We no longer have to pay $10 or $15 for USB cables from Staples or BestBuy. In fairness to them, they need to charge a lot for optional extras to make up for low profits in big-ticket items. But as consumers, we have a right to the best prices, and so we can get USB cables from dollar stores for $1 or $2.
There is a catch to those dollar cables. Phones used to be content to charge at a rate of 1 amp/hour, but today's phones have big batteries and tablets have even bigger ones, and so they need to charge faster. iPads require chargers that output 2.1A/hr while Android tablets tend to need 2.4A/hr. Most USB cables sold for charging, however, are rated for only 1A, and so they become a bottleneck to the recharging time.
I bought several USB cables rated at 2.5A as spares. The coolest one I found has an integrated LED that glows red when charging and then turns blue when the device is fully charged -- saves from having to turn on the device to see if it is fully charged yet. You can find the Golf-brand cable on eBay.
This is different from other illuminated USB cables, which simply light up when plugged in.
So there you have it: a USB cable that handles the high amperage levels needed by today's Android tablets, and at the same time tells you when the table is fully charged.
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