Toughbook Power Supply

Before I go and plug things into where they are not supposed to be, I want to ask.

The CF-30 AC adapter shows 15.6v @ 5a
The CF-29 AC adapter shows 15.6v @ 5a
The CF-18 AC adapter shows 15.6v @ 5a


Are all these interchangeable?

It looks like the CF-30 AC adapter will fit into a CF-29 and CF-18 but i have not tried yet. After reading about a cf-28 that died from plugging in the wrong ac adapter i am hesitant to try until i know.


Thanks,
James

 

Yes they will all work
I mix them up all the time
No problems
The largest amp that I have is 8.0 amp
And I run all my toughbooks on a lind 5.0 amp
The standard amp output on the 18/19 is less than 4 amps


Alex

 

James,
Volts are volts, and all batteries require input of more than their rated voltage to accept a charge. IE, your car battery is 12v, but your alternator puts out something like 13.5-14v to be able to push a charge into your battery. Too many volts can cause a battery to over heat. Amps are a measure of the amount of current a power supply, alternator, wire, etc can supply or carry. A 60 amp alternator is adequate for most cars, but add a whole bunch of power hungry accessories, and you will need to get a bigger alternator to meet the demand. Same volts more current draw=more amps. Batteries, light bulbs, motors, etc are self limiting in their current draw, they take what they need.
I have Toughbook power supplies from 2.5 to 8 amp ratings,all the same volts. My 2.5 amp supply is intended to operate my CF-VDW07 remote display, it will operate the display and slowly charge the tiny battery. It will, albeit slowly, charge a CF-28, and would charge my CF-30 if the connector would fit. The higher amp chargers are for the big Toughbooks and will charge and operate them at the same time. If I tried to use the little one on the CF-30 it would surely overheat badly, not able to supply as many amps as the system is calling for. If I plug the 8amp charger into the CF-VDW07 it will loaf along happily as the unit is only capable of drawing a fraction of its amp rating. In short, within reason, you can't "over amp" a Toughbook, but you can "under amp" a power supply. The problem discussed in inbredmonkey's thread is too many volts, a completely different animal. Circuits, motors, lightbulbs, etc are NOT self limiting when it comes to volts. Put a 12v head light into a 24v truck, and you'll see what I mean.
I seem to have run on a bit, and this is not the whole story, but functionally, this is the answer to your question.
CAP

 

Speaking of power supplies. I am a huge fan of Lind. I just recieved there AC/DC adapter yesterday. Now I can run, charge my toughbook with either A/C or D/C from the same unit. Pretty neat stuff.

 

Hey Cap, I have a question for ya.... What if you were to use a charger that had the correct tip, same output amperage, but the voltage output is 18.0 instead of the required 15.6. Would you do harm using that one?

 

Toyo,
I'm not sure. It's only 16% more volts and shouldn't be a problem. BUT, I haven't seen a final answer from Inbredmonkey and his power supply was 22% more volts. If we were talking big wires and big batteries I'd say it would be no problem, but I don't know how the 15.6v gets dropped to whatever the Toughbook battery gets fed inside the computer. My rant was very general and meant to mostly discuss amps. Any increase in voltage over OEM 15.6v will probably result in more heat, 16v is only a 2% increase and should have minimal effect on the system. DON'T plug anything into your Toughbook that you're not sure of using me as the last word. Gravitar and I have been using the Sony 16v adapters with no problem, that's anecdotal, not based on science.
The Lind stuff is the best! All of mine put out 15v to further confuse the issue.
Be careful, CAP

 

Agreed! The Lind adapters are way overbuilt and IMHO are what Panasonic should have been shipping with the toughbooks in the first place.

 

Anyone know what kind of regulating/filtering the CF-29s do with the power input? **cough schematics cough** I realize most would probably be done by the (expected OEM) power supply, but.

I use a Lind Thinkpad adapter in the car and a Thinkpad T42 power supply at work when I bring the Toughbook in. That being said, as an experiment on a benchtop power supply I put 24v into a Linksys WRT54G. Didn't turn on, but when put back to 12v, it was like nothing happened. IMO you can probably go to 18/19v okay... I've gone up to 20v with my Macbook Pro but got scared and backed off.

 

I'm not sure what goes on inside the computer but there is certainly some power regulation going on inside. I know the CF-30 manages AC input in several ways which can be selected in the BIOS depending on your usage habits, always on battery, usually plugged in, high temperature environments, etc. I'm confused why, given the cost of power supplies on eBay, anyone would risk seriously over volting an expensive computer. There is also the issue of shortening the life of very expensive batteries with excessive heat from voltage higher than the batteries were designed to take. If Inbredmonkey is reading this, please let us know how you made out with your problem. It would add a lot to this discussion to know if the 19v power supply blew a fuse or cooked something more critical and harder to fix.
CAP

 

I'm with Cap.... These are expensive machines.... Not worth trying to save a buck or experiment with unless you can afford to do it.

I just read that and it looks kinda strange that I would say that considering that I tear these apart and mod them all the time. I guess what I mean is that once you have a stable, modded, complete and finished laptop... Why risk it?

 

You can get 16V power supplies that fit a toughbook for $11 shipped on ebay. Just spend the $$ and be done with it.

 

Well i was hoping that it would work in all of them as i am getting a cf-18 in soon and it does not come with an AC adapter.

Now i can just use my CF-30 adapter.

Thanks Guys

-James

 

tolerable voltage amount to be safe is +/- 5%


ohlip

 

Am in need of two DC supplies for use in a car with our CF-28's and came upon this unit ($14. each plus $8. shipping):
http://www.my-batteries.com/laptop-dc-adapter/panasonic-cf-28.htm#

Anyone used one and have a review, please?

I know that some of the cheaper "universal" supplies have been prone to failure in the past. This one is rated at 80W (I presume Output) which would be more than enough for a CF-28 (15V @ 4A).

WDYT, please?

 

A little more research netted this Targus 90W model for $45. plus $7.49 shipping (to me):
http://www.pricegrabber.com/user_sales_getprod.php?masterid=5214605&lot_id=7377751

Anyone tried this device, please?

Sure hate buying a pig-in-the-poke if I can avoid that! At the same time if the $14. model is reliable & safe why spend $50.+?

 

Doc,
With a little patience you can grab a Lind on eBay for around $20 shipped. They are built better than the Toughbooks!
Cap

 

at that price, its gotta be worth a try. i don't get why they're advertising a universal P/S as something particular to a CF-28 though..

 

Hey Doc
I've tried 2 of those and both promptly died after a few weeks of use.
I tore one of them apart after the last one burned-up and found the quality
below par, one of the FET's had unsoldered itself ..probably why it self-destructed. When they die they smoke up quite a bit, usually there's a melted case involved too.
If they used better heatsinks inside they may have lasted longer...
I eventually sprang for the Lind. No problems so far, running it daily for 6 months.
Regards

 

Maybe this will help clear some things up.

I called Lind tech support yesterday since my new AC/DC power supply was only putting out 15.3 volts. We talked for awhile about the power requirements and such. He said they have tested the CF-30 from 13 to 20 volts without any problems at all. He said they have a very robust power regulation in them. He said for me not too worry at all. I just wanted to make sure the piece was no defective at all.

 

I'd say at 13v, it would pull more current, while if fed 20v, it would use less? The Macbook Pro monitors the input voltage and seems to stop charging the battery if it sees less than 15v. I'm sure all laptops do something similar... just that I can't bear frying my Toughbook, and the MBP was under warranty.

 

canuckcam,
This is getting a little over my head but, I can generalize. Volts and amps are completely different animals. The higher the volts the fewer amps are required to do the same work. HIGHER AMPS REQUIRE LARGER CONDUCTORS! This is important because, when you need to move the power over long distances you bump up the voltage allowing smaller conductors. This can effect you even with extension cords around the house. If you plug a 20amp skillsaw into a 100' 16ga. extension cord it will heat up and will burn out your motor due to voltage drop in the cord, too much resistance. Using a long 18ga extension cord on your toaster can burn down your house. The toaster actually heats up because it is designed to utilize the heat generated by the resistance to cook your toast. When it comes to Toughbooks, the amps are small enough to eliminate most of these issues, where they are important, Panasonic has been nice enough to install fuses. When it comes to charging batteries you need more volts than the nominal battery voltage to force the battery to charge but too many more volts will overheat the battery. You have probably noticed that your battery gets hot when you charge it. We have learned from Lind through Toyo that a CF-30 can handle 20v. We don't know how the computer handles the voltage internally and we don't know if battery life is impacted by the higher voltages. I'm inclined to trust Lind, but I still don't know why you would want to fool around with this. Now my hair hurts and I'm going to start stuffing the Turkey which I will cook by putting excessive amps through the conductors in the oven.
CAP

 

kd4e -

The APM12US is actually rebranded/same product-different nametag as the Kensington 90W AC/Auto/Air adapter family I've been using for years; I have a 70W version that runs my CF-28 wonderfully and never gets more than barely warm, even when under full load AND charging batteries at the same time.

Some people will find the modular input cords/power tips inconvenient compared to a second adapter meant just for your model; I keep one full kit in each car so no matter if I'm using my TB, Dell, or HP laptop I ALWAYS have the right power to charge on the road.

Shop around on eBay; you can usually find these around $25-$35 w/shipping if you're a little bit patient.

Good hunting,

mnem
Bigger, faster, louder. All the good things in life.