Original charger vs Ebay 3rd party chargers

[kiwigirl]

I want a 2nd charger but refuse to pay $80 for the OEM one, that is just a joke. I refuse to get fleeced. I went on ebay and found a bunch of 3rd party ones, made and shipped from China for 1/3 the cost. Same specs in terms of wattage, amps, etc.

 

[GegeNY]

$20.00 less at Walmart
http://www.walmart.com/ip/37065358?...24354112&wl4=&wl5=pla&wl6=82772000672&veh=sem

 

[bluegrass]

I paid $200 for my second charger for my SP3, but it came with several USB ports, Ethernet, & a video port.

 

[hughlle]

Seems a vicious circle. Noone is buying one so noone is recommending one. I really want a DC charging cable for use with an external battery, but i can't find anyone who's bought one to offer feedback, just negative speculation which doesn't fill a cash strapped student with the confidence to buy one.

 

[bluegrass]

You could buy that $27.66 eBay power pack the OP mentioned and wack the cable off to use with an external battery pack.

 

[Geneo]

I was reading about the fraying/kinking of the cable at the magnetic plug end, and mine's 'getting there'. I can't do without my sp3(!), so I ordered a spare charger from Amazon for about $64. Still high, but cheaper than the OM version.

 

[joell85]

Just a tip, if there is anything wrong with your charger chat with MS support and they will send you a new one. They do not require you to send back the old one either so no time waste for you.

 

[annabanana]

I want a 2nd charger but refuse to pay $80 for the OEM one, that is just a joke. I refuse to get fleeced. I went on ebay and found a bunch of 3rd party ones, made and shipped from China for 1/3 the cost. Same specs in terms of wattage, amps, etc.

Sounds risky to me. Sometimes you get what you pay for.

 

[riggi]

I used a couple of third party chargers for my SP1 that came from China that I got off ebay.

One was OK, but the other melted.
I'm glad I happened to be looking at my SP1 as I was working at the desk because I saw it start to change shape and when I grabbed it, it was really hot.
I dread to think what would have happened if I was not there and it kept melting and maybe damaged the SP1.

The other third party charger is OK though... so, it's kind of a lucky dip.

I haven't bought a 2nd charger for my SP3 yet, but if I do, I think I'll just pay the extra for a MS one rather than risk it.

I think one problem is that these chargers are not like the standard barrel chargers of most laptops that just have a positive and negative wire going to the charger. Those things can be replaced by just about any other barrel plug that has the same size, polarity, wattage and amps. Also, just about anyone can easily reproduce them.
The SP1 SP2 and SP3 chargers have more connectors and if the person making them cuts corners or just ignores some aspect, only concentrating on connecting the power wires, then there is more potential for something to either short or not function as it should.

Like I said, my other after market charger for the SP1 has been fine, so you might be OK, but I'd just make sure you don't leave it charging unattended.

 

[lonaysta]

I....personally won't risk the health of my battery to save 30-60 dollars...

 

[clrk9000]

I cut the wire connected of my SP3 Charger because the tip frayed and would not charge anymore.
It is still delivering the 12V out so the problem lies somewhere in the frayed section near the magnetic connector.

I bought from Amazon Marketplace (from China) this Outtop Power Bank Charge Magnetic Cable Line For Microsoft Surface Pro 3 for less than 10 bucks delivered. I hope I didnt get scammed, still waiting for delivery which will come a month from now as per Amazon notification.

The wires coming out of the charger going to the tip is just positive and negative wires of the 12v supply.

 

[hughlle]

I cut the wire connected of my SP3 Charger because the tip frayed and would not charge anymore.
It is still delivering the 12V out so the problem lies somewhere in the frayed section near the magnetic connector.

I bought from Amazon Marketplace (from China) this Outtop Power Bank Charge Magnetic Cable Line For Microsoft Surface Pro 3 for less than 10 bucks delivered. I hope I didnt get scammed, still waiting for delivery which will come a month from now as per Amazon notification.

The wires coming out of the charger going to the tip is just positive and negative wires of the 12v supply.

View attachment 6021

Question: Why didn't you just get Microsoft to send you a new one under warranty? Mine is beginning to show problems, in that if i wiggle the cable next to the magnetic connector it will stop charging and have to wiggle it to get it to start charging again. If it fails, i just send MS a message and they pop a new one in the post for me