Re: Solution: N900 Charging from dumb power sources
 

I bought this and it works for my N900 with USB AC Adatpers that couldn't charge when I used other regular data cables.
Less than $4 for 2.

http://cgi.ebay.com/2-Retractable-US...item27af2df97b

Re: Solution: N900 Charging from dumb power sources
 

I had the same problem what I did was use a regular nokia car charger with the supplied N900 power adapter.
works a treat.

Re: Solution: N900 Charging from dumb power sources
 

I hacked a spare USB cable and finally saw my N900 battery charging from an external battery. Yay!

http://www.freeimagehosting.net/uploads/47a46fd5cc.jpg

That black Li Ion external battery is a BixPower BAT PM-55.

My PM-55 has lots of charge/discharge cycles, thus I cannot give "performance" figures.

Re: Solution: N900 Charging from dumb power sources
 

I browsed through all these 10 pages rather quickly, so sorry if this is already answered;
Could this however correct way (USB standard) of demand to shortcircuit D+ and D- be overridden somehow in software, through dbus or kernel parameter perhaps?

It would just be so convenient to click something from a menu, than always carry both either self made or bought adapter and normal USB-data cable.
So both synchronizations, fast data transfers and charge anywhere could be achieved.

Re: Solution: N900 Charging from dumb power sources
 

I would be very wary about using anything retractable. The cable could retract and pull the usb port with it ...

Re: Solution: N900 Charging from dumb power sources
 

I have two of those, very handy. The forces are rather weak, won't break anything although the locking mechanism would open in the middle.

...just tried. It won't even have force to pull from the computer's USBA connector if I unlock the "yo-yo" when it is connected.

Re: Solution: N900 Charging from dumb power sources
 

Has anyone tried the cable crenquis mentioned usbfever Sync Blocker yet? I assume it blocks sync by shorting, but if it blocks by disconnecting the data wires, it wouldn't work for charging...?

Brando has a similar adapter, smaller and cheaper. The description says it has an on/off switch but the images clearly show that it has a toggle switch for sync/charge. I am guessing this has the same functionality as the usbfever one.

Both devices claim compatibility with the N900, but that can be for sync only for all I know. Either of these might work, but has anyone tested? I think I might order one to try.

Re: Solution: N900 Charging from dumb power sources
 

Thanks for the link. Have you tried it? The Brando version looks like a better option. Who needs a 50" cable?

The only concern about this adapter is the size might put unnecessary strain on the connector. The N900 seems to have a weak connector so this may be an issue.

Re: Solution: N900 Charging from dumb power sources
 

Way back when in the early days of the WinMo smartphone cable hacking was done to get the HTC Typhoon (SPV C500/Audiovox SMT5600) to charge required shorting one of the data pins to ground.

When I saw this post and recalling the Nokia N900's behavior brought this memory back to me.

AS a side note-for those who don't want to solder you can get conductive ink pens to make bridges to create paths between any two points.

Re: Solution: N900 Charging from dumb power sources
 

Bought it , doesn't work.... very annoyed but caveat emptor. :mad:

When its in sync mode, it will both sync and charge, when its in charge mode it doesn't do anything. I've tried every order and combination of plugging and unplugging and its still useless.

Second edit:

With a different mini-usb cable, the stock APC cable that came with the universal battery, it will charge. Mysteries abound as the APC cable will also datasync, but I'm not going to question the great techno-loa that have blessed me with a working pair of external batteries.