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> ...Router designer ... to design their product such that it will work with any power supply from 5V to 12V... I am one of those who often makes purchase deci

> ...Router designer ... to design their product such that it will work with any power supply from 5V to 12V... I am one of those who often makes purchase decisions around the internal power circuitry. I'm not at my lab desk at the moment (so I cannot report on that stuff), but I'm dragging around an old laptop, a small SBC (used as a general-purpose computer) and a monitor that I was employing earlier in cramped quarters for 40 minutes or so. The laptop is happy with 11.5V but doesn't have problems with 11-18V (9V 600mA will still charge the battery, slowly, during very mild use). The SBC has an NB679 buck converter so it's good for 5.5-28V. The monitor (2200 nits baby!) will accept 7-24V. These are older kit I use for crawling around with, but most of my "normal" equipment likewise has large input tolerances. Non-normal equipment (used for areas at home where tool loss/damage may occur) mentioned: OLPC XO-1 (great screen, kinda tough, freakin' old), FriendlyElec NanoPC-T4 SBC, FeelGood P7 field monitor (compact with a thick aluminum chassis).

Scoundreller 3y ago
USB-C Mac laptops will happily take power at seemingly any voltage in the spec. Can plug in a USB-A -> USB-C cable and it will charge overnight at 5V1A, or at least increase endurance during operation. 9V, 12V, 15V, 20V, all good too. I wonder if it will accept anything in-between as well... it should? And where it tops out. Solar panel rigged to a USB-C cable anyone? With ooooolder laptops, I found, as you did, that it's happy to take 12V and buck down everything, but can't boost and wouldn't charge at all. I sometimes use "incompatible" power bricks with a modern Dell laptop and they sometimes top-out of where they'll charge. Probably expecting 20V but getting 16V and not enough to get the cells topped up. Made the mistake of thinking that same modern Dell laptop would take in 5V over USB-C to charge overnight like the MacBook... it did not.

Scoundreller 3y ago

USB-C Mac laptops will happily take power at seemingly any voltage in the spec. Can plug in a USB-A -> USB-C cable and it will charge overnight at 5V1A, or at least increase endurance during operation. 9V, 12V, 15V, 20V, all good too. I wonder if it will accept anything in-between as well... it should? And where it tops out. Solar panel rigged to a USB-C cable anyone? With ooooolder laptops, I found, as you did, that it's happy to take 12V and buck down everything, but can't boost and wouldn't charge at all. I sometimes use "incompatible" power bricks with a modern Dell laptop and they sometimes top-out of where they'll charge. Probably expecting 20V but getting 16V and not enough to get the cells topped up. Made the mistake of thinking that same modern Dell laptop would take in 5V over USB-C to charge overnight like the MacBook... it did not.