I and others have had issues with third-party chargers causing coil whine when charging any laptop — not just the Framework laptop. So, I’m curious which third-party chargers people are using that don’t have that problem. Ideally, I’d like a dual port charger that charge a 60W Framework Laptop and a 30W phone, understanding that the phone might not charge at full speed if I have both devices plugged in.
I’m waiting for the Anker 736 (Nano II 100W GAN) charger to be available - hopefully soon. It should be able to handle the 30W to the phone and the 65W to the laptop at the same time.
I’m wondering if I can afford to wait. The whine is very loud, and I’m worried my current charger might be damaging my laptop somehow. Is that possible, or am I just being paranoid?
I bought an amazon basics 65W GaN single-port wall adapter with foldable prongs for $20 and already had a right-angle USB-C cable to use with it.
I couldn’t see much sense in lugging around the thick power cord that comes with the framework charger. However, I will probably eventually buy their charger for setting up a more permanent workstation at my desk. The amazon one is great for carrying in my backpack though.
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I use this Satechi 100w GaN charger. I never noticed any whine when it was sitting on my desk. It’s up to 100w for a single device, or 60w + 30w + 12w for multiple devices.
EDIT: I put my ear right against it and I can’t hear anything.
Yes. I haven’t found a third party charger with a ground. Whatever I’d use, I’d like it to support Samsung’s “Super Fast Charging”, even if I can only charge on From the reports here, it seems there is a difference in quality even among the two pronged adapters.
There’s a lengthy thread discussing options regarding the power adapter over here:
Some good info there. For me, I went with a compact GaN adapter from Hyper:
Small, multiple ports, folding plug, and supports Samsung super fast charging. Ticks all my boxes, and I expect it will be the only charger I need for travel.
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I have this 4 port, 100w, GaN charger from amazon:
It’s very good, I don’t hear any noise from it, and it charges the laptop at full speed. Obviously it charges a bit slower as you plug in more devices, but it can do 65w from one type-c port and 30w from the other at the same time, thanks to the 100w cap.
Samsung’s “super fast charging” is really just usb-c power delivery, I have the galaxy S20, which charges at 15w max, and it says it’s super fast charging when connected.
With 2 type-c ports and 2 type-a, it’s very flexible. I use it to charge my laptop, phone, headphones, and battery pack, all at the same time. It is a bit big but still fits in my laptop case.
The only minor complaint I have is that when you plug in another device when one is already charging, it cuts power for a split second to all the ports (I guess as it changes charging speed).
Overall though I’m very pleased with it.
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The coil whine with the charger I mentioned at the top of this thread has stopped. I have no idea why, but I’m happy.
Occasionally using my work laptops’ charger (MBP 2018).
I spoke too soon. Sort of. Tuns out the coil whine only happens with one of the two USB-C ports on my charger. Weird.
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Under my desk i have this one from Anker, powers my laptop plus accessories (keyboard, mouse etc…).
For on the go I use this Choetech charger. 2x USB-C PD at 100W max, and quite small to fit in any backpack.
For cable I have had the best results with Otterbox. Good solid cables that come with 2 years warranty and in 3 lengths. At my desk I use the 1m one and on the go the 3m one (you never know how far you are from the outlet).
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https://m.aliexpress.com/item/1005004237402278.html
USD$28 shipped roughly.
Powers both my Picopix 620 projector (~90w charging / ~40w continuous once charged) in the top slot and and Framework laptop in the second slot simultaneously. No whine on the unit, gets warm but not hot under heavy loads, etc.
I’ve been using a Satechi 75W Travel Charger since I got my Batch 5 Framework, and just picked up a smaller Satechi 100W Wall Charger for traveling.
Reviving this thread to ask a question specifically about grounded third-party adapters. For context there has been some discussion in the original blog post thread about the rarity of grounded USB chargers and why one might be a good idea.
I recently bought an Anker 727 specifically because it’s grounded, to use as an “all gadgets” adapter when traveling.
But when I first got to use it over the holidays, combined with Anker 100W USB-C cables, I felt the tell-tale leakage current tingling on both my Framework and my Pixel 7 (metal body). Same thing (tingling) with an ungrounded Google USB-C wall-wart from some earlier Pixel.
Now back home, however, I can no longer replicate the “delta” between that Anker/Google chargers and the Framework one. So I don’t know if what I experienced on holiday was the Anker not grounding its USB outputs (note it also serves as a power strip, so presumably those grounds are passed through - didn’t check) - or just a ground wiring issue at the place we were over the holidays.
So, any idea how to test that a USB charger is grounded? I tried a simplistic test with a multimeter with the Framework connected to the FW power adapter, and the adapter not connected to AC. There seemed to be no continuity between the FW body and the adapter’s ground prong. Is this a valid test or is there some (capacitor?) trickery expected to be in the ground connection that’s preventing the continuity from showing in this test?
Can anyone more electrically inclined here shed some light? Is the Anker a disappointment or did I just happen upon a not so well grounded Airbnb (tried the bathroom outlets too, so yikes, maybe).
That shouldn’t have happened, the anker 727 is supposes to be grounded:
Anker 727 Charging Station ($94.99) – built-in 100-watt charger with 2 USB-C ports (100-watt max port output), 2 USB-A ports, and 2 grounded outlets.
This however does require a working eletrical setup at home.
I also use Anker chargers and dont have any grounding issues.
I am using the UGreen 100W GaN charger with 3 USB-C ports and 1 USB-A port. There’s a bit of static I can feel as it is not grounded. The only high capacity one that I could find that is grounded would be the Apple 96W and 140W models (too bad they don’t at least have another slot unlike the 35W model).
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@Anachron note the wording though - 4 USB ports total, and, separately, 2 grounded AC outlets.
It’s the USB ports that are the interesting ones here.
Unfortunately I didn’t have the FW adapter with me on the trip so I couldn’t do an apples-to-apples test, and the problem doesn’t reproduce here with either power supply, so I’m still looking for a way to safely test whether the Anker is in fact grounded for the USB outputs.
I have a couple of these 65 watt Lenovo chargers I use with it, one of which came with an X1 Carbon and the other I bought: https://www.amazon.com/Lenovo-4X20M26268-Included-Original-Packaging/dp/B06Y2YPWSM/ref=sr_1_8?crid=3SUBD52YXC9UC&keywords=lenovo+65+watt+x1+charger&qid=1672925495&sprefix=lenovo+65+watt+x1+charger%2Caps%2C99&sr=8-8
They are good quality and not expensive.
I am using an Anker 737 charger for direct charging and a Lenovo Thunderbolt 3 Dock (Gen1) for docked charging. BOth work as expected. I skipped the Framework Charger because of all the charging cord issues, and its maximum power delivery rating.