Teardown of an IKEA Koppla USB power supply.
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- Опубліковано 24 сер 2024
- I've always recommended using prominent brand USB chargers for safety. So I thought I'd take an IKEA one to bits and assess it for safety with regards to isolation and transformer construction.
If you enjoy the videos on this channel you can help support it with a dollar for coffee, cookies and things to take apart at / bigclive - Наука та технологія
20:33 - To be fair, you've taken it to bits and shown us all it is actually pretty good. There's probably a designer out there who's watched this and known they had some part in this, and is happy you've complimented it.
As a Swedish licenced electrician, I can tell you that almost every electrical appliance that comes packaged in Sweden is made so it's hard to open.
There is a certain safety standard in Sweden that people have gotten used to, and very few people ever open their electronics themselves. Although it is legal to switch plugs or lamp sockets if you know how to, most people would even call an electrician to do that for them.
IKEA makes a big point about being even safer than the safety standards, so it's no surprise that the thing was hard to get into.
Same here for Germany, licenced, too. I work at the quality control department. Some Products are easy to open, like USB Hubs or shit like that, but whenever it comes to safety, especially mains, things are going to be nasty to open. For some i need a hammer and a few good hits, for some i need hammer + screwdrivers and for some i needed a fucking saw.
+degru5091 same
+degru5091 death metal alone is a reason to go to Sweden. but the other things are fucking awesome, too
***** Well, since immigration is such a small part of actual politics, don't take the debates about it too seriously.
***** Publicly polled does not imply political significance. Immigration issues are "baked in" to all other political issues, it's not a separate issue. The only reason it is being discussed at all as a separate issue is because of the nazi Sweden Democrats, that managed to lie their way to a huge chunk of votes and got into the Parliament and forced the other parties to discuss it as a separate issue.
When we're talking interest rates, we talk interest rates for everyone, regardless if they're born in the country or not. When talking punishment for certain crimes, the place of birth is not discussed as it is irrelevant. When we talk about school policies, we do not divide Swedish-born and immigrant students.
*That's* why immigration wasn't talked about much before, not because the majority of the voters are immigrants. In fact, Sweden has a relatively low immigration rate, at only 11% of the population. And even then, only about 1% of them are eligible to vote.
The figures you present about "ethnic minorities" is simply false and I don't know where you got such a stupid number from. If they are more than the "majority", then they'd be the majority, and you simply don't get those kinds of numbers in any country.
You might get somewhat close to 30% if you include 3 or more generations back, but politics don't care about that since they are already considered citizens of the country, not immigrants.
It might in fact not have been glued. Sometimes the plastic in these things are ultrasonically welded together.
The structure of the transformer is a "sandwich" style. You normally have "primary-secondary-primary-auxiliary" so that magnetic field in the windings is evenly distributed. Concerning the opened winding, it's an electric filed screen. it's cheaper to wind a wire than to prepare a copper band, solder it and put in place. The secondary wire is a triple insulated wire , mandatory to meet safety requirements that dictates you have to grant at least 2 functional insulation layers between primary/secondary for a mains application like that.
Sense on some newer chips is made by looking at the primary reflected voltage (the charger is a flyback converter). It works well and saves you an optocoupler + feedback loop but the transformer design is very critical and must be extremely well repeatable to deliver a good production yeld.
This said, the design is very good for a 10 euro device. i'll get another one.
ATTENTION: I bought the IKEA Koppla in 2019 and looked inside. It has nothing to do with the Koppla in this Video. They did some cost reductions: No input Common Mode Filter, Very Small Capacitors, Only ONE Output Capacitor. No millings to improve creeping distance. I can not recommend the 2019 Koppla.
mind sharing the pictures?
Oh man and i really wanted to buy one.. Damn shame... I have one anker, one tronsmart and one asus usb c fast charger..... Where are you from... Do you think it can be different between quality in different countries?
We need to find out more!
Everyone buy a koppla and send it with the bill to bigclive. So he can open it and say "uh that's crap from this ikea in street xy 635" or "yes that's nice in ikea on the main street 168" :D
Sounds unlikely...proof & photos? Otherwise probably just someone talking rubbish.
IKEA likes to use ultra-sonic welds for plastics.
Sounds fancy
@@spaghetti9067 its essentially vibrating plastic till it melts together. The ultra sonic just means its rubbing it really fast (in the Mhz range)
I'd love to see you having a one-on-one discussion with the designers of any number of circuits you come across to understand the thinking behind them. Love your videos!
There are several semi-standards for USB current on chargers, and the small chips that are connected to the data lines on each port provide several functions. They emulate the various protocols used by the many manufacturers of chargers, like Apple, Samsung, Asus, and provide the correct voltages and resistance. If you leave the data pins open, most devices will not go any further than 500 mA, because that's the max for USB2.0 ports on a computer. If you short the data lines out, they will usually go no further than 1000 mA, because they know that it's a dedicated charger, but have no info on the maximum current, so they assume 1000 mA. But if you provide the correct (voltage/voltage divider) protocol, then higher current devices like tablets will draw the full amount they are designed for, like 2000mA per port. Take a look at the TPS2511 or TPS2540 from TI as an example. The chips also do current limiting and overvoltage protection and various other stuff to keep your devices happy when they are plugged in.
Beyond that apple seems to have requirements for noise, I just noticed the finger print sensor doesn't work plugged into the ikea, while it does with a basic GE unit or apple.
Awesome informative comment, thanks!
@@omgwtfbbqstfu thank for pointing that out!
Uk plugs are so ugly it hurts watching them..
Yes, they are really ugly. But they make up for it by being really good at what they do.
is this safe? straxuk-int.mobileaccessories.info/index.php?productdetail=17628
I'm not really familiar with that brand. My own current choice as a universal charger is the IKEA Koppla.
ua-cam.com/video/uRe9w5PKmsE/v-deo.html
agreed with +MzNTos. USB cables already attached to a plug are usually very low quality and cheaply manufactured in China/Taiwan. Should never trust them. The IKEA Koppla is very good, and even supports fast charge cables for fast charge cellphones etc. For travel purposes, you can buy a Skross Worldwide Adapter which comes with a USB attachment which can even work in European sockets independent of the adapter itself. Two birds with one stone, or Skross Adapter to be more accurate lol
Ugly - yes, but well engineered.
This is great. Bought one yesterday on a whim, couldn't find any info about it and didn't feel like destroying mine (as it was charging my S5 as fast as the OEM charger, which most of my chargers will not do!). Happy to see this pop up in my subscriptions today!
Excellent video Clive. I'm going to share with my friends how important it is not to use cheap/tiny chargers and buy good quality chargers from reputible retailers. It could save someone's life/prevent a house fire.
UK plugs are HUGE!
bigbzon around 50 MM square
bigbzon They are very durable and safe though
You don't want to stand on one, pain doesn't describe it.
15Amps?
those 30Amp plugs do not count :D
Everything is huge in UK
4:46 - I love it when you pause the video, and theres tools of violence on the table after the jump
Congrats on the 100k subs Clive!
***** exactly!
+Harry Emmott Congrats Clive. I can't wait to see what LED / Lighting your UA-cam silver play button award gets.
+Harry Emmott i was just about to say that xD. Congrats mate !
+Maxx B I didn't even think about what modifications he could do to the silver play button. Making it LED-based would totally be Clive!
Cheers!
Just looking at that separation I'm sold. Looks like they really made an effort with that. Considering that they will sell many, many millions of these and has a brand to care about, it's not surprising that they've spent the time making it properly.
I'll probably pick some up next time I'm at IKEA, too big to bring with you when travelling but seems great to have scattered around the house.
Tearing apart a transformer is kind of like opening up Christmas presents. Each layer is new surprise.
Have a Happy New Year.
I am glad you took it apart. The inrush current limiting NTC , filtering effort etc. made my decision. I bought dozens of USB power supplies and all were crap. (Even nice and sturdy looking ones)
This is well known brand and is available for reasonable price here in Czech Republic. (approx 9 EUR)
Love this channel. Haven't got a clue what he's talking about, though... But it's nice to sit and watch someone who seems to know what he's doing,
This dude gets paid to break things down and tell us what parts do or whatever comes to mind.
I like that.
Hi Clive. Ikea have since started selling a follow up to this, Åskstorm. Same shape but one USB A and one USB C with PD/quick charge, for £12. A second teardown might be interesting though it'll probably be mostly more of the same.
To help you with the swedish word Åskstorm = Thunderstorm, in english.
Clive, you could do the public a great service and possibly save lives by reporting the units that do NOT meet safety approvals or have false CE or UL marks etc..
Because of your educational videos, I now test USB and computer supplies both HI-POT and leakage current when they come into my house.
Very nice teardown Clive! I loved the visual inspection about separation, safety, etc. I wish you had an oscilloscope at hand!
At £7 this charger is the best thing since sliced bread. I went to Ikea in Reading and bought two of those wee beasties. We've had no arguments "Where's the effing charger?" since I got them.
One lives in the kitchen, one lives in the conservatory.
So, "Thank You", you've ended all the phone/tablet/ipod charging problems in my house.
the ikea one does not have to be assembled?
it still comes with extra screws just to mindfuck u that u probably forgot something
It looks a bit like 27:51 when you first get it, so you still have to wind the coils, and nothing is soldered yet.
allen key also included
It comes with a bag of plastic pellets and a couple of molds for casting the outer casing.
Catsinelixe Holloway, classic Clive. He casually assembled it quickly in a few seconds without remembering that he did.
What a spook, I was in IKEA recently looking for a USB charger and I saw this Koppla device but didn't buy it because it looked a bit cheap. Having seen this though, I've changed my mind, so I'm off to IKEA...brb :-)
This is the main problem with electronics, you cant look inside; this is were bigclive comes to the rescue :)
@@dennisd4225 And producing sleek looking lacquer finished plastic casing and impressive connectors is cheaper, than putting high grade components inside and using the time to properly design the internals.
Often top grade stuff might have spartan exterior, since they sell on long known reputation. Their exterior is practical and no need for extra stuff.
Where as some cheapo people try to make their stuff look top grade by injection molding that sleek looking casing on top of a turd of a product.
brb?
@@harrickvharrick3957 be right back, i guess he's back by now xD
@@aritakalo8011 I got the USB PD version (Askstorm 23w). The matte plastic casing feels fine, Not as nice as the Apple ones but for one of the cheapest PD power supplies from a name brand I got what I expect. PD works great up to 15v, but is only 18w (They get 23w by doing 18w + the 5w from the USB A port). No coil whine or any noise. (I have sensitive ears and can hear the whine even when most people can't). Overall looking to get a few more to replace some of the my cheap 12v ones for LED lights.
it's not glue, it's ultrasonic plastic welding
Tibor Danilics sounds complicated
No, that was tigged.
Ultrasonic welding of thermoplastics is an old process, used in producing all kinds of consumer goods.
Fascinating, not that I expected to be really interested for 28 mins of a USB charger being taken apart. Very useful to know the quality within, thanks.
Hi Clive. Thank you for all your awesome videos. You are probably the only person I can watch for hours on time dismantling transformers, making useful and funny remarks. Quite a lot of information and also very relaxing :)
Something that won't kill me. What a nice change.
I recently discovered your channel, and I am really enjoying these teardowns. I am in the US so some of this doesn't apply directly to me, but I am learning a lot about these devices.
Loved the pause and the hammer on the table after it. However, will buy some additional once for my household now! Thanks for the disasembly!
Great video as always Clive!
As Anker are supposed to be a super premium make when it comes to USB power supplies, any chance you fancy tearing down one of those? They pride themselves on safety and quality of construction, so I'd like to see if it is true. Sadly I don't have the ability to destroy working electronics as it makes me feel bad lol
Can't say about power supplies, but their mice aren't very good. Had 3 problems: mouse wheel not working smoothly. The rubber pads on the side becoming greasy with the crappy glue. mouse having hardware acceleration even though they claim. not to have any.
@@JustinKoenigSilica I've not had this problem with Anker's vertical mice. My two mice (one for work and one for home) are still doing fine after four years of constant use. I also use a cloth covered mouse pad which keeps the mouse feet and underside nice and clean. These two mice have saved my shoulder from repeated hospital visits so they were $40 well spent.
Please compare Aukey as well
It's so good that UA-cam just keeps on telling me to view it again and again.
I guess I should just buy one.
Just bought one of these and glad to see its a good quality charger, I did think it was a bit expensive but after watching your review I think its worth it, thanks
Good to see we aren't selling crap. I'll definitely be recommending them to everyone I know.
What IKEA does for furniture is that when they introduce something new they overbuild it, then during the products lifespan they lower production costs by figuring out what shortcuts they can take. It would be interesting to see if they do that for their electronics as well, would you consider tearing one down in the future to see if they have changed it?
Seems too many US customers say their IKEA USB Chargers are loud and either stopped working or makes the power waver/flicker!!!
@@DarthAwar mine, purchased in July 2017, is still working great, no noticable side effects
2019 and it's nowhere near as well built now
i wonder if we can get clive to take a look at these again
@@schmalec *noticeable
Major downside to this unit is that you have to go to an IKEA store to get one (or pay through the nose for P&P).But, at only £7 each I might just have to go and endure the 1.5 mile walk snaking through the store to finally get to the electrical section :-)
+kempy666999 Yes, but meatballs.
+kempy666999 I really like the cloth hangers and plastic food bags of ikea. But yup 4 freaking stories of show rooms just for a 60p product...
+PierreDolphin find and use the shortcuts! ;)
Frank Hagström I have!! The only shortcut is between the kitchen and bedroom. It only save me like 3 minutes. And my closest ikea requires you to change carts mid way and walk down a set of stairs too.
+kempy666999 Look for the hidden doors, they used to be a lighter shade of the "area" you were in, they literally cut corners (where you'll find them) and you can sneak through most of the store really quickly.
Once, when I was a teenager, I took apart a USB power supply to see how it worked. Then, I stupidly plugged the bare board in and touched one of the rectifier diodes. I didn't get muscle contraction or anything, but I did get a 2nd degree burn on my finger. It went away after a couple days.
And that's how I learned not to fuck about with high voltage stuff unless you know what you're doing.
Thanks for testing this. I've often wondered about the IKEA stuff. This seems to be the only 3 port USB charger available anywhere. Congrats on 100k subscribers
The reason there is a ground pin is because the MacBook charger is modular, and it comes with a grounded cable that also works with the iPad charger
CHRIS C exactly
UK plugs are required to have a ground pin even if they don't do anything by the nature of the plug design
CHRIS C I've had a MacBook for 7 years and I just went and looked, I've never noticed. I just assumed it was a thing that didn't apply to Australasia
Prigruss lol. I noticed it as soon as I got my macbook charger.
great video - 8€@IKEA is not bad for such a good device
And it was $8 here in the U.S. I just picked one up. The price is quite reasonable for something that has been rather thoroughly vetted.
Thanks for tearing this down, I bought one in Ikea a few weeks ago and hoped it would be well made.
What's funny is when buying it I was thinking " I wonder what Clive would make of it".
Looks like I'll get a few more.
Once again, the hammer of knowledge beats the spudger of information.
Watching these most recent videos make me realize not only do I not understand how transformers work, but also that they seem like fucking magic.
*Definitely* time for me to do some remedial work.
This channel...kind of like "The Secret Life of Machines" and "MythBusters"...destroying stuff (to see its insides) so we don't have to.
Ikea Koppla USB powerhub... *I'VE GOT ONE OF THOSE!!!*
Reassuringly tough to bust into!
Reassuringly well put together?
Wouldn't have expected anything less!
It's always nifty to discover something new in a tear-down.
Its against regulations to provide an earth to any class 2 appliance in the uk hence why the socket part of the apple charger doesn't have an earth connection on that anchor pin.
You Sir, have one of the greatest profile picure ever.
The other reason for the apple unit being modular is so you can connect the extender cable like you get with a Mac laptop to it to add extra length
Everyone else can use a $2 usb extension cable
Being as I'm watching this video on a phone being charged by an IKEA Koppla, I greatly appreciate this teardown and analysis.
half an hour well spent just hangin' with Clive. and who would have known, IKEA puts out a good product. I've never really been sold on them, I even tried to like the meatballs, but alas to no end. the IKEA here in Denver is a steaming pile, the people working there are there to prove it, too.
You should come visit the one in Barkarby, Sweden. :P
Ive been told the purpose of those slots on the pcb is to prevent arcing from making a carbon track across the pcb
+Gillian Seed Known as tracking. Manifests itself in industrial equipment as a very distinct and charred black line across the PCB.
Ikea made some fairly decent stuff. I know AVE has 'tested' a rechargeable SDS Ikea drill and was mightily impressed with the engineering and effort that went into the mechanical components within it.
Cheers Clive. Looks like I'll drop one of these in the basket next time I'm hauled (under protest) around Ikea..
As a little note on Apple charger. On Danish plugs endings (they are similar to the German ones but with ground pin sticking out) there is ground connection to that metal pin (ok, i have never tested it really). It is ensured by two metal springs that inside the ending. The ground pin is there only with the long cord endings and not with the short, two pins european ending. This is exactly the same for laptop power supply.
Excellent video! I am someone who just barely understands the basics of electronics, but these kinds of videos are easy to follow and really insightful! Thank you Clive!
Do you think you could review an Anker USB power supply from Amazon? They're a company that seems to dominate the amazon USB power supply category, might be worth taking a look to see if they're dangerous or built to last.
+Aric Blunk I would like to see this too. I've always felt they feel well made in day to day use, the transformer quality would be interesting to see.
I would like Clive to review an Anker charger too (5 or 6 port version). We've got a few of them around the house and it would be nice to know they're safe. Same goes for their battery USB chargers.
+Duncan Sample Well, since you seem to already have a couple, and you're the one curious about the safety, how about you do a teardown instead, rather than begging others to do it for you? Why is it always someone else who has to foot the bill and do the work?
Juan Rial If I knew more than my old GCSE electronics I'd give it a go, but I have no idea what 'good' looks like, whereas, after watching quite a number of Clive's videos, I trust his opinion. It was more of a suggestion than a demand, since he's got a bit of a series going. I'm also assuming, since Anker are quite a good new company requesting social interaction in the material that comes with their products, that if Clive contacted Anker they would probably send him some products to do a tear-down of.
Stay tuned. In the next episode, Clive repaires the IKEA Koppla USB power supply.
Hi Abe!
Thanks for this review Clive (I have now ordered one) and many congratulations on your 100,000 +
I've got 3 of these and I'm very happy to know that it's a good unit.
Congrats on 100,000 subs!
You did the exact opposite of what IKEA is expecting you to do. You'd buy the power supply in parts and build it together by yourself... kinda. if you understand the instructions
Fun fact: This IKEA power supply's name is kind of ironic in my language (like a surprising amount of other IKEA product names, to the point where you would suspect they are doing it intentionally). It sounds and reads almost identical to our word "kopla", which literally means "she kicked", but "it kicked me" is also a colloquial way of saying "I suffered an electric shock". The word "electricity" is also of feminine grammatical gender in our language, making it even more appropriate.
It always made the power supply feel very suspect to me ;)
Nice tear down. I learn a lot and I'm greatly entertained by your delivery.
Thanks
Stuart
I enjoy your videos. Thanks.
I have always scrolled past your videos, but now I can't stop watching them. Keep it up Clive!
I wonder who dislikes your videos and what their reason(s) could possibly be...
Career haters. They must be terrible to have as coworkers.
nitwits who can't follow along and understand what he is doing/talking about.
Probably impatient people.
Those who built the blue and black chargers that he criticized for poor quality.
I didnt understand half of it but thats not a good reason to hate. Just move along if electrical stuff isnt your thing.
Good on you Clive.
I bought one a while ago because it's the only one with 3 sockets.
That vid. has made my day!!
Good old ikea
Keep the vids coming.
Martin.
I never thought that watching a guy dismantle & unwind a transformer would be so engaging &, well, fascinating. I'm (re)learning so much from your videos Clive, they're really whetting my appetite to get back into electronics tinkering. =)
Watch "glassslinger" here on UA-cam, the guy rewinds 70 year old transformers amongst other things
@@adrinathegreat3095 Thanks for the suggestion. I'll look into it.
Well done on 100,000 sub Clive
the other reason for using multiple wires in parallel (bifilar, multifilar) is to increase efficiency by reducing the impact of the skin effect, which can be fairly troublesome at 50-100KHz or more. I'm guessing it was a tradeoff between using say 3-4 strands of wire vs. litz wire which is the same thing taken to the extreme of 20+ very very tiny insulated wires bundled together.
+kevtris This is only true if those wires are electrically isolated (other than at the ends). If they are not, then this has no effect on skin depth. The same is true of litz wire. It would have been interesting to see if they were electrically isolated to see if this is true.
you are right. I'm fairly sure they were isolated, otherwise they would've been shorting against each other on the bobbin. I have wound dozens of switching power supply transformers and I usually will do this very thing to get a bit more efficiency.
Just bought four based on your seal of approval! Just what I needed for all my USB gadgets. Thanks Clive.
Well that is good news, I bought two of these during my last trip to IKEA.
I assumed they would be okay, but now they have the clive seal of approval as well.
Well done on the 100k subs!! :)
Hi Clive
Can you explain me why my Koppla Powersupply is making an annoying high-frequency sound when my phone is fully charged?
Thank you
It's not uncommon. It's the switchmode power supply pulsing on and off because it doesn't need to run all the time as very little current is being drawn on the output.
Thanks for clearing me up
It's quite common. With most switched-mode converters as the load reduces the duty cycle must also reduce to maintain voltage regulation but there is a limit to how short the pulse duration can be. Therefore the switching frequency reduces. When operating normally the switching frequency is ultrasonic but under very light load it can drop into the audible range.
Does the Isle of Man use Ring Circuits like the UK?
Yes. Standard UK wiring.,
I've had one of those ikea chargers here in the USA for about 5 years and it lives in the heat and cold on the side of my work tool box, it hasn't failed me yet. I use it to charge my note 9, and multiple rechargeable flash lights and work lights, often using all three ports at once!
It's my main charger. Used for the stuff I record my videos with, random USB stuff and also my main phone.
13:34 i always think "look at these spider fingers" and there you are like a spider unwrapping a fly
Well, the name "Koppla" in Slovak language pretty much means "It shocked". So we've been warned.
Ha ha, yes. Significantly named device.... :D
In swedish , where ikea comes from, it means "to connect"
Probably related to the English verb "to couple".
"couple" ("connect", "attach" among others) is directly translated to "koppla" (also "anslut", "fästa" etc depending on context) in Swedish. Both "koppla" and "couple" derives from the Latin "copulare"
Khail well, that's a connection too. :)
The iPhone charger actually isn't that great
It gets hot and charges slowly
But I guess it doesn't shock you so that's good
Not the iPad charger but the standard iPhone one
Thomas Knight the iPhone charger is 1 amp, I think the iPad one is 2 or 2.5. Much faster to charge your phone with the iPad one rather than the Apple one.
J Hughes yeah although I had an iPad charger and it took forever on Android devices so I'm thinking they may have special chips in them like the nasty lightning cables do
I have no idea why this was on my recomended but stayed for your accent and I learned something. Go IKEA!
Excellent video. I have bought 2 of these after watching this and power everything from iPhone to iPad. It was much easier to take one plug on holiday than 3 thank you and thanks to IKEA. Now all I need is the EU version so it be even easier when I travel to EU.
Can you tear down an apple one
Thomas Knight if you want to see one, you can try googling Ken shiriff. He had a rundown that is similar.
bumblebee is the best transformer 🤔
Donald Sleightholme wrong its starscream
Thanks for that, Clive - I've just bought two Kopplas! You took the dilemma and fear out of choosing.
Never have I been so engrossed in what lies inside a tiny transformer.
Also- "Extreme seperation!"
That UK plug looks soo bulky and impractical...
The British 13 Amp plug and socket is considered the safest in the world.
+ZamaskowanyWolnościowiec yea but you can get used to anything eventually, and it's actually a great design
+Scott Mulligan but also the most painful if you step on it
+Beer Tower you are right there
I don't really see how an EU plug can be less safe than UK one, but probably I just can't imagine how ridiculous things people can do with plugs and sockets.
these plugs are soooo big and ugly xD
+krcn00b That's fuckin' plug racism right there.
@@Iliek and plug fatism
Yes, that tiny wire is indeed to supress EMI/RFI from the transformer itself. I've even gone to the extent of including an inter-winding screen on little switchers like that to reduce HF noise coupling to the secondary.
Thank you for your approval of this one. I needed one
"I don't think Samsung would put something like this out.".... Samsung Note 7 anyone?
Phillip Zod Friedberg they didn't make the battery's for the phone
also they could of swept it under the carpet but they offered replacement, a safe version or a full refund
Phillip Zod Friedberg Typical dumbass comments about Samsung when they didn't even make the battery
Conor Tierney Actually they recalled and refunded every Note 7 made, after only one attempt at repairing the lot (many countries usually allow 3 attempts for warranty repairs).
I was literally just at Ikea, and thought about buying one. Next time I'm there I will. Thanks Clive
The Ikea power supply is actually very well designed. I'm impressed!
I'm glad you took a look, I have this device and it's good to know that is not bad.
I've noticed the IKEA Koppla is one of the loudest USB power supplies I've come across. The coil whine it makes is enough to keep me up at night if it's near my bed
Very nice of you of doing these videos. I've always wondered what it all took to get these small prices or sizes. I've actually opened a few defective units but my electronic knowledge is far lower than yours so I really enjoy your explanations.
Fantastic, thank you for finding a Big Clive certified USB power supply I can go and get a dozen or so of. Interesting teardown
I'm not surprised. Them Swedes are always prudent and cautious with their mains electrisicky.
Thanks, good vid!
Thanks a lot for the video, man! I already got one of these IKEA things, but I was left so pleased (charging 2x 1A and 1x 2A devices right now), that I will go next week and get me at least two more KOPPLAs. Cool review!
really appreciate the detailed commentary, it's a while since I did electronics and never to this depth but I enjoy learning about the internals from you. please continue these great videos!
only problem with your videos is that I'm buying more stuff! I now have 6 firefly lights, and suddenly have an urge to buy a couple of these units....
+Tom Elner Remember to waterproof your firefly lights. They'll last a lot longer.
bigclivedotcom yes I wanted to mention that... looked at mine and found the solar cell to be well sealed, I suspect that the water ingress is through the join between top cap and screwed in cover. Either way, I think the drilled hole is the way to go
Hi Clive, I work in the UK at a component and transformer manufacturing company.
I thought I’d say about how the transformer is held together. We often use tape or metal clips however I haven’t seen that band style before.
The reason for the cores needing to be broken out is normally because they entire component is dipped in to varnish and then is impregnated.
Also having two part primary windings is something we have done for quite some time now, more so in the past 10 years however. Could be due to circuitry becoming smaller and components becoming more sensitive to interference, coupling etc.
I did like their choice of insulated wire for the secondary winding. We use something called Tex-e which is similar but I think on this transformer they have used better grade wire.
I just went out and bought one of these. I wanted to note two things.
1. "Koppla" is not the model name, although it is the name on the package. There are several electrical products, all called "Koppla", and they're not all in the same location within the store, so be prepared to ask for help finding it..
2. The section you want is "Lighting", which I suppose makes sense since they're not otherwise in the electronics business.
Have a good holiday and new year!
Bonus fact: In Swedish the name means Connect!, which makes sense for a line of extension cables etc.