USB C powered TV?

[airborne spoon]

So I saw the USB C video the other day and I'm in the market for a TV to put inside my teardrop trailer so like 24" or less and nothing fancy.

 

Could a small TV be converted to USB C?

Basically I installed a 200Ah LiFePO4 battery but I will only have 120v if I'm plugged into shore power aka a campground. Or if I buy and install an converter which I don't want to do.

 

How many watts would be like the max draw a TV could have and still be able to convert to USB?

[badlou101]

240W is the max for usb-c PD

[airborne spoon]

7 minutes ago, badlou101 said:

240W is the max for usb-c PD

Oh damn so it would be pretty easy then. Most of the TV I'm looking at draw like 40-70w

[Coolmaster]

9 minutes ago, badlou101 said:

240W is the max for usb-c PD

That's the newest standard, but you'll have a hard time finding anything that supports 210W over USB-C.

[Electronics Wizardy]

A cheap inverter will likely be an easier option.

 

Unless your tv has a dc input, it has a internal psu, so you need to take it apart to see what voltages that psu makes. It often makes multiple voltages and standby power so that may be more complicated to emulate with a custom converter.

 

 

[Coaxialgamer]

The USB spec does allow for something like 240W, to be used for laptop charging and stuff like that. The caveat being that you'll need to find a cable that supports it (your average dollar store cable uses thin wiring and can't handle anywhere near that much power without melting).

 

I don't recall ever seeing a TV that supports USB-C, so you're going to need to fiddle with your TV and/or your cable anyway, at which point you're basically just using your cable as a conductor. Besides, USB can handle 5V by default, which is probably lower than what your TV internals need anyway (12V is pretty common).

I don't know what your electric setup looks like, but you're probably better off looking for another solution.

[airborne spoon]

15 minutes ago, Electronics Wizardy said:

A cheap inverter will likely be an easier option.

Unless your tv has a dc input, it has a internal psu, so you need to take it apart to see what voltages that psu makes. It often makes multiple voltages and standby power so that may be more complicated to emulate with a custom converter.

 

yeah i could use a cigarette lighter inverter 12v converts to 120v that can do like 200w because i have one lying around, but im going for a permanent install and one that looks a bit less janky than having a inverter and a wall wort when i could just have a cigarette lighter port that the TV plugs into

9 minutes ago, Coaxialgamer said:

The USB spec does allow for something like 240W, to be used for laptop charging and stuff like that. The caveat being that you'll need to find a cable that supports it (your average dollar store cable uses thin wiring and can't handle anywhere near that much power without melting).

 

I don't recall ever seeing a TV that supports USB-C, so you're going to need to fiddle with your TV and/or your cable anyway, at which point you're basically just using your cable as a conductor. Besides, USB can handle 5V by default, which is probably lower than what your TV internals need anyway (12V is pretty common).

I don't know what your electric setup looks like, but you're probably better off looking for another solution.

Yeah i know i'd have to buy a more quality cable than a shit one from dollar tree

 

So I'm looking at this TV and it has a barrel plug so that implies a wall wort that i can replace with a usb cable.

However the next issue is the TV runs at 19v/2.1A (40W) so I'd need to get 20v from the 12v of my battery. Could something like this work because holy crap that would be really simple. or would i have to get a 12v to 24v step up converter? and then run that 24v to step down to 19-20v before finally going to the cable to power the TV.

 

I suppose i could just dismantle the inverter into its components and then put it in a junction box and have the 120v outlet and on off switch facing out looking clean. Although if I'm going to go through that much trouble i should just buy a slightly bigger inverter that cold also handle charging a laptop as well and then do the disassembly and whatnot. I dont want to buy and install a large inverter because id only need it for the TV and laptop and since its a teardrop space is extremely valuable hence my sudden idea of installing it inside the wall, (no insolation so no fire hazard) and inside a junction box with all the proper coverings over joints and metal would be plenty safe.

[Electronics Wizardy]

9 minutes ago, airborne spoon said:

 

So I'm looking at this TV and it has a barrel plug so that implies a wall wort that i can replace with a usb cable.

However the next issue is the TV runs at 19v/2.1A (40W) so I'd need to get 20v from the 12v of my battery. Could something like this work because holy crap that would be really simple. or would i have to get a 12v to 24v step up converter? and then run that 24v to step down to 19-20v before finally going to the cable to power the TV.

 

If you already have 12v, Id just get a boost converter, and skip usb here. How about something like this guy https://www.amazon.com/Aceirmc-Current-Converter-Adjustable-Regulator/dp/B082XQC2DS/ref=sr_1_3?crid=2D68FRKF85VLZ&keywords=boost%2Bconverter&qid=1669674370&sprefix=boost%2Bconverter%2Caps%2C139&sr=8-3&th=1

 

Adjust the output to 19v and plug the input to the 12v output.

 

But if you want usb c, what can the port do? If it can do 20v output, that should be close enough and get a usb board that gives you 20v out. But the boost converter likely will be simpler, cheaper and more efficent.

[airborne spoon]

7 minutes ago, Electronics Wizardy said:

If you already have 12v, Id just get a boost converter, and skip usb here. How about something like this guy https://www.amazon.com/Aceirmc-Current-Converter-Adjustable-Regulator/dp/B082XQC2DS/ref=sr_1_3?crid=2D68FRKF85VLZ&keywords=boost%2Bconverter&qid=1669674370&sprefix=boost%2Bconverter%2Caps%2C139&sr=8-3&th=1

 

Adjust the output to 19v and plug the input to the 12v output.

 

But if you want usb c, what can the port do? If it can do 20v output, that should be close enough and get a usb board that gives you 20v out. But the boost converter likely will be simpler, cheaper and more efficent.

that ting is pretty cool and its adjustable so i could just hook it to my multimeter and adjust till its perfect then hook it to whatever type of plug i wanted to use and go straight to the TV. But for a laptop this would work too i suppose but i wouldnt want to hack the barrel plug off the wall wort to use this.

[cmndr]

USB-C powered monitor + streaming stick... 

[Needfuldoer]

41 minutes ago, airborne spoon said:

However the next issue is the TV runs at 19v/2.1A (40W) so I'd need to get 20v from the 12v of my battery. Could something like this work because holy crap that would be really simple.

Even easier: get a universal DC "Auto and Air" adapter for laptops.

 

https://www.amazon.com/KFD-Universal-Pavilion-VivoBook-ThinkPad/dp/B07TT2F95L

[airborne spoon]

Ok so in typical me fashion I was overthinking and found a way to do this project that has a similar net cost and lower effort requirement. I think I just needed to talk it out to see how convoluted it was in my original idea.

 

Bought a small inverter 300w gonna mount it in a hidden area under the sink away from potential leaks too lol. Gonna run a "extension cord" one side 5-15p plug the other bare wire to a standard 120v home receptacle. The wire and inverter will be secured from movement. I'm gonna put a switch on it so it doesn't waste power with paracitc draw and that'll mount right next to the outlets. It should look very clean and all safety considerations are covered and accounted for

[Needfuldoer]

16 hours ago, airborne spoon said:

Ok so in typical me fashion I was overthinking and found a way to do this project that has a similar net cost and lower effort requirement. I think I just needed to talk it out to see how convoluted it was in my original idea.

 

Bought a small inverter 300w gonna mount it in a hidden area under the sink away from potential leaks too lol. Gonna run a "extension cord" one side 5-15p plug the other bare wire to a standard 120v home receptacle. The wire and inverter will be secured from movement. I'm gonna put a switch on it so it doesn't waste power with paracitc draw and that'll mount right next to the outlets. It should look very clean and all safety considerations are covered and accounted for

You'll still want to run as many things directly off DC as you can. Inverting DC to AC isn't very efficient, especially if you're feeding a power adapter that's just rectifying it back to DC again.

[cmndr]

Adding to that, each conversion has roughly a 10% power loss. 

If you're able to do DC -> DC that's going to be MUCH more efficient than DC -> AC -> DC. Stepping voltage up/down usually isn't as big of a deal as going from AC to DC. 

 

If you have way more solar on the roof than you need this will be less of an issue though. 

[airborne spoon]

21 hours ago, cmndr said:

Adding to that, each conversion has roughly a 10% power loss. 

If you're able to do DC -> DC that's going to be MUCH more efficient than DC -> AC -> DC. Stepping voltage up/down usually isn't as big of a deal as going from AC to DC. 

 

If you have way more solar on the roof than you need this will be less of an issue though. 

yeah i have a 200w solar panel and a 200Ah LiFePO4 so I'm pretty well set on power generation/storage. Last time i tested my usage i was 80% overnight by the time the sun rose and i was at 100% around 2pm and that was without even moving the angle of the panel to chase the sun just flat on the roof.

[cmndr]

1 hour ago, airborne spoon said:

yeah i have a 200w solar panel and a 200Ah LiFePO4 so I'm pretty well set on power generation/storage. Last time i tested my usage i was 80% overnight by the time the sun rose and i was at 100% around 2pm and that was without even moving the angle of the panel to chase the sun just flat on the roof.

Just be aware that efficiency drops with time. 

[Totallycasual]

Something like this perhaps? 

[airborne spoon]

Here is what I finally finished with. Cut off the wall wort from the TV and installed a cigarette lighter plug. I installed 3x cigarette lighter ports in the wall so 1 is for the TV, 1 is for the USB adapter to power my firestick, and 1 spare.

 

[DDI06]

It depends on the Wattage of the TV and I would do it with a cheap TV. Look up the specs of the TV and see what the Wattage is and Measure the power supply output. If the TV does anything Above 20 Volts it will not work because USB-C boards only do that.