<![CDATA[New skill unlocked! Thank you fellow Fediverse person!]]>A few months ago, I asked for advice - or I was simply bragging - about cutting the wires of a PC chassi fan, connecting them to a USB wire and thus being able to power the fan with one of my laptop's USB ports. Then, as if sent by the heavens, @onomatopoeia@lemmy.cafe said:

If you can, swap out the tape for some heat-shrink tubing. It’s cheap and does a much better job.
I immediately bought a heating gun (?) and heat shrink tubes. Since then, I have been exclusively using that method. It rocks. Today, I bought my first ever digital photo frame, the KD10FR-W. It's some old relic from ten or so years ago, possibly released in 2017 (sources needed). It's a Japanese product that I found at one of my local thrift stores in Sweden. HOW. WHY. Anyway, since it only came with a Japanese plug, I did the thing, and now, it would seem, Bob is my uncle. Nay, blood relative. Wait... Is that the same thing?

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Question/conversation time:

  1. The specs of the frame say: 5V==1500mA. I assume this means "minimum 5V, maximum 1500mA"? How else is my TV's 5V==900mA USB port powering it?
  2. What knowledge or skill have YOU picked up on the Fediverse that you use today? 😊
]]>https://forum.ieu.app/topic/ccae288a-fdf8-47b8-afc4-ac240145e47e/new-skill-unlocked-thank-you-fellow-fediverse-personRSS for NodeSat, 05 Sep 2026 15:37:45 GMTTue, 01 Sep 2026 21:20:37 GMT60<![CDATA[Reply to New skill unlocked! Thank you fellow Fediverse person! on Tue, 01 Sep 2026 21:50:19 GMT]]>Voltage is equivalent to water pressure, while Amperes is equivalent to liters per second.

A PSU rated for 5V and 123mA will provide UP TO 123mA at 5V. So when looking for a PSU, voltage needs to be the same as the unit you're powering, while the Amperes needs to be same or higher (in other words, "enough")

]]>https://forum.ieu.app/post/https://sh.itjust.works/comment/27210579https://forum.ieu.app/post/https://sh.itjust.works/comment/27210579Tue, 01 Sep 2026 21:50:19 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to New skill unlocked! Thank you fellow Fediverse person! on Tue, 01 Sep 2026 21:39:58 GMT]]>If electricity was water, Volts would tell you how hot the water was, and Amps would tell you the volume of water required. The device controls the draw so if the device says 3 Amps you can connect it to a 10 Amp supply and it will only draw what you need.

So in your case the 5V is good, it's the USB standard and what your device requires. You are a little underpowered on the current, but it's clearly OK. You might not be using the full functionality of the frame and there may have been some allowance for power loss in the conversion from AC to DC.

]]>https://forum.ieu.app/post/https://lemmy.ca/comment/25130588https://forum.ieu.app/post/https://lemmy.ca/comment/25130588Tue, 01 Sep 2026 21:39:58 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to New skill unlocked! Thank you fellow Fediverse person! on Tue, 01 Sep 2026 21:36:31 GMT]]>

  • The voltage has to be pretty close. You cant go significantly higher or lower. But the current is generally a max value. Its possible that if you cranked up the screen brightness it might need the full 1.5A. Also possible that your TV can actually provide more than 900mA.

  • Dunno, would have to think harder. Will edit and update if I think of something.

    • ]]>    https://forum.ieu.app/post/https://programming.dev/comment/25765156https://forum.ieu.app/post/https://programming.dev/comment/25765156Tue, 01 Sep 2026 21:36:31 GMT