sale ? i prefer having my phone sitting in the cradle whilst at work so that i can see the calendar / appointments, etc.
i realise the fact that the mini usb port being on the side means that it's unlikely that the phone can be charged whilst it's in the cradle ...
has anyone spotted one ?

Haven't seen one. I'd also like this and it would be great if you could have an alarm clock similar to the new Blackberry Storm as seen in the link below.
http://blogs.eveningsun.com/AC/2008/10/blackberry_storm.html

I found a link to this one over at xperiax1.net
Cradle + extra battery charger

good spot !

really ugly though with the loose usb cable hanging out.
Has anyone seen something with a solid usb connector (i. e. side frame with connector on it to push the phone agains)?
I want something where I can just push/slide/drop/whatever the phone in with one hand and have it connected, and just pull it back out to get it back!

downloadtest82 said:
really ugly though with the loose usb cable hanging out.
Has anyone seen something with a solid usb connector (i. e. side frame with connector on it to push the phone agains)?
I want something where I can just push/slide/drop/whatever the phone in with one hand and have it connected, and just pull it back out to get it back!
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Yeah, I'm worried that with the position of the USB connector that it might not make cradle manufacturer's life easy for this phone. Is there president for a phone with a jack on the upper-side having a plug-and-charge cradle made for it?
I need to have a phone that can have a charge/stand that clicks right in.

i ended up buying the one in the link above. it's pretty lame if i'm honest but it's better than nothing ...
i can't see how any design is going to allow anyone to just grab the phone and remove it without having to wrestle with a connector at the side of the phone. annoyingly, there is only one input which (obviously) is the sync cable meaning that it's charged via my usb port rather than the mains (i.e it takes forever to charge ...)

we bought two of them, one is working one not. So we ordered directly by the manufacturer obo Hongkong and they arrieved yesterday. Both do not work! No connection to the PC! Error messages!

Hi guys,
I too was very suprised with the fact that I couldn't find any cradle which has a (as you call it) plug-in connection.
Enough reason for my to design and build one myself. I'm still in a very early stage of building, but I was wondering what would a cradle like that be worth for you guys, just to check if it would be furthwhile the make more than just one for myself.

They should just make a horizontal/landscape cradle that you slide out the keyboard and dock it like an UMPC. Honestly the vertical cradle looks hedious.
edit: just realized that's what the bb storm has. there you go.

mrdo said:
has anyone seen an xperia cradle for sale ? i prefer having my phone sitting in the cradle whilst at work so that i can see the calendar / appointments, etc.
i realise the fact that the mini usb port being on the side means that it's unlikely that the phone can be charged whilst it's in the cradle ...
has anyone spotted one ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
http://www.mobilefun.co.uk/product/17827.htm
Sorry for the repetition.

I'm with outie. The vertical docks look cheap and lame and don't show the X1 off to it's best, nor do they allow you to use phone the way it was intended.
We need a horizontal cradle that it can sit in with keyboard open like a real desk organiser. Hell, it even looks like Sony could have planned it that way by putting the sync connector on the bottom of the keyboard!

Got one directly from Brando (with spare battery). However it sucks ass. There are several kinds made by some OEM and it differs in number of ports. The Brando one has just one miniUSB input and the adapter just gives 1A. So you can only charge OR sync. So bit useless, as charging phone and battery through USB will take forever and charging phone and/or battery with that adapter would take also significantly longer, than the original CMU-20 and you cannot sync.
I saw one with two ports so you can sync and charge from your socket.. Wonder if mine can be opened and if it has also two ports, just hidden.
But hey, what do you want for 20USD?

Recharging Options

How are you guys recharging your HD2's? I've been relying on the USB connector at the bottom of the phone, but my concern is that after 'x' number of connects/disconnects that the socket will wear out as it started doing with my Kaiser.
Do you guys know of any pin-based adapter or battery hatch modification with external contacts that would enable us to lay the phone on a stand or platform without having to use the internal USB port on the phone which will eventually wear out? The 'powermat' would be great, but it's not available for the HD2. Does the new HTC car mount recharge the phone too, or is it just a bracket?
I'm thinking of something along the lines of how bluetooth headsets recharge, where the pins are external. It just worries me that the micro USB connector will eventually fail, which on a $700+ phone is not an attractive option.
Your thoughts?

The connector will not fail. At least unless you force/damage it yourself. It has been adopted as a connection/charge connector on ALL new phones now, of any brand, so you can bet they tested it thoroughly before.
If it fails.. well that's what the warranty's there for.
To answer the original question, I charge using USB, and also an external charger for my spares.

kilrah said:
The connector will not fail.
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I understand your point, but to my way of thinking it's still a physical connector made of metal and plastic. It will fail eventually, trust me. These connectors are tested to withstand a reasonable number of connect/disconnect cycles for the average user. But cell phones tend to get used more, and this phone among other cell phones because of the cpu and screen will need to be recharged even more so.
Also, I'm not talking about the point of failure, but the limit of usability. The connector on my Kaiser got to the point where the cable wouldn't stay lodged in the housing and would drop out of its own weight. Although it still worked, it made for awkward handling while in the car trying to use a coiled charging cable that would drop out on its own.
So what I was looking for was a replacement battery hatch which would connect with the internal contacts, and a corresponding mount/dock of some sort so that it would minimize the physical stress of multiple connections and disconnections.

BillTheCat said:
How are you guys recharging your HD2's? I've been relying on the USB connector at the bottom of the phone, but my concern is that after 'x' number of connects/disconnects that the socket will wear out as it started doing with my Kaiser.
Do you guys know of any pin-based adapter or battery hatch modification with external contacts that would enable us to lay the phone on a stand or platform without having to use the internal USB port on the phone which will eventually wear out? The 'powermat' would be great, but it's not available for the HD2. Does the new HTC car mount recharge the phone too, or is it just a bracket?
I'm thinking of something along the lines of how bluetooth headsets recharge, where the pins are external. It just worries me that the micro USB connector will eventually fail, which on a $700+ phone is not an attractive option.
Your thoughts?
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I just got the car mount today. It Does recharge the phone - there's a mini usb plug built into the bracket, and a lead plugs into the base of the bracket, and then into your 12v socket. A nice touch, the lead is actually long enough to be able to route it nicely.

ebeam said:
I just got the car mount today. It Does recharge the phone - there's a mini usb plug built into the bracket, and a lead plugs into the base of the bracket, and then into your 12v socket. A nice touch, the lead is actually long enough to be able to route it nicely.
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Thanks, but what I was really after is a solution that does NOT involve the USB port on the phone.

I've seen battery chargers on Ebay. That's probably the only sensible solution if you're really that worried about the USB connector...
I think I remember reading something about some sort of wireless recharging pad that you can put phones and mp3 players on that would recharge them without any cables but I've got no idea if it would work on the HD2 or if they are even on sale yet.

There was old HTC CU S400 car Update Kit. It has direct conection to the battery throug back cover http://www.slashgear.com/htc-hd2-cu-s400-car-kit-gets-priced-detailed-coming-december-1360143/#entrycontent. New mount have MicroUSB connection http://www.clove.co.uk/viewProduct.aspx?product=53E28901-63DD-4E93-99F6-BF3D0B88BD04

lachutm said:
There was old HTC CU S400 car Update Kit. It has direct conection to the battery throug back cover http://www.slashgear.com/htc-hd2-cu-s400-car-kit-gets-priced-detailed-coming-december-1360143/#entrycontent. New mount have MicroUSB connection http://www.clove.co.uk/viewProduct.aspx?product=53E28901-63DD-4E93-99F6-BF3D0B88BD04
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Click to collapse
Yes, the former is along the lines of what I had in mind. Just surprised that no aftermarket solutions have been developed for the phone to make it easier to charge without wearing out that micro-usb connector.

As the mini USB port is a standard size, (not just used by HTC) if you should ever 'break it', most phone repair shops will be able to replace it quite easily.
A lot less hassle than opening up your phone to plug things in the back.

Has anyone done this along with wireless charging?

Came across this thread from a google search. http://forums.androidcentral.com/evo-accessories/40342-free-very-cheap-diy-completely-invisible-phone-vehicle-mount.html
Has anyone heard of someone trying this with wireless charging as well? It would be cool if I could get that to work. Definitely more convenient than most mounts that are out without even built in charging. I also have a few old hard drives lying around so I'd only have to pay for the charger.

http://www.imagnetmount.com/products/imagnet-smartphone-mount/?id=1

Thanks for the link. That doesn't have wireless charging though and I can just use the hard drive magnets for free. Also by the way my car is, it probably will be easier to view the road and phone with it flat on the sloped dash I have (otherwise the phone will have to either block vision, vents, or the radio).

[Q] Wireless charging battery case?

I was wondering if anybody knows of a battery case that doesn't plug into the phone itself and make the phone longer?
I'm looking for a battery case that not only has wireless charging capabilities but also just charges the phone wireless-ly when you switch it on. I mean it's already touching the back of the phone so why not just put the coil right there? Of course, this may be inefficient and there may be heat issues, but just wondering if anyone has seen a case out there that is like this?
I don't know if such thing exists or doesn't make sense with todays tech but I think it would be cool.

I haven't seen one and I have looked at everything on amazon trying to find something that I like. I generally do not use a case on my phone, but I have been looking for a battery case for conventions / traveling. Funny thing is I do not mind the section on the bottom that makes it longer. If I could get a small simple case that had that extended bottom that forced the speaker to face forward I would get it. I hate how the speaker faces down.