5 ms·

The trick is GAN technology: https://www.promate.net/blogs/blog/what-is-gan-technology https://www.promate.net/blogs/blog/what-is-gan-technology Half of my co

The trick is GAN technology: https://www.promate.net/blogs/blog/what-is-gan-technology https://www.promate.net/blogs/blog/what-is-gan-technology Half of my company has done the same and mostly Anker too. I got the charger/battery combo, as it is amazing for travel.

Temporary_31337 3y ago
[flagged]
- nehal3m 3y ago
  For the uninitiated, can you explain like I’m five? Why are GaN chargers worse?
- creativeSlumber 3y ago
  GaN is just the transistor technology, how does that translate to bad for batteries?
  - r00fus 3y ago
    It's not the GaN, it's the higher wattage that's possible. Fast charging can increase device/battery temperature which, for fan-less designs like iPhones or MacBook Air, can lead to slightly higher degradation.
    - creativeSlumber 3y ago
      That's not correct and very misleading. The wattage is the max amount of power the charger can output. It's up to the device being charged to negotiate and pull the right amount of current and wattage. This is case with modern charging protocols and even older 5v usb chargers. This is similar to how you might have a 15A rated outlet in your house, but that doesn't mean it's going to "force" 15A though whatever device you plug into that. It's the device that determines how much power it will pull.
      - r00fus 3y ago
        My analogy is an EV - of course your EV isn't going to pull current that's dangerous but fast charging it has been shown to degrade battery life - especially if the EV doesn't have active cooling for the battery pack. Putting that EV on a slow charge that might be sufficient for an overnight charge might be better for the battery pack.
        hackmiester 3y ago
        You are correct, but the comment didn't say "fast chargers," it said GaN. Here is a (very cute) 35W GaN charger. This would be considered fast charging for a phone, but not for a laptop. https://sharge.com/products/shargeek-retro-35-gan-charger https://sharge.com/products/shargeek-retro-35-gan-charger It is just plain inaccurate to state that GaN is the problem, or opens up new possibilities for fast charging. All it does is make the charger smaller.
        creativeSlumber 3y ago
        This is a setting on the device side. The EV it self will decide how much current to pull, based on charging profile that you set. You are correct on that charging at higher currents can reduce battery cycle life, but it's the device it self that decides how much current to pull based on the charging profile that you selected. In your example with an EV,you set the charging profile on your vehicle, not the outside charger. The charger's job is to provide as much current/voltage as requested by the device.
- hackmiester 3y ago
  That is not the case. Fast charging is worse for the battery, but a 60W GaN vs a 60W SiC charger is not going to treat your battery any different, for example.
- etskinner 3y ago
  What makes them not as nice for your battery?
- j45 3y ago
  I’d love to know why GaN is bad. As far as I understand electronics between the AC electricity and DC device make more of a difference
- kube-system 3y ago
  The concern about chargers being 'good' or 'bad' for your battery is mostly an issue with 90s and 00s technologies where chargers directly interfaced with batteries. The way modern PD devices work, however the battery charges is entirely up to the onboard charge controller in your device. They always charge in accordance with how your device was designed to charge. We call them 'chargers' but really they're just power supplies.
- reaperman 3y ago
  I believe this is misinformation and probably should be flagged.
hinkley 3y ago
The internal organization is also an interesting point. They keep the AC and DC sides air gapped so that no shenanigans can happen in a dying PSU.
- lxgr 3y ago
  Aren't primary and secondary still connected for EMI management (causing the "weird buzzing sensation" when touching metal parts of connected devices)?
  - hinkley 3y ago
    About a quarter of the way down there’s a section called, “The charger's underside: many tiny components” picture with a red line on it. Below it talks about it and claims only optoisolators connect the two sides. Obviously the transformer also connects the two sides, but you know what I mean.
    - lxgr 3y ago
      Hmm, then where is that stray voltage coming from that's definitely present (in my experience) on non-grounded MacBook chargers? I think that's what the Y capacitor does (also pictured in the article): https://www.vicorpower.com/resource-library/articles/back-to-basics-what-are-y-capacitors https://www.vicorpower.com/resource-library/articles/back-to...
      - hinkley 3y ago
        I don't have an answer to that question, only an educated guess. But I gave up on getting it a long time ago. I use the three pronged connector unless I'm plugged into something like an inverter. Before that change I did end up throwing away a PSU that was causing tingling on my laptop. I don't know if that's a manufacturing flaw or damaged wiring. The educated guess as to the mechanism is 'floating ground' (the white wire has a potential versus earth ground). It causes weird behavior in house wiring, particularly ones that have had iteration in their wiring (remodels, additions). Then there's the one where LED lights turn on even if the switch is off, but I think that's a separate phenomenon from floating ground.
j45 3y ago
GaN is great for carrying weight and volume.
jmholla 3y ago
> as it is amazing for travel. Do the Anker one's come with international plugs? I didn't see any indication on their product pages that they come with the adapters. Nor could I find them for sell.
- thebruce87m 3y ago
  Get one with the “figure 8” cable connection and then get a figure 8 cable for your destination.
  - edward28 3y ago
    The term you are looking for is C5 connector.
    - thebruce87m 3y ago
      That may be what it’s called, but I never use it. Ironically I work closely with electronics engineers and we still use “kettle lead”, “figure 8” and similar in person since everyone knows what they mean. BOMs are a different kettle of fish of course.
      - bombcar 3y ago
        I like “Mickey mouse cable” for C5.
  - jmholla 3y ago
    I do like the form factor of the Anker. I was a little surprised that they don't come with international adapters. My Genki Switch charger does and it looks like they have a similar, removable plug adapter. Oh well, I'll probably follow your advice or checkout a different brand. Thanks!
    - thebruce87m 3y ago
      I’ve got this one here, along with a couple of country specific power cables: https://www.anker.com/products/a2046?variant=42448630612118&collections_chargers=undefined&Sort_by=Recommended https://www.anker.com/products/a2046?variant=42448630612118&...

Temporary_31337 3y ago

[flagged]

nehal3m 3y ago
For the uninitiated, can you explain like I’m five? Why are GaN chargers worse?
creativeSlumber 3y ago
GaN is just the transistor technology, how does that translate to bad for batteries?
- r00fus 3y ago
  It's not the GaN, it's the higher wattage that's possible. Fast charging can increase device/battery temperature which, for fan-less designs like iPhones or MacBook Air, can lead to slightly higher degradation.
  - creativeSlumber 3y ago
    That's not correct and very misleading. The wattage is the max amount of power the charger can output. It's up to the device being charged to negotiate and pull the right amount of current and wattage. This is case with modern charging protocols and even older 5v usb chargers. This is similar to how you might have a 15A rated outlet in your house, but that doesn't mean it's going to "force" 15A though whatever device you plug into that. It's the device that determines how much power it will pull.
    - r00fus 3y ago
      My analogy is an EV - of course your EV isn't going to pull current that's dangerous but fast charging it has been shown to degrade battery life - especially if the EV doesn't have active cooling for the battery pack. Putting that EV on a slow charge that might be sufficient for an overnight charge might be better for the battery pack.
      - hackmiester 3y ago
        You are correct, but the comment didn't say "fast chargers," it said GaN. Here is a (very cute) 35W GaN charger. This would be considered fast charging for a phone, but not for a laptop. https://sharge.com/products/shargeek-retro-35-gan-charger https://sharge.com/products/shargeek-retro-35-gan-charger It is just plain inaccurate to state that GaN is the problem, or opens up new possibilities for fast charging. All it does is make the charger smaller.
      - creativeSlumber 3y ago
        This is a setting on the device side. The EV it self will decide how much current to pull, based on charging profile that you set. You are correct on that charging at higher currents can reduce battery cycle life, but it's the device it self that decides how much current to pull based on the charging profile that you selected. In your example with an EV,you set the charging profile on your vehicle, not the outside charger. The charger's job is to provide as much current/voltage as requested by the device.
hackmiester 3y ago
That is not the case. Fast charging is worse for the battery, but a 60W GaN vs a 60W SiC charger is not going to treat your battery any different, for example.
etskinner 3y ago
What makes them not as nice for your battery?
j45 3y ago
I’d love to know why GaN is bad. As far as I understand electronics between the AC electricity and DC device make more of a difference
kube-system 3y ago
The concern about chargers being 'good' or 'bad' for your battery is mostly an issue with 90s and 00s technologies where chargers directly interfaced with batteries. The way modern PD devices work, however the battery charges is entirely up to the onboard charge controller in your device. They always charge in accordance with how your device was designed to charge. We call them 'chargers' but really they're just power supplies.
reaperman 3y ago
I believe this is misinformation and probably should be flagged.

hinkley 3y ago

The internal organization is also an interesting point. They keep the AC and DC sides air gapped so that no shenanigans can happen in a dying PSU.

lxgr 3y ago
Aren't primary and secondary still connected for EMI management (causing the "weird buzzing sensation" when touching metal parts of connected devices)?
- hinkley 3y ago
  About a quarter of the way down there’s a section called, “The charger's underside: many tiny components” picture with a red line on it. Below it talks about it and claims only optoisolators connect the two sides. Obviously the transformer also connects the two sides, but you know what I mean.
  - lxgr 3y ago
    Hmm, then where is that stray voltage coming from that's definitely present (in my experience) on non-grounded MacBook chargers? I think that's what the Y capacitor does (also pictured in the article): https://www.vicorpower.com/resource-library/articles/back-to-basics-what-are-y-capacitors https://www.vicorpower.com/resource-library/articles/back-to...
    - hinkley 3y ago
      I don't have an answer to that question, only an educated guess. But I gave up on getting it a long time ago. I use the three pronged connector unless I'm plugged into something like an inverter. Before that change I did end up throwing away a PSU that was causing tingling on my laptop. I don't know if that's a manufacturing flaw or damaged wiring. The educated guess as to the mechanism is 'floating ground' (the white wire has a potential versus earth ground). It causes weird behavior in house wiring, particularly ones that have had iteration in their wiring (remodels, additions). Then there's the one where LED lights turn on even if the switch is off, but I think that's a separate phenomenon from floating ground.

j45 3y ago

GaN is great for carrying weight and volume.

jmholla 3y ago

> as it is amazing for travel. Do the Anker one's come with international plugs? I didn't see any indication on their product pages that they come with the adapters. Nor could I find them for sell.

thebruce87m 3y ago
Get one with the “figure 8” cable connection and then get a figure 8 cable for your destination.
- edward28 3y ago
  The term you are looking for is C5 connector.
  - thebruce87m 3y ago
    That may be what it’s called, but I never use it. Ironically I work closely with electronics engineers and we still use “kettle lead”, “figure 8” and similar in person since everyone knows what they mean. BOMs are a different kettle of fish of course.
    - bombcar 3y ago
      I like “Mickey mouse cable” for C5.
- jmholla 3y ago
  I do like the form factor of the Anker. I was a little surprised that they don't come with international adapters. My Genki Switch charger does and it looks like they have a similar, removable plug adapter. Oh well, I'll probably follow your advice or checkout a different brand. Thanks!
  - thebruce87m 3y ago
    I’ve got this one here, along with a couple of country specific power cables: https://www.anker.com/products/a2046?variant=42448630612118&collections_chargers=undefined&Sort_by=Recommended https://www.anker.com/products/a2046?variant=42448630612118&...