Sulaiman - 19-5-2016 at 21:57
Whilst looking for a link for another thread I came across very cheap beaker (tea/coffee cup by design) warmers on ebay;
A USB version http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Silver-4-Port-USB-Hub-Tea-Coffee-B...
A 220V version : http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/220v-White-Electric-Powered-Cup-Wa...
Who thinks of a four-port usb hub as a cup warmer ???
(a guy more entrepreneurial than me !)
A CPU/GPU-heated bacon frier is my contribution to humanity ...
With a little extrapolation, a laptop/kitchen is expected soon.
Need to cook a nice breakfast on that morning train commute ?
.... get out your laptop !
[Edited on 20-5-2016 by Sulaiman]
careysub - 19-5-2016 at 22:37
I'll bet the 220 V version will work fine on US 110 V.
USB seems to be quickly becoming a low voltage DC power standard, having nothing to do with computers per se. A good thing, by my reckoning. All kinds
of USB plug devices can be found now. The limit is 4.5 watts by the standard (but some devices - cough, cough, iPad, cough - suck up 10 watts),
however a lot things don't require fractional horsepower.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/HOT-DC-3-5V-9V-3W-USB-Submersible-Fo...
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Cygolite-Hotshot-Pro-80-Lumen-6-Mode...
USB-output power only (i.e. no data) power sources are commonplace also.
Sulaiman - 19-5-2016 at 23:34
I have one of those water pumps for leibig water circulation !
I also have torches and a cordless screwdriver with usb charging.
very soon up to 100 W via usb http://www.usb.org/developers/powerdelivery/
Marvin - 20-5-2016 at 08:24
An unpowered 4 port USB hub rated at 2.5W and doubles as a cup heater. Hmm. I wonder what the lifespan even is of a USB hub that people keep putting
hot coffee cups on.
Shades of the USB powered microwave.
USB2 is good for 5W, USB3 is good for 10W (5v at 2A). Apple have been shipping USB3 cables and USB3 ported power supplies for a long time. The
device, ipad etc, shouldn't try to draw more power than the port is rated for and a compliant port should shut down if it tries.
I've not had a good look at the 220v warmer. A USB product probably isn't going to kill many people, but a cheap mains product from abroad you take
your life in your hands plugging in.
Melgar - 29-5-2016 at 18:43
I'm nearly certain that those devices work the same way as hot glue guns. That is, they can run at pretty much any voltage, but they have some
temperature-limiting device in them. Believe it or not there are laws that Chinese manufacturers have to follow in order to be allowed to market
their products in the US and Europe. I just bought one for $3.88, free shipping. Seems like it'd be useful for evaporations, or for dissolving metal
reactions that take forever at room temperature. Time could be cut from a few weeks to a few days.
[Edited on 5/30/16 by Melgar]
Fidelmios - 4-6-2016 at 16:54
I went out to my local GoodWill and bought two for two dollars each. Great heat, but very poor when it came to actually transferring it.