12V Socket, 2.1A USB & Mini Voltmeter

Replaced the failed 12V outlet type with this double USB 2.0 style. Now we can charge two devices at one time if need be. Crew is happy.

First, the unit I received appears to be exactly as listed. It is not a 12V power jack with a USB power adapter stuck in it. The USB ports and power converter itself is a black conformal coated module within the cylinder you see and mount. For marine environment use this coating is important as there is no other good way to moisture proof electronic circuits short of hermetically sealing them and using water proof input and output connectors. So except for the exposed connector contacts on the unit, salt air should not have much negative effect on long term reliability.I bought this to power the Bluetooth to RS232 adapter on my race car's Megasquirt ECU and the Nexus10 tablet that I use for the instrument cluster on the same car. The Nexus would not charge at above 500ma with this power port until I shorted the data pins together on one of the USB jacks as described by Mr Borosky. I have had to do this on a number of USB power ports to get more than 500ma. There is a recent USB charge port power spec that calls for devices connected to the charge port to simply increase current draw until the USB voltage drops under 5V in order to find and use the most amperage such a charge port can supply, but I dont own any that do this yet, but I have a couple Android devices that detect the shorted data pins.I power this USB power port (and thus the Nexus and Bluetooth adapter) separately from the ignition ON switch in the race car to reduce the time needed to have fully functional instruments upon engine startup. Because starter current demand during engine cranking will drop available battery voltage, and I use the smallest (and lightest) battery I can afford that will start the car, I wanted to know how well this power port would ride thru voltage sags during this time. I found the port will remain fully functional at input voltages down to 6V and the USB port outputs remain a steady 5V until the input voltage drops to close to 5V. Based on observing regulator switching noise on the power input, it appears the port drops out of switched regulation and into what must be linear regulation below about 7.5V because the switching noise on the input power wire completely disappears (and the green LED goes off, but the regulated 5V output continues unaffected until the input drops below 6V. This performance is more than adequate as my system voltage on the car does not drop below 9V during cranking if my battery has a decent charge. It also appears pretty robust in my view since some similar I have seen shut down at 9V and the outputs drop to zero volts.Because I have a number of unshielded analog sensor signals connected to the ECU and am using Bluetooth to connect the ECU with the Nexus/instrument cluster I was concerned about generated electrical noise from the unit, either radiated from the unit into the air or from the 5V outputs or 12V input. I found no discernable noise on the 5V outputs as seen on a 350MHz o'scope or radiated into air based on a handheld 140M-900MHz amateur radio transceiver set to scan that range (actually multiple bands in that range with some frequencies that are not tuneable). The 12V power input exhibits a 300KHz triangle wave with some 1MHz short duration ringing syncronized to the triangle peaks. The 300KHz triangle wave is under .2V p-p and the 1MHz ringing is under .4V p-p. Under some combinations of input voltage (7.5-15V) and load (0 to 1A tested) the ringing and triangle wave decreases or disappear entirely. At least one reviewer wrote that his sample was producing enough noise on the 5V outputs that the radiated noise interfered with reception on his marine radio. Based on how mine behaves, I would have to guess his was defective or a different product than the one I have. I found that a medium sized clip-on ferrite with the power wire passing thru and a 6800uf 25V electrolytic between the power port input terminals eradicated this from the 12V wire back to the power switch.

Added to my 2022 SR taco rear console

The performance of this item is undeniable. It’s quite capable. I wanted to use this for introducing a USB power source to my ‘98 Toyota 4Runner in place of the unused cigarette lighter. Though I had read an article that outlined this process, it unfortunately left out a lot of modifications that would need to happen to make this work.The first such issue was the diameter of the socket is slightly larger than the opening left after removing the lighter and housing (see image). Therefore I had to sand down the threads of it, while maintaining the ability to still use them to use the ring to tighten it after installation.Second, the orientation of the electrical housing for the cig lighter is an “L” (see image), while the USB socket is formatted much like a normal North American electrical outlet, with two parallel prongs. So I had to use a box knife to split the housing to accommodate the socket.Third, the size of one of the housings (either the - or the +, not sure which, see image) is smaller than the other, and required me to pry the connection apart so I could slip the connection over the male connection of the USB socket.If you’re smart, you’ll get it right the first time and connect the - and + terminals to the right connectors. I, apparently, am not that smart. But after reconnection to the right poles, and finishing installing it into the dash, it all works flawlessly now.Simple.

I converted a van into a camper and bought this to have conveniently located charging port. My electrical panel is somewhat complex with fusing, switches, and sharing of common grounds etc. Everything in the van worked perfectly throughout except this charging port. I tried all kinds of things to verify I had the wiring correct but could discover no mistakes, but I assumed there must have been one because of the complexity. I finally gave up trying to solve the problem and for two years have used the van without attending to this one particular problem.Recently decided to once again try to solve this problem. I finally tried bypassing the on and off switch by running the power source directly to the charger and to my happiness discovered it wasn't my wiring that was wrong, the charger itself does not work.By rights I should get a refund or replacement free of charge if I could return this unused device but...*Edit - It is now much later in time than when I wrote the foregoing. I discovered my review was written in ignorance. That is to say, I've since learned there is polarity involved in hooking up the charger and I had it wrong every time I wired it. I've changed my one star rating to four. I'd make it 4.9 perhaps but I'm docking them for not making it more explicitly clear for a dunderhead like me that you need to beware of the polarity issue

The Blue Sea USB outlet is easy to install, durable, and corrosion resistant. It is meant to be installed on a belowdecks panel, not on a a console exposed to weather. The rubber flap closes things up and protects it from spray, but I wouldn't trust it in very wet conditions, and if it is not closed properly, any amount of sea water ingress will destroy it. Fast charging is automatically engaged for those devices configured to trigger it; it charges my iPhone from dead to 100% in just over an hour, and my iPad in about 2 hours. Other devices that don't trigger fast charging mode are much slower; I have a bluetooth speaker that takes 4 or 5 hours to charge, for example. Its size is perfectly suited for installation into the hole of a standard AC wall socket, or the hole for a cigarette lighter style socket, or you can use the included bezel to install it on a panel. Everywhere I need USB charging, I only use the Blue Sea outlet; so far I have 4 of them on my 2 boats, and I intend to install more.

Buena calidad, carga muy rápido. Entra en los lugares convencionales de conector 12v de auto.

Powers my fridge/freezer and charges phones/etc. Battery monitor is very helpful. Great product.

Es un excelente producto que me ha permitido tener carga en la caja de mi pick-up, pero sobre todo me da la seguridad de que es un producto confiable por la buena reputación de la marca.

Easy to install. work great.

Excellent