Ask Slashdot: What Interesting Things Can I Power With an External USB Battery? 133
New submitter expert464 writes: I just purchased an external USB battery for the main purpose of charging smartphones. I've also thought of using it to power a USB lamp and charge a bluetooth speaker. What other things am I missing that would be useful and/or interesting to power when not near an electrical outlet?
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Of course... (Score:2, Informative)
recharge your vape
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I love this thing
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Just picked up a USB battery with a solar panel on one side...
I will vape after the fall of society, just have to figure out which warehouse has the juice in it
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Vape, trending terminology for Vaporizer, or electronic cigarette
The Juice is a flavoring in propylene glycol that may or may not contain nicotine (or thc in states where it is legal)
I have used to to quit smoking, and then to quit nicotine
The vapor has 99.9% less carcinogens than tobacco smoke, some recent research indicates that the nicotine version is less addictive than tobacco smoke since it does not contain secondary chemicals that act like an anti-depressant
Anti-smoking activists that make money from
Re:Of course... (Score:4, Informative)
Citation
"Existing evidence indicates that EC use is by far a less harmful alternative to smoking. There is no tobacco and no combustion involved in EC use; therefore, regular vapers may avoid several harmful toxic chemicals that are typically present in the smoke of tobacco cigarettes. Indeed, some toxic chemicals are released in the EC vapor as well, but their levels are substantially lower compared with tobacco smoke, and in some cases (such as nitrosamines) are comparable with the amounts found in pharmaceutical nicotine products. Surveys, clinical, chemistry and toxicology data have often been mispresented or misinterpreted by health authorities and tobacco regulators, in such a way that the potential for harmful consequences of EC use has been largely exaggerate"
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pm... [nih.gov]
A small 20m code xmitter (Score:5, Interesting)
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That does remind me...I should try to find a USB power cable for my Yaesu FT-60R....
Raspberry Pi (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Raspberry Pi UPS (Score:2)
I use one to provide reliable power to one always-on Raspberry Pi2. Had to test a selection of chargers, and not all work for pass-thru (often undervolt).
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I use this, for the pi:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/produ... [amazon.com]
get a 12v SLA battery (as you'd find in a computer UPS box) and that sits on one set of leads. your 14-18v filtered dc goes into thee main non-battery input, and you get one 'logic OR' output.
now, its either the battery voltage (12) or the input module voltage (could be 18v). so, I then pass that ups module output into a dc/dc to bring it down to a clean and reliable 5v for the pi:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/produ... [amazon.com]
this ensures you always always get 5v
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Yes, this will work but is a bit big. Just using a lipstick USB (18650 sized) is a very small, neat box.
Raspberry Pi (Score:1)
The Pi uses a microusb connector for power, so now you can make your tiny computer a portable one.
Picture Frame (Score:5, Interesting)
For a stimulating usage... (Score:3, Funny)
...there are USB powered vibrators.
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Surprised that there is only one post pointing this out. Non-crap manufacturers typically make them rechargeable, as opposed to filling landfills with used alkaline cells.
What, why are you looking at me like that?
--
BMO
(it says "submit" on the button. yes, oh yes.)
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You'll appreciate this, then:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?... [youtube.com]
Let's hope the OP never discovers the USB power strips, or he'll have 6x more problems in his life...
BlinkyTape or a similar LED installation (Score:4, Interesting)
You could look into LED decoration. For example, BlinkyTape [blinkinlabs.com] - a LED strip with an attached Arduino-compatible controller.
It can be just decoration, or you can use it for light painting.
Of course, you can build your own LED-based contraption.
Hmm (Score:4, Funny)
A vagal nerve stimulator.
Quadcopter (Score:3, Informative)
Let me Google that for you... (Score:3)
A one can fridge:
http://www.kleargear.com/usb-refrigerator-desktop-12131.html [kleargear.com]
Something that looks like the Borg got you:
http://www.kleargear.com/usb-head-massage-12527.html [kleargear.com]
This I really like for the voltage detection:
http://www.craftsman.com/shc/s/p_10155_12602_00919337000P?sid=IDxCMDFx20140801x001&KPID=00919337000&kpid=00919337000 [craftsman.com]
And this is along the same lines:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00O13K9JY?tag=price106300d-20&m=ATVPDKIKX0DER [amazon.com]
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You wouldn't happen to know if that 4V max screwdriver is powered by an 18650 would you? if so I might consider buying one
KlearGear? Not a place you want to buy from (Score:2)
KlearGear is a terrible, horrible, no-good bunch of a$$holes. They used to have a clause in their customer agreement "allowing" them to bill customers $3,500 if they left a bad review. They billed some customers that wrote a nastygram on ripoffreport. When the customers (understandably) ignored the bogus bill (the bogus clause didn't even exist when the customers made their purchase), it was sent to collections and dutifully reported on the customer's credit report.
When the customers sued, KlearGear igno
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Thx.
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I've been wanting a good single-item fridge for years, but good ones are very hard to come by. The USB ones are useless, far too underpowered to cool anything. The plug in ones tend to be much larger, not really suitable for a desk.
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Given that it's almost certainly peltier-based, and you can draw 2.5W off of USB, I wouldn't expect it to work very well. Perhaps if it's well insulated, you could keep a cold beverage cool, but I wouldn't expect it to be able to cool off something that's already warm.
TIMMAH!!!! (Score:2)
I dunno, maybe you could power things that need external batteries?
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Quadcopter (Score:3)
What I have found (Score:2)
I've been looking into this myself since hurricane season is coming up. It's not easy to find this stuff, because a search that includes USB finds a lot of things.
On Amazon, I have found flashlights, lanterns, weather radios, and FRS radios. Sometimes you have to read the detailed description of the item to find that it can be charged from usb..
Frank
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Honestly, if you're thinking of solutions for hurricanes where you might be without power for longer than the portable batteries will last ... see if you can't find a hand-crank generator or something.
This [k-tor.com] looks interesting, but other than the google search for "hand crank generator" I know nothing about it.
A bunch of years ago my family spent a week without power after a major storm. A few weeks after that my father had a Honda generator wired directly into the house so they could keep the fridge running
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After living for several days without power after hurricane Ike, I found that all I needed was water, a camp stove, some light, and anything edible that did not require more cooking than add (hot) water. Plenty of that in the grocery store if you don't like the backpacking type of freeze dried food.
Only needed light when I needed to find something at night, so I used very little power after sunset. I treated it like a backpacking trip with much more comfortable spots to sit and sleep.
I had a crank up rad
Paper Weight (Score:2)
what could go wrong? (Score:2)
it didn't kill homer.
http://www.toonzone.net/forums... [toonzone.net]
Some more incredibly vague questions for you (Score:5, Insightful)
Hey everyone, I just bought a bottle that I can attach to my bike so I can drink water while I'm riding my bike. What other drinkable liquids can I put in it?
Also I just bought some AAA batteries for my TV remote. What else can I put them in?
Re:Some more incredibly vague questions for you (Score:5, Funny)
You could put them in that bottle that you attach to your bike...
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Is that what they call an energy drink?
Have I been missing out?
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A> Brawndo is the only acceptable answer. Why would you put anything else in there?
B> Variations on miniature versions of vibrating equipment to stimulate genitalia are the best answers for this demographic.
Make Mine Lime (Score:1)
a vibrator? (Score:1)
N/t
Arduino projects (Score:1)
I'm using one to power an Arduino project. All the parts you need for a battery supply are there, charger, voltage converter, battery cell, connectors. You can't make one for the price of one you can buy.
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buy two (Score:5, Funny)
Lots of things (Score:2)
Anything that takes power by USB, even a Raspberry Pi.
From a more practical standpoint, handheld game consoles. I regularly power my 3DS XL from a USB battery pack (you can buy USB to 3DS cables), and I believe the Vita uses USB natively.
Ummm ... anything? (Score:3)
Well, your phone, your tablet, your GPS, your portable speakers, your music player. You know, anything you own which can be charged via USB.
I've got 2x5000 mAh, and 2x6000 mAh batteries I keep charged around the house and when I travel. They all have 1A and 2.1A outputs, as well as built in LED flashlights. Which means I can keep most of my stuff charged until I get where I'm going. Or I can charge them where I'm sitting instead of being chained to a wall charger. (And I've got a 4-port USB wall charger as well as a 3-port USB wall charger which will do 120/240V 50/60Hz.)
They've handy and convenient, but do you actually need to ask "what things that charge from USB can I charge from USB"?
If it charges from USB, and you own it ... ta da!
Years ago I decided that except for very specific things (like my camera), I won't own anything which doesn't charge with standard USB. From there, a couple of cables, a couple of batteries, and a couple of wall chargers and you can keep stuff always charged.
Once you toss proprietary cables, or anything which can't charge by USB ... you find it's a lot easier to pack what you need.
My travel electronics bag is now capable of operating everything I need from any electrical source by reusing the same USB cables. It really cuts down on the crap and clutter.
Good question. (Score:2)
I think the best use for this would be to power a USB Pet Rock [thinkgeek.com].
a very good use (Score:1)
what I use portable usb power for (Score:2)
I have a rechargeable battery bank, a bank that uses 4xAA drycells, and a few 12v-powered usb sources. The drycell one stays in my globebox with some AAs, as it can be "recharged" on short notice with a trip to any store. The rechargeable one is in my center console, to be grabbed if I need to recharge my phone. That one also has a simple little bright white LED light on it and makes a nice impromptu flashlight. (IMHO every battery bank should have this feature, look for it if you are shopping around, it
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there are a lot of them for sale, they're very cheap. http://www.ebay.com/itm/221602... [ebay.com] is the first one I spotted. They usually run on four AA. That one even has a light in it, that's a feature mine doesn't. (but hey, mine was free)
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I run my raspberry pi with one (Score:2)
runs for over three hours
Recommended reading (Score:2)
http://www.amazon.com/A-Boy-Ba... [amazon.com]
You can do what used to be a simple project for an 8-year-old, take it to a "makerfaire" or some other such nonsense, and be hailed a modern genius among the nitwits thus gathered!
Consumerism (Score:2)
This is consumerism at its top: first buy, second look for an usage.
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>This is consumerism at its top: first buy, second look for an usage.
I think you misread the post. It's actually "buy for first purpose, look for secondary usage".
What's wrong with that?
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GoPro. (Score:2)
I use a battery eliminator [switronix.com] with my GoPro Hero 3+ Black, together with an external (11500 mAh) battery pack [amazon.com]. The combo will power the GoPro for far longer than the (maximum supported) 64GB microSD card has video capacity [gopro.com]. Perfect for long cross-country flights that exceed the ~1.5-2 hours of internal battery capacity [gopro.com] (the internal battery is 1150-1200 mAh, so the 11500 mAh external is good for about 18 hours of video recording; a 64GB microSD card can hold about 7 hours of video).
Jump start your car (Score:2)
If your car won't start, you could use a bi-directional cigarette USB adapter to jump start your car.
Cyclone V development board (Score:1)
I use the 12v output from my Anker Astro Pro2 portable charger to power a Terasic Cyclone V GX FPGA development kit while I'm on train journeys. I do occasionally get funny looks from the train conductor. I haven't tried this on an aeroplane yet.
I bought the Anker Pro2 specifically because it has a 12v output in addition to the usual 5v USB port. Very handy.
Anyway, these battery packs are perfect for powering Arduinos and other small development/hobby boards.
USB air-relocation device (Score:1)
LED camp light bulb (Score:1)
potentially non-obvious uses (Score:2)
Put a plug on one of the old and useless USB printer cables that we all have a million of, and use it to run your router and/or modem during a blackout.
Tie it to a solar panel to use as an emergency energy source in a blackout: Charge the battery during the day, charge the phone from the battery at night.
Power some crappy USB-operated speakers in when outside in the garden, as even crappy speakers are better than phone speakers and most of the inexpensive rechargable Bluetooth stuff is even worse.
Use it as
Re:What? (Score:4, Insightful)
He bought something he doesn't know what ELSE to do with. But fine, be a jackass.
Re:What? (Score:5, Insightful)
He bought something he doesn't know what ELSE to do with. But fine, be a jackass.
I've seen some idiotic "Ask Slashdot" stories, but this one probably takes the cake. To use the ever-popular car analogy, it's like asking "I just realized my car has a 12 volt electrical receptacle in the dashboard, what sort of things can I plug in?"
Yet another "Ask Slashdot" that can easily be solved by Google [lmgtfy.com].
Re:What? (Score:5, Informative)
Apparently there just wasn't anything interesting or important to talk about today.
Oh [slashdot.org], wait [slashdot.org]...
Re:What? (Score:5, Informative)
You'd think Dice would have learned about the damned Streisand Effect from all the stories here on Slashdot. All it would have taken is a single line: "Disclaimer: Sourceforge is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Dice Holdings, Inc." in the summary. Major news media outlets do this *all the time* when reporting on (either positive or negative news) their sister organizations owned by the same umbrella corporation.
The topic would have been done, discussed, and on it's way to being forgotten by now. Instead, you simply get a slow burn of news and a bunch of people irritated at your obvious and ham-handed suppression of a story.
Note: Sorry for the offtopic. Consider it a small act of "civil disobedience."
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I tried to do a sit in but I broke my monitor.
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Put down that twinkie!
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I kinda miss the systemd guy.... sniff!
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Why do you even bother replying to questions like this. You need a hobby.
If his hobby is "pissing people like you off," then he's doing well.
ASK SLASHDOT (Score:2)
OK, I've taken the cake.
What can I do with it, apart from either having it or eating it?
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I did. I don't have a phone charging problem, because I have both portable solar panels (including a 10W flexi built into a bag) and a car which puts out lots of ~12V, but I still bought a USB charger. I broke open some LiIon laptop packs and didn't know what to do with all the cells, so I bought a $6 eBay power bank and loaded it up. Now I'm trying to imagine stuff to do with it. Wasn't my question, though. I think my R-Pi might go mobile, but then I need a boost converter to run the display I have in mind
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One of my inverter / chargers (Kisea Asbo) has a USB charging port on it. I have a battery pack plugged into so if we have a prolonged power outage, I can directly charge the cell phones / flashlights / whatever else. USB charging is so ubiquitous these days I think it will eventually replace the AA cell.
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Of course, it was on sale!
Just because I don't have an occasion to use it now, doesn't mean such an occasion won't come up.
It matches my bag.
But isn't it just too cute?
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Portable power for a Wireless router. Take a router with you for tethering and range extension. The lighter socket in the car goes off with the key, but a 5V router can provide some run time for mobile road warriors.
My portable wireless router has a built in 6 Ah battery that can be used to charge other devices.
And the lighters/aux power in my car don't turn off til you open the door after you turn the key to off.
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it's still just a question of what can he power with 2.1 amps of 5V.
(you need one that does 2.1 amps to charge an ipad..).