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They make USB-C cables with displays now

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Re: They make USB-C cables with displays now

#131

Post by theodric »

MissTake wrote: post #116
udevrandom wrote: post #111

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Flipping the cable would put the cables power display on the underside of your machine. The little built-in screen on the cable is only on one side.

And? The GP talks about it being upside down when plugged in to the left hand side of a device. Given that USB-C is Bi-directional, flipping it over would show the screen…

You're suggesting I plug it in upside down so I can't read it, or plug it in on the right side of my machines which have no ports on the right side?

Re: They make USB-C cables with displays now

#133

Post by rjh29 »

theodric wrote: post #131
MissTake wrote: post #116

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And? The GP talks about it being upside down when plugged in to the left hand side of a device. Given that USB-C is Bi-directional, flipping it over would show the screen…

You're suggesting I plug it in upside down so I can't read it, or plug it in on the right side of my machines which have no ports on the right side?

I own this cable. You literally put the cable in the left side at an orientation that has the display facing upwards. I feel like I'm missing something!

It's bidirectional so you can just twist the cable so the display is facing up..

Re: They make USB-C cables with displays now

#134

Post by theodric »

rjh29 wrote: post #133
theodric wrote: post #131

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You're suggesting I plug it in upside down so I can't read it, or plug it in on the right side of my machines which have no ports on the right side?

I own this cable. You literally put the cable in the left side at an orientation that has the display facing upwards. I feel like I'm missing something! It's bidirectional so you can just twist the cable so the display is facing up..

[dead]

Re: They make USB-C cables with displays now

#135

Post by weinzierl »

KeplerBoy wrote: post #82
weinzierl wrote: post #80

"That’s when I found out that there exist cables that have little screens on them that show the power consumption of the connected device." Useful to get an idea how much your USB light draws and to check if your phone is really fast charging. I'd be careful with the numbers when the USB drives a more complicated load. Measuring the true power consumption of a microcontroller is surprisingly hard.

How can measuring a DC load be complicated? Sure the load can be very spiky and you have to sample fast enough to accurately integrate them. but that's doable given sufficient caps. Of course you'd end up with some filtered average instead of the instantaneous power, but that would be no good for a text display anyway.

When your range is from nano amps during sleep to spikes of several tens of amps you will not find a voltmeter with a range big enough to work with a single shunt. You need several shunts and switch between them very fast. That's what devices like the Joulscope do and why they are expensive.

Re: They make USB-C cables with displays now

#136

Post by TwoNineFive »

These have been on the market for years. I have a bunch of them.

They are a bad gimic in every way.

They generate heat. They waste power. They create light pollution. They are distracting. Their measurement capabilities are often very limited or mediocre or don't update quickly. And finally they often burn out and stop working anyway.

If you want a USB power meter, buy one for $10 or less.

Re: They make USB-C cables with displays now

#137

Post by [deleted] »

theodric wrote: post #131
MissTake wrote: post #116

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And? The GP talks about it being upside down when plugged in to the left hand side of a device. Given that USB-C is Bi-directional, flipping it over would show the screen…

You're suggesting I plug it in upside down so I can't read it, or plug it in on the right side of my machines which have no ports on the right side?

[deleted]

Re: They make USB-C cables with displays now

#138

Post by Arrath »

i_have_to_speak wrote: post #14

> The paranoid side of me suspects that a cable like this one would be an ideal place to hide a malicious chip. Why hide a malicious chip in a cable with display -- why not in one without a display? Wouldn't that be more, uh, malicious?

It would certainly be more inconspicuous.

Re: They make USB-C cables with displays now

#139

Post by RecycledEle »

zygentoma wrote: post #103
jajko wrote: post #83

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Chargers, cables, batteries - you literally get what you pay for. In this category, the ultimate risk is nothing less than burning down whole house. I ain't rich enough for that cheap crapware. Anker it is for me.

Isn't Anker the definition of cheap crapware (sold under a brand name)?

Anker replaced a tablet computer that a defective USB cable fried.

I now love and trust Anker.

Re: They make USB-C cables with displays now

#140

Post by bloggie »

vinnyvichy wrote: post #37
Izkata wrote: post #23

Look for "power meter" if you want stuff like this. I bought this one a year ago: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0B99Z2GJK/ And this one for USB 3.0 four years ago: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B019RHJRM8/ Modern ones give a whole lot more information than the one in the article.

Some? Most? All? of them have extensible/externalizable Lua logging/scripting capabilities? https://www.avhzy.com/html/product-detail/avhzy-c3-usb-c-3-1... >PC suite for advanced online data logging, PD listening, online fast-charge trigger, and firmware upgrade.

I have this one, it was great for debugging an annoying transient during power-on which some combinations of hardware with caps on the edge of tolerance had! In the field too!
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