When it comes to USB Type-C and Quick Charge 3.0, it’s tough to guess which you’ll have in your next smartphone – unless your next smartphone is the LG G5, which uses both. Luckily, Tronsmart has made a car charger that uses both. There is one USB Type-A port that does Quick Charge 3.0, and a second that is a USB Type-C port that does 3A output. Giving you the best of both worlds. We’ve been using it for a few weeks now, and it’s worked beautifully with the Nexus 6P.
This car charger from Tronsmart is the C2PTU model, as they do have a few different models available right now. It’s a relatively small car charger, but can still get the job done quite easily. As mentioned already, there is a USB Type-A and a Type-C port on this one. The Type-C does 3A but does not do Quick Charge 3.0. Additionally the USB Type-A does do Quick Charge 3.0 but is backwards compatible with Quick Charge 2.0, Quick Charge 1.0 and just regular charging. So if you have an older device that doesn’t support Quick Charge at all, you can still use it with this car charger and not worry about it damaging your device. Input here is DC 12-24V/4.2A max. Output is DC 5V/3A for the Type-C port and for the Type-A port it’s DC 3.6V-6.5V/3A, 6.5V-9V/2A, 9V-12V/1.5A. For those that might be wondering.
We were not able to test out the Quick Charge 3.0 functionality here since we don’t yet have a Quick Charge 3.0 device, but did use the USB Type-C port as well as the USB Type-A port with the Nexus 6P. Both ports performed about the same. Giving us similar charging times to what we would see if the phone was plugged into the wall at home or at the office. This means that you can charge your Nexus 6P from under 20% all the way up to 100% in a little under 2 hours. Considering the size of the battery – it’s a 3450mAh battery inside – that’s a pretty decent time. It’s important to note here that just because the charger can output 3A, doesn’t mean it will. It depends on how much power your car has, and also if you’re using the other port on this car charger. As it does need to share that power between both ports.
The looks of this car charger are actually quite nice. For many, looks may not matter when it comes to a car charger, but it is always nice to have a good looking car charger in your car. It’s a black charger with a matte finish. So unlike the other Tronsmart charger we reviewed recently, this one won’t get fingerprints all over it. The USB Type-A and Type-C ports are parallel to each other and the USB Type-A port is colored green, internally, to denote that it is a Quick Charge 3.0 port. Something you’ll notice on other chargers from Tronsmart (as not all ports on all chargers are Quick Charge 3.0) as well as other companies. It isn’t yet available in any other colors, although that could change in the future. Tronsmart does also sell it in a 2-Port model with two USB Type-A ports and a 3-Port model with three USB Type-A ports, if you wish to pick one of those up instead. Because this car charger is relatively small, it makes it easy enough to take it out of the outlet in the car and stick it in your glove compartment (in case you’re worried about it draining your battery overnight). It also makes it easy enough to travel with it, especially useful if you’re going on vacation and will be getting a rental car.
Tronsmart’s Safety Guarantee is in effect for this car charger as well. They state that this one is built with “industry grade materials and premium circuitry” which will protect your device from over-charging, over-heating and over-current while charging. It will charge your device fast, but safely. As safety is the number one concern here, as it should be. Tronsmart has a number of safety checks in-line here to keep everything safe.
This is one of many car chargers and chargers in general that we’ve used from Tronsmart in recent months, and have been perfectly happy with it. There are other chargers out there that have been known to catch on fire or overheat a device that it’s charging (albeit very, very rare). This hasn’t happened to all users, but it has happened to some. It can happen, but with all of the safety measures that are put in place with this charger, it definitely shouldn’t be an issue. Tronsmart does offer up a 18-month worry free warranty with this charger – and all of the others that they sell – so if there are any issues with this USB Type-C charger, you can get it swapped out for a new one, or have the issue fixed by Tronsmart. Although there shouldn’t be any issues. Tronsmart does not include a micro USB cable or any USB cable with this car charger, so you will need to supply your own. A bit unfortunate, but if you’re using micro USB, you likely have a few hundred laying around the house anyways. This is how Tronsmart is able to keep their car chargers cheap, and in most cases, cheaper than their competitors.
If you are in need of a USB Type-C charger, but would still like to have a USB Type-A port in the car (maybe your significant other uses a Galaxy S7, or an iPhone, they’ll be able to charge their phone in the car as well with the same charger), this is definitely one to look at buying. The list price on Amazon is $39.99, but right now it’s available for $19.99 (and has been since it launched). Remember that this is a bit more expensive than most normal car chargers for a couple reasons. One is USB Type-C, it’s not as cheap to get those ports and hardware as it is USB Type-A since it’s new. The other is Quick Charge 3.0. It requires more power, but also royalties to Qualcomm, who made the technology that everyone is jumping onto. Tronsmart is selling the C2TPU USB Type-C/Quick Charge 3.0 Car Charger exclusively at Amazon.
Tronsmart USB Type-C/Quick Charge 3.0 Car Charger
