A really good way to think about it is voltage is like the speed limit on a road, wattage is like the amount of lanes a road has, and polarity is like the side of the road that cars drive on.
Amperage is the number of lanes. Wattage is the traffic throughput of the whole road. which just happens to be.. speed limit * lanes. watts = volts * amps
I'm so glad laptops, phones, and even non-computer devices are moving towards USB-C power supplies. Unstandardized barrel connector power supplies are one of the worst things to happen to consumer electronics.
Perhaps because I was trained as a EE longer ago than I like to admit to myself (1974), I think the relationship between volts, amps, and power is simple enough that lay people can understand it. It's much less confusing than, for example, the relationship between the label of a USB socket on my laptop and a USB cable I can buy in the store. As you note, watts is simply voltage times current. The laptop needs a certain amount of power, and the power supply has to be big enough to provide that power. This is a great video, and I'm just saying more about this relationship so that your audience can understand why the rules you offer work.
Hi, very good explanation I find using the usb maths makes thinks simpler eg 5v usb output x 2 amp = 10 watts 5v usb output x 3 amp = 15 watts Many old usb phone charges were 1 to 1.5 amps, these days with more powerfull cpu and larger screen resolution etc many oem phone chargers a 2 to 3 amps - so your old charger will top it up just not as fast Work is mainly Dell laptops, the low end machines come with 40 to 65 watts, that mid 65 to 80, the top end 130 to 165. Some hi end machines will power up and throw a bios error or warning, other will just start up , at idle most low spec machines will run ok but using the cad laptops will throttle cpu as it is not getting enough power or eventually the lap top will shut down because like you said, the battery charge stored in the laptop was being added to the to small supply from the wall charger The other thing is most dell and HP use the same system, however each manufacturer has a data pin talking to a chip in the power supply, use a supply from the other company will actually run the laptop, but it will not top up the battery. Same with generic ( targus ?? etc ) most come with a assortment of connectors and a inline swap for the negative, some even come with variable voltage ( 12 / 15 / 19.5 ), they will run the laptop but not charge the battery Regards george
Fantastic! Thanks Leo, clear concise and I have about 5 or more dell laptops over the span of more then a decade and the spare chargers are so useful to have even just around the house. Great to know the worse that may be happening is just perhaps laptop throttling and not damage to the battery or components
HI Leo I will be subscribing thank you for the information.I have a small problem I have a Hellios 300 a good machine the problem is the 55watts battery now the original one can how do I overclock the device without frying my motherboard, cause a static discharge what should I be careful of can you install a particular voltage PCBs to regulate it in that matter and I assume that higher voltage can be bad and fry the system can 0,5 voltage do the same is there a way to set the settings on the battery on windows or custum software I am not clueless about this as I know that you can fry the motherboard and I own a 1500 euros device that would be horrible as this would cause at least 800 euros of damage.What is your advice for me?.
I was hoping you would cover how these charging stations work when they give multiple usb-a or usb-c outputs and only a certain watt for them. Besides tech that arrange a hand shaking situation, how does the charging station determine the volt output? When volts are decided then will the amps change based on the equation stating so?
my capture device had a 12v adapter (It didnt have us plug so I couldnt use it) so I used random 12v and the avermedia still works (I have used a few different adapters) (I have also seen devices that have voltage range, like my spy screw camera which supports any voltage from 5v to 12v) (my little tv (7in) says 12v but it worked over usb 5v)
This was a good one! Now if I could just remember the formula equations, 😆 At least I'll have this video to fall back on, lol. This is one that a lot don't pay attention to. Thanks Leo.
do you have a suggestion for an-in-one multipurpose AC/DC adapter that would fit many electronics such as router, speaker, kindle, etc but also has a reverse polarity converter and power tip to use for laptops (such as an HP laptop)?
Thank you so much for your video! I hear you saying that it's best to use the same manufacturer's charger. I have an ASUS laptop that needs a new charger cord (one of our pets chewed through it). I have a Toshiba charger cord with the identical polarity, amps and watts for both input and output. Do you think it's ok to use a Toshiba cord on an ASUS computer? Thanks again!
i was a little bit confused. My current laptop uses a usb-c charger with a 20v to 3.25A and a 65watt power supply but i want to use 1 with a 19.5v to 6.7a output rating and 130w power supply. The ampage criteria passes the test but the voltage doesn't match plus the charger to my current laptop doesn't include a polarity symbol on the jumble of logos and symbols on the charger.
With Lenovo, the answer is more like _Maaaaabey_ ? I will say a Lenovo Legion y545, which comes with a 20 Volt 230 Watt square-plug supply, will magically _not_ work with a 20 Volt 300 Watt power supply meant for more recent model Legion notebooks. It also won't work with a Mean Well 20 Volt 260 Watt supply after splicing on said square-plug. Well after having gone through 3 replacements I started tearing open some 230 Watt supplies after I tried the Mean Well and all but confirmed my worst fears; there are some small components on the PCB that look like their sole intention is to identify and handshake with something inside the laptop. One small surface mount component looks like a small modern radio crystal which would modulate the signal to the proper frequency for communication. I'll never buy another notebook computer that uses communication components in the supply again. Lenovo Legions are terrible in that once they start destroying power supplies they just keep ruining them faster and faster. I know USB-C can't support a demanding laptop but I'd recommend anyone look earnestly at weather they want to step beyond that power scope on a laptop if this is to become a common industry practice.
Yep this is perfect this is the same thing I gave someone a laptop and I think he uses 90 Watts I gave him a rosary watch charger problem is the battery still reads at 0%. So I'm thinking it's the battery is bad or power supply could be bad I've had that happen before. However when I'm looking up the Dell latitude e6510 it states it needs a 90 watt charger. So hopefully the battery is either bad and nothing else I have to return the battery. Or could it be something else cuz I know one time I tried multiple batteries and then obviously it was the power supply Jack in the back is messed up hopefully that's not the case what do you think
What if the wattage need on the device is the same wattage rating on the new power adapter BUT the amperage is lower on the new adapter for what the device needs? For example, the laptop device needs 3.33amps @ 19.5volts (65watts) but the new power adapter gives 20volts @ 3.25amps (65 watts). In this example the wattage is the same but the adapter does not give as many amps. In this case would one conclude that the new power adapter should be OK to use because the wattage is the same? Or is it a potential issue because the new adapter does not give quite the number of amps the laptop needs?
It depends on the devices involved. The voltage should be the same. What happens when it's off by half a volt will depend on just how tollerant the device is. Could be OK, could cause problems. No way to know.
Unfortunately, the only way to find out is to plug it in. Luckily it's most likely not enough of a difference that immediate catastrophic failure is a likely outcome, especially if all components have up to spec fail-safes. The most likely worst case scenario is your device just won't accept the power from the brick. Minor problem's with stability can't be ruled out though and there's really no way to really know the what the potential is for long term damage to the brick or to your device.
Thank you leo, i’ve watched ur video, and sorry for disturb you, i have a question, i’ve AIO pc that’s original adapter have 90watt, but i’m swap it for 125watt my old adapter, it’s has same voltage 20volts & same plug, because my niece need that, at first it run smoothly, but 1 day later its got freeze, sometime twice a day, not blue screen, now i think its bad for swap it, for resolve it, can i undervolt my aio pc? Or what should i do beside return its original adapter?
I don't know what you mean by "undervolt". Voltage should be the same. Honestly, this doesn't feel like a power supply problem -- what you describe should work. I'd be looking elsewhere.
@@askleonotenboom thank you for your answer, undervolt i mean is adjusting working voltage of cpu by software (software i’ll use is msi afterburner), i’ve got information that manufacture setting for cpu voltage is above what its need, and i think because i’ve replace original adapter to the higher one, it’s effect that cpu working voltage (still not sure)
hi, can I use a 130w charger for 65w laptop, the charger(130w) have the same brand with laptop(dell) and same voltage out/input, the different is the A and W. Thanks you
What if voltage match but not Amps? My charger is rated as 7.5amps and new charger I want as replacement is rated as 10 amps..should I but it or avoid but voltage is same in output.
My Acer nitro 5 discharges the battery during long gaming sessions, it has a 135W power supply, my question is: if I buy a 180W power supply with 2 more amps will it keep it from draining g the battery?
But... if you ever have reliability issues with the 135W power supply, or it's getting a uncomfortably hot under heavy use, a higher wattage supply should be more robustly built. So even if that Acer won't draw more from the 180W you can have some piece of mind that the 180W will likely last longer.
hello my gaming laptop uses an ac adapter of 200 watts but when it got spoilt I got a 150 watt ac adapter so when its not charging it works smoothly but when I plug it in its performance completely drops is because of the lower wattage.
The brick itself could be throttling because the laptop wants more power than the laptop can provide, if you haven't yet, I suggest getting at least a 200 watt adapter if you want the most out of your device.
So my laptop is 65 watts and it's battery provides only output of 7.7 watts. its charger provides 65 watts so my laptop works fine when plugged in but slow when on battery. Question is if it's possible to somehow make a battery provide 60 watts power to the laptop
Those are two different wattages that don't compare to each other. The 7.7 is the power the battery supplies to run the computer, and the 65 is the power the charger supplies to charge the battery. You can't compare one to the other.
@@askleonotenboom Thank you so much your reply however what would you suggest what can be done to make the battery capable enough to provide the laptop with the horsepower that it ideally needs
@@ismailibrahim9630 That's something you'd have to take up with the manufacturer. DO, however, look into Windows power settings. It's very likely Windows is configured to use less power when on battery, and thus will feel slower.
@@askleonotenboom Thanks you for the reply. My original charger was 11.8 amps and they sent me 9.23 amps by mistake. I was wondering if I can still use it for the mean time while waiting for the real replacement. I have tried it and it seems to charge my laptop but I'm using it for a long period of time a day so I need it plugged in while using at least and I'm afraid maybe the charger will overheat or something?
My laptop blinks the charging bulb sometimes when i do heavy gaming while charging. When it happen game fps drops . But this problem wasn't there when i was gaming on very first days . Can some body give me a solution. I use the original charger adapter came with the laptop
damn same thats why im on this video, im using 135w original adapter but it gives the above mentioned problem and with the same brand(ACER) i have a friend with 180w adapter which i have been using since months now and it is way smoother and the adapter doesnt get hot too, but still people would say that it would fry my pc one day, @askleonotenboom
@@abhaysingh-os3qu Someone told me that its a problem with gpu, but i guess its lack lack of power. Then Does this problem solved if i use higher watt adapter
According to me the problem is the battery or the charger if the light blinks... because it only happens at heavy usage as well my laptop is now 5years old so the adaptor and battery are kinda old and 5years is the limit to the battery, but when i use 180w adaptor everything is so smooth, im very inclined to stick to the 180w but in a few days i will check if my battery is at fault or the 135w adaptor just to make sure what to buy/replace, Steps that i will follow to check if my battery is fine or not : i will unplug the battery from the laptop which and use it with just the adaptor for a few hours if the light still blinks then the problem is not the battery, if the light doesn't blink then ofc the problem is the battery and i would need to get it replaced, ive been doing heavy fps gaming in the last 5years so ig that would make sense if my battery is worn out
A really good way to think about it is voltage is like the speed limit on a road, wattage is like the amount of lanes a road has, and polarity is like the side of the road that cars drive on.
Also the amount of cars on the road is like the amperage being used
That’s a great analogy 👍
Amperage is the number of lanes. Wattage is the traffic throughput of the whole road. which just happens to be.. speed limit * lanes. watts = volts * amps
@@askerton08 it's not, because it's wrong.
@@zachansen8293 he/she might be wrong but he gave me at least a better way to think about It thats why its a good analogy
Appreciated Leo, keep up the good work
I'm so glad laptops, phones, and even non-computer devices are moving towards USB-C power supplies. Unstandardized barrel connector power supplies are one of the worst things to happen to consumer electronics.
Thankyou the was one of best videos of this topic I've watched
Thank you so much for such a detailed explanation. Even a person who doesn't know anything about electricity can understand what is to be done
Perhaps because I was trained as a EE longer ago than I like to admit to myself (1974), I think the relationship between volts, amps, and power is simple enough that lay people can understand it. It's much less confusing than, for example, the relationship between the label of a USB socket on my laptop and a USB cable I can buy in the store.
As you note, watts is simply voltage times current. The laptop needs a certain amount of power, and the power supply has to be big enough to provide that power.
This is a great video, and I'm just saying more about this relationship so that your audience can understand why the rules you offer work.
Hi, very good explanation
I find using the usb maths makes thinks simpler eg
5v usb output x 2 amp = 10 watts
5v usb output x 3 amp = 15 watts
Many old usb phone charges were 1 to 1.5 amps, these days with more powerfull cpu and larger screen resolution etc many oem phone chargers a 2 to 3 amps - so your old charger will top it up just not as fast
Work is mainly Dell laptops, the low end machines come with 40 to 65 watts, that mid 65 to 80, the top end 130 to 165. Some hi end machines will power up and throw a bios error or warning, other will just start up , at idle most low spec machines will run ok but using the cad laptops will throttle cpu as it is not getting enough power or eventually the lap top will shut down because like you said, the battery charge stored in the laptop was being added to the to small supply from the wall charger
The other thing is most dell and HP use the same system, however each manufacturer has a data pin talking to a chip in the power supply, use a supply from the other company will actually run the laptop, but it will not top up the battery.
Same with generic ( targus ?? etc ) most come with a assortment of connectors and a inline swap for the negative, some even come with variable voltage ( 12 / 15 / 19.5 ), they will run the laptop but not charge the battery
Regards
george
You just helped me so much!!!!! Thank you for your video!
Finally someone explains this electric notation wizardry to the common folks.
Damn, finally understood the difference b/w watts, amps and voltage.
Great video.
Fantastic! Thanks Leo, clear concise and I have about 5 or more dell laptops over the span of more then a decade and the spare chargers are so useful to have even just around the house. Great to know the worse that may be happening is just perhaps laptop throttling and not damage to the battery or components
Very clearly explained. Thank you.
You’ll need to check a few things to make sure it works.
HI Leo I will be subscribing thank you for the information.I have a small problem I have a Hellios 300 a good machine the problem is the 55watts battery now the original one can how do I overclock the device without frying my motherboard, cause a static discharge what should I be careful of can you install a particular voltage PCBs to regulate it in that matter and I assume that higher voltage can be bad and fry the system can 0,5 voltage do the same is there a way to set the settings on the battery on windows or custum software I am not clueless about this as I know that you can fry the motherboard and I own a 1500 euros device that would be horrible as this would cause at least 800 euros of damage.What is your advice for me?.
I have subscribed to your newsletter and really enjoy your videos too. You have a wealth of up-to-date knowledge on computing to share. Thank you.
Leo = Legend. Thanks man this was great!
Thank you so much.
Thank you Leo, This was very very very helpful.
Amazing class! Thank you sir!
as long as the voltage and polarity are correct, a device will only use as many watts as it needs.
Thanks. Nicely explained.
Thank you, Leo!
Thank you! Very helpful!
Great video! Is this the same rationale for USB-C? I am using a smaller power supply for traveling and I get an error at startup.
Great video! Thanks!
Really good explanation. Thanks
Excellent explanation sir, thank you. Subscribed ...
I was hoping you would cover how these charging stations work when they give multiple usb-a or usb-c outputs and only a certain watt for them. Besides tech that arrange a hand shaking situation, how does the charging station determine the volt output? When volts are decided then will the amps change based on the equation stating so?
Sir. Your The Best You Made Ma Day Better
Thank you Very Much ❤💪🏻
fantastic info thanks !!
my capture device had a 12v adapter (It didnt have us plug so I couldnt use it) so I used random 12v and the avermedia still works (I have used a few different adapters) (I have also seen devices that have voltage range, like my spy screw camera which supports any voltage from 5v to 12v) (my little tv (7in) says 12v but it worked over usb 5v)
Thankyou so much sir!
fantastic explanation..
This was a good one! Now if I could just remember the formula equations, 😆 At least I'll have this video to fall back on, lol.
This is one that a lot don't pay attention to.
Thanks Leo.
thankyou, so helpful for me helping my gf purchase the correct dock!
do you have a suggestion for an-in-one multipurpose AC/DC adapter that would fit many electronics such as router, speaker, kindle, etc but also has a reverse polarity converter and power tip to use for laptops (such as an HP laptop)?
amazing video. thank you very much
OMG good explanation
Thank you so much!!!
Thank you so much for your video! I hear you saying that it's best to use the same manufacturer's charger. I have an ASUS laptop that needs a new charger cord (one of our pets chewed through it). I have a Toshiba charger cord with the identical polarity, amps and watts for both input and output. Do you think it's ok to use a Toshiba cord on an ASUS computer? Thanks again!
i was a little bit confused. My current laptop uses a usb-c charger with a 20v to 3.25A and a 65watt power supply but i want to use 1 with a 19.5v to 6.7a output rating and 130w power supply. The ampage criteria passes the test but the voltage doesn't match plus the charger to my current laptop doesn't include a polarity symbol on the jumble of logos and symbols on the charger.
Voltage doesn't match. As the video states, that's the most important, so I wouldn't do it.
I can finally buy the right power bank for my laptop
With Lenovo, the answer is more like _Maaaaabey_ ? I will say a Lenovo Legion y545, which comes with a 20 Volt 230 Watt square-plug supply, will magically _not_ work with a 20 Volt 300 Watt power supply meant for more recent model Legion notebooks. It also won't work with a Mean Well 20 Volt 260 Watt supply after splicing on said square-plug. Well after having gone through 3 replacements I started tearing open some 230 Watt supplies after I tried the Mean Well and all but confirmed my worst fears; there are some small components on the PCB that look like their sole intention is to identify and handshake with something inside the laptop. One small surface mount component looks like a small modern radio crystal which would modulate the signal to the proper frequency for communication. I'll never buy another notebook computer that uses communication components in the supply again. Lenovo Legions are terrible in that once they start destroying power supplies they just keep ruining them faster and faster.
I know USB-C can't support a demanding laptop but I'd recommend anyone look earnestly at weather they want to step beyond that power scope on a laptop if this is to become a common industry practice.
You saved me, TNX
than you so much!!!!
Yep this is perfect this is the same thing I gave someone a laptop and I think he uses 90 Watts I gave him a rosary watch charger problem is the battery still reads at 0%. So I'm thinking it's the battery is bad or power supply could be bad I've had that happen before. However when I'm looking up the Dell latitude e6510 it states it needs a 90 watt charger. So hopefully the battery is either bad and nothing else I have to return the battery. Or could it be something else cuz I know one time I tried multiple batteries and then obviously it was the power supply Jack in the back is messed up hopefully that's not the case what do you think
Fantastic video
What if the wattage need on the device is the same wattage rating on the new power adapter BUT the amperage is lower on the new adapter for what the device needs?
For example, the laptop device needs 3.33amps @ 19.5volts (65watts) but the new power adapter gives 20volts @ 3.25amps (65 watts). In this example the wattage is the same but the adapter does not give as many amps. In this case would one conclude that the new power adapter should be OK to use because the wattage is the same? Or is it a potential issue because the new adapter does not give quite the number of amps the laptop needs?
It depends on the devices involved. The voltage should be the same. What happens when it's off by half a volt will depend on just how tollerant the device is. Could be OK, could cause problems. No way to know.
Unfortunately, the only way to find out is to plug it in. Luckily it's most likely not enough of a difference that immediate catastrophic failure is a likely outcome, especially if all components have up to spec fail-safes. The most likely worst case scenario is your device just won't accept the power from the brick. Minor problem's with stability can't be ruled out though and there's really no way to really know the what the potential is for long term damage to the brick or to your device.
Thank you leo, i’ve watched ur video, and sorry for disturb you, i have a question, i’ve AIO pc that’s original adapter have 90watt, but i’m swap it for 125watt my old adapter, it’s has same voltage 20volts & same plug, because my niece need that, at first it run smoothly, but 1 day later its got freeze, sometime twice a day, not blue screen, now i think its bad for swap it, for resolve it, can i undervolt my aio pc? Or what should i do beside return its original adapter?
I don't know what you mean by "undervolt". Voltage should be the same. Honestly, this doesn't feel like a power supply problem -- what you describe should work. I'd be looking elsewhere.
@@askleonotenboom thank you for your answer, undervolt i mean is adjusting working voltage of cpu by software (software i’ll use is msi afterburner), i’ve got information that manufacture setting for cpu voltage is above what its need, and i think because i’ve replace original adapter to the higher one, it’s effect that cpu working voltage (still not sure)
exactly what i needed in my life of dying chargers
hi, can I use a 130w charger for 65w laptop, the charger(130w) have the same brand with laptop(dell) and same voltage out/input, the different is the A and W. Thanks you
Dude.... are u really watch the video?
my laptop 20v 9a, 180w, the one i wanna use is 19.5V 11.8A 230W. what will happen? that .5 really gunna make a difference?
No way to know. It depends on the hardware itself. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
What if voltage match but not Amps? My charger is rated as 7.5amps and new charger I want as replacement is rated as 10 amps..should I but it or avoid but voltage is same in output.
Just watch the damn vid. Its already explained
My Acer nitro 5 discharges the battery during long gaming sessions, it has a 135W power supply, my question is: if I buy a 180W power supply with 2 more amps will it keep it from draining g the battery?
No way to know for sure. It REALLY depends on how the power circuitry in the Acer is designed. My GUESS is it may not help, but I could be wrong.
But... if you ever have reliability issues with the 135W power supply, or it's getting a uncomfortably hot under heavy use, a higher wattage supply should be more robustly built. So even if that Acer won't draw more from the 180W you can have some piece of mind that the 180W will likely last longer.
If you would had Listened in your HS Freshman Science class you would under E = I x R & maybe Watts too.
hello my gaming laptop uses an ac adapter of 200 watts but when it got spoilt I got a 150 watt ac adapter so when its not charging it works smoothly but when I plug it in its performance completely drops is because of the lower wattage.
Possibly, yes.
The brick itself could be throttling because the laptop wants more power than the laptop can provide, if you haven't yet, I suggest getting at least a 200 watt adapter if you want the most out of your device.
So my laptop is 65 watts and it's battery provides only output of 7.7 watts. its charger provides 65 watts so my laptop works fine when plugged in but slow when on battery. Question is if it's possible to somehow make a battery provide 60 watts power to the laptop
Those are two different wattages that don't compare to each other. The 7.7 is the power the battery supplies to run the computer, and the 65 is the power the charger supplies to charge the battery. You can't compare one to the other.
@@askleonotenboom Thank you so much your reply however what would you suggest what can be done to make the battery capable enough to provide the laptop with the horsepower that it ideally needs
@@ismailibrahim9630 That's something you'd have to take up with the manufacturer. DO, however, look into Windows power settings. It's very likely Windows is configured to use less power when on battery, and thus will feel slower.
What if the wattage and amperage is lower than the required but the same voltage? Will it still work or the charger might have a problem?
It depends how much lower, and on exactly what's being charged. Most often charging will be slower, or not at all.
@@askleonotenboom Thanks you for the reply. My original charger was 11.8 amps and they sent me 9.23 amps by mistake. I was wondering if I can still use it for the mean time while waiting for the real replacement. I have tried it and it seems to charge my laptop but I'm using it for a long period of time a day so I need it plugged in while using at least and I'm afraid maybe the charger will overheat or something?
My laptop blinks the charging bulb sometimes when i do heavy gaming while charging. When it happen game fps drops . But this problem wasn't there when i was gaming on very first days . Can some body give me a solution. I use the original charger adapter came with the laptop
damn same thats why im on this video, im using 135w original adapter but it gives the above mentioned problem and with the same brand(ACER) i have a friend with 180w adapter which i have been using since months now and it is way smoother and the adapter doesnt get hot too, but still people would say that it would fry my pc one day, @askleonotenboom
@@abhaysingh-os3qu Someone told me that its a problem with gpu, but i guess its lack lack of power. Then Does this problem solved if i use higher watt adapter
According to me the problem is the battery or the charger if the light blinks... because it only happens at heavy usage as well my laptop is now 5years old so the adaptor and battery are kinda old and 5years is the limit to the battery, but when i use 180w adaptor everything is so smooth, im very inclined to stick to the 180w but in a few days i will check if my battery is at fault or the 135w adaptor just to make sure what to buy/replace,
Steps that i will follow to check if my battery is fine or not : i will unplug the battery from the laptop which and use it with just the adaptor for a few hours if the light still blinks then the problem is not the battery, if the light doesn't blink then ofc the problem is the battery and i would need to get it replaced, ive been doing heavy fps gaming in the last 5years so ig that would make sense if my battery is worn out
❤
Really good video! I've gotten your newsletters for years and just stumbled onto this channel today.