How to Select the Best USB Charging Station for all Your Gadgets
Best USB Charging Station
Smartphones, smartwatches, tablets, fitness trackers, and all the other gadgets leave us burdened with multiple chargers and so much clutter. Free up the power outlets and charge all your devices using a single outlet.
We all have several devices to charge every day, and that number is only increasing. Using the individual charger that comes with each device, you can quickly fill multiple channels in your quest to charge your phone, work phone, tablets, and other appliances.
You might get a power strip to plug in all the individual chargers on that strip. Still, that way out is ugly, bulky, and inefficient as each charger is doing a separate transformation from alternating current (AC) to direct current (DC).
A much more elegant solution, which eliminates clutter, reduces your output needs to a single outlet, and is much more energy-efficient, uses a USB charging station. With a charging station, an outlet remains used for a transformer that provides authority to four or other USB ports.
Several people miss out on the benefits of using a charging station because when they think of a “charging station,” they think of a large, bulky device that would be more comfortable in a school lab than on their nightstand. While you could certainly get one of these for your home if you wanted to keep, for example, all the family tablets in a more organized place, most people will remain better functioned by purchasing a simple charging station with multiple USB ports.
Not all USB charging stations are the same, so let’s take a look at the features to consider when shopping for a USB charging station.
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How to Select the Correct USB Charging Station
Finding the right charging station can get overwhelming pretty quickly as there are hundreds of them on the market in all possible configurations and a wide range of prices. To help you decide between the particular models, below, we point out the key characteristics that should be taken into account when buying. Still, if you are in urgency and want to buy one at this very moment, you can always jump to the section of our recommendations.
There has been a surge of very low quality uncertified chargers going on the market in current years. Not only are these chargers not, for the most part, energy-efficient, but they can potentially damage your devices and even produce fire hazards.
Assured lab safety certification isn’t exactly glamorous, but considering that many people use their chargers in their rooms, safety is of the utmost importance. The last thing we want is for the charger under the nightstand to burst into flames and cause a fire in your bed.
If a device is not certified by the insurance laboratory, then definitely do not buy it. Saving $ 10 on a charger is not worth the risk of a home fire.
Form Factor
The USB charging stations come in three forms: wall chargers, corded buckets, and organizers. Selection is generally a matter of personal partiality, combined with consideration of where it is to remain used.
The wall chargers are all-in-one models that plug directly into the wall like a giant transformer and do not have an extension cord of any kind. If you like, the box remains directly connected to the power socket, and all the USB cables to charge the different devices stand inserted into it.
Corded chargers (top center) are nearly identical to wall chargers, with the difference that they have a power cord plugged into the outlet. It has a distinct advantage. A few additional meters of movement remain gained. The connector can be used in small spaces wherever a larger wall-mounted charger would be impractical or impossible. For example, a wired USB charger can remain used in our bedroom to connect behind the bed, and USB cables routed to nightstands on either side of the bed. Due to the bed frame’s spacing and placement, it would be terrible to use a wall-mounted charger. However, a corded charger can remain wrought in just like a lamp with enough room to spare.
Organizer-style charging stations (above right) are bulkier but offer shelves, slots, or carts for your gear. We generally steer clear of these products simply because the markup is usually were from 50-100% over a comparable charger’s cost. Just for a few attached plastic chargers. If we were very inclined to have some shelf-based organization for our charging station. We would probably buy a desk organizer alongside the standard charger. Desk organizers/filers and document trays can remain found for under $ 10 in a wide range of materials.
Number of Ports
You may think of this step as simple – enough ports remain needed to charge all your devices. But it would help if you did not know: “Okay, I have a Smartphone, a tablet, and an e-book reader. Therefore I will need three ports.” The cost difference between the models is trivial when paid on a per-port basis; give yourself room to expand. If the goal is to reduce clutter and use only one outlet, you need to shop for future use. So buy a charger with a bit more of the ports you currently need.
Port Amperage
Like external battery packs, the charging station’s USB ports have different amperage outputs that can make a substantial difference in how fast your devices charge.
The standard USB output amps are 1A, 2.1A, and 2.4A. All USB devices will charge at the lowest amperage ports, but devices with large batteries. Such as newer tablets and smartphones – will take a long time to set at the lowest amperage ports fully. So for those devices, better to have some higher amperage ports when charging them.
You don’t necessarily have to buy a USB charging station with all the high-amp ports. But you definitely shouldn’t buy a charger that only has 1A ports. When comparing two chargers, if all other characteristics are the same. And the prices are comparable, they always choose the charger with the highest number of 2.1A and 2.4A ports. Devices are receiving more and more power-hungry over time, and there is little point in not spending a little money to extend your charger’s life.
Special Cargo Features
The above features are far more critical than any exceptional quality a charger can count taking place. However, in some cases, the additional features are worth highlighting. For example, some chargers have ports with special circuitry to take advantage of various “fast charging” technologies. Such as Qualcomm’s “accelerated charging” system for Android devices. Others may include wireless charging alongside. Their standard USB ports that the wireless charging device can remain charged just above the charging station.
For most users, there is no opinion in choosing a charging station with the device’s specific characteristics, such as fast charging. Still, if you have a tool that supports it, you might consider it worthwhile.
