USB port under armrest

If you're just looking to charge your phone the cigarette lighter charging port charges much faster than usb. Maybe that's why you used it.

 

I don't think that's necessarily true - my Gen 4 the USB charges super fast and seemingly faster than the cigarette outlet.

 

faster than this?

 

What kind of phone? Because there is also the QI charger.

The USB port is also a data port and registers as an "music player" on your list of music sources if, after being scanned, it finds any recognized formats.

Here is a for instance. You can have a number of registered bluetooth devices. But only one can be connected at a time. On a recent trip to DC I had my phone connected over Bluetooth and my wife connected her iphone to the usb port both to charge and play some audio books that she downloaded for the trip. IIRC it shows up in the audio section as an MP3 player or somesuch.

 

The speed of phone charging depends on the amps available. Some newer phones even have "QuickCharge" technology. I have a QC charger in my 12V socket. USB charging amps can range from 0.5 to about 1.0, IIRC.

 

The Prime USB port can put out 1 amp, so if you need more than that, get a cigarette lighter adapter. That's more than enough for an iPhone. The advantage of using the usb port instead of Bluetooth to play music is better sound quality, plus you can charge your phone at the same time. You can also get a two port usb hub so you can plug in a thumb drive and and your phone too, but it does cut the amperage to a little better than 0.6 amps. I measured this with a USB inline electronic device that measures volts and amps with an iPad plugged in. If you use a USB thumb drive, use a short extension cable because it's vulnerable to breaking the drive or the port sticking out there like that. It also says in the manual that you shouldn't have the phone connected to usb and Bluetooth at the same time because it makes the system unstable.

 

this one?

 

That link doesn't work.

 

google this then.......

DROK USB 2.0 Digital Multimeter, Ammeter Voltmeter Capacitance and Watt Meter, 7 Modes Multi Tester

 

Similar to that one, maybe not as versatile.

 

FYI, I believe if you want to use Pandora and have an Iphone, you must use a USB connection, as Bluetooth doesn't work with it on this car/phone combination.

 

Like I say, remember the story of Adam and Eve? Eve gave Adam an Apple, and look what happened to the world!! I just love that one!

Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.

 

You have this reversed. You need Bluetooth to play Pandora from Entune. It won't work if you have Bluetooth turned off. The usb connection works like an iPod and provides power. Toyota, in the manual, does not recommend both a Bluetooth and usb connection at the same time because it makes the system unstable (whatever that means). I have an iPhone 7 on my Plus, and it works pretty well.

 

It's interesting, I've ridden several hours a couple of times with my iPhone 7+ and while plugged into the USB port and using Waze (GPS running) the battery on the phone has dropped considerably. I'm guessing the port can't put out enough juice. The first time I did it I thought I hadn't plugged it in correctly. So I made sure the second time that it was plugged in firmly. It was down to under 48% from 100% after 3hrs of running.

 

If it is like the Gen 4, that is a USB data port with only enough power for USB sticks.. You need to use a lighter port charger for your phone.

 

My 2014 never had a problem charging the exact same phone.

 

not my experience with an iPhone 6S+ that i had for 18+ months, I have the Plus but that shouldn't make a difference.
I listen to music streamed through an app on my commute (~ 2hr roundtrip Mon - Thu), and I am seeing ~ +/- 40% higher charge at the end of the trip. So typically during the week i do not charge my phone other than during the commute. That is different from my 2015 Gen3, same usage pattern but i had to charge multiple times during the week thru some other means.
I had therefor assumed that in the Gen3 it was a USB1.0 or 2.0 port that delivers .5A at 5V and the Prime having a USB3.0 that can deliver .9A at 5V, there is no information about the USB port in the manual.
In addition, when I profiled my commute using a bike ride GPS app, I noticed that the charge was less than usual, since it was using GPS, don't recall the exact numbers though.
google search for WAZE APP POWER USAGE revealed quite a few threads, you might want to check into that