Review – pedalpower+ Universal AC Cable, initial thoughts
I am in the process of building a SON based wheelset and was hunting to find more use for the Hub than lighting. In the short term, I am not interested in using the dynamo power for lights and have been lookout for some solution that can allow me to store the energy to charge other electronics, specifically the iPhone and some AA batteries.
I came across the site for PedalPower+ and since I could not find much info online on the product or about the company, I called them to clear some of the q’s I had. I spoke with the son (Nicholas Kidd Jnr) of the Inventor / boss (Nicholas Kidd Snr) and it was a pleasant. I liked the fact that he was able to answer all my q’s technical and otherwise and after debating with myself, I decided to get the Universal AC cable and a set of adapters. they also sell batteries and the V4 seems like a good one to have especially with its 5600 mAh capacity. I have a Solio and so decided against the battery purchase for now.
I will state some initial impressions here and once I have an opportunity to use the product for an extended period, I will do a follow up to this review.
- First off, what impressed me was the fact the the product is not built as a proprietary solution, the output from the Universal AC cable can be fed to any device directly. This includes batteries like the Solio. Though pedal power sells batteries too, they do not force the sale on to you. Which is neat in my book. Additionally, since each of the product can be purchased separately, it makes for a slightly higher pricing. I paid 92 AUD for the AC cable and an additional 16 AUD for the additional set of adapters. They are a bit steep in my book but I have nothing to compare the price with. B+M is expected to sell a similar product called E-Werk which has a posted price of 140 Euros, which seems to be the same price as the Pedalpower’s universal cable + the V4 battery. Given that E-Werk is not available yet and the flexibility offered by PedalPower+, I decided to try the Ac cable option.
- Dealing with Pedalpower was very pleasant. I called, then we discussed, made payment through paypal and received the product in 2 days. I would have preferred a cheaper shipping option, but I suppose it is something you can discuss with them.
- The packaging is simple, though they took the effort to make sure it arrives safe and bubble wrapped.
- The AC cable seems waterproof because the electronics are held in a moulded case and the input and output cables are also mounded into the sides. However, the ends where you are expected to connect the Hub and your device do not have any shielding from the elements. It would have been nice to provide a silicone or rubber enclosure at the ends to protect from accidental splashing. If it can be made waterproof, that would be perfect.
- The finish does not seem to be of the highest quality and not sure how it will endure persistent rain and sun. The cable shielding are plasticky and I would have preferred a smoother overall finish.
- The best part of the AC cable is the fact that the connection to 3rd party system is very flexible. The end hat connects to the dynamo is simply 2 wires. I will have to get the proper cable that connects to the SON (or any other dynamo). This is a good idea since they do not force you to buy their dynamo. The output from the AC cable (I presume the electronics do the job of converting AC to DC, high voltage cutoff etc…) is also pretty much open ended. They provide a standard (properly polarized, I presume) jack that connects to all their mini adapters. At first glance, the pin looks to be the same one as in the Solio’s Output, I will have to check to confirm though. But the quality of the Output pin is something I might be concerned about. Extended use is the only way to find out if it indeed is robust.
- The adapter set supports a variety of devices and I found ones that I might need, one for the iPod, a Mini USB, A Female USB etc… The problem is that they still do not support the latest iPhones (which require a cable with embedded electronics), but I was assured that they are working on a solution for that too.
- The Input cable for the Universal AC is about 60 cm and probably long enough to fix it permanently in the fork. The output cable is a coiled wire (like in old telephones) and seems to have reasonable reach. The idea seems to keep the V4 or your devices on your handlebar to charge. I might not use it this way and may need to find a better solution to install on the bike and keep it safe from elements.
Overall, I believe the product has great promise. The openness in the connectivity and the ability to pick up the product in smaller chunks makes this very appealing for people who might already have some of the products (in my case, the SON and Solio). On the flip side, I believe the cost of the AC universal cable can be lower and the build quality higher with more protection from the elements. I suppose I will have to use it over an extended period before making a call on the real life issues.
I have yet to use it, am still waiting for the SON to show up and my wheels built. As I write this, the inventor Nicholas Kidd Snr, is showcasing the product in Eurobike 2009. I have not seen any reviews for the PedalPower+ products and I hope anyone interested will benefit from these observations.
Related posts:
September 3rd, 2009 17:53
Dahon do a retrofit iPhone mount and charging kit. Looks pretty special:
http://www.bikebiz.com/news/31059/Selfish-Dahon-plugs-iPhone-hardware
September 3rd, 2009 21:54
I have been following the IOS system it looks pretty cool coming from a large company. I guess Dahon has been trying their hand with Dynamo’s and the Joule hub strategy does not seem to have worked. They removed it from the Speed TR 09. Not sure what went wrong, may be negative customer feedback.
I would expect a good workable solution from Dahon, though this is the first time I see that the charging kit can be brought separately. Looks like a good option at a decent price point too. Would be nice to see real world reviews from users.
September 4th, 2009 12:02
Hi Nat,
Thanks for the review. I have a SON wheel and very interested in a similar setup using hub and Pedalpower+ to charge Solio Mg, mp3 player and rechargeable LED light. Looking forward to your updated review as a brief \it works\ or \doesn’t work\ will be sufficient.
September 4th, 2009 14:00
What I hear from Pedalpower is that they have tested extensively and the cable works as advertised. I am still waiting on my SON based wheel, should be up in 1st week of October. Then I can definitely answer you. But if you are in a hurry, call them and they might be able to satisfy your curiosity.
Yes, your setup seems like the same as what I plan to do. The solio Solar charger is nice, but as it is with Solar charging, the process is very slow and I have not found a good way to stash it on the bike. That let me to search for alternate tools. And from what I see, there are a couple of other solutions:
Zzing
JaweTec
B&M EWerk
Dahon ION
Most of them seem either not well thought out or not available
September 6th, 2009 17:10
Reading some user reviews, the Zzing and JaWeTec products work but the former is too big and heavy and perhaps redundant if using a Solio in series. The JaWeTec is out of stock. The B&M Ewerk just introduced looks very promising and will be available in October. I like the Dahon unit for it’s size and design, being similar to the Zzing, but it’s not available until March 2010 and I need something by November 2009.
Are you confident the PedalPower+ cable will work if you connect it directly to an electronic devices without using the Solio as an energy bank?
September 6th, 2009 21:55
Ray:
Zzing looks promising, though looks flakey in terms of the box and packaging. According to Nick, PedalPower+ should work for charging of standard devices. Not IPhone. Not yet, was the comment I heard. Had something to do with the cable needing some additional electronics as specified by Apple.
I can respond in Early Oct on whether it directly charges without a battery buffer. The only concern I have , when comparing the e-Werk from B&M is that the e-Werk specifically has a voltage adjuster. Not sure if that is critical and if the electronics in PedalPower+’s AC cable handles varying voltage outputs automatically…
If you can hold till Early Oct, I can give you a yes / no answer
September 7th, 2009 11:33
Nat,
I agree with your Zzing comments and PP+ cable concerns. I understand PedalPower+ has a new rechargeable battery (V4i) due in the next month to address it’s products inability to charge current iphone 3G’s. Apparently old iphones were not affected and will charge without a need for this new battery/buffer.
I have been told that some electronic devices (i.e iphone 3G, newer ipod’s) are very sensitive to input voltages. If the output from the charging device is within a specific voltage band it will begin to charge, otherwise not. Newer Nokia smart phones are reported to be just as finicky. Having a rechargeable battery (i.e. Solio) as a buffer helps maintain a constant output but what if the Solio’s output is not within a devices specific band? I was always under the impression that if the output voltage was identical to a computers usb port there wouldn’t be a charging problem; especially for devices designed around usb charging. Anyway, I assume the Ewerk’s small adjusters are used to set it’s output voltage band to satisfy all electronic devices old and new.
I’ll patiently wait until Oct for your answer. Cheers!
September 7th, 2009 16:28
Yes, I can confirm the iPhones 3G and newer (not sure of the 2G iPodTouch) need some additional chip in the connector. I was at the Bose Store and confirmed that the iPhone will not charge in its original Sound Dock but the Series II is fine. But the 1G iPodTouch works fine with all…
The same issue exists with Solio. They make a new USB adapter that fixes the compatibility issue. And I have actually charged my iPod with the Solio and can confirm it works.
I do think a buffer between the dynamo and the device is a good idea. But if it can be avoided, that would mean one less thing to worry about on the road.
September 13th, 2009 10:39
Nice review. I would like to know how good is the loss less transmission of the cable. Obviously when you are pedaling hard, you would want your effort translated into output with minimal loss. Any comments or inputs from the manufacturers that you can share?
September 15th, 2009 09:46
Interesting… may be I will get a multimeter and measure the current / voltage at either end. But From what I observe, the cables should have minimum loss (short 2 ft cable and is a single core which technically has low resistance). As for the electronics in the cable, not sure.
If I have to guess, I don’t think loss will be a major issue. you might have to probably pedal an additional 1/4 watt, which is negligible. I would be concerned more about the stability of the output voltage… Still waiting for my SON
October 3rd, 2009 02:33
Hey Nat,
Did you get that SON front wheel built? Any updates with testing the PP+ cable?
Thanks.
October 3rd, 2009 07:53
Ray: Not yet. My shipment is delayed. Expecting in a few more weeks. Darn, my hands are itchy to find out if it works. Almost tempted to buy a cheap hub to test it out. But I am going to wait. I am sorry I am unable to answer question on whether it works or not
I will post about it as soon as I get my hands n the hub.
November 7th, 2009 23:07
Hi Ray:
Just got one of my wheels built with a Shimano DH3N72 dynamo hub. First thing I did was to plug in my front lights to see if everything works. Of course the lights worked and thats cool. Second thing I did was to plug the pedal power AC cable and then attached the output to my Garmin GPS. Viola, the GPS got the inputs through the usb and functions without any issues. Next was plugging in my Solio charger. And Bingo the solio started charging. I have not done intense tests yet (especially at speed). Pedal Power mentions that they have high voltage cutoff and should prevent over cranking the devices, which I will try out in time to come. But the cable does work as advertised and thats what you were waiting to hear.
Good luck.
December 17th, 2009 05:30
Good to hear it all works nat.
I have build a DIY version, works great if you don’t mind the extra work: http://www.arenddeboer.com/2008/12/27/bike-mounted-usb-charger/
December 17th, 2009 10:16
Hi Arend: Impressive work there. I would have gone on the DIY route 10 years back
It seems simple enough and am sure something similar is inside the PP cable.
Glad your set up works too. Get a decent IP67 housing and I guess you can leave the setup on your bike permanently…