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Charging Galaxy Note 2 from PC or Mains?

B

Ballymoss

Android Expert
OK, here is the scenario; I got my Galaxy S3 in July, shortly after it was released, and soon after that a Samsung official Desktop Dock. I normally have the Dock close to my PC, plugged into a USB 3.0 port. It was all good.
Fast forward to 2 days ago and I got my Galaxy Note 2, and was pleased to find that it was a nice fit on the Dock.
However I noticed that it seemed to be charging incredibly slowly, and tonight I plugged it into the mains and was surprised to find it charged very fast. Reasoning that it must be the USB cable I plugged the GN2 cable into the USB port only to find that it still charged very slowly!
Based on this it seems that if I want to charge my GN2 quickly I HAVE to use the mains charger - presumably something to do with the big battery? Problem is my GN2 is white and I will have to connect the White cable/mains charger to my (Black) dock, which will look kinda silly and I cannot plug it into my PC.
For anybody thinking of buying a GN2 and a Samsung Dock this might be worth considering.
 
I just bought an LTE version on Monday and am experiencing the same situation... ie charging real slow on pc usbs and faster on main power.

Another thing I have noticed is that my new Note 2 eats up battery juice quickly. For example, fully charging the phone before bedtime and finding it at 65% in the morning.. Anybody else experiencing this?
 
I have never seen a phone charge fast, charging from pc connection. In my experience, ac adaptor charging is always faster. I'm assuming it's partly due to the ac adaptor having more juice to charge faster, whereas pc usb (even if a powered usb drive) isn't as powerful.
 
I googled this after I noticed it and it appears this is down to the fact that the GN2 mains charger is higher rated than previous chargers. The guy said that USB power fluctuates.
Edit* I just checked and the GN2 charger is rated at 2 Amps whereas the Galaxy S2 charger is just 0.7 Amps.
 
Ballymoss said:
I googled this after I noticed it and it appears this is down to the fact that the GN2 mains charger is higher rated than previous chargers. The guy said that USB power fluctuates.
Edit* I just checked and the GN2 charger is rated at 2 Amps whereas the Galaxy S2 charger is just 0.7 Amps.
Click to expand...

Yes, a world of difference. I keep looking at all my accumulated chargers, etc. and it's almost like I'm an apple user who is going to have to buy all new toys. ;)

I'm ok with that though; new toys, same connection.
 
Another interesting thing I have noticed - when I got my Galaxy S3 I read a number of complaints on the S3 forum about how, after being charged to 100%, the battery dropped down to 98% more or less immediately. However the Galaxy Note 2 doesn't seem to do that. It stays on 100% for about 30 minutes.
I would like to know whether anybody else can confirm this?
 
Ballymoss said:
OK, here is the scenario; I got my Galaxy S3 in July, shortly after it was released, and soon after that a Samsung official Desktop Dock. I normally have the Dock close to my PC, plugged into a USB 3.0 port. It was all good.
Fast forward to 2 days ago and I got my Galaxy Note 2, and was pleased to find that it was a nice fit on the Dock.
However I noticed that it seemed to be charging incredibly slowly, and tonight I plugged it into the mains and was surprised to find it charged very fast. Reasoning that it must be the USB cable I plugged the GN2 cable into the USB port only to find that it still charged very slowly!
Based on this it seems that if I want to charge my GN2 quickly I HAVE to use the mains charger - presumably something to do with the big battery? Problem is my GN2 is white and I will have to connect the White cable/mains charger to my (Black) dock, which will look kinda silly and I cannot plug it into my PC.
For anybody thinking of buying a GN2 and a Samsung Dock this might be worth considering.
Click to expand...

This is normal. PC USB is set to only charge at max...500mAh. This is incredibly slow but it's a built in protection.

Charge from the AC outlet always.
 
Basically you're never TRULY at 100%....your phone hits 100% then slowly drains to 90 before charging BACK up to 100. With smart charging there's no way to really MAINTAIN 100%...so though it may read that the voltage level is likely lower.

This is why you see quicker drops off of charger sometimes than others.
 
Ballymoss said:
Fair enough. So it is more of a quirk of how the SGN2 battery meter monitors the phone?
Click to expand...

Kind of. You're better off getting a good battery monitoring program like Battery Monitor Widget Pro Free. It will learn your voltages and do a better job of estimates based on use and averages.
 
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