USB A to Mini B wire lengths

[monty]

Hello!

Sorry if this was answered but could not find anything. If it has, please direct me there.

How long should the USB cable be for your front dash cam? The cam will be by the rearview mirror and then snaked around at the top of the windshield (pushed under the lining) going past the driver's side and near the driver's side door and underneath by the gas/brake pedals to the cigarette lighter. In the warmer months I will be getting a new stereo that has USB port in the back, so it will ultimately go there. I was thinking a 10 ft cable or maybe a 15 ft. Or is 6 ft ok? The cable that comes with it is 2 ft, so that is not going to work.

I would also like the same advice for a rearview camera (going to be hidden and plugged in the front). 10 ft? 15 ft?

Thank you kindly for your opinion with this.

Monty

 

[GJHS]

The Mobius has a USB adapter and a 3 meter cable sold specifically for the camera which is the easiest solution. @Isoprop has pointed out that it's very important to have a 5v 1a power supply, which the Mobius adapter supplies. I purchased mine as a package, so I'm sure you can contact the seller.

The one change I would request/make is the mini USB being up angle vs the straight plug it comes with. The straight cable makes it harder to get behind the rearview mirror. There are adapters sold to fix it or you could another USB cable. They just get pricey at that size.

 

[Gurkha9]

Ideally the shorter the cable the better. With longer ones you may have some issues if they are not well shielded and sometimes even if they are.
With a front set up (depending on car) you may need 10-12 feet, rear (if you're going to plug in the front) about 15 feet. But it would be better if you can find power somewhere in the rear (lights for example) if possible so you can run a much shorter cable.
I also find that an up angle adapter is useful for a neater finish, but that depends on how you plan to mount it.

 

[VIIVIIIXIII]

I use a 3 meter cable (3 m=9.84 ft) for the front and for the back. Standard USB one end and mini USB connector the other on each cable. Just bought some semi decent cable from ebay for £2 (thickness usually means better quality cable). You get a power drop after 5 meters (16 feet 5 inches) with a USB cable.

How certain are you of this? I currently use the official 3 meter cable, but I'm planning to purchase a higher quality cable (but hoping to get 15ft long). I use a 2.1A Belkin car adapter so I assume that there is enough clean power going to the camera. Please advise.

Which one of these would be better?

10ft USB A to mini-B 5pin 28/28AWG Cable

10ft USB 2.0 A Male to Mini-B 5pin Male 28/24AWG Cable w/ Ferrite Core (Gold Plated)

15ft USB A to mini-B 5pin 28/28AWG Cable

15ft USB 2.0 A Male to Mini-B 5pin Male 28/24AWG Cable w/ Ferrite Core (Gold Plated) <<--- I think I want to buy this one.

 

[Gurkha9]

I have that last one on your list powering a GT300W (temporarily) in the rear. Working OK for a week or so now.

 

[Dashmellow]

Monoprice is a great place to buy high quality cables at excellent prices. I've bought all kinds of cables from them for years. Just keep in mind that these cables being discussed are pretty fat and beefy and therefore a bit trickier to install and less discreet than stock cables for dash cam installations.

 

[GJHS]

Monoprice is a great place to buy high quality cables at excellent prices. I've bought all kinds of cables from them for years. Just keep in mind that these cables being discussed are pretty fat and beefy and therefore a bit trickier to install and less discreet than stock cables for dash cam installations.

Any suggestions for a good cable @Dashmellow ? What should we be looking for? I'm looking for an up angle for the Mobius and would love to know how to choose quality. If not for this thread I would have thought a place like Monoprice was too cheap,therefore not quality.

 

[VIIVIIIXIII]

Im certain, if you arent google it.

So will you use two devices on your Belkin adapter? What are they both Mobius? You need to know their power draw requirements.

My Mobius has been working flawlessly on my cable since July and it was a cheap but good quality cable. The last cable you mention is the better one. If you want to go out and spend lots of money on a cable, thats fine but weigh up how much your mobius cost you as well.

Sorry, to clarify. I only have the mobius hooked up to the Belkin car adapter (only has one port) -- so it should be trustworthy. I don't think I've spent tooooooo much on the Mobius, but I would rather well maintain the camera now and avoid any potential overheating issues caused by the battery/power input.

Mobius B lens - $70USD
Belkin 2.1 A car charger Adapter - $6CAD
Monoprice 15 foot cable - $3CAD
official 3 meter cable - $5USD (reuse elsewhere)
Mobius Super Capacitor - $10USD (in the near future, perhaps)

FYI, monoprice has a small promotion going on:
http://forums.redflagdeals.com/monoprice-new-customer-10-off-30-a-1432425/

 

[Dashmellow]

Any suggestions for a good cable @Dashmellow ? What should we be looking for? I'm looking for an up angle for the Mobius and would love to know how to choose quality. If not for this thread I would have thought a place like Monoprice was too cheap,therefore not quality.

That's a good question and I am not sure. I've been eyeing these Monoprice cables myself but have hesitated so far. One time I bought a 15 foot long HDMI/DVI cable from Monoprice so I could hook up my laptop to my HD TV. The cable is so heavy that it has a tendency to yank itself out of the HDMI port or Mac mini DV adapter port if it just gets a gentle bump. Isoprop recommends making your own cables and just recently I've started considering this option.

Most aftermarket cables on the market are a rip-off, especially things like HDMI. Monoprice takes a different approach and explodes the myths put out there by companies such as Monster Cable.

 

[monty]

Thanks everyone for your responses! Very helpful

@Isoprop has pointed out that it's very important to have a 5v 1a power supply, which the Mobius adapter supplies.

I have a sprint OEM travel/wall charger with 2 ports. The specs are:

Model CTC-2USB-5V2A
AC Input 100-240V~.0.35A 50/60Hz
DC Input 12V --1.6A
Output 5V --2A

This should be good to use for 1 of the camera's, no?

 

[Dashmellow]

Then you are all set.

But Im going to say something that will be controversial and Im sure many will disagree, but Id be very surprised if these little cameras last up to or much past a year. My first one at the start of 2013 died within 2 weeks, my replacement overheated and I had to pull the battery after 3 months. All with the offical charger and cable, so nothing weird.
My third one I have had since July with the USB cable I bought to use with it that I mentioned (B lens) is the longest living one I have had.

I pull them out of the car whenever Im not in it, so they get treated quite well and I only drive about 20minutes every day. English weather, nothing extreme.

Thats why I was trying to gently say dont spend too much on cables. Anyway, time will tell.

Well........considering the way you drive, based on your avatar photos, nobody should be too surprised that your dash cameras don't last too long!

Seriously though, you have a good point. Sometimes, I think most dash cams are like disposable Bic lighters. Use them, throw them in the bin when they crap out and buy another one. Happily, that seems to be slowly changing, of course.

One of the things that strikes me about the Mobius that makes me think that their durability and reliability will continue to improve is the dedication and attention to detail from the developer. I think the Mobius brand camera in one form or another is here to stay, unlike many of the cheap Chinese cams that are designed to extract a quick profit from the marketplace and move on. It is my hunch that the Mobius' quality control, design, hardware and firmware tweaks will continue on an upward trend for some time to come and the camera will hold up better as the product matures.

It will be interesting to see if your theory about the longevity of Mobius cameras proves true and it might be interesting as well to revisit this subject (and your post) a year from now.

 

[VIIVIIIXIII]

Then you are all set.

But Im going to say something that will be controversial and Im sure many will disagree, but Id be very surprised if these little cameras last up to or much past a year. My first one at the start of 2013 died within 2 weeks, my replacement overheated and I had to pull the battery after 3 months. All with the offical charger and cable, so nothing weird.
My third one I have had since July with the USB cable I bought to use with it that I mentioned (B lens) is the longest living one I have had.

I pull them out of the car whenever Im not in it, so they get treated quite well and I only drive about 20minutes every day. English weather, nothing extreme.

Thats why I was trying to gently say dont spend too much on cables. Anyway, time will tell.

Wow. Sounds scary... I think I will get the super capacitor if that's how things tend to end up.

To be honest, can anyone provide evidence that using the "official" mobius cable and car charger is a good idea? They look like cheap china parts to me, no different from other ebay stuff -- Which is why I opted to look for a more trusted brand.

 

[Dashmellow]

Wow. Sounds scary... I think I will get the super capacitor if that's how things tend to end up.

To be honest, can anyone provide evidence that using the "official" mobius cable and car charger is a good idea? They look like cheap china parts to me, no different from other ebay stuff -- Which is why I opted to look for a more trusted brand.

I don't know what " looks like cheap china parts" online but I think they've gone to the trouble of choosing their components and suppliers carefully. Over time, I've had "cheap Chinese" cables and 12v chargers fail or short out or have connectors fray or fall off but the ones that came with Mobius have been fine and I've had zero problems with them.

I am considering a super cap though. This seems like the way to go if the camera is used as a dedicated dash cam.

 

[Dashmellow]

Thanks everyone for your responses! Very helpful


I have a sprint OEM travel/wall charger with 2 ports. The specs are:

Model CTC-2USB-5V2A
AC Input 100-240V~.0.35A 50/60Hz
DC Input 12V --1.6A
Output 5V --2A

This should be good to use for 1 of the camera's, no?

Looks good to me. I like the hybrid 12v/AC design. Never seen one of those before.

 

[Gurkha9]

If not for this thread I would have thought a place like Monoprice was too cheap,therefore not quality.

The 15 footer from Monoprice with the ferrite core is currently working well to power a rear cam with minimal AM interference.

 

[monty]

Looks good to me. I like the hybrid 12v/AC design. Never seen one of those before.

Yes very useful. They had a sale last year for 2 for $5 with free shipping. I see them for $7-$10 each now. They didn't come with cables, but that wasn't a big deal for me

 

[Dashmellow]

The 15 footer from Monoprice with the ferrite core is currently working well to power a rear cam with minimal AM interference.

Did you have any installation issues or challenges with running or hiding this cable? And was the ferrite core a problem during installation an issue? The ferrite core that came on my GT300W made it hard to run the last section of cable behind my sun visor when I installed the cam.

 

[Gurkha9]

No it's my winter car an old Honda Accord - lots of open spaces in the trim Cable is thick though.
It's a temporary install at the rear as the GT300W is usually in my 3 season car up front.

 

[Dashmellow]

Thanks for your answer. My Toyota Tacoma has nice rubber trim gaskets I can run cable behind but these Monoprice cables could potentially make the rear extra-cab door harder to close. I probably need to experiment with on old piece of similar gauge cable before I would go and order one. Plus the stick on wire clips that came with my Mobius cable wouldn't handle the fat Monoprice wire, so I'd have to find another way to improvise.

 

[VIIVIIIXIII]

I don't know what " looks like cheap china parts" online but I think they've gone to the trouble of choosing their components and suppliers carefully.

I certainly would think so, just looking evidence? Has anyone taken apart these pieces to inspect the internals?

Over time, I've had "cheap Chinese" cables and 12v chargers fail or short out or have connectors fray or fall off but the ones that came with Mobius have been fine and I've had zero problems with them.

I use the same cable and I have eBay 12v adapters that work fine... but I've been reading that the damage potential stems from poor power delivery, affecting the internal battery and thus, generating excessive heat. Again, just asking a big "what if" question.

I am considering a super cap though. This seems like the way to go if the camera is used as a dedicated dash cam.

+1. Even though, currently, my mobius stays relatively cool to the touch after 2 hours of use in the car -- I still might opt for the super cap in the summer time.