Importance of Power/USB locations? I don't get it...

[vieux_carre]

I'm genuinely not trying to start a fierce debate...

 

That being said, I've noted many, many reviews & posts that highlight the lack of USB charging ports, especially at the bedside.  Since so many folks seem to think that this is important, I'm beginning to wonder if I'm missing something here.  I figured that it would be just as easy to plug a phone or tablet in to charge as needed using the normal adapter that one would use at home and just use a handy plug in the cabin somewhere.  If you want your phone by the bed, then just put it there when you go to sleep - if it's got a somewhat decent charge, it will still be there and functional in the morning.  Most cabins aren't so large that it would be a big trek over to a plug if you want your phone plugged in while you sleep.

[Host Hattie]

Cunard have fitted them on Queen Anne so I guess they have listened to the complaints. 

[D&N]

To be fair the equipment on Queen Anne was specified much more recently than QM2.

 

I'm not going to be booking a trip on Queen Anne because she is not QM2. But if I did, and it is likely I will have bought an updated phone before the sailing, will the USB sockets offer 125W charging as will be the fast charge specification of the new phone?

 

We'll just continue to take the electrical equipment and connections that we know will provide for our requirements.

[WantedOnVoyage]

Or... not be bothered with any of it. Ashore or afloat. There really is life "without 'phone'". Honest.

[D&N]

2 minutes ago, WantedOnVoyage said:

Or... not be bothered with any of it. Ashore or afloat. There really is life "without 'phone'". Honest.

I have some sympathy with that view.

But I do want any photos taken on phone or camera to be backed up to cloud, or other media if the transfer fails. And I'll want to post photos and a few notes here and on other media during our voyages.

The phone is an integral part of that process.

I don't bother with a laptop or tablet as the phone can do anything I would on a bigger device.

 

Regarding a different thread; I checked earlier with a bundle of photos I took this morning on my camera. Switching my Android phone to Aeroplane Mode, connecting WiFi, activating Hotspot and WiFi FTP Server. Switched on camera and all 89 photos quickly transferred to phone and onward to cloud without any problem.

It was iOS that was suggested had a problem with this but I thought I'd take the opportunity to make sure Android handled this without any issues.

[LadyL1]

I am sure there are USB ports in the newer aft suites on QV.

[BklynBoy8]

3 hours ago, D&N said:

We'll just continue to take the electrical equipment and connections that we know will provide for our requirements.

 

We too take the approved connections and electrical adaptors on board with us that do not have surge protectors that's restricted.

 

We got these adaptor/connections from an online source that have multiple outlets and several USB outlets that have come in handy on last several sailings.

 

May not be where the onboard outlets are placed but these do the job charging.

[reeves35]

10 years ago, the lack of sufficent power outlets and USB-A ports was not something anyone would really comment on.  Both are now considered key parts of cabin design and no newbuild or refurb will leave them out.  There are some ships such as Sun Princess that have included both USB-A and USB-C but most people will be fine with just the former at the moment. 

[Victoria2]

8 hours ago, LadyL1 said:

I am sure there are USB ports in the newer aft suites on QV.

Yes. There are and we were lulled into a sense of false security 'knowing' the refit had included usb ports.

Deck 7 aft -loads so didn't need our adapters.

Great news

so when our next cruise was on deck 6 we left our usb adapters at home.

Big mistake.

Deck 6 aft - none

 

but luckily, our Butler lent us one of hers.

 

On Annie, we didn't take a chance so took adapters. There were loads of ports in our cabin, of both types.

[rakkor]

I think the USB charging ports are going to be a source of many complaints going forward, we have them at our desks in the office and the failure rate is huge. I recently swapped out two double sockets in the bedroom at home for USB fitted ones and one of those has failed already. 

[D&N]

3 hours ago, rakkor said:

I think the USB charging ports are going to be a source of many complaints going forward, we have them at our desks in the office and the failure rate is huge. I recently swapped out two double sockets in the bedroom at home for USB fitted ones and one of those has failed already. 

Good point.

That's often the case in airport lounges as well.

[Clewgarnet]

I'm possibly overly paranoid, but I would never plug my phone into a public USB port. (Well, unless I had a power-only cable or a data condom, but whenever I buy one of those, I lose it within a week.) I'll stick to my plug-in adaptor, with a cable long enough to stretch across the cabin if necessary!

[3rdGenCunarder]

11 hours ago, BklynBoy8 said:

 

We too take the approved connections and electrical adaptors on board with us that do not have surge protectors that's restricted.

 

We got these adaptor/connections from an online source that have multiple outlets and several USB outlets that have come in handy on last several sailings.

 

May not be where the onboard outlets are placed but these do the job charging.

 

I travel with one of those because my camera battery charger plugs directly into the wall (US socket). In my Britannia cabin on QV last fall, the rather blocky charger didn't fit below the little ledge above the outlet. I had to charge the battery in the library. 

[BklynBoy8]

2 hours ago, 3rdGenCunarder said:

 

I travel with one of those because my camera battery charger plugs directly into the wall (US socket). In my Britannia cabin on QV last fall, the rather blocky charger didn't fit below the little ledge above the outlet. I had to charge the battery in the library. 

 

Which I could post image but ours (2) worked very well in the PG last Sept 22 on the 14 day.

 

We had the in room outlets we plugged these in and gave us multiple US outlets and total 6 USB.

 

With most being USB-C it worked well.... Lucky no ledges. These were in the Bookcase walls at the Wall Desk....

[stan01]

I bring my own adapters and a 10 foot USB cable. 

[Jonem2001]

On 6/23/2024 at 8:53 PM, vieux_carre said:

I figured that it would be just as easy to plug a phone or tablet in to charge as needed using the normal adapter that one would use at home and just use a handy plug in the cabin somewhere.  If you want your phone by the bed, then just put it there when you go to sleep - if it's got a somewhat decent charge, it will still be there and functional in the morning.

On the surface, I agree with you - I’m happy to take my own charger and charge my phone elsewhere in the cabin if I have to.

 

However, it’s more convenient to have the phone next to the bed (I use it as an alarm clock), and a USB socket is both more universal than a UK plug, and negates the need to deal with precious (and bulky) adapters if the plug socket is non-UK.

 

Do I need a USB socket next to my bed? No. But would I prefer one? Yes. Makes life easier!

[D&N]

My needs are the opposite in that almost all our chargers are EU and QM2 doesn't have EU sockets. I have an EU adaptor that takes both our fast phone chargers and also has two standard USBs sharing a 2.4A output. That covers everything we need. If I need to charge the toothbrush (we take one handle and swap heads) I unplug a phone charger briefly while the brush charges.

 

I have some very small but sturdy UK to EU adaptors. As you can see in the photos, the assembly can be plugged in either way up. I wouldn't travel anywhere I wasn't certain of finding multiple EU sockets without these anyway, so I'm not taking anything extra.

 

 

[david,Mississauga]

The few "toys" I have with USB plugs have always come with an adapter so I can plug it into the mains. Although I decline to waste my money on a smartphone, I have a small tablet. Whilst charging it yesterday on a train from Ottawa I noticed for the first time that it had a USB plug that was firmly inserted in a two-prong plug for a 110-volt outlet. I admit had I hadn't noticed the USB before.

 

This talk about different USB sizes is causing me concern I may need more adapters. If I'm lucky, any new devices I buy will continue to come with a plug so I don't have to worry about it.

[Winifred 22]

I use apple devices and they don’t come with a plug anymore. 

[JT1101]

Yes Apple devices have plugs. You just have to obtain separately as they rightly assume everyone has lots of plugs. In fact since the entire line now charges on usb-3 / thunderbolt one charger can do double duty.

[reeves35]

4 hours ago, david,Mississauga said:

The few "toys" I have with USB plugs have always come with an adapter so I can plug it into the mains. Although I decline to waste my money on a smartphone, I have a small tablet. Whilst charging it yesterday on a train from Ottawa I noticed for the first time that it had a USB plug that was firmly inserted in a two-prong plug for a 110-volt outlet. I admit had I hadn't noticed the USB before.

 

This talk about different USB sizes is causing me concern I may need more adapters. If I'm lucky, any new devices I buy will continue to come with a plug so I don't have to worry about it.

The EU has mandated that, going forward, all charging of devices will be standardised using  USB-C.  Apple initially resisted but the EU did not budge hence the retirement of the Lightning connection from the iPhone 15 onwards.  On the other end of the wire, both USB-A and USB-C persist though gradually USB-C is becoming more common due to its higher power capacity.  

 

 

[Kordy]

12 hours ago, reeves35 said:

The EU has mandated that, going forward, all charging of devices will be standardised using  USB-C.  Apple initially resisted but the EU did not budge hence the retirement of the Lightning connection from the iPhone 15 onwards.  On the other end of the wire, both USB-A and USB-C persist though gradually USB-C is becoming more common due to its higher power capacity.  

 

 

Not all USB-C ports are equal - is there an easy way to see how much power capacity a USB-C port has?  I have an iPhone 15 if that helps and it's hard to know if it's fast charging or slow-charging.

[D&N]

41 minutes ago, Kordy said:

Not all USB-C ports are equal - is there an easy way to see how much power capacity a USB-C port has?  I have an iPhone 15 if that helps and it's hard to know if it's fast charging or slow-charging.

Don't Apple quote that in your phone manual/specification?

 

GSM Arena quote for a standard iPhone 15:

Wired: PD2.0, 50% in 30 min (I've no idea what PD2.0 means)
Wireless: 15W

 

For comparison the latest Moto Edge 50 range that I've been looking at they quote:

Wired: 125W, 100% in 18 min
Wireless: 50W

 

Our current Motos clearly state if it's; Slow charging, Charging (standard), or Turbo-Power Connected. Sometimes the cable isn't rated for fast charging even if both charger and phone are.

Edited Thursday at 02:05 PM by D&N

[North West Newbie]

1 hour ago, D&N said:

Don't Apple quote that in your phone manual/specification?

 

GSM Arena quote for a standard iPhone 15:

Wired: PD2.0, 50% in 30 min (I've no idea what PD2.0 means)
Wireless: 15W

 

For comparison the latest Moto Edge 50 range that I've been looking at they quote:

Wired: 125W, 100% in 18 min
Wireless: 50W

 

Our current Motos clearly state if it's; Slow charging, Charging (standard), or Turbo-Power Connected. Sometimes the cable isn't rated for fast charging even if both charger and phone are.

 

Power Delivery. PD2.0 can have a connector Type-A, Type-B or Type-C whereas PD3.0 is only available with Type-C connectors.

[Kordy]

4 hours ago, D&N said:

Don't Apple quote that in your phone manual/specification?

 

GSM Arena quote for a standard iPhone 15:

Wired: PD2.0, 50% in 30 min (I've no idea what PD2.0 means)
Wireless: 15W

 

For comparison the latest Moto Edge 50 range that I've been looking at they quote:

Wired: 125W, 100% in 18 min
Wireless: 50W

 

Our current Motos clearly state if it's; Slow charging, Charging (standard), or Turbo-Power Connected. Sometimes the cable isn't rated for fast charging even if both charger and phone are.

Unfortunately Apple doesn’t show if a port is fast charging or slow charging. There is no easy way to tell if you are getting 5 watts of power or 20 watts!  
 

Also.  Not all cables are created equal.