{"video_id":"DsfsZQjOfu0","title":"How to Buy the RIGHT Phone Charger","channel":"Techquickie","show":"Techquickie","published_at":"2026-03-31T21:54:28+00:00","duration_s":481,"segments":[{"start_s":0.32,"end_s":7.44,"text":"USBC was supposed to be the one port to rule them all. One cable for your phone,","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":5.839,"end_s":12.24,"text":"your laptop, your earbuds, your everything. And yet somehow, standing in","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":9.92,"end_s":16.96,"text":"front of a wall of chargers covered in watts and protocol names, you still have","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":14.48,"end_s":20.56,"text":"no idea which one to buy. Maybe you should just get the cheapest one, but","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":18.32,"end_s":25.359,"text":"will it start a fire in my house? Look, charger marketing is genuinely a mess.","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":22.96,"end_s":30.08,"text":"But buying the right charger really just comes down to five things. Let's break","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":28.0,"end_s":34.88,"text":"them down. Number one, plugging a huge charger into a small device will not","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":32.399,"end_s":38.64,"text":"blow it up. You're not crazy. This was a thing with older phone chargers. They","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":36.719,"end_s":42.719,"text":"were basically dumb. And kind of like me in my early 20s, they hadn't learned how","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":40.559,"end_s":48.079,"text":"to communicate. Instead, they pushed voltage and it was up to you to match","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":44.719,"end_s":49.52,"text":"them with the right device. USBA was","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":48.079,"end_s":54.8,"text":"actually a step in the right direction here. It standardized everything at 5","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":52.16,"end_s":59.68,"text":"volts. But it was a one-sizefits-all situation that limited performance.","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":56.8,"end_s":64.32,"text":"Modern USBC chargers are smart. They're more like me in my 30s. They've read","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":61.84,"end_s":67.92,"text":"Radical Acceptance by Terra Brock. The moment you plug something in, there's a","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":66.08,"end_s":73.439,"text":"conversation that happens because chargers are all built to the USB PD or","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":71.28,"end_s":77.84,"text":"power delivery standard. The charger offers a menu of voltages and the device","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":76.0,"end_s":81.68,"text":"picks what it wants. If the devices can't communicate at all and the","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":79.2,"end_s":86.0,"text":"handshake fails, everything falls back to the slowest, safest option. This","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":84.4,"end_s":90.799,"text":"actually makes buying a charger easier. now than it was in the past. Worst case,","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":88.72,"end_s":94.96,"text":"your device just charges slowly or not at all. The USB PD spec is just the","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":93.28,"end_s":100.32,"text":"baseline, though. If you've ever seen marketing terms like super vou from","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":97.68,"end_s":104.64,"text":"OnePlus or super fast charging from Samsung, those are proprietary","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":102.479,"end_s":108.799,"text":"extensions of the standard that allow the industry to innovate. And if you've","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":106.96,"end_s":114.159,"text":"ever wondered why most charging cables these days have USBC on either end","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":111.52,"end_s":118.719,"text":"rather than the old rectangular USBA. The negotiation between charger and","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":116.0,"end_s":123.28,"text":"device is part of the reason. USBA doesn't normally have the communication","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":120.64,"end_s":128.239,"text":"pins needed for that negotiation. Nor does it have the voltage and current","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":124.96,"end_s":130.8,"text":"capabilities of USBC. So when you do see","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":128.239,"end_s":136.48,"text":"it, it's with a slower charger. It's why you generally can't fast charge a laptop","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":132.959,"end_s":140.239,"text":"from a USBA port. Duh. So, what number","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":136.48,"end_s":142.8,"text":"on the box actually matters? Wattage.","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":140.239,"end_s":147.04,"text":"For charging one phone, get the highest number you can that's not higher than","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":145.12,"end_s":150.959,"text":"what your device can handle, because then you'd be paying for watts you can't","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":148.959,"end_s":154.16,"text":"use. You can find out your phone's max by heading to its Wikipedia page. Or if","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":152.959,"end_s":158.56,"text":"your phone is more obscure and doesn't have a Wikipedia page, like me, but","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":156.16,"end_s":164.0,"text":"somehow has a Wiki Feet page. Anyway, uh, check GSM Arena. When in doubt, a 30","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":161.84,"end_s":169.28,"text":"watt charger is probably fine for most people. again charging one phone. But","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":166.8,"end_s":173.36,"text":"nowadays there are lots of multiport chargers on the market and they add","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":170.959,"end_s":179.599,"text":"another layer of confusion. Though the box may say 100 watts, that's usually","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":176.16,"end_s":182.64,"text":"only on just one or some of the ports","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":179.599,"end_s":184.08,"text":"with the other ports being well less.","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":182.64,"end_s":188.239,"text":"Not only that, but plugging into multiple ports at once will cause the","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":185.84,"end_s":193.84,"text":"charger to renegotiate power, splitting it and potentially slowing your phone's","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":190.72,"end_s":196.64,"text":"charging speed. Now you're ready to buy","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":193.84,"end_s":200.56,"text":"a charging brick, but what about the cable between it and your device? Does","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":198.8,"end_s":204.64,"text":"it matter? We spoke with George Paparzos, who oversees battery tech at","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":202.959,"end_s":209.519,"text":"Qualcomm Technologies. >> It is very uh critical. Uh but and I","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":207.92,"end_s":213.519,"text":"think that's another example where consumers don't realize uh because the","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":211.68,"end_s":218.72,"text":"cables I mean most of them look the same. As a rule of thumb, the thicker","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":215.519,"end_s":221.84,"text":"the cable and the shorter the cable, the","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":218.72,"end_s":224.4,"text":"less lossy it is. So it it gives you","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":221.84,"end_s":230.159,"text":"more capability. Now the standard itself like for example USBD they have two","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":226.959,"end_s":232.72,"text":"categories of cables. They specify a 3","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":230.159,"end_s":237.92,"text":"cable which is the regular cable but then we also specify a firearm cable","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":235.76,"end_s":242.72,"text":"which the device and the accessory recognizes through an e-arker.","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":240.08,"end_s":247.76,"text":">> Those Earkers are tiny chips hidden inside higherend cables. When you plug","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":245.36,"end_s":252.4,"text":"in the charger actually asks the cable what specifications it can handle. and","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":249.84,"end_s":256.88,"text":"the E-arker has the answer. If the cable can't answer properly, the charger","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":254.48,"end_s":261.12,"text":"assumes it's on the weaker side and limits the power to avoid overheating.","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":259.12,"end_s":265.84,"text":"So, if you're wondering why your 100 W charger is crawling with a brand new","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":263.44,"end_s":270.08,"text":"cable, the cable's probably lying about what it can do. But even a great cable","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":268.08,"end_s":274.639,"text":"and a great charger can still be catastrophically undermined by something","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":272.32,"end_s":279.44,"text":"most people never think about. And we'll get into that right after a word from","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":276.639,"end_s":282.72,"text":"our sponsor, Threat Locker. If you're running a small business or a large","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":1},{"start_s":280.96,"end_s":286.479,"text":"company, all it takes is one email to have it all fall apart. It's only been","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":1},{"start_s":284.72,"end_s":290.32,"text":"three years since Robo Elon took over this very channel, but our sponsor","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":1},{"start_s":288.0,"end_s":293.919,"text":"Thread Locker can stop tons of different security breaches from happening thanks","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":1},{"start_s":291.84,"end_s":298.16,"text":"to their deny by default approach. With Thread Locker, only verified users and","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":1},{"start_s":296.08,"end_s":301.199,"text":"trusted devices can access your network. You can even secure cloud access,","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":1},{"start_s":299.68,"end_s":304.8,"text":"blocking hackers that have access to passwords, multiffactor authentification","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":1},{"start_s":303.04,"end_s":308.32,"text":"approvals, and successfully hijacked tokens. There is so much more that","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":1},{"start_s":306.88,"end_s":314.479,"text":"Threat Locker can do to keep you and your team safe. And you can learn more about their zero trust approach with our","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":1},{"start_s":311.52,"end_s":319.52,"text":"link below. Even though USB PD is designed to be as safe as possible,","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":1},{"start_s":316.479,"end_s":321.84,"text":"chargers can absolutely still be","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":319.52,"end_s":326.88,"text":"dangerous when manufacturers cut corners and skip things like proper electrical","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":324.16,"end_s":331.6,"text":"isolation, accurate current limits, or real cable detection. That's when you","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":329.44,"end_s":335.52,"text":"can get overheating, unstable power, or in worst case scenarios, actual","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":333.36,"end_s":340.479,"text":"electrical failure. If a charger is suspiciously lightweight, runs unusually","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":338.0,"end_s":344.8,"text":"hot, or comes from a brand name you can't pronounce, that's your warning","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":342.56,"end_s":348.639,"text":"sign. But did you say cable detection a second ago? I did, and it's honestly","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":346.56,"end_s":352.639,"text":"pretty cool. A USBC charger, believe it or not, is actually off until","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":350.639,"end_s":357.039,"text":"something's plugged in. Inside the charger is a tiny pullup resistor","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":354.96,"end_s":362.08,"text":"connected to the configuration channel pins. Inside your phone or laptop is a","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":359.68,"end_s":366.08,"text":"pull down resistor. At the most basic level, when you plug the cable in, the","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":364.16,"end_s":370.56,"text":"charger detects the voltage drop caused by that pull down resistor, confirms the","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":368.479,"end_s":374.88,"text":"device is attached, and then turns the power on. This prevents sparks, protects","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":373.039,"end_s":379.759,"text":"the connector, and avoids exposed voltage. We've all been there. It also","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":377.6,"end_s":384.319,"text":"tells the charger and the cable which way you flipped the plug, which still","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":381.84,"end_s":388.8,"text":"feels like magic. The safety stuff brings us to the age-old question when","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":386.16,"end_s":394.24,"text":"buying a phone charger. Does the brand matter? Are Apple chargers better?","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":391.44,"end_s":398.639,"text":"Honestly, in some cases, yes. Apple chargers specifically are subject to","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":396.08,"end_s":402.639,"text":"extremely strict compliance standards. But you do have to pay for that","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":400.4,"end_s":406.88,"text":"reliability. The good news is reputable third-party brands often use very","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":404.639,"end_s":411.44,"text":"similar internal technology for less money. Really, the danger zone is the","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":409.12,"end_s":415.919,"text":"gas station special or bargain bin online charger that saves a few dollars","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":413.759,"end_s":421.199,"text":"by skipping safety components. A great example of what good charging tech looks","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":417.919,"end_s":423.28,"text":"like is GAN or gallium nitride chargers.","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":421.199,"end_s":428.24,"text":"For decades, chargers used silicon, which generates a lot of heat and","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":425.039,"end_s":430.8,"text":"requires bulky heat sinks to stay safe.","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":428.24,"end_s":434.479,"text":"GAN is a next-gen semiconductor that is much more efficient than silicon,","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":432.479,"end_s":438.72,"text":"meaning it can handle higher voltages in a smaller space and loses way less","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":436.4,"end_s":443.84,"text":"energy to heat. That's why you can now find a 100 W charger that fits in the","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":440.96,"end_s":447.68,"text":"palm of your hand. That said, sometimes these small chargers can thermal","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":445.44,"end_s":452.8,"text":"throttle, and if they do, they'll charge more slowly for a while. That's why","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":450.16,"end_s":458.479,"text":"Apple calls these 40 W dynamic power adapters with 60 watt max. They know it","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":455.919,"end_s":462.96,"text":"won't be at 60 watt all the time. And remember, charging is only half the","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":460.639,"end_s":466.639,"text":"story. Data transfer has its own mess of speed, standards, and future upgrades.","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":465.039,"end_s":471.12,"text":"So, if you want a better handle on how USB data actually works and where it's","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":1},{"start_s":468.96,"end_s":476.8,"text":"heading next, check out our video on USB data transfer. And if you'll excuse me,","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":1},{"start_s":473.52,"end_s":481.08,"text":"I had to take this.","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":1},{"start_s":476.8,"end_s":481.08,"text":"No, you can't keep the dog.","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":1}],"full_text":"USBC was supposed to be the one port to rule them all. One cable for your phone, your laptop, your earbuds, your everything. And yet somehow, standing in front of a wall of chargers covered in watts and protocol names, you still have no idea which one to buy. Maybe you should just get the cheapest one, but will it start a fire in my house? Look, charger marketing is genuinely a mess. But buying the right charger really just comes down to five things. Let's break them down. Number one, plugging a huge charger into a small device will not blow it up. You're not crazy. This was a thing with older phone chargers. They were basically dumb. And kind of like me in my early 20s, they hadn't learned how to communicate. Instead, they pushed voltage and it was up to you to match them with the right device. USBA was actually a step in the right direction here. It standardized everything at 5 volts. But it was a one-sizefits-all situation that limited performance. Modern USBC chargers are smart. They're more like me in my 30s. They've read Radical Acceptance by Terra Brock. The moment you plug something in, there's a conversation that happens because chargers are all built to the USB PD or power delivery standard. The charger offers a menu of voltages and the device picks what it wants. If the devices can't communicate at all and the handshake fails, everything falls back to the slowest, safest option. This actually makes buying a charger easier. now than it was in the past. Worst case, your device just charges slowly or not at all. The USB PD spec is just the baseline, though. If you've ever seen marketing terms like super vou from OnePlus or super fast charging from Samsung, those are proprietary extensions of the standard that allow the industry to innovate. And if you've ever wondered why most charging cables these days have USBC on either end rather than the old rectangular USBA. The negotiation between charger and device is part of the reason. USBA doesn't normally have the communication pins needed for that negotiation. Nor does it have the voltage and current capabilities of USBC. So when you do see it, it's with a slower charger. It's why you generally can't fast charge a laptop from a USBA port. Duh. So, what number on the box actually matters? Wattage. For charging one phone, get the highest number you can that's not higher than what your device can handle, because then you'd be paying for watts you can't use. You can find out your phone's max by heading to its Wikipedia page. Or if your phone is more obscure and doesn't have a Wikipedia page, like me, but somehow has a Wiki Feet page. Anyway, uh, check GSM Arena. When in doubt, a 30 watt charger is probably fine for most people. again charging one phone. But nowadays there are lots of multiport chargers on the market and they add another layer of confusion. Though the box may say 100 watts, that's usually only on just one or some of the ports with the other ports being well less. Not only that, but plugging into multiple ports at once will cause the charger to renegotiate power, splitting it and potentially slowing your phone's charging speed. Now you're ready to buy a charging brick, but what about the cable between it and your device? Does it matter? We spoke with George Paparzos, who oversees battery tech at Qualcomm Technologies. >> It is very uh critical. Uh but and I think that's another example where consumers don't realize uh because the cables I mean most of them look the same. As a rule of thumb, the thicker the cable and the shorter the cable, the less lossy it is. So it it gives you more capability. Now the standard itself like for example USBD they have two categories of cables. They specify a 3 cable which is the regular cable but then we also specify a firearm cable which the device and the accessory recognizes through an e-arker. >> Those Earkers are tiny chips hidden inside higherend cables. When you plug in the charger actually asks the cable what specifications it can handle. and the E-arker has the answer. If the cable can't answer properly, the charger assumes it's on the weaker side and limits the power to avoid overheating. So, if you're wondering why your 100 W charger is crawling with a brand new cable, the cable's probably lying about what it can do. But even a great cable and a great charger can still be catastrophically undermined by something most people never think about. And we'll get into that right after a word from our sponsor, Threat Locker. If you're running a small business or a large company, all it takes is one email to have it all fall apart. It's only been three years since Robo Elon took over this very channel, but our sponsor Thread Locker can stop tons of different security breaches from happening thanks to their deny by default approach. With Thread Locker, only verified users and trusted devices can access your network. You can even secure cloud access, blocking hackers that have access to passwords, multiffactor authentification approvals, and successfully hijacked tokens. There is so much more that Threat Locker can do to keep you and your team safe. And you can learn more about their zero trust approach with our link below. Even though USB PD is designed to be as safe as possible, chargers can absolutely still be dangerous when manufacturers cut corners and skip things like proper electrical isolation, accurate current limits, or real cable detection. That's when you can get overheating, unstable power, or in worst case scenarios, actual electrical failure. If a charger is suspiciously lightweight, runs unusually hot, or comes from a brand name you can't pronounce, that's your warning sign. But did you say cable detection a second ago? I did, and it's honestly pretty cool. A USBC charger, believe it or not, is actually off until something's plugged in. Inside the charger is a tiny pullup resistor connected to the configuration channel pins. Inside your phone or laptop is a pull down resistor. At the most basic level, when you plug the cable in, the charger detects the voltage drop caused by that pull down resistor, confirms the device is attached, and then turns the power on. This prevents sparks, protects the connector, and avoids exposed voltage. We've all been there. It also tells the charger and the cable which way you flipped the plug, which still feels like magic. The safety stuff brings us to the age-old question when buying a phone charger. Does the brand matter? Are Apple chargers better? Honestly, in some cases, yes. Apple chargers specifically are subject to extremely strict compliance standards. But you do have to pay for that reliability. The good news is reputable third-party brands often use very similar internal technology for less money. Really, the danger zone is the gas station special or bargain bin online charger that saves a few dollars by skipping safety components. A great example of what good charging tech looks like is GAN or gallium nitride chargers. For decades, chargers used silicon, which generates a lot of heat and requires bulky heat sinks to stay safe. GAN is a next-gen semiconductor that is much more efficient than silicon, meaning it can handle higher voltages in a smaller space and loses way less energy to heat. That's why you can now find a 100 W charger that fits in the palm of your hand. That said, sometimes these small chargers can thermal throttle, and if they do, they'll charge more slowly for a while. That's why Apple calls these 40 W dynamic power adapters with 60 watt max. They know it won't be at 60 watt all the time. And remember, charging is only half the story. Data transfer has its own mess of speed, standards, and future upgrades. So, if you want a better handle on how USB data actually works and where it's heading next, check out our video on USB data transfer. And if you'll excuse me, I had to take this. No, you can't keep the dog."}