Amperage of USB Port in Center Console?

MomoM3 · 02-09-2016, 09:14 PM

I've been using the USB port in my center console to charge my iPhone and it got me thinking of what the current/power to the port might be.

Is it .5, 1.0, or 2.1 amps? As you know, it makes a significant difference of how fast your devices might charge but I haven't really had my car that long to notice.

I know I can just use a 2.1 amp adapter in the cigarette lighter port but I like that I can somewhat hide the cable a bit more in the center console.

Fronzdan · 02-09-2016, 09:23 PM

My gut feeling is that it's low. I haven't seen anything official on what the headunit puts out. Some say it follows USB 2.0 spec. All I know is that mine acts up when I use a device that draws a lot of current...like my iPod Classic when the battery is less than 100%.

MomoM3 · 02-09-2016, 09:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fronzdan

My gut feeling is that it's low. I haven't seen anything official on what the headunit puts out. Some say it follows USB 2.0 spec. All I know is that mine acts up when I use a device that draws a lot of current...like my iPod Classic when the battery is less than 100%.

That's what I am afraid of. My e92 M3 had a cigarette lighter adapter in the center console so I was surprised my new F30 did not.

chiefneil · 02-09-2016, 10:25 PM

It's pretty low. I would guess 1A or less. It charges noticeably slower than a wall wart.

eluded · 02-09-2016, 10:52 PM

I would guess 500ma

AudiA4 · 02-09-2016, 11:18 PM

I believe you guys are incorrect. I don't know the exact amperage, but it's on the high side. It charges my phone like it's plugged into a wall outlet...extremely fast. It will also change my iPad Air, which requires high amperage (example: my wife's Volvo will NOT charge the iPad).

I've been VERY impressed with the USB charging capability.

MomoM3 · 02-09-2016, 11:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AudiA4

I believe you guys are incorrect. I don't know the exact amperage, but it's on the high side. It charges my phone like it's plugged into a wall outlet...extremely fast. It will also change my iPad Air, which requires high amperage (example: my wife's Volvo will NOT charge the iPad).

I've been VERY impressed with the USB charging capability.

That's interesting. I believe the small cube adapter that comes with the iPhone is 1.0 amp/5 watts and the larger adapter that comes with the iPad is 2.1 amps/12 watts.

Anybody have a USB power meter they can use to check?

XRAVE · 02-09-2016, 11:39 PM

It's for sure under 1 amp. Since they introduced the USB ports in cars, they are always extremely slow and struggle to keep anything charged.

Assuming BMW still uses usb 2.0 (can't see why they would use 3.0), it's capped at .5 amps. My iPhone 6s Plus charged at the same rate on my PC usb 2.0 as it does in BMW.

Make sure you get a car charger that supports 2.1 amps! I believe iPhone 6 and later can charge at the full 2.1, I know for a fact the plus can.

MomoM3 · 02-10-2016, 12:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by XRAVE

Make sure you get a car charger that supports 2.1 amps! I believe iPhone 6 and later can charge at the full 2.1, I know for a fact the plus can.

Yes, of course. iPhones have been able to charge at 2.1 amps for a few years now. I have this one which fits perfectly under the sliding door of the F30 LCI perfectly - http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00M6QODH2

Dang3r · 02-10-2016, 03:06 AM

Anyone knows why the manual says explicit not to charge any cellphones on the USB outlet?

zinner · 02-10-2016, 06:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dang3r

Anyone knows why the manual says explicit not to charge any cellphones on the USB outlet?

so they can point to that passage when people complain it's not charging fast enough ?

Polo08816 · 02-10-2016, 06:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by XRAVE

It's for sure under 1 amp. Since they introduced the USB ports in cars, they are always extremely slow and struggle to keep anything charged.

Assuming BMW still uses usb 2.0 (can't see why they would use 3.0), it's capped at .5 amps. My iPhone 6s Plus charged at the same rate on my PC usb 2.0 as it does in BMW.

Make sure you get a car charger that supports 2.1 amps! I believe iPhone 6 and later can charge at the full 2.1, I know for a fact the plus can.

A physical USB 2.0 port doesn't mean it's capped at 500mA.

If it's connected in terms of data, then yes, it's likely to be capped at 500mA. I suspect this is the real issue.

XRAVE · 02-10-2016, 06:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Polo08816

Quote:

Originally Posted by XRAVE

It's for sure under 1 amp. Since they introduced the USB ports in cars, they are always extremely slow and struggle to keep anything charged.

Assuming BMW still uses usb 2.0 (can't see why they would use 3.0), it's capped at .5 amps. My iPhone 6s Plus charged at the same rate on my PC usb 2.0 as it does in BMW.

Make sure you get a car charger that supports 2.1 amps! I believe iPhone 6 and later can charge at the full 2.1, I know for a fact the plus can.

A physical USB 2.0 port doesn't mean it's capped at 500mA.

If it's connected in terms of data, then yes, it's likely to be capped at 500mA. I suspect this is the real issue.

Yes you can have a dedicated charging port that goes up to like 1.5 amps but the BMW port does transfer data so we're looking at .5 amps.

It's so slow that I had the phone lose battery even while charging.

Monocl · 02-10-2016, 07:26 AM

I have an iphone 6 and i use waze everywhere i go. My commute is 30 minutes long and in that time my phone, plugged to the center console usb and running waze with the screen on, goes usually from 70% charge to around 95ish by the time i get home from work.

MomoM3 · 02-10-2016, 07:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dang3r

Anyone knows why the manual says explicit not to charge any cellphones on the USB outlet?

I did not know that. If that's the case then they should have just left the USB port in the glove box. It's too easy to want to use the center console USB port.

nürburgring · 02-10-2016, 10:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Monocl

I have an iphone 6 and i use waze everywhere i go. My commute is 30 minutes long and in that time my phone, plugged to the center console usb and running waze with the screen on, goes usually from 70% charge to around 95ish by the time i get home from work.

I experience the same thing plugged into the center console using Waze with the screen power on for about 30 minutes. It has to be more powerful than .5 amps for that to happen.

MomoM3 · 02-10-2016, 10:36 AM

XRAVE · 02-10-2016, 10:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nürburgring

I experience the same thing plugged into the center console using Waze with the screen power on for about 30 minutes. It has to be more powerful than .5 amps for that to happen.

If the center console can charge 25% in 30 minutes then its probably .9 amp as .5 amps would take closer to 1 hour.

I still believe its closer to .5 as tested in the X5. I didn't use any meters, just how much it charged my battery on a 20 minute drive.

It could also be a possibly that the percentage of battery life isn't very accurate on the phones but who knows. I still would recommend a 2.1 amp car charger and then you'll really start to see how slow the USB really is. I've done a side by side on a long road trip.

Dang3r · 02-10-2016, 10:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zinner

so they can point to that passage when people complain it's not charging fast enough ?

Good point

PelotonToPodium · 02-10-2016, 12:35 PM

Not sure of the exact amperage, however I've found that the center console USB is unable to charge-from-dead an iPhone 6. Every time my phone dies, I have been unable to re-charge from the center console...always have to end up busting out a usb adapter to the socket under the glovebox. That being said, I've always found the iPhone to charge relatively quickly when in normal use.

AudiA4 · 02-10-2016, 02:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PelotonToPodium

...socket under the glovebox..

To what do you speak?!!!

MomoM3 · 02-10-2016, 03:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AudiA4

To what do you speak?!!!

Go look, it's there! Totally getting a dash cam now!

02-09-2016, 09:14 PM	#1
MomoM3 Major 984 Rep 1,418 Posts Drives: X7 M50i \| M2 CS \| X5 35i Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Lehigh Valley PA iTrader: (3)	Amperage of USB Port in Center Console? I've been using the USB port in my center console to charge my iPhone and it got me thinking of what the current/power to the port might be. Is it .5, 1.0, or 2.1 amps? As you know, it makes a significant difference of how fast your devices might charge but I haven't really had my car that long to notice. I know I can just use a 2.1 amp adapter in the cigarette lighter port but I like that I can somewhat hide the cable a bit more in the center console.
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02-09-2016, 09:23 PM	#2
Fronzdan Lieutenant Colonel 295 Rep 1,733 Posts Drives: '24 M240 xDrive Join Date: Mar 2014 Location: MA iTrader: (0)	My gut feeling is that it's low. I haven't seen anything official on what the headunit puts out. Some say it follows USB 2.0 spec. All I know is that mine acts up when I use a device that draws a lot of current...like my iPod Classic when the battery is less than 100%.
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02-09-2016, 10:25 PM	#4
chiefneil Lieutenant Colonel 772 Rep 1,503 Posts Drives: 2014 335i M-Sport Join Date: Sep 2013 Location: Arizona iTrader: (0)	It's pretty low. I would guess 1A or less. It charges noticeably slower than a wall wart.
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02-09-2016, 10:52 PM	#5
eluded 2JZ-GTE 3005 Rep 3,986 Posts Drives: 340 6MT, 50e, others Join Date: Nov 2015 Location: Sofia iTrader: (0)	I would guess 500ma __________________ A man who views the world the same at 50 as he did at 20 has wasted 30 years of his life.
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02-09-2016, 11:18 PM	#6
AudiA4 Major 648 Rep 1,476 Posts Drives: 2022 G01 X3 M40i (Black/Black) Join Date: May 2005 Location: Little Rock, AR, USA iTrader: (0)	I believe you guys are incorrect. I don't know the exact amperage, but it's on the high side. It charges my phone like it's plugged into a wall outlet...extremely fast. It will also change my iPad Air, which requires high amperage (example: my wife's Volvo will NOT charge the iPad). I've been VERY impressed with the USB charging capability. __________________ 2022 G01 X3 M40i (Black Sapphire/Black), HK, DAP, PAP, Shadow Line 2014 F30 335i (EB) 6MT, M Sport, Premium, Tech, DHP, HK, CW, M Brakes, M Exhaust 2006 E90 330i (Silver) 6MT, Sport
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02-09-2016, 11:39 PM	#8
XRAVE Member 457 Rep 1,517 Posts Drives: 135i Join Date: Sep 2013 Location: Miami, Florida iTrader: (0)	It's for sure under 1 amp. Since they introduced the USB ports in cars, they are always extremely slow and struggle to keep anything charged. Assuming BMW still uses usb 2.0 (can't see why they would use 3.0), it's capped at .5 amps. My iPhone 6s Plus charged at the same rate on my PC usb 2.0 as it does in BMW. Make sure you get a car charger that supports 2.1 amps! I believe iPhone 6 and later can charge at the full 2.1, I know for a fact the plus can. __________________ Previous: 2013 135i Space Grey w/Coral Red \| 6 Speed MT \| M Pkg \| JB4 \| AA Downpipes \| AA Exhaust \| Previous: 2015 M3, BSM[/SO/CF \| DCT \| Adaptive M \| 19" Black \| CF Roof \| Previous: 2018 M2, AW \| DCT \| Exec Pkg Current 2020 X7 50i
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02-10-2016, 03:06 AM	#10
Dang3r Schmollbraten 12509 Rep 1,985 Posts Drives: M4CPC // HP4 Comp. Join Date: Jun 2015 Location: Liandri Central Core iTrader: (0)	Anyone knows why the manual says explicit not to charge any cellphones on the USB outlet? __________________ Citizen of ///M - Town, where too much is just right Some say, that my scrotum has its own small gravity field and when Im slowing down that brake lights come on at my buttox
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02-10-2016, 07:26 AM	#14
Monocl New Member 9 Rep 10 Posts Drives: 340i 40th anniversary edition Join Date: Jan 2016 Location: Chile iTrader: (0)	I have an iphone 6 and i use waze everywhere i go. My commute is 30 minutes long and in that time my phone, plugged to the center console usb and running waze with the screen on, goes usually from 70% charge to around 95ish by the time i get home from work.
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02-10-2016, 10:36 AM	#17
MomoM3 Major 984 Rep 1,418 Posts Drives: X7 M50i \| M2 CS \| X5 35i Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Lehigh Valley PA iTrader: (3)
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02-10-2016, 12:35 PM	#20
PelotonToPodium Private First Class 59 Rep 121 Posts Drives: 335i M-Sport - GSM/Loaded Join Date: Jan 2016 Location: Los Angeles, CA iTrader: (1)	Not sure of the exact amperage, however I've found that the center console USB is unable to charge-from-dead an iPhone 6. Every time my phone dies, I have been unable to re-charge from the center console...always have to end up busting out a usb adapter to the socket under the glovebox. That being said, I've always found the iPhone to charge relatively quickly when in normal use.
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