-
Want to remove ads? Register an account and login to see fewer ads, and become a Supporting Member to remove almost all ads.
Taptes new wireless charging pad
- Thread starter gilscales
- Start date
Here's my review of the TapTes.
Back on December 4th I ordered one of the wireless car chargers for the Model 3 from TapTes (https://www.taptes.com/…/wireless-phone-charger-pad-for-tes…) and it just arrived today. For the record, I purchased the normal one, not the fast charger.
It was shipped in a padded envelope to Canada from China and i'll be honest, I was surprised that it survived as the box was crumpled a little.
What came in the box was some literature from them highlighting some of the other items that they sell, a generic thank you letter (with rather lackluster installation instrucions on the back), the charger and 5 round soft pads that I assume were for the back of the charger. What was glaringly missing were any sort of installation documents. I admit that it is a fairly simple thing to install but i'm sure that someone could find a way to screw it up.
I have no point of comparison as I don't own any of the other options out there but the design seems nice with a raised spine in the centre to keep the phones apart as well as a raised bar at the bottom to keep your phone from sliding down. I also liked that there are two LED's that turn on when a phone is seated in position and charging.
I ended up using the soft pads on the back of the charger lined up with the 4 holes that the oem rubber cover uses to stay in place. As there was no instructions for what their true intent was for, this was my best guess on their use.
If you're looking for a simple wireless charger that fits quite well into the OEM spot and don't want to spend over $100 USD, this is a great option. The lack of proper installation documents wouldn't turn me away from buying this again as the price of $49.90 USD simply cannot be beat.
Back on December 4th I ordered one of the wireless car chargers for the Model 3 from TapTes (https://www.taptes.com/…/wireless-phone-charger-pad-for-tes…) and it just arrived today. For the record, I purchased the normal one, not the fast charger.
It was shipped in a padded envelope to Canada from China and i'll be honest, I was surprised that it survived as the box was crumpled a little.
What came in the box was some literature from them highlighting some of the other items that they sell, a generic thank you letter (with rather lackluster installation instrucions on the back), the charger and 5 round soft pads that I assume were for the back of the charger. What was glaringly missing were any sort of installation documents. I admit that it is a fairly simple thing to install but i'm sure that someone could find a way to screw it up.
I have no point of comparison as I don't own any of the other options out there but the design seems nice with a raised spine in the centre to keep the phones apart as well as a raised bar at the bottom to keep your phone from sliding down. I also liked that there are two LED's that turn on when a phone is seated in position and charging.
I ended up using the soft pads on the back of the charger lined up with the 4 holes that the oem rubber cover uses to stay in place. As there was no instructions for what their true intent was for, this was my best guess on their use.
If you're looking for a simple wireless charger that fits quite well into the OEM spot and don't want to spend over $100 USD, this is a great option. The lack of proper installation documents wouldn't turn me away from buying this again as the price of $49.90 USD simply cannot be beat.
Eno Deb
Active Member
So, I received the 12V adapter from Amazon we discussed above and did some testing. Unfortunately I can not recommend this model. First, it doesn't sit firmly in the port mechanically, i.e. it slips out very easily. But more importantly, it doesn't charge anywhere near as fast from the USB-C port with my iPhone 8 as is theoretically possible. For some reason the phone only draws ~10W from the adapter:Nice. When I last checked it wasn't available for order, but now it's back. Ordered.
This is also confirmed by a charge test for 10 minutes, which added ~15% to the battery. The battery was only ~35% full, so it was not high-SoC taper. It could of course be different with a different phone model.
Separately, I also tried connecting the Taptes pad to the type A QC port via USB extension cable. This added about 10% in 10 minutes.
So, in summary the approximate net charging rates were:
- Wireless charging with Taptes plugged into Tesla port: ~7% / 10 minutes (~3.8W)
- Wireless charging with Taptes plugged into USB QC port: ~10% / 10 minutes (~5.5W)
- Charging from the USB-C port on the adapter: ~15% / 10 minutes (~8.2W)
For me, it doesn't really seem worthwhile to power the Taptes from a battery or route a cable from a 12V adapter with QC when using an iPhone, since even then the wireless charging is still pretty slow (about the same as wired charging from the Tesla ports). Also, wired charging of the iPhone 8 from my 2.4A USB type A charger is faster than the USB-C PD port on this particular 12V adapter.
Last edited:
I got my Taptes in the mail. I really enjoy it. It works flawlessly, fits decent enough, almost perfect and the thing I like most is it securely keeps my phone in place and I don't have to worry about it sliding around if I'm cornering at speeds. With about 5 days under my belt with this thing, I recommend it. It's a great buy.
Here’s my super-unscientific charging test of Nomad vs Taptes. I don’t have a tester so best I could do.
I have an iPhone X. I closed all apps, except the Tesla app. Started each at 29%.
Left - plugged directly in to the Tesla USB
Right - USB hub with camera flash drive and Nomad/Taptes
Here’s a pic of both:
Nomad is definitely thicker and fits a bit better. However, I didn’t install the rubber feet on the Taptes. Guessing this will secure it a bit better.
If anyone wants different pics or tests, let me know.
I have an iPhone X. I closed all apps, except the Tesla app. Started each at 29%.
Left - plugged directly in to the Tesla USB
Right - USB hub with camera flash drive and Nomad/Taptes
Here’s a pic of both:
Nomad is definitely thicker and fits a bit better. However, I didn’t install the rubber feet on the Taptes. Guessing this will secure it a bit better.
If anyone wants different pics or tests, let me know.
Taptes left, Nomad right. A little skewed as Nomad sits higher, but you can see Nomad has a bigger lip. But will it charge with a pop socket? Thought it had to be closer
surfrasch
Member
Looks to be. Same test conditions. Maybe I'll repeat tomorrow just to make sure. And definitely less expensive.
If anyone can suggest a real test tool that I can pickup at Home Depot or Amazon, happy to do a better test.
surfrasch
Member
I do like the look, feel, fit of the Nomad better. Not much difference but seems a bit higher quality. And it looks like not too much difference in charging. I think I’ll test again for longer and see if there is still a difference. I only use it to top off, so leaning toward the Nomad, but we will see.
Edit: Of course, just showed the wife and she said, “I like the look and division of this one better”. Taptes. Will install the feet and try it out tomorrow.
Last edited:
I emailed Taptes about the stickers. Here's the reply (which I received within minutes, by the way): "The padded stickers are used to fix the charger to the place where it's installed. As you may notice, there are several holes when taking out the original pad and you could stick the sticker there and then place the charger."
I received my Taptes charger a few weeks ago and am very satisfied with it. The phone (iPhone X in this case) stays in place well and charges reliably. I also think the charger looks very nice.
I received my Taptes charger a few weeks ago and am very satisfied with it. The phone (iPhone X in this case) stays in place well and charges reliably. I also think the charger looks very nice.
Yep, definitely will help hold it in place better. They are both solid charges and at this point, the Taptes seems to charge a bit quicker. And of course is significantly priced less. The Nomad has much nicer packaging and includes stickers and a blurb about the owners and the company. I don't think it's worth the extra cost, especially if it charges at a bit lower rate than the Taptes. Still gonna test a bit more and see if there is a difference.
surfrasch
Member
Doesn’t seem like my Nomad moves around at all, I just placed it in the spot. Does the Taptes actually move without the stickers?
jkoya
NA2 NSX
jkoya
NA2 NSX
FloridaGary
Member
I’m not using the pads for my Taptes and it stays in place.
Similar threads
