Does the USB hotsync cable charge?

[ZeuS21]

Hello ... Bought a Zire 72, used .. it doesn't have a AC adapter. Just wondering if the USB cable when plugged into the computer charges the Palm? Because there are similar devices that plug into the usb connector and charge the device. Thank you

[Alan G]

Unoffically, yes, the Zire will "trickle charge" off of the USB port. However, it wasn't designed to work this way. You will get better performace from an AC adaptor. There may be a third-party cable, Belkin is just one vendor, which makes HotSync/Charging cables that will charge the Palm while it is connected to the computer.

Alan G

[jamesmicoff]

Yes! It's called RTFM

[zireboi]

I bought a cable off the internet (eBay) and which has one plug for the sync cable and one for the charger cable. the other end goes to my USB port. i'm almost 100% positive this cable does not have any IC built into it. there's a bulge where the power and sync cables meet and turn into the usb connection cable so it's possible there might be one there. i reason i suspect there isn't is because anytime i have it plugged in (both sync and power) the green light on the top just stays on. i left it over night and in the morning it was still on. i looked through the manual on the indicator light but all i got when it gives charging status. is it supposed to stay green all the time?

my next concern is with "overcharging". if this cable can't prevent the battery from overcharging what effects am I looking at? if i use just the usb connection to charge (i know it's a slow process, but i could just leave it on overnight) is it bad for the unit in anyway? the usb charging would prevent overcharge correct (since it uses trickle charge)?

[Mindfield]

1) Yes, the light stays on all the time.
2) No, it won't overcharge. The charger has its own voltage regulator that progressively reduces current draw as the PDA nears full charge, until eventually reaching a draw of about 50mA (trickle charge).
3) Yes, it will charge off the USB connection, though slowly. However, it will charge _faster_ if you plug both the sync and charge cables in than if you just plugged in the charge cable.
4) Any charger worth anything will have its own voltage regulator. They don't have to be large; a simple 7805 can be stored in a very small area.

[zireboi]

cool thanks, that helps a lot. i tried actually charging with just the sync cable but it didn't happed (i probably didn't wait enough). good to hear about that overcharge thing. is there any way of finding out how if it is trickle charging? i suppose just the "hotness" of the battery would let me know? i know when it's charging it gets just a little warm

[Mindfield]

It won't get hot. When trickle charging it's not drawing enough current to produce heat. Trickle charge isn't really designed to actually charge in the context of increasing the battery level, either -- it will in very small doses, but its primary function is to keep the battery at its current charge level (or put another way, to prevent it from draining, since all Palms that don't have NVFS must continuously supply a certain amount of current to the RAM in order to retain the data it contains)

[Medz]

I observed that my Zire 72 doesnt seem to charge through the USB when the battery's drained. Is this normal?