Charging

Most phones or tablets come with a dedicated charger that plugs into a wall power outlet and a data lead to connect the phone or tablet to a computer.  The most common data lead used is a USB lead.  Often the data lead is used to connect to the charger as well.  USB leads can be used to provide both power and data.

When connecting your phone or tablet to a computer, some phones or tablets can be charged by using the power provided by the computer.  However, a device may draw a maximum of 500 mA of current from a port in USB 2.0 or 900 mA of current from a port in USB 3.0(!)  This is often insufficient to charge a phone or tablet (especially if the phone or tablet is turned on and left running whilst charging at the same time).

When purchasing a replacement wall power outlet charger, ensure the charger is rated for a similar voltage and current as the original charger.  USB wall power outlet chargers are typically 5V voltage and 2A current.

Backlight off

Backlight on

Backlit splash screen

Common problems

“My device will charge properly when connected to a computer using Android 4.0.1, but not when using Android version 4.1.2 or higher.”

“When I attempt to charge my device using a computer, the device says ‘please connect charger’ and has a red cross over the battery charging indicator”.

“My device will trickle charge from a computer only when it is above 30% full; it will not charge from a computer when the battery is below 30%”

“My device will only charge from a computer when I shut it down completely”

“My device will only charge when I insert the USB lead into the computer only halfway.  This connects the charging pins but not the data pins”

“From my experience I have noticed that most Android phones will not charge over a USB connection to a computer if the battery is dead. I must be charged with a wall or car charger or have >5% battery life.”

“The screen backlight appears to be broken as the brightness of the screen is very poor.”  This is a power saving feature of your device; if the battery is low the backlight will be turned off to preserve power.  If you restart your device the boot screen will briefly appear properly lit.  If you charge the battery to 30% you will notice the backlight working properly.

Solution

1. Purchase a high current 5V 2A USB wall power outlet charger – purchase the official same-brand replacement charger that is a 100% match for the original charger.
2. Shutdown the device whilst charging.

Be careful when buying cheap no-name brand wall power outlet chargers from the internet as these may pose a fire hazard.