Charging via USB

[balanga]

If charging a device via a USB port, is there any indication that charging is taking place?

Should the device show up under lsusb/usbconfig ?

 

[cracauer@]

No, if it is just charging it would not show up in usbconfig.

You should buy a USB powermeter. Very handy and they also answer questions like this one.

 

[SirDice]

Depends, if it's a USB power cable, no, because there's no data connected. Also some devices might have a charging only option, even if you used a "full" USB cable there's still no data connection between the host and the device.

 

[Beastie]

What kind of device are we talking about? Doesn't the device itself show when it's being charged? Phones all have a battery icon with a special lightning bolt. Same for portable media players. Many earbud cases have a button to check the status (full/empty/charging).
Note that not every USB port on a computer is powered. Power delivery can vary between ports. Some BIOS/UEFI firmware allow you to control that. Long USB cables can also significantly impact power delivery.

 

[balanga]

Depends, if it's a USB power cable, no, because there's no data connected. Also some devices might have a charging only option, even if you used a "full" USB cable there's still no data connection between the host and the device.

Please explain what a FULL usb cable is and how I identify one.

 

[balanga]

What kind of device are we talking about?

 

[Beastie]

balanga, doesn't it have a LED near the USB connector? It should be blinking while it's charging.

 

[balanga]

balanga, doesn't it have a LED near the USB connector? It should be blinking while it's charging.

Yes, I can see it now. The problem was that I hadn't used this keyboard for a long time and couldn't establish if was charged up. After trying various cables and USB ports on various computers I can see that it is blinking.

I'm still in the dark about what a full USB cable is and whether some show a presence under lsusb/usbconfig whilst charging.