Are phone and tablet chargers universal?

donnajunkie

Charging my dads Samsung tab s2 has become very slow. I hear it can be due to the charger. I was wondering if it’s safe to try the charger from his Sony phone and just use the Samsung usb cable. If no how much will a Samsung charger cost?

SeduLOUs

Yes, a mini USB cable is universal.

donnajunkie

SeduLOUs wrote: »

Yes, a mini USB cable is universal.

And the charger?

SouthUKMan

Yes, chargers for Android based phones are universal to a greater extent. They all use the micro USB connector, and deliver 5V to the phone. You are very unlikely to cause damage by using a substitute charger.

The only thing that you really need to be aware of is the amp rating of the charger vs what the phone is expecting. For example, a larger phone with a high capacity battery is likely to have been originally supplied with a 2a charger, whereas a smaller phone might only have been supplied with a 1a or 1.5a charger.

Put simply, the higher the amp rating of the charger - the faster a phone will charge. Or to put it another way, if you try and marry together a phone with a high capacity battery with a low amp charger, then the phone is going to take ages to charge.

donnajunkie

SouthUKMan wrote: »

Yes, chargers for Android based phones are universal to a greater extent. They all use the micro USB connector, and deliver 5V to the phone. You are very unlikely to cause damage by using a substitute charger.

The only thing that you really need to be aware of is the amp rating of the charger vs what the phone is expecting. For example, a larger phone with a high capacity battery is likely to have been originally supplied with a 2a charger, whereas a smaller phone might only have been supplied with a 1a or 1.5a charger.

Put simply, the higher the amp rating of the charger - the faster a phone will charge. Or to put it another way, if you try and marry together a phone with a high capacity battery with a low amp charger, then the phone is going to take ages to charge.

Will the charger with my dads phone charge his tablet? Alternatively he has an iPad, can the iPads charger charge his Samsung tablet?

wunferall

Are phone and tablet chargers universal?

No.
Mine won't work in most places outside the UK, never mind the rest of the universe.
I'll fetch my coat shall I?


Provided the necessary connection on the item to be charged is the same (micro USB being the most popular but there are others) and that the charger itself is suitable then mostly yes, insofar as whatever requires charging should receive current and so charge up.
But (and isn't there always a "but") there are caveats.
A tablet may well require much longer to charge with a simple low-powered-type of phone charger for example, whereas a charger with suitable (higher) output would charge the tablet much faster.
Some of the more-recent smartphones (still using micro-USB) as another example have a fast-charge facility which only works if you use certain chargers.


Basically - if the connectors are the same then I would use it temporarily but in honesty a decent charger isn't much and saves hassle too.
ETA The iPad charger will work if you have the option to use a separate micro-USB cable rather than the proprietary Apple cable.

donnajunkie

wunferall wrote: »

Are phone and tablet chargers universal?

No.
Mine won't work in most places outside the UK, never mind the rest of the universe.
I'll fetch my coat shall I?


Provided the necessary connection on the item to be charged is the same (micro USB being the most popular but there are others) and that the charger itself is suitable then mostly yes, insofar as whatever requires charging should receive current and so charge up.
But (and isn't there always a "but") there are caveats.
A tablet may well require much longer to charge with a simple low-powered-type of phone charger for example, whereas a charger with suitable (higher) output would charge the tablet much faster.
Some of the more-recent smartphones (still using micro-USB) as another example have a fast-charge facility which only works if you use certain chargers.

Thankyou, please see my post that was made at the same time as yours.

donnajunkie

wunferall wrote: »

but in honesty a decent charger isn't much and saves hassle too.

Can you direct me to one. I struggled to find one online. Searches either came up with no results or it said please check it is compatible. Well how do you check that? Why can’t they just list what is compatible. Prefer a physical shop.

molerat

donnajunkie wrote: »

Will the charger with my dads phone charge his tablet? Alternatively he has an iPad, can the iPads charger charge his Samsung tablet?

Yes and yes. But the phone charger, if it is an old one, may only provide a slow charge

My best charger is a 2A one I got from Lidl, way better than my 2A Samsung POS ! Any USB charger will charge any phone or tablet that has a USB (of any form) input. The only ones you really need to check on are when the phones original charger is hard wired and / or the plug is not USB.

paddyrg

Yes they're safe to interchange if the cables fit (all designed around 5V and USB), however almost all manufacturers have gone beyond the minimum standards and so the only guarantee is that they can all be cross-compatible at that most basic standard (5V500mA, if you're interested). There may be more interchangeability beyond that, and you won't cause any harm, but you may not get the fullest experience.

First thing to do is to clean out all the ports just in case a bit of fluff is blocking a data line - the data lines are used to enable higher speed charging.

Next, I would start with a *GOOD* cable, as that's most likely what's failed. Good cables don't come from Poundland (actually they're not bad as they go, but not the best), you want slightly heavier duty ones (about £4 - http://www.properjob.biz/Charger_Cable_Premium_1m_Usb-M4279 are what I use and they're quality cables), and keep the cable shorter rather than longer (that linked one is 1m, I wouldn't go with longer). Cables tend to be the bits that get the movement, tugging, wiggling and wriggling, and a high capacity cable can be a little stiff through having fatter conductors, so be easier to damage/weaken.

esuhl

As above, assuming it's a USB cable you're using, any charger should work.

The official USB specification (v1.00 and v2.00) is 5V DC at 500mA.

Chargers often exceed 500mA so that devices charge quicker. Devices only draw the current/power they can use, so using a "high" power charger won't cause any damage. Using a "low" power charger just means that it will take longer to recharge.

The charger/plug probably has the current rating printed on it.

How old is the battery? Is it possible that it's starting to lose its ability to store charge, thus needing more frequent charging?