What is a Watermelon Ice USB Widget?

While cutting the grass I found this USB-C widget laying out by the curb. The nerve of some people to toss their e-waste on the side of the road!

hmm... I know nothing about these kind of widgets...

Inside there is a 600 mAh li-ion battery

Beyond the battery and maybe the USB-C connector, i'm not sure what else is worth keeping.

I haven't tested the battery yet, but I have just the USB widget for that task!

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scottiebabe over 2 years ago +6

So what did I end up with, well: a) An interesting story b) An interesting sensory experience from the smell c) A genuine ~600 mAh li-ion cell Perhaps I'll use the pcb as a usb-c power source…
scottiebabe over 2 years ago +5

The battery inside claims to have a capacity of 2.41 Wh In a 16350 form factor It doesn't appear there is any dedicated battery protection circuitry. The widget is solely relying on the charger…
scottiebabe over 2 years ago in reply to scottiebabe +5

I've never put a project in a novelty mint tin, I'll have to add that to the todo list... perhaps a power supply in a

anniel747 over 2 years ago in reply to scottiebabe

[deleted]
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Jan Cumps over 2 years ago in reply to anniel747

What a time to be alive
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Jan Cumps over 2 years ago in reply to baldengineer

It was intentional. There's an early AmpHour podcast, where the designer confirmed that.
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cstanton over 2 years ago

These are really making the news at the moment: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-66204853

To quote:

"Disposable vapes cause litter problems, are a fire hazard and appeal too strongly to children, according to local councils in England and Wales.

The Local Government Association says 1.3m vapes are thrown away each week and wants them banned by 2024.

Single use varieties have surged in popularity, driven by Chinese brands such as Elfbar and Lost Mary.

The UK Vaping Industry Association says they help smokers quit and can be recycled.

Disposable vapes offer a few hundred puffs of nicotine-containing vapour, often with an added flavour of fruit or sweets, in bright plastic packaging – which are thrown away when empty."

It's pretty bad. I saw a light glowing on the floor in the bushes when walking to a hotel in Sheffield recently, turned out it was one of these disposable ecigs that was short circuiting in the rain. Didn't take long for it to start a small fire and smoke.
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dang74 over 2 years ago in reply to Jan Cumps

I have to respect those natural talents.
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Christopher678 over 2 years ago

Very cool In Awesome
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scottiebabe over 2 years ago

Well, well, aren't I just lady luck when it comes to finding old smelly junk!

Fingers crossed for another working li-ion cell
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Jan Cumps over 2 years ago in reply to scottiebabe

Soon you'll be off the grid, powered by the vaper community.
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scottiebabe over 2 years ago in reply to Jan Cumps

Slowly, I'm saving the planet! Checkout the PCB footprint on this TP4056 module I bought, designer is a pro!

Replaced Rprog with a 2k2 resistor for a charge current of 546 mA.
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scottiebabe over 2 years ago in reply to scottiebabe

And no 5k1 pulldowns on the cc pins, great... *eye roll*
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