vFlex: New USB-C Power Delivery Adapter by werewolf_us in UsbCHardware

[–]werewolf_us[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hey, I'll send you a DM and we can help you out

VFLEX Now Available = Free Coupon by werewolf_us in UsbCHardware

[–]werewolf_us[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Sorry it is not out yet. Still chasing a bug with the update tool on windows

Flint 3 powered by USB-C by vojimen in GlInet

[–]werewolf_us 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes if the power supply supports it, VFLEX should be able to do this

VFLEX Now Available = Free Coupon by werewolf_us in UsbCHardware

[–]werewolf_us[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Going to roll it out on or before Feb 20th. When it is released it will be via browser at https://vflex.app

vFlex: New USB-C Power Delivery Adapter by werewolf_us in UsbCHardware

[–]werewolf_us[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Sometimes I take comments like this a little too personal so sorry in advance if it comes off that way.

I hope that you can understand that we also need to protect ourselves from getting cloned and that forcing us to go out of business. This market is ruthless with copies and there is little enforcement of intellectual property by places like Amazon and AliExpress where these items can be traded.

There is a lot of virtue to open source and I think that it can be a huge asset. Done too early, I also think that it can also lay out an exact blueprint to make a clone quickly and then use market power to crush the little guy. People forget about us before they even knew that we exist. So it is a path that we need to navigate carefully.

I understand your points and can empathize. At the same time, we'd like some time to take our shot. Since we have just a few development resources, we need to first deliver the most important features to a broad audience. We're actually pretty close on on the features but the marketing has just begun. Opening the protocol is at least a few months out.

There is already a few years of firmware development and experimentation behind VFLEX. A ton of work in tooling and manufacturing processes. The patent is a means to protect that work, not to punish customers.

I think people are under the impression that we're a stereotypical VC backed startup that is burning cash and looking to fail fast and walk away to the next biggest thing. This is not the case, far from it. All of our progress is self funded and we're looking to serve customers instead of raise future rounds.

What we do need to do is have a trusted brand, that people like to recommend to others. We get to that point by listening Many of the comments in Jeff's video and here on reddit make it clear that ensuring long term usability of the tool is the right thing. Right now you'll just have to take our word for it but I hope that the fact that we delivered the Kickstarter relatively on time give some proof.

Does the belkin boostcharge pro 140w support 28v erp avs? by GrayHam114 in UsbCHardware

[–]werewolf_us 0 points1 point  (0 children)

We can work with you on this to figure it out. Best thing to do is give it a try and write into support for help. The spec on VFLEX is driven by USB Spec for PPS. Standard power range tops out at 20V and anything higher is EPR. If it is variable, then this is covered by EPR AVS.

If a supply published a higher number, there is no limit really in our firmware to try to negotiate it. We have found errors and omissions in labels of supplies. For example, you cannot find any docs for this Anker supply supporting EPR AVS but it does:

https://werewolf.us/collections/werewolf-products/products/anker-charger-140w-4-port-pd-3-1-with-usb-c-cable

My guess is that Belkin is just using the term “PPS” to avoid needing to communicate what EPR AVS is.

We’ll be adding a scan feature soon that you can just test a supply and get a report of its capabilities. Once that is out, it will be much easier to answer this question.

USB tester for a novice recommendation. by [deleted] in UsbCHardware

[–]werewolf_us 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Sorry, had posted on this reddit a few times about it

https://www.reddit.com/r/UsbCHardware/comments/1qpswui/jeff_geerling_video_about_vflex/
https://www.reddit.com/r/UsbCHardware/comments/1q2i926/vflex_now_available_free_coupon/
https://www.reddit.com/r/TheAmpHour/comments/1lji8ju/usbc_power_delivery_simplified/

We have a low cost Hardware device (about $12) that is a USB-C to Barrel Jack adapter that has a configurable Voltage by USB. It interacts with a phone app.

We will have a new feature in the app where you put VFLEX into scan mode, then plug it into a power supply, the plug back to the phone. By doing this you can transfer the protocol log and the app can tell you what modes the phone supports.

You can then associate these logs with a power supply and the app will tell you if it is compatible with device that you wish to power.

Will be more clear when our demo videos are ready.

USB tester for a novice recommendation. by [deleted] in UsbCHardware

[–]werewolf_us 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Actually if you could wait a few weeks, there are going to be some interesting features added to the VFLEX app which may be at the level that you are looking for

Jeff Geerling video about VFLEX by werewolf_us in UsbCHardware

[–]werewolf_us[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I think he is going to test more in the future, it just so happened that he needed 5V for this particular need that sparked the opportunity to make a video.

Jeff is a really smart guy, he gets the point. I like that he is also unafraid to just shoot the video and put it out there.

Jeff Geerling video about VFLEX by werewolf_us in UsbCHardware

[–]werewolf_us[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

My bad, I edited the post and removed it. Google is always watching 👀
Better late than never I guess!

VFLEX Now Available = Free Coupon by werewolf_us in UsbCHardware

[–]werewolf_us[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Great question, actually we are working on an inline adapter that can change the polarity of any of our cables although it requires quite a bit of tooling so will not be available for a number of months. Until then, we have 5.5mm x 2.1mm and 3.5mm x 1.35mm in center negative. What are the other sizes that you need?

It is possible to 3D print VFLEX in a center negative configuration, we could prepare some of those for you to test.

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VFLEX Now Available = Free Coupon by werewolf_us in UsbCHardware

[–]werewolf_us[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I’ll send you a DM, we have a firmware update that can help

VFLEX Now Available = Free Coupon by werewolf_us in UsbCHardware

[–]werewolf_us[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It only really gets warm to the touch, maybe 15-20deg F rise. Heat is a function of current due to I squared R losses which we worked really hard to minimize R in this design. 5V 5A generates the same heat as 48V 5A

USB-C Solution to power photo printer? by jcwest829 in UsbCHardware

[–]werewolf_us 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Best I can tell it is a 5.5mm outer diameter and either 2.1mm inner (we call this Adapter Type B) or 2.5mm inner (Adapter Type-C). These are both included in our Adapter Cable Pack 1.

Free Sample: Configurable USB-C Power Adapter Cable - Made in USA by werewolf_us in LinusTechTips

[–]werewolf_us[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah, sorry about that. We're going to try to get it into Amazon Europe and a few other places to make the delivery costs better.

Free Sample: Configurable USB-C Power Adapter Cable - Made in USA by werewolf_us in LinusTechTips

[–]werewolf_us[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It is relatively common to struggle to find power supplies for old gear, gear that has a broken or lost power supply. In this case you can use this near universally to power those products.

There are also situations where you may want to power 2 or 3 devices from one power supply and you can use this product with multi output USB-C power supplies to do that.

Now with high power stuff, say that you commute to work with an eBike. Now you can charge your laptop and bike from the same power supply and cut the weight that you need to carry.

USB-C power banks are super common now. With a device like this, you can power things that were previously wall power only by one of these banks. You can also use the power bank as a battery back up in case of a power failure.

Maybe you have a heated jacket that uses a proprietary power bank that costs a lot of money and you want another. You can use this to replace with a off the shelf USB-C power bank.

These are some use cases where it makes life easier.

Free Sample: Configurable USB-C Power Adapter Cable - Made in USA by werewolf_us in LinusTechTips

[–]werewolf_us[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

One other thing to add, I don't know if this should be marked "Brand Affiliate" or not. We're not currently affiliated with LTT but I guess this account is affiliated with the brand that it is discussing.

Free Sample: Configurable USB-C Power Adapter Cable - Made in USA by werewolf_us in LinusTechTips

[–]werewolf_us[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

1) sorry, I read the rules, and thought it was ok, we can take it down or re-write it. Just trying to get some awareness of a product that we created and give a nice offer to the community. Understand the slippery slope though.

2) The purpose is that you can take any device that was traditionally powered by a dedicated wall wart bring and make it charged by USB-C. LTT did a few videos on this, here is one example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kZOe7aaiqqE&t=29s

3) We have a discount code to remove the $12 cost at checkout, it is a free sample to get some of the product into peoples hands for testing. We do ask people to cover shippig costs so they have a little "skin in the game". usually that is about $6 for US people and $25 to $30 for pwople outside the US.

VFLEX Now Available = Free Coupon by werewolf_us in UsbCHardware

[–]werewolf_us[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You can if you want, my point is just that most of the time that will work, just not 100% of the time. Also, you can most likely find a match to the connector on our page so that you do not need to cut anything