We are not alien to the concept of USB, which is short for Universal Serial Bus, a connecting standard for delivering data and power. Speaking of which, you might think of another power delivering device, the power strip. And yes, more and more frequently, they are merged together to make most of the power strips you may find in the market. Here’s a roundup for the USB ports on the power strips and charging stations that will be helpful if you are looking for something to charge your USB gadgets.
5V USB-A
This is the most common type of USB port built on the power strips and charging stations. You may find many of them in parallel, each of them being able to deliver 0-2.4A (some older versions at 0-2.1A), according to the need of attached devices. These are the same 5V USB ports on your laptop or desktop computers and can charge almost all electronics and USB powered gadgets like mini fans, table lights, toys, and more.
A 5-Outlet Power Strip with 3* 5V USB Ports
QC3.0 USB-A
Released by Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. for phones and tablets with Qualcomm Snapdragon chips, QC3.0 utilizes a dynamic charging voltage with 200mV increments for the maximum charging speed from 3.6V to 12V at max 18W. Its advantage over a 5V USB-A is significant, a QC3.0 USB-A port charges 4 times faster, and is estimated to charge an average battery from 0 to 80% full in half an hour.
A Portable Power Strip with 1*QC3.0 USB-A and 4*5V USB-A
Standard USB-C
Compared with its predecessors, the USB-C port has a natural advantage: reversible connector orientation, that saves the hassle of turning the connector back and forth for the right orientation. Also, standard USB-C ports are designed with a default 5V/3A max output for newer electronics like phones, tablets, wristbands and smart watches.
A USB Charging Station with 1*QC3.0 USB-A, 1* Standard USB-C and 2*5V USB-A
USB-PD Type C
First launched by USB-IF on 2012, USB Power Delivery (PD) now is on its 3.0 version which technically supports a charging power all the way up to 100W through a USB-C port and does not limit the compatible devices to phones and tablets, laptops and other multimedia equipment will also be included in the list. Unlike QC3.0 that only applies for devices with Qualcomm chips, USB-PD is universal and more inclusive. For example, iPhone 8 and later models can support PD fast charging with proper accessories.
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