Power Supply [misinformation] GaN Laptop Charger

DASBOOT

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Mod edit: removed link. A 3-port GaN laptop charger is not an AC-DC power brick.
 
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Phuncz

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It's a USB-C charger, not a power supply. It's also not 270W but has 3 USB-C outputs that combined max out at 270W.
 

msystems

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Those just don't work right for SFFpc because the usb controller is sensitive to overcurrent and I don't think they have any capacitance either. I have tried two different 100 watt rated "USB-pd 20v dummy chip to DC barrel" cable adapters (one cheap one, and one from Adafruit) on the 100w ports of the SlimQ 240w GAN charger. Both couldn't deliver anywhere near 100 watts, loading the system higher than 45w caused shutdowns on the Deskmini. The DC barrel implementation on the SlimQ 240w GAN is very good though.

Since it was delivering 20v instead of 19v its possible that the Deskmini didn't like the voltage, but I'm pretty sure the USB controller is the reason. Some others have said these chargers aren't designed to function as a psu. They are designed for charging and not for bursts of higher peak amperage. By contrast a PSU is designed for brief peaks which exceed the rated wattage.
 
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DASBOOT

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And was that a quality GaN PowerSupply??? Probabaly not, being that you were testing it on that cheap OEM POS like a desk mini I would expect no less. It is marketed as a charger. Zeus can deliver a powerful 140W Power Delivery from its single USB 3.0 using a USB-C cable. More than enough for a factory OEM Desk mini. Not having a C to Barrel adapter or an integrated version, is a problem, I agree. so buy something from SlimQ and be done with it. The problem, a Good GaN PS almost cost more than a desk mini, putting this out of range of the normal Deskmini enthusiasts. Why is there not a USB C charging /power circuit on a Desk-mini board, because the whole machine sells for under $190.00 bare bones on Amazon. I hate to burst your bubble but you usually get what you pay for. Cramming junk onto junk still equals junk.
 

Gilles3000

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And was that a quality GaN PowerSupply??? Probabaly not, being that you were testing it on that cheap OEM POS like a desk mini I would expect no less. It is marketed as a charger. Zeus can deliver a powerful 140W Power Delivery from its single USB 3.0 using a USB-C cable. More than enough for a factory OEM Desk mini. Not having a C to Barrel adapter or an integrated version, is a problem, I agree. so buy something from SlimQ and be done with it. The problem, a Good GaN PS almost cost more than a desk mini, putting this out of range of the normal Deskmini enthusiasts. Why is there not a USB C charging /power circuit on a Desk-mini board, because the whole machine sells for under $190.00 bare bones on Amazon. I hate to burst your bubble but you usually get what you pay for. Cramming junk onto junk still equals junk.
This reads like they're paying you to promote this product....

So whats so great about this for the SFF PC community? As it can only output 140W over a single port and and only 36W at 12v... for a $220 retail lol

HDplex's GAN PSU can output 250W continuous and doesn't need a DC-DC ATX adapter. All the for only $145 retail...

So I'm not sure what this thing is even good for?
 

steelfractal

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This reads like they're paying you to promote this product....

So whats so great about this for the SFF PC community? As it can only output 140W over a single port and and only 36W at 12v... for a $220 retail lol

HDplex's GAN PSU can output 250W continuous and doesn't need a DC-DC ATX adapter. All the for only $145 retail...

So I'm not sure what this thing is even good for?
glorified aio travel charger with unknown customer support just buy from Anker or any other reputable charger company then you at least know what you are getting
 

Phuncz

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@DASBOOT there's no need to get defensive when you're wrong, but the last few posts you have been pushing GaN laptop chargers from unknown brands, that don't do what you claim it does. This is very much like spambot behavior.
 

DASBOOT

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I am not promoting this thing at all, and I have 2 Hdplex GaNs myself. I don't like complaining, whinners, with cheap crap trying to make something better out of nothing. Make a statement that an Item will only do this, not that it will not work with my crap. Deskmini's are crap they do not use an authentic thin itx board and only a real quality ITX board can be used with HDplex Gan. Deskmini's use a 19-volt internal, power supply, and there are no quality 19 Volt Power supplies anymore with the departure of Hd[plex from 19V. All I did was post a link, then the whining started. 19 volt is a dead issue and has been discussed previously in other threads on this forum. I pushed buttons because I called the "OEM Deskmini" crap and that fact stands in my opinion.
 

msystems

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140w on usbc is interesting, (I would be interested in seeing it applied on a picopsu), however I was a bit confused how it does that since, official max 20v spec is 5A max. I looked it up and its based on a new spec apple made- 28v @5a. Therefore you'd need a dummy cable to negotiate this 28v spec if going for DC barrel implementation and a pico accepting 28v. Or a picopsu with usbc input which doesn't exist (yet)
 
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msystems

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And was that a quality GaN PowerSupply??? Probabaly not, being that you were testing it on that cheap OEM POS like a desk mini I would expect no less. It is marketed as a charger. Zeus can deliver a powerful 140W Power Delivery from its single USB 3.0 using a USB-C cable. More than enough for a factory OEM Desk mini. Not having a C to Barrel adapter or an integrated version, is a problem, I agree. so buy something from SlimQ and be done with it. The problem, a Good GaN PS almost cost more than a desk mini, putting this out of range of the normal Deskmini enthusiasts. Why is there not a USB C charging /power circuit on a Desk-mini board, because the whole machine sells for under $190.00 bare bones on Amazon. I hate to burst your bubble but you usually get what you pay for. Cramming junk onto junk still equals junk.

Ok and on this subject, I don't know why it doesn't work. It could be a whole range of reasons. It very well could be the Deskmini being a "cheap OEM POS".

But the main thing I was trying to state is that USB-C charger implementations (even good ones) aren't going to be designed for the same power delivery as a regulated PSU. This isn't controversial at all, others have tested it and had the exact same result.

I´ve tried something similar with my 0.6L mini eGPU and a 120W GaN charger from Aohi - unfortunately the same results...

Once the GPU pulls more than 40~50W it shuts down, even though the PD ports of the charger can supply * up to * 100W/20V (tested with a Notebook).

I remember Gury (G-Unique) once told me that the PD circuit of those chargers is not working like a normal DC-brick and is not designed to supply the full wattage constantly but rather optimized for charging a device (wattage changes slowly, depending on charge rate). Sudden peaks in power consumption as we see it with a DeskMini or eGPU probably trigger some kind of protection in the PD circuits.
 
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DASBOOT

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Wow, you learn something new every day. The fact is ITX, not Thin ITX, for a small form factor build, is the only reasonable option now unless you can live with a brick. Unless we find out who is supplying the Chinese OEMs with power supplies building AIO's with thin ITX boards with 19V power delivery. Someone is, and it is not HDPlex or their former supplier in Taiwan.
 

REVOCCASES

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Wow, you learn something new every day. The fact is ITX, not Thin ITX, for a small form factor build, is the only reasonable option now unless you can live with a brick. Unless we find out who is supplying the Chinese OEMs with power supplies building AIO's with thin ITX boards with 19V power delivery. Someone is, and it is not HDPlex or their former supplier in Taiwan.

There are tons of cheap second hand 19V and 12V PSUs that are compatible with thin ITX on ebay, aliexpress etc. Just search for "AIO Power Supply"

For example:


I've used a small 130W 19V one made by Liteon for one of my previous thin ITX builds. Just had to mod the power connector to match the Pinout with the board...

 
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DASBOOT

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Yes, hundreds of sheet metal tin cans, 12V and 20V power supplies, no 19 Volt, no aluminum cased, all need modification, I doubt any have PFC, All of them are too large except open frame and Meanwell and the word quality is not in any of the descriptions as that would not be an apt description by any means. But Cheap as a descriptor is the perfect descriptive adjective for the hundreds of pull from these broken-down crap AIOs. Since 15/16 of the thin ITX boards are 19V the majority of the 12V DC ones can be thrown out immediately.
This is after you throw out all the low-quality bricks. I have no problem paying for what I get, there is just nothing to get like the HDplex defunct 19V series.
There were however a few HDplex PS's listed.
 
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robbee

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I'm looking at 51 results at Digikey. This is Digikey right, not Aliexpress. They're all 19V, quality, small and most of them with optional casing. They're just like Meanwell, which you seem to like. I don't know what else to say that you won't also disagree with.

Also, those HP aio titanium PSU's may very well be better quality than the old 19V HDplex ac-dc units.
 

DASBOOT

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Comments accepted. And yes I am decerning when it comes to looks over functionality. My 19V comment was eBay-centric.