jmak Posted May 1, 2015 Posted May 1, 2015 Hi all I've had reports of our (fairly new) Learnpads not holding their charge. I've identified that there's no fault on the Learnpad as such, it's very early failure of the USB charging cables... The tiny pins on the wide side of the plug that stick out provide the grip. They are supposed to be a spring fit, but quite quickly stop springing back. It's an inherent weakness in the design of micro USB - I've noticed it at home, but I have a lot more cables than devices and they only tend to get plugged in once a day at most. For the Learnpads at school, I only have one cable per device and they're connected/disconnected several times per day by people less careful than me! (Whisper very quietly: The Apple Lightning Connector is much better.) Does anyone have a tried and tested fix? (I've been playing around for the last half and hour with tweezers, mini-screwdrivers, staples and fuse wire) or a source of robust cables? Help gratefully received as always. I don't want to put in a regular order of 60 cables/month - they shouldn't be that disposable.
casey Posted May 1, 2015 Posted May 1, 2015 We bought our LearnPads late last year and they came with their own chargers with a 2.5mm barrel connector and they are all still fine. Ours are the Quarto model with the 9.7" screen. I'm guessing you have the smaller ones? I have noticed the micro usb plug on my daughters phone charger is a bit of a loose fit but if I use the Hudl charger it is a much better fit, so I can see that not all micro usb cables are the same quality. Maybe look at the reviews on Amazon for cables to get a feel for quality. 1
jmak Posted May 1, 2015 Author Posted May 1, 2015 (edited) We bought our LearnPads late last year and they came with their own chargers with a 2.5mm barrel connector and they are all still fine. Ours are the Quarto model with the 9.7" screen. I'm guessing you have the smaller ones? We have a few of the Quarto devices and have no trouble with them (except that people plug the micro USB cables in and expect them to charge). However we have ~60 of the Octavo (7.8") devices which are micro USB charge. Now looking at the wireless charging pads available - seemingly from £2.99 on Amazon with positive reviews. The Learnpad cabinets with built in wireless charging looked great when I saw them at BETT, but I can't afford 10 of them at £400..... Edit: Although I won't buy from Amazon in protest at their tax arrangements - other suppliers always available Edited May 1, 2015 by jmak
difinity Posted May 1, 2015 Posted May 1, 2015 As above, the quality of micro USB cables varies greatly. Genuine Nokia USB chargers i've found are always a good fit. 1
plexer Posted May 3, 2015 Posted May 3, 2015 I agree with that the best usb micro cable I have is a Nokia branded one. Ben 1
jmak Posted May 22, 2015 Author Posted May 22, 2015 (edited) The Anker ones on eBay are good quality too... Just to complete the thread.... I ended up buying this: Anker 60W 6 port charger http:// http://www.amazon.co.uk/Family-Sized-Desktop-Charger-Technology-Motorola-Black/dp/B00PK1IIJY plus a set of 6 Anker cables. All seems like excellent quality and the micro USB cables fit well enough to hang a 7" tablet from. In getting a nice fast charge for 6 tablets. Assuming the charger lasts, I now know that I can buy a set of 6 decent cables for £8.99 when the little darlings break them. Only downside is that the only sources I could find were Amazon and eBay. Edited May 22, 2015 by jmak
plexer Posted May 22, 2015 Posted May 22, 2015 Those chargers are good I have 2, although the first one had some defective ports so Anker changed it and said I could keep the first one too. Good customer service. 2nd one hasn't missed a beat. I also have one of their car chargers and that's the nuts too Ben
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now