This has just popped up in the USA
The pace of innovation in aviation is breathtaking!
The “2.1A” port will be Apple only. Different tablet makers use different data pin wiring to indicate a charger with a 2A capability, and I don’t think one can do a universal port (without some kind of user config). So e.g. a Samsung or Lenovo tablet will charge but only at probably 0.5A (the standard USB maximum) which will probably not keep it charged with the screen on.
To me installing these kind of devices are similar to an “I am stupid” tattoo on your front 
I don’t think one can do a universal port
USB Battery Charging Specification
It’s easy on the charger side, just short D+ and D- and supply 2A. It works with the devices I own. It most likely does not work with apple devices, of course.
Yes I think that’s exactly right. I made up such a cable for the aircraft multi-output power unit I have. It does “probably everything” – except Apple. The Apple system needs four resistors.
Also I think a lot of the bigger devices need not just 5.00V but 5.25V at the charger. Lenovo certainly do, which is very naughty. And if you start at 5.00 then by the time you have 2A going down a 1m cable, it won’t be anywhere near 5.00 so the thing won’t charge properly. The USB spec is 4.75 to 5.25 and I think any charger which is to be anywhere near universal needs
The catch with a thick USB “charging” cable is that they often don’t contain the two data lines… so any “charger capability” arrangement (the short, or the four resistors) needs to be implemented at the device end. It’s no good doing it inside the charger.
To me installing these kind of devices are similar to an “I am stupid” tattoo on your front
Not stupid at all from my point of view. Since about a year we have been using EFBs (on iPads) on our little fleet, two devices per aircraft. However there is no way of charging these devices in flight as there are no cigarette lighter plugs or any other power outlets. Getting such a power socket installed legally on a transport category aircraft is very difficult and expensive paperwork-wise.
So if these clocks get approval for installation on aircraft in EASA country, we could replace our stone-age Davtron clocks (two per aircraft) with these and finally have our EFB charging plugs. Unfortunatly, the manufacturer does not state the word “approved” anywhere on his leaflet.
Well, if you have been so desperately wanting such a simple device, that says all about the current state of regulations. Nothing new there, of course. Surely both facilities (a clock and a power port) have been available on my humble craft from its first day.
Well, if you have been so desperately wanting such a simple device, that says all about the current state of regulations.
We did not seek “desparately”, we just came to the conclusion that having power connectors installed is not worth the cost and effort required. A fully charged iPad lasts a lot longer than our fuel supply, so all we have to do is to make sure that our EFBs are charged at 70% or more upon dispatch. But still, it would be nice if we could charge them in flight just in case.
The state of regulations in this case is excellent I must say. Apart from two part-23 certified CitationJets our fleet is made up of part-25 (transport category) business jets. These are heavily dependent of working electrics and electronics, even the non-electric powered systems (hydraulics and pneumatics) require electrical power to operate. So having someone tinker with the electrics – even for installing such a simple thing as a charging socket for an iPad – must be regulated to a point where causing potentially dangerous damage to a vital system is highly improbable.
The “2.1A” port will be Apple only.
Not really an issue, as the iPad has become the de-facto standard for EFBs anyway, much as some on here hate the idea 
Other than that, I have to agree with what next. Charging the various devices is a challenge, even in many SEPs where the old cigarette lighter socket has been disabled. None of the ones I fly regularly has a working socket. While the iPad does hold its charge for a very long time, this is still a significant issue, as you may not be able to charge at, say, an intermediate destination (short turnaround, etc).
The problem with not charging in flight is that you have to carry the thing(s) to the hotel.
And an Ipad is hardly lightweight. I have one and very much notice it in the backpack, by the time the protective case is on it. In fact I may as well carry a laptop with me, for the insignificant extra weight, and then I can do everything on it, and that is what I do.
In the plane, I have built a slightly odd gadget which attaches to the centre console by being screwed to the ashtray (which itself is removable with just 1 screw – it is a standard General Motors part) and on the bottom it has a cigar lighter plug, which ends up in the cigar lighter socket. The whole thing is technically removable (and I did remove it for the CAA IR test for example). On top of it is a little box with some filtering, a current meter, and two high quality Lemo circular connectors. So the crappy cigar lighter connector is never touched.
This clock+USB is quite good because an N-reg plane must have a clock for IFR, and the other TSOs USB outlets cost about $200 i.e. about the same as the crappy Astro-Tech LC2 clocks which inside are a crappy $5 Chinese movement.
The state of regulations in this case is excellent I must say.
I can’t remember ever having heard a sentence like this from anyone who actually had to pay the bills himself.
My PPL instructor now works for EZS and partly in a safety related function. He complained quite a bit about the regulator not focussing on the real safety related issues, but mostly on relatively insignificant paper trail issues. So I have no indication that the state of affairs is better in the Part 25 world.
