Questions about pass throughs.

[dizzy8578]

They seem to be an after thought for most sites. I find it my primary. But then I am never more than 5 feet from a computer most of the day and night.


The 3.7 volt "regulated" pass through from the smoovcigs site is what I started with and it is an 808 size. I am looking for a 510 to use tanks without an adapter and I keep seeing sites with footnotes that imply the pass-throughs are really batteries and should not be left connected to the usb port.

If it should not be left on the usb port then shouldn't it have a different name?

When I unplug my smoov passthrough it is inert. Is there an non battery automatic pass through with a 510 thread available out there? As long as they both use the same name and description, google is no help.

 

[teamscon]

I had a 900mah ego passthrough battery that was awesome. Mom has it now.
I think its mainly for using WHILE you vape. I wouldnt leave it connected to usb either with it fully charged.

 

[X P3 Flight Engineer]

The majority of pass-through batteries have an auto shut-off for the charging system when they are charged, therefore they cannot be overcharged. It they do not have this feature, or if it should fail, the battery will continue to charge with potential disastrous results. There are pass-throughs without batteries that can remain plugged in.

I also agree, they seem to be an after thought for most vendors. They obviously do not generate the additional sales of other batteries because they have the charging circuit built in and most use mini USB so they do not even need a proprietary charge cable.

I love them! (The pass-thoughs, not the vendors.) Lol

 

[sailorman]

A passthrough with an inline battery shouldn't be left on the computer for the same reason a USB battery charger shouldn't be left plugged in, unattended, while charging. A PT with a battery is really just a glorified battery charger.

I'm not familiar with a Smoov passthrough, but if it is inert when unplugged, it has no battery, Unlike other battery passthroughs, it should be drawing no current unless the switch is activated. Only a sudden failure of the switch, causing it to be closed while unattended, would cause a problem. Whether you feel that's a big enough risk to warrant unplugging it every time is up to you. Unless it has protective circuitry, the regulation circuit could conceivable fail during use and start sending 5V to your connector while, at the same time, drawing too much current and frying your ports and/or motherboard. That may be a reason not to plug it in to a USB without a hub, or to use a wall adapter.

There are 510 non-battery passthroughs, although I'm not sure about automatic ones. I suspect not. Most mods don't offer automatic batteries in the first place.

 

[sailorman]

... They obviously do not generate the additional sales of other batteries because they have the charging circuit built in and most use mini USB so they do not even need a proprietary charge cable.

I love them! (The pass-thoughs, not the vendors.) Lol

I may be missing something, but why would a PT battery have any different of a lifespan than a non-PT battery? The current is being discharged by the battery in both cases. It seems to me that the only difference is that in a regular battery, the charge cycles tend to be longer. In a PT, they're broken up into smaller segments. AFAIK, one of the advantages of a lithium battery as opposed to other technologies, like NiCads, is that partial charge/discharge cycles are counted proportionately against the overall cycle rating.

Putting aside the potential for overheating on a normal battery charger, a lithium battery discharged 10% and recharged 10 times has undergone the same wear as one that was fully depleted and then recharged once.

I think one of the other reasons for PTs being ignored is the prevalence of larger capacity batteries, inexpensive fast chargers and low priced VV PVs. When you can build a small regulated PV with 10 hours of run time that recharges in 2 or 3 hours, what's the point in being tethered to your PC?

 

[dizzy8578]

To me, the issue is why make a battery pass through when then usb port supplies 5v at up to 1.1 amp for older models and 2+ for most built since the iphone was released. (Iphone charging uses 2.1 amps via usb so all mb makers immediately made the circuit of usb2 and 3 connectors supply 2.2 amp safely.) Some like my gigabyte i7 board use software to allow even higher draw on ports designated as always on charging ports.

There is no reason that I can see why I (or any geek) cannot build a 510 manual passthrough that is not just like any other usb device when it is not activated by the switch, be it manual (momentary contact) or automatic (vacuum initialized). No one unplugs their usb blue-ray player or any other computer peripheral. Is the idea that a passthrough must also charge a battery so institutional that the suppliers and vendors don't see the need for a product? Is future profit considered too low since it will not be generating battery sales? Is it too cheap for the market? I will have to look it up, but I think many of the functions of mods could be implemented in software via your computer. My usb printer does all kinds of stuff and it is cheaper that even a pv starters kit.

 

[Pappy]

Yes, but your blu-ray player and your printer don't get up and move around, mow the yard, or go to work or go out to restaurants. People do. Thus, the reason why most people don't want to be tethered to a pass-through.

 

[sailorman]

The vast majority of usb ports in use are older than the iphone. 2amp wall adapters are cheap. With the prices of variable voltage plummeting, so is the demand for a fixed voltage 5V PV. One of the main advantages of a PT is that you can unplug it and walk away with a full battery. The idea of being tethered to a computer just to get a 5V vape isn't as appealing to as many people as you might think. You can still buy straight 5V manual passthroughs, but a lot of vendors have quit selling them, and some manufacturers have quit building them.

Right now, you can buy a variable voltage, 6V passthrough for about $80. Pbusardo just did a review on one.
If you want high voltage vaping, there's no sense in limiting yourself to 5V. You can buy 5V Nimh batteries. YOu can stack batteries. You can get several VV PVs for $50 or less. I just think that the market for such a device is too small.

 

[X P3 Flight Engineer]

They obviously do not generate the additional sales of other batteries because they have the charging circuit built in and most use mini USB so they do not even need a proprietary charge cable.

I may be missing something, but why would a PT battery have any different of a lifespan than a non-PT battery?

I obviously did not make it clear that the additional sales I was referring to were the battery chargers and charging cables. Even the iTaste, although it provides it's own internal charger, would like you to buy only their proprietary charging cable. It's a USB cable with 2 wires connected!! They used a different plug, AFAIK, only to generate more income.

I could be wrong! (Again!)

 

[wv2win]

If you end up getting a 5 volt (non-battery) pass-through, do not use it plugged into your computer. Too many stories of damaged laptops due to the USB port not being able to handle the current draw. As sailorman mentioned, get a good 5 volt/2 amp USB to AC adapter and pull from house current.

 

[dizzy8578]

I am new at this but already an oddball it seems. Nothing new in that.
I carry my pass through out to the car and plug it in to the 2.1 amp usb adapter I got from amazon. When I get out of the car I have the slim 808 batt with carto in my pocket and I know it will last until I get back in the car. Same when I mow the lawn or water the garden or run the vacuum. I use the portable device when I need portable but when I sit down inside I do so at one of 12 or more computers (depending on how many I am fixing at the moment) So I don't mind the tether since I am already tethered to them all the time. I was on call 24/7/365 for 7 years. It took 2 years of disabled/retired for me to stop carrying my cell phone to bed.

If the vendors don't see the need for what I want I will just have to build it. I have been reading a bit in the mods forums and it does not seem to be very complex scientifically, but the tools needed to design build, and test pvs are not obvious. I will have to build my own test sockets first.

Still I am a noob so I still have a lot to read before I know what is easier to buy than to build.


When I get more powerful batteries, or mods or geek out and start building stuff like I have with every other electronic device I have owned, I may feel differently.

 

[X P3 Flight Engineer]

I am new at this but already an oddball it seems. Nothing new in that.
I carry my pass through out to the car and plug it in to the 2.1 amp usb adapter I got from amazon. When I get out of the car I have the slim 808 batt with carto in my pocket and I know it will last until I get back in the car. Same when I mow the lawn or water the garden or run the vacuum. I use the portable device when I need portable but when I sit down inside I do so at one of 12 or more computers (depending on how many I am fixing at the moment) So I don't mind the tether since I am already tethered to them all the time. I was on call 24/7/365 for 7 years. It took 2 years of disabled/retired for me to stop carrying my cell phone to bed.

If the vendors don't see the need for what I want I will just have to build it. I have been reading a bit in the mods forums and it does not seem to be very complex scientifically, but the tools needed to design build, and test pvs are not obvious. I will have to build my own test sockets first.

Still I am a noob so I still have a lot to read before I know what is easier to buy than to build.


When I get more powerful batteries, or mods or geek out and start building stuff like I have with every other electronic device I have owned, I may feel differently.

Now that you have more than 5 posts you can post in the Mod Forum. Lots of good reading there as well.

There are many videos on YouTube showing how to make a 5 volt USB pass-through. Basically 2 wires, a switch, and a connector assembled in a case. They have been made from everything from flashlights to ... well, you probably don't want to know, or would be too embarrassed to show it in public anyway! Lol Enjoy!

 

[dizzy8578]

For those interested in the required specs for USB 3 ports:
http://www.usb.org/developers/whitepapers/power_delivery_motherboards.pdf