This is my weblog. I write about projects and stuff I build in my spare time, be it code or tinkering with physical objects. You can find out more about me on my MintyBoost
Minty Boost: A small battery-powered USB charger. Designed by LadyAda. www.ladyada.net/make/mintyboost/index.html
I bought this thing at 26C3 from Mitch Altman, soldered it together and since yesterday, it even works: My friend Sebastian at C4 spotted the mistake I made — I put in the boost converter chip the wrong way (there were even notches on both the chip and the socket and still I managed to fail at this simple task).
What does the MintyBoost do when it’s done? Easy. According to LadyAda, inventor of the MintyBoost:
This project details a small & simple, but very powerful USB charger for your mp3 player, camera, cell phone, and just about any other gadget you can plug into a USB port to charge! (…)
The charger circuitry and 2 AA batteries fit into an Altoids gum tin, and will run your iPod for hours! 2.5x more than you’d get from a 9V USB charger! (See Process for math/calculations) You can use rechargable batteries too.
Some numbers…
- iPod video (tested, using alkaline batteries): 3hrs more video (1 full recharge)
- iPod shuffle (not tested): 60 hours more (5 full recharges)
- iPod mini (tested w/rechargables): 26 hours more (1.5 full recharges)
The MintyBoost lives in an Altoids can. This is how mine looks like when closed:
And this is how it looks like when it’s charging my Android G1 phone:
