USB Charging Rates

We all use our USB ports and charging cables all the time for an increasing number of devices. We all know that they plug into ports one way but not the other. However, did you know about the power differences between chargers or wall plugs and that certain ports on laptops contain different charging variations?

While these differences tend to be mostly on older computers, it is beneficial to test the output to find out. However, your cell phone won't blow up if you plug it into a 1500 mA socket and it will actually charge faster.

There are certain computers that will also charge your devices while it is turned off (called the "sleep-and-charge port") and others that have ports that won't charge at all. While you now online manual will probably tell you, it's again a good idea to electrically test these ports. The lowest USB charging port is in your car at approximately 1A to 2.1A.

USB charging rates

According to ExtremeTech, companies are now moving towards using the USB-C plug.

USB-C is a different connector entirely. First, it’s universal; you can put it in either way and it will work, unlike with USB. It’s also capable of twice the theoretical throughput of USB 3.0, and can output more power. Apple is joining USB-C with USB 3.1 on its new MacBook, and so is Google with the new Chromebook Pixel. But there can also be older-style USB ports that support the 3.1 standard.

Just to complicate things further, if you have an older device that uses a USB cord, it might not be able to charge with these new USB-C cords or even the USB 3.1. In sum then it's better to keep the original cords with the devices and to use them always for the best charging situations. Since we are all used to having the electrical currents for each country a standard wattage, the issue here is that these modern devices are moving around a lot more. However, I look forward to a bit more standardization for USB charging rates in the future and hopefully some longer lasting batteries as well.

Japanese Companies to Create Phone Gaming

Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console

It was bound to happen. While there have been cell phone games available on smart phones in particular for some time now, they have been very rudimentary compared to what is still available on game consoles. I'm actually surprised that more ads do not use games to keep the viewers involved.

Recently Japanese game giant, Nintendo announced a partnership with DeNa, a company specializing in mobile and online game services. While Nintendo will continue producing console games and the accompanying software and hardware, this is strong statement about the future of gaming. Will this mean 3D games on the small screens? How can games be made to adapt to touch screens? It seems to me Nintendo should partner with one of the cell phone companies too so that special components or apps can be developed.

According to a report by Charles Herald, about.com's Wii tech expert, Nintendo's president, Satoru Iwata, said this did not mean that Nintendo's console business was suffering. It was simply a move into a new field.

Iwata says that these phone games will not simply be ports of Nintendo's console software: "For smart devices, even in the case where we utilize the same IP, we will create completely new game software that will perfectly match the play styles of smart devices."

To read the rest click here.

 

 

The two presidents of Nintendo and DeNa are working to replace Club Nintendo (which will be closed down soon) with a fuller and more engaging membership club. Obviously Nintendo sees big bucks on the horizon with this move towards the burgeoning market of cell phone users, particularly when this also includes the users of tablets and the larger smart phones.

While it is unknown when we will get more information about these plans, there is a large trade show coming up in June - E3 Trade Show, and it is known that Club Nintendo will be shut down a few weeks before. It seems likely that there will be further announcements at this show June 16 - 18 at the Los Angeles Convention Center.