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What are people using for USB C charger for Sonos Move?


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I asked this question over in the sonos reddit forum and others are having same issues so thought I would bring over here.

What are people using for their usb charger for the Sonos move? I attempted to use my MacBook pros charger but it didn’t work. I have the 60watt brick but from what I read it should be able to still work.

So then I read it might be the cord as they have chips in them and knowing Apple they locked their cord down. So I bought an anker power line 3.1 usb c cable and tried it with the MacBook brick again and it still didn’t work.

So before I keep buying and returning curious if anyone has had success with certain chargers with the move. Thanks!

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Best answer by Airgetlam 24 October 2019, 22:02

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Chargers that don’t work:

 

  1. Macbook Air / Macbook 12 - 29w and 30w chargers (genuine Apple)
  2. Macbook Pro 13 60W charger (Genuine Apple)
  3. Anker 30w PD-1 Atom charger
  4. Anker USB Type-C with Power Delivery 30W USB Wall Charger

  5. Anker Dual Port 49.5W Wall Charger, PowerPort II with Power Delivery for MacBook

  6. Anker PD USB-C battery - PowerCore 10000 PD

So in effect nothing I travel with. I now have a flat Sonos Move :-( 

 

Why does Sonos not allow a wider range of compatible chargers?!

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You can tell if its charging in the Sonos app so you shouldn’t need anytime to test it if you are testing it at home connected to the wifi. This is how I know nothing I tried would work. It is super frustrating on a $400 speaker. 

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I’m sure I read somewhere that USB-C charger for the 'Move' needs to output at any of these three levels: 12V/3A15V/3A, or 20V/2.25A. 

Presumably the last two will charge a little quicker at 45w.

Thanks for sharing everyone! These specs are correct from Ken.

 

The power adapter must be USB PD. For 45W operation the PD source must put out either 20V/2.25A (or higher current) or 15V/3A (or higher current). For 36W operation the PD source must put out 12V/3A or 15V/2.4A and charging speed is reduced if listening to audio at the same time. Anything less than 36W will not power or charge Move.
 

As a data point regarding Macbook chargers, I just tested this out with my Move and a Macbook charging cable and it was charging just fine. We’ve also tested several chargers in the office that worked out well too. The app shows charging within a few seconds of being plugged in, and the LED lights up on the unit indicating the charge is connected (for a few seconds).

 

This is with the USA power block with 110 connected, but it should still work for 220 with other regions.

 

One thing that we’ve seen with power ports that have multiple plugs is that the manufacturer may sum up the total of each of the outputs, so you could have a USB-C that supplies 30W and the USB-A that supplies 19.5W, but the box may market it as 49W. In this case, the Move would only be getting 30W, which wouldn’t be enough to charge it.

Userlevel 7

I’ve finished my testing of the 3rd party products below that I found suitable for use with the Sonos Move. 

Click each Numbered Item to view a picture and other pertinent information regarding each. Rather than refer to each item by name I’ll identify each by its respective number.

Disclaimer: None of the items listed are supported nor recommended by Sonos. They are presented solely by me for informational purposes only.     

  1. POWERADD 57W USB C Wall Charger with One Power Delivery 45W Port and 12W Ports
  2. Cable Matters USB C to USB C Charging Cable (USB C Charge Cable, USB C Power Cable, USB-C Charger Cable) with 100W Power Delivery in White 6.6 Feet
  3. Electop USB 3.1 Male to Type-C Female Adapter,USB A to USB C 3.1 GEN 2
  4. POWERADD PD 45W 26800mAh Portable Charger with 8-pin/USB C Inputs

Items 1 and 2 are used together to charge the Move when use of the charging Ring is not practical. They will charge the Move in the same manner as the Ring with no noticeable difference.  All Move functionality remains the same.

Items 2 and 3 are used together in order to make the connection via USB to item 4 to facilitate portable charging of the Move when no electrical outlet is available.

Using Items 2, 3 and 4 (and item 4 at 100% capacity) to charge the Moves internal battery to 100% from 22% remaining charge takes approximately 3.5 hours (per my testing).

The Move while connected to Item 4 functioned in the same manner as when on the charging Ring. It remained connected to Wi-Fi, Alexa voice assistant was present, operated in stereo pair (as I have two), was visible in the Sonos App as charging and showed battery strength progression.

Leaving one Move on item 4 and the other Move on it’s charging Ring showed no difference in behavior or appearance in the Sonos App.

All functions and/or limitations of the Move when using Item 4 and not connected to Wi-Fi were the same.

As of this moment I have no empirical data but I would guesstimate that one could expect at minimum  an additional hour of uninterrupted use of the Move if starting at 22% remaining battery charge. Longer extended use should be expected if charging is begun at 50% depletion of the Move’s internal battery.  

I hope this proves useful. Just some more Heavy Lifting done for you:relaxed:

Cheers!

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This is totally ridiculous.

Sonos, sort it out.

 

The Move should take power from USB C. End of.

Got to say...this is all a bit of a nightmare. Have tried two different USB C Chargers, both rated at 20.0v @ 2.25a and neither of them have worked, along with two different cables. Think SONOS need to really spell out the compatibility, instead of this guessing game which is currently happening.

 

Update...out of frustration, I unplugged my charger from the mains and then plugged it back in and the Move started charging...unplugged and tried again..nothing...WTF! It is so borderline its unreal...

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I have also a problem with USB-C powering of Sonos Move. I have proved PD USB-C 65W charger which works with my HP laptop perfectly but with Move not. The red LED is blinking all the time (should stop after a few seconds). On the contrary original HP Power supply is charging Move without a problem. 

Why it is so problematic with Sonos Move. It is JUST powering. Do you know if Sonos is planning to solve it by software soon? I don’t want to buy new PS and still risking incompatibility again.

I am having the same problem.  None of my chargers work. 

Am trying to my use two Apple chargers - a 96W and 61W - which are both USB PD and both capable of delivering 15V/3A output.  From the website:

“Power supply
USB-C adapters must support one or more of the following output levels: 12V/3A, 15V/3A, 20V/2.25A.”

 

I have renamed my speaker the SONOS Doorstop, because that is all it is good for.

 

Finally, it works! Someone earlier recommend a number of power solutions (thank you for sharing), and the one that I can confirm is the Samsung Samsung 45W USB-C Super Fast Charging Wall Charger - White (US Version with Warranty) (EP-TA845XWEGUS). Reasonably priced today at Amazon for $39.64 and that includes the cable. Just plug it in, either starting from an off or an on state, and it really works. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07VG9JZVG/ref=ppx_od_dt_b_asin_title_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

If I were you, Sonos, I’d buy these up and stick your label on them instead of making your community go through such trial and error to find a solution that simply works.

Post Script:  I contacted Sonos support.  They quickly diagnosed a fault in the speaker and immediately began the process of replacing it.  Thanks to Sonos for that responsive support.

Thank you for your comments.  Although I can search through the user comments, I continue to find it unsatisfactory that the manufacturer seems unwilling to provide helpful information to its customers.  Customers have been troubled by this issue for quite some time.  Why not publish a list of products known to work?  Given all of the comments in this forum, and the similar comments in the related topics, this issue appears to be giving many customers an unsatisfactory experience.  

Given that my MacBook charger has not worked, in spite of appearing to meet the published specifications, I tried to power the Move from another power supply that I use for my MacBook, my OWC Thunderbolt 3 Dock.  It’s rated at 85 watts and meets the USB PD specifications.  Much to my amazement, it appeared to successfully power & charge the Move!  After that small success, I again tried my 95 Watt MacBook power supply, the same power supply that did not power the speaker yesterday.  I plugged it in as before, and was surprised that now it works, as well!  It quickly brought the Move up to 100% charge.

So . . .why did this same power supply not work yesterday, and it now works today?  I used the very same cords, the same power supply, the same everything.  This should not be magic.  What changed? 

 

 

No company is going to take on the liability of recommending 3rd party electronics.  They recommend their products. Period.  If you don't want to buy their product, you are on your own.

Userlevel 7

Below are components I use to charge my Move.  1 and 2 via electrical outlet. 2 and 3 outdoors for power boost before the battery drains.

  1. Wall Plug
  2. USB-C Cable
  3. Portable Power Brick

All

The products I provided links to work with the Move and match the output specs of the OEM Move charger.   Yes, when being used you can see the Move battery being charged either via electrical wall outlet or portable battery pack.  My apologies I forget to list the adapter that must be used with the Portable Power Brick when charging the Move. The link is below:

USB-C to USB-A adapter

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Boo Hoo :disappointed_relieved: ...I feel so unappreciated. I posted the information regarding 3rd party charger requirements in this thread and over a month ago in the announcement post right here. That’s the last time I’ll do the heavy lifting if I’m just going to be ignored. Double Boo Hoo :disappointed_relieved::disappointed_relieved:   LOL 

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For those of you in the UK, I’ve struggled to find something that will work for travel in UK and EU having tested quite a few. The 45w 20V/2.25A is the key and is very limited for UK/EU from what I have found/tested. Unfortunately all the Anker multi port options are 20V/3a so no good and the one “plug” option is UK only so no good for travel. However I’ve just bought and tested this successfully - I hope it helps:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B06XPFVF2S/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

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I am a bit late to this thread, but have had a Move for a couple of weeks, and am not impressed with the standby battery life.  Losing 15-20% per day?  I use it in a bathroom in the UK, where we aren’t supposed to have mains electricity.  I am therefore looking at portable chargers, or possibly putting a wall charger in the next room, drilling a small hole in the wall and passing a USB cable under the bath and up to the shelf where the speaker lives (not above the bath).  Most of the products in this thread aren’t available in the UK.  Thoughts?

( @AjTrek1 if that works)

So either:

https://amzn.to/38Dx3Bs RAVPower USB C Power Bank 20100mAh 45W PD 3.0 Portable Charger External Battery Pack (USB-C Input, 45W Type-C Output)

OR

https://amzn.to/3cN4ggT TOMMOX USB C Charger - Dual Port Wall Charger, USB PD Port 45W with Power Delivery

https://amzn.to/2TUUYXx AmazonBasics USB Type-C to USB Type-C 2.0 Cable - 2.7 m

By the way, the Move charges well with a Lenovo ThinkPad 65W power brick that I happen to have.  From 30% to 90% in an hour. I would use this to charge the Power Bank below if I took that option.

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This is so disappointing to read! I just unpacked my Move yesterday, and I’m impressed with it on many levels, but not this one! There seems to be no distinguishing between power for use, and power for charging. And they don’t necessarily need to be the same thing, and I thought USB-C PD made most things work with most things!

For example, I can plug a big MacBook Pro, which normally charges as 87W+ into my Anker USB-C battery which only outputs at 30W. It will add power, and if the laptop is asleep the battery will charge, albeit slowly. Or in use, the battery will still deplete, but not as quickly.

For the Move, I understand that maybe it needs 45W to play at a high volume, but surely *any* power input would charge the battery if power consumption was near zero when on standby or switched off? Or, as in the MacBook example above, extend the battery life by adding some power as it is in use.

Are these input levels set in hardware or software @Ryan S ie. is this something that might ever be revisited? I was hoping this was a bit of kit I could just take with me but none of my fleet of USB-C chargers or batteries will work with it by the looks of things!

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Just got my white Move the other day and tonight I tried to charge it with 2 different power banks (PD) no luck. Tried it with my MacBook charger and number of cables with the same result, Sonos please help. 

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From the local Sonos seller, I have the information that the following PD charger is compatible with Sonos.

Samsung EP-TA845

In the mean time I’ve ordered another one that I hope to be compatible too.

https://www.banggood.com/BlitzWolf-BW-PL4-45W-PD-Type-C-USB-Charger-EU-Adapter-With-Power3S-Tech-p-1347712.html

 

Anyway, is not something expected from a company like Sonos, to count on users to test their own product compatibility. A list of compatible/certified chargers must be presented on their web site.

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Sonos forgot to tell Move users about charging without the base!!!: 

This is not true.

 

Here:

https://support.sonos.com/s/article/3640?language=en_US

is stated: “Charging via USB-C may have varying speeds depending on the wattage of the charger. We recommend using a 45 watt USB-C PD charger, outputting a minimum of 20V/2.25A or 12V/3A.” but this is a recommendation. Unfortunately not even all 45W USB-C PD chargers can charge the Move. 

At the reseller they let me swap the Move for a new package. Unfortunately the samsung charger EP-TA845 does not work on this new out of the box Sonos. (Did not do the setup and updates yet, will do that after the holidays. See if that helps).

The reseller said that they will contact their account manager at Sonos. See what they have to say about this.

 

I'll keep you all posted.

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I have no issues at all with my Samsung charger (@230V). Even the Acer Chromebook charger (PD 45W - see one of my older posts) now is working, without doing anything on Sonos side. On the other side, a very popular 45W PD Charger from Blitzwolf does not charge the Sonos. Really strange behavior ... 

 

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This works perfectly: 

https://www.amazon.com/Nekteck-Charger-Foldable-Charging-Compatible/dp/B08786SHXV/ref=cm_cr_srp_d_product_top?ie=UTF8

 

My review on the product page: 

It charged my Sonos Move speaker from 50% to 100% in a little over an hour. Absolutely perfect!

The Sonos Move suffers from a fatal flaw (literally) -- the charger base is permanently wired to the charger, which means the connector will bend and eventually, inevitably, fail. Boo, Sonos! This charger fixes that problem, and is smaller and easier to travel with than the Sonos charger base. It's a travel charger for now, but when (not "if") the Sonos base fails, this will be my 24/7 home charger.

Minor quibble: it really needs a second, standard USB port (or even two). If it had that port, I could probably pack one less charger when I travel. Oh well.

Finally, it works! Someone earlier recommend a number of power solutions (thank you for sharing), and the one that I can confirm is the Samsung Samsung 45W USB-C Super Fast Charging Wall Charger - White (US Version with Warranty) (EP-TA845XWEGUS). Reasonably priced today at Amazon for $39.64 and that includes the cable. Just plug it in, either starting from an off or an on state, and it really works. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07VG9JZVG/ref=ppx_od_dt_b_asin_title_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

If I were you, Sonos, I’d buy these up and stick your label on them instead of making your community go through such trial and error to find a solution that simply works.

I’ve tried several chargers that are said to work, including above and no luck. Wondering if there might be a firmware update needed?

Unfortunately, I had no success with the ULR you provided.  I note that another person above had similar difficulty with the USB charging port and it turned out that it was a problem with the product. Rather than spend time and money trying various chargers and cables, perhaps I should contact Sonos support at this point.  Thank you very much for your time and information.  You have been very helpful.  Best wishes for a safe and successful New Year.

@MiSkyPig 
There are some compatible power adapters mentioned in this thread (and others) which users say they have tried and do work, such as this one, which I have just quickly chosen at random…
https://www.amazon.com/Samsung-USB-C-Super-Charging-Charger/dp/B07VG9JZVG

Maybe look through the suggestions and purchase one of those, at least you know it is likely going to work, based on the information supplied by a member of the community.

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