Review: Palm Pre Car Charger 56
The Palm Car Charger for the Pre is a compact and convenient USB charger that will keep your Pre topped off while on the go. We know car chargers are fairly important accessories to have, especially when it comes to smartphones. You never know when you'll need to get a few precious moments of juice. The problem was always finding a charger that wasn't an eyesore in your vehicle.
Enter the latest addition to the Palm family of chargers. This time, you have a device that looks good, supplies enough power to charge your phone while listening to Pandora and using Sprint Navigation, plus it comes with a data sync cable for the Pre.
Oh yeah, it gets points for working with my Touchstone Charger in my car. Your mileage may vary (excuse the pun), as I'll explain after the break.
Functionality
Well, let's not beat around the bush... it's a Car Charger, folks. It's able to charge up my Pre while I'm running multiple applications. Over an hour-long period I added around 7% while running a bunch of data apps - including streaming Pandora over Bluetooth and running Sprint Navigation using GPS. With all of my apps closed, I was able to get a 30% increase over the same period.
Bonus points for working as a standard USB charger (if you have other USB devices to charge). Unfortunately, the micro-USB cord packaged with the car charger is is only 2.5 feet long. I can see some people having to switch it out for the longer micro-USB cable that comes with the Pre. That said, it's also very nice to have a micro-USB cord in the car now. I've needed to swap music in and out while at various computers. Having the cord available for charging at a computer has been a nice little surprise that I didn't think I'd use very much.
It also comes with a small adapter that can power Centros and older Treos, which is pretty convenient if you've handed yours down to a family member.
Touchstone in the car
Before I get going, let me start by saying that this probably isn't an intended use of the Touchstone and people have reported varying levels of success. However, one of the reasons I chose the official Palm Pre Car Charger was according to NickDG in our PreCentral.net Forums and also BMCI50, this was one of the chargers on the short list that could work with the Touchstone Charger.
It appears to come down to a car by car basis for whether the Touchstone works properly or not. So it's not necessarily true that you'll be able to power your Touchstone properly with this charger - it works for me, it may not work for you.
Style
Palm has redesigned all of their accessories with the release of the Pre, the car charger being no exception to the overhaul. They are now using a two-piece design that includes a 12-volt to USB port. The charging 12-volt piece is very slick and small. As a matter of fact, I am shocked at how small it is compared to my one-piece mini-USB charger. I had to include that as a photo because it's quite comical.
As you can see, it's a fraction of the size. They also changed the styling of the LED light that indicates power being supplied to the charger. With the mini-USB Motorola charger (as well as my old Palm 800w charger) they used a Yellow-ish LED, where as the Palm Pre Charger now uses a soft whitish-blue. You can see the difference in the two devices clearly at night time, with the Palm Pre Charger being less of a bright eyesore or distraction. As far as the construction goes, it just feels more solid than previous Palm chargers I've owned (micro-USB and Athena port connectors included). It's definitely sturdier than cheap aftermarket products too; I've taken it in and out of the 12-volt socket numerous times and haven't felt any indication of separation between the mold.
Conclusion
So there you go, it's not exactly the most sexy of accessories (it's sexier than other car chargers), but it's a necessary one. Palm did a solid job on this one.
The Palm Vehicle Power Charger for Pre is available in the PreCentral.net Store for $19.95.
Pros
Charges even when using AppsCons
USB Cable may be too short
56 Comments
This is THE car charger to get for the Pre. Mine works with the touchstone as well. I have a box of others that didn't...
And what is wrong with driving a hyundai
Nothing if you don't mind that girls will never speak with you.
I think most of us are into women, but if girls are your ride of choice, stick with the tricycles.
I am not sure if it is an isolated manufacturing problem or what, but I have this charger, and in my Honda Accord, it actually got stuck and I had to forcefully remove it with pliers, damaging the cig lighter port in the car. It was a very tight fit in my wife's Honda Pilot, but does go in and out fine. Other chargers plug in and out with no difficulty, and this charger has proven to be tight in friend's cars as well. I didn't plug it in all the way in any of my friends cars, because I did not want to damage them...but it was definately a tight fit.
Has anybody else had similar situations?
LOL. I thought the same thing. Especially when he started on with the friends but not going all the way so as not to cause damage.
I had a 2008 Dodge Journey as a rental car when I got my Pre. I too found that the car charger was an extremely tight fit, but I also found that the low profile meant that I could close the cosmetic door that covers the ports! :)
I was eventually able to get it out without resorting to pliers. I just had to twist it back and forth several times. The hardest part was actually getting a good grip on it!
With the Pre not making a noise when taken off power, marktaylor, I'd rather too tight than too loose (though I'd rather not damage my car, either.)
I'm surprised by this development, but glad. I figured all USB chargers were the same and the Pre's power system was just poorly designed. I was horrified when I used Sprint Navigation while charging my Pre with my existing USB car charger/FM transmitter and the cable that came with the Pre, only to get the low battery warning after 45 minutes of driving. Then last night I listened to Pandora for the first time on the way home, and while it didn't discharge, the Pre stayed at 50-55% the whole way home. Adding 7% in an hour is still not great, but at least it's not discharging. At 20 bucks, it's only a few dollars more expensive than the cheap car chargers at Wal-mart. Not as cheap as what you can get online, but I've been there and done that and been out of juice as a result. I'll be stopping by BB or my local Sprint store in the next few days to look for this charger.
The shorter cable was actually a perk for me. I wanted a shorter charge/sync cable for traveling with my laptop, so I swapped the car charger cable with longer cable that came with my Pre.
Just using the nav and starting with a full battery - over the course of an hour drive, my pre still lost about 11%.
I bought this charger and it does not charge while apps are open. It actually lost charge as the person before me said!
So PLEASE dont believe what anyone says about it!!!
That's a little extreme don't you think. The article indicated that "your mileage may vary". This doesn't mean reports which are different than yours are false.
Yeah I wish I had waited to buy THIS charger instead of the one issued to me at the Sprint store... but I was in such a rush to get my Pre I didn't think when the Sprint guy pushed the Sprint charger in my face. Sprint's charger is okay and has held up just fine so far. ... But if it ever craps out on me I'm getting the PALM brand charger!
EDIT: Hmm...... I'm reading that the Palm brand charger does not charge the Pre very well with apps open. The Sprint charger actually charges my Pre very well even when I'm running some intense apps, such as GPS navigation and Pandora simultaneously. It works great.
I'm in the same situation as you. I got my Sprint charger on launch day. I haven't used it too often so I can't say whether it still charges while running multiple apps. However, I had read on the forums that the Palm charger doesn't put out as much juice so I was hoping the Sprint charger would perform better. I just got my extra Touchstone for my car and hope to give it a test today. Maybe I'll report on my results later.
Well unfortunately the Sprint OEM charger won't fit into my Touchstone. So I guess I need to shell out a few more $$$ to get the Palm charger. I'm gratified to read from others that not all Palm chargers were created equal. I'm hoping mine comes in the orange packaging...
I have been very happy with the Palm pre Car Charger. Yes, it's also tight in my Jeep and does not charge as rapidly as my home charge. Touchstone works great but I don't leave in because of my open vehicle. Great review. Great charger. It's hard for me, but i've finally resigned myself for safetly reasons to just let my Pre charge while driving. At least as much as possible!
This charger is OK. I'd rate it a 3*. It doesn't charge very fast or at all depending on phone usage.
However, you can't really use it in the car anyway since the cord is so short. When i try talking on the phone with it plugged in, I have to duck my head down toward the center console and use my left eye to peak over the dash board to see the road at the same time.
I did find a solution to that by using the cord that came with the phone which is 4ft long, and using the shorter 2ft cord with the wall charger.
Even thought the adapter has a USB port, only the Pre Data Sync Cable is small enough to be attached. Limiting the available devices that can be attached.
My Sprint store gave me an extra "longer" USB cable when I bought my Touchstone. They said they keep extras in the back for testing and such. You might try and see if you can get the kind hearted folks at your local store to help if you are having trouble with the shorter cable.
Also, in response to @wicketr, I just got my Motorola T505 speaker phone/FM tuner. Wow, it works very nicely. Now I can have my Pre being charged in my car but not have to worry about talking directly into the phone. The Motorola provides great sound through my FM stero system and my callers are reporting that I am coming through very clearly.
So here is my story...I bought the sprint oem charger from ebay. Came broken - had to give the seller a bad rating because they weren't helpful. So I come to my favorite Pre website - precentral.net and buy the palm charger. When I try it it doesn't work. I have it plugged in but the charge keeps doing a countdown on me. Disappointed I let it sit there for a few weeks until come major update 1.1.0. ddeciding what the hell give it a try. Amazingly it starts holding charge! Not only does it charge but it does as well as, dare I say, the wall charger! This thing takes so much juice my car once failed to start and I had to jump it. I have no problem holding a charge while running any apps-type and count.. So for now I'm a happy camper...
Is your feedback coming in on certain stations or bands? I get a squeal whenever I have any kind of charger in my cigarette lighter, but only when tuned into an AM station. FM seems just fine.
A lot of commenters are correct, there is a version sold by Best Buy that isn't up to par with the Precentral one. I think it also varies greatly with car 12 volt ports as remarked by various comments we've seen a very heavy YMMV. To whomever posted about it being a Hyundai, yep... Elantra. It was better to use that car than the Mazda 6 because of how the ports are right next to each other.
I was driving today at 18% and plugged in for a 20 min drive (not even really, maybe 15) and when I got home I was at 36% It's def working like that in both Hyundai and Mazda. I've never had it get stuck yet either, seems another YMMV. I would never trust another cheapie product after I've been burnt in the past.
-Keith
I had exactly the same experience with the Palm charger purchased at Best Buy. Lost charge while using Nav+Music+BT. A posting somewhere in forums.precentral.net stated that Palm had a lower capacity product that could not keep up with the Pre's demands of Sprint Nav+++.
The posting stated success with the Sprint branded charger. The Sprint branded charger resolved the problem for me. I returned the inadequate Palm charger to Best Buy.
I think another forum posting stated that Palm resolved their problem by producing another (higher capacity) charger that DOES work with the Pre. Perhaps some kind soul can go research the SKUs involved to confirm this and help others avoid evil and obtain good. This would explain how the "Doesn't Work!" and "Does Work" experiences can both be true.
My buddy bought one from Best Buy in the same packaging but had a blue insert... Same troubles with draining while running apps. Mine came in the orange packaging and charges up just fine.
Can't say that I'm not happy with the Sprint charger. It actually works while BT, Pandora and GPS is running. Don't need to continually plug and unplug it since I have two 12V ports in my G8; and the Sprint logo does not bug me since I'm using/hiding it in the center console where one of my 12V ports is located. My Pre is plugged into my stereo via an auxilliary input jack and I'm glad to say there is no feedback/hum while charging. I'm a happy camper. :-D
I purchased this charger, and I've had mixed success with it.
Pros:
I definitely got a positive charge into the Pre, even while running the Sprint Navigation app and the phone app on speakerphone. I gain ~15% in an hour with both apps running, and the 30% over an hour with no apps running that the reviewer specified sounds pretty accurate.
And the reviewer is correct; the USB > 12V adapter is sleek and small and doesn't take up any extra space, which is lovely.
Cons:
The cord that comes with it is short enough that you can only use the phone on speakerphone; I can't reach the phone to my ear while it is charging. This may be intentional, as it is illegal in some states to have a phone to your ear while driving? Either way, it can be frustrating.
The other problem is that the adapter is a loose fit in my 12V outlet (2002 Subaru), and it can easily become dislodged while driving. It's frustrating to try to charge the Pre only to realize that the phone hasn't been plugged in for the last half an hour, and the light on the adapter is subtle enough that it is easy to miss in daylight.
I purchased this charger at BB and have had no problems with it. Swapped out the cords so that the longer one is in the car and the shorter one is in the office. (I also have the sprint charger, and the glowing yellow light is on the fritz, but it still does the job.)
USB port: one size doesn't fit all? One thing I wondered: it's a USB port; I had assumed that I could just plug any USB cable into the 12volt adapter and charge other devices with their cables (ipod touch, jawbone II). No other cables seemed to fit. (Hey, it shouldn't really be that hard, right? It's just plugging the USB cable into the receptacle. But, no dice.) Has anybody else noticed that issue?
About certain chargers not working out of the box: didn't they begin using this style charger with the palm pro? Could it be that what was designed and on sale back in the spring didn't work with the now released palm pre? And could that account for the slight differences in packaging? (Just a hypothesis.)
Is it just as nice, Tim G, or does your Pre lose charge with that cable while using, say, Pandora and Sprint Navigation simultaneously?
I would think that USB cables are USB cables, but I have a cheap car charger and micro-USB cable too, and it loses charge with Sprint Navigation alone, and barely holds its charge with Pandora alone.
Now that I know some people are still having charging issues with the charger reviewed in this article, though, I'm holding off on buying it.
On the 'it's a standard USB port' front:
Technically, yes, it's a standard USB port. However the 'wings' come quite close to the sides of the plug, and most standard USB cords will not fit into it because of that.
anyone having problems with it actually losing a charge? I was running music remix, and navigation, 2 apps, and i was losing battery percentage.. is this right? it was plugged into a splitter which runs my garmin nuvi, and my pre...
Best charger I have ever owned with this phone, plus it was only 5 bucks on the AT&T web site :)