Charger Question

I tried buying a charger for the Meizu on eBay that was SUPPOSED to be rated at 400mA / 5V DC output (ie what the Meizu is rated at) but the wrong charger came (200mA~300mA output).

I also got a MOTOROLA Charger that is rated at 500mA / 5V DC output.

So here's my question... can I use the Motorola charger to charge my Meizu or will it damage it? I figure maybe since (to the best of my knowledge) the USB port has 500mA output...

Anyone know?

As long as the charger is for MiniUSB devices it works good for the M6. As far as i know Miniplayer can deal with up to 600~800mA chargers.

Cool thanks,
I'm gonna try it

Yes I can confirm that the motorola charger (for v3x) works with the miniPlayer.

my asus phone's charger works fine with my m6.

edit: here is my charger's details. it was included in the box of my asus j202 handphone.

Manufactured by : Leader Electronics Inc.
Model Number: MU03-5052043-A1
Input: 100-240v~ 50/60Hz 0.15A
Output: 5.2v... 430mA
Made in China

Anyone using other charges should help create a list of compatible chargers for those that would like to buy a non Meizu one locally, or use one they already have.

According to the Meizu site, ice-orange says that others chargers are OK to use on the M6, but (of course) recommends using the Meizu one.

Technical answer:

milliAmps (mA) are related to the power consumption of the device. So if the device only needs 400mA you can use ANY charger that has got 400mA or more mA. As long as it is 5 Volt. (the same as USB-power). Make sure you've got the right Pin-out and you can make your own charger.

Math: Say, your M6 uses a charging current of 400mA and the charger provides 5V. The output power of your charger needs to be 5V * 400mA = 2Watt.
Use this 2 Watt with a charger with a maximum load of 200mA and you will need 10V to have the same output power. But the voltage is constant and the current is variable. This means that if you try to charge the M6 with a 5V, 200mA charger, the M6 tries to 'pull-out' 400mA. What will happen is that the charger overheats because the charger can only safely deliver 1 Watt (5volts * 200mA), but the M6 'pulls out' 2 Watts.

Just remember, as long as the voltage is regulated and is 5 volt max. you can't harm your M6. The only thing that might fail is your charger (in case the charger is limited to less than the required charge-current 200mA).

Standard electric rules:
* Current is 'pulled' out of the charger
* Voltage is 'pushed' out of the charger (and can damage your equipment when the charger-voltage is higher than the equipment-voltage)

The above only counts when the charger is Voltage regulated and NOT current-regulated
(most chargers are voltage-regulated)

For more information on USB-power, look in Wikipedia.org, USB power

Any questions, feel free to ask.

Greetz,
Kees

WARNING If a charger fails there is a possibility that the voltage regulator circuits are damaged and that the output-voltage may increase to a maximum of 220V AC (Europe). Your M6 will then definitely be damaged.

I use a mini USB charger for my Orange SPV C600 on my M6 and it works fine

I also charge directly from PC at work.

cheezum: I got an iAudio charger, 5V - 1.2A (1200mA I believe)
So, according to you I can use this? Isn't it a problem that 1.2A is 3 times more than the M6 needs?
I get the feeling that this would be like those 'rapid/fast chargers' for cellphones and they charge the battery 2 or 3 times faster but they damage it too if you use it too often.
Is it 100% safe to use that iAudio charger?

As cheezum said, the Miniplayer will only draw the amount of current that it needs (400 mA), so there will be no problem using this charger.

Ok, thanks. I'll use it

Hi Equinox,

I don't know the charging circuit of the M6 but even if it supports fast charging you can still use it. Life cycle of old school batteries could be reduced a lot but todays accu's/batteries can handle fast chargers. So there should be no problem.

ah, thank you for this very clear explanation cheezum... now i know why people say 400mA, 500mA, 800mA... is absolutely necessary ! so now, i'll probably buy this ncusb (by neonumeric, a french brand i think) charger with 5V 400mA... it's ok... right ? correct me pls if i haven' understood anything !

I have a question. I have no-name charger and on this I can see:
Output: DC 5V 500mA.

Can I charge my Meizu M6?