Can this unit stay in a car to use for an emergency or does it have to be always plugged in? And if it can stay in the vehicle, is there a way to knowhen it needs to be recharged?
1744116
It can stay in your car for emergency use. They suggest charging the unit after each use. The booklet says charge every 30 days and the machine suggest charging every 60 days. I leave it in the car all the time. When I have to use it,. . I recharge after each use. I also charge between 30 and 45 days of being idle. When it has not been used, it charges real fast.
1744117
This is a great unit. Be sure to give it a full initial charge! After that, you can carry it in your automobile for up to 60 days before recharging. However; be sure to charge it AFTER EACH USE. Also, there is a neat little button on the unit's face that indicate any need for a charge.
1744118
There are some LED lights on the unit which let u know when it's fully charged but if u just leave it in your car the charge runs out so you should check it every week or so and top it up if it needs it
1151517
It plugs into the base unit not the radio or battery. That's the only issue with the car charger. Figuring out how to use it while mobile may be a challenge but it does work when the unit is stationary. I put Velcro attachments on my base unit to keep the radio steady while charging while driving and so far it appears to work okay, you just need to find a stable and flat area of the vehicle to mount the base unit (more Velcro) where if it does pop out it wont hinder driving safely.
190761
It can plug into the wall or your car cig. lighter to run or recharge the battery. Not a bad unit, but you have to adjust the antenna just right for decent reception.... Good for emergency use.
498228
No. These are rechargeable units, so all you need to do is charge it on a regular outlet and take it out to your car. The charge will last about 10 minutes continuously.
2087705
You can leave it plugged in, I however hardwired mine to my battery and fused it with an inline fuse. Works great and the one thing on the far right socket just an FYI it is designed for a cigarette lighter and the other ports work great for accessory chargers and more.
1833563
I haven't tested it to it's limit but I've cleaned my car, my boyfriends car and my bathroom corners with no issues. I would keep plugged in when not in use anyway.
988055
It has to be plugged in. The typical use case is to be plugged into a USB port in your car.
1218552
You will still need batteries once outside of the car. This only acts as a wall adapter would inside your house and provides power as long as it is plugged into the unit.
423584
It needs to be charged. I bought a car charger for it and keep it plugged in all the time!
947740
yes you leave it plugged in when not using. I have had 3 of them now thy are great for jumping vehicles. recharges fairly fast.
1634506
Unless you leave the car parked for weeks at a time this will not be an issue. The draw from this device is very low. You will need to turn the device off then back on to resync with your phone, however. I always just turn mine off when I get out then back on when I get in. Again however no need to worry about your battery.
458449
I'm a mechanic and yes it will drain the battery if you leave it plugged in while the car is off, my suggestion is to hard wire it into the car with an "add a fuse" , it's simple and cheap and will turn on and off with the car without draining the battery (look up a video on YouTube "how to hardwire in a radar detector")
418396
It must stay plugged in. If you have a Bluetooth radio, you may have some interference in the picture as mine did.
150768
You must plug it into the cigarette lighter of your car to work and the car must have a good working fully charged battery in it. It will work with the car turned off as long as your car battery is fully charged. BUT it will in fact drain your car battery if you use it while the car is turned off for a long time. I have used it for up to 30 minutes to charge a cell phone, and I've used it for about 20 minutes to run my lap top, both times with the car turned off and I had a fairly new car battery but I would not go any longer than that and I would not use it with the car turned off if your car battery is not new or is not a high quality brand. You must plug it into the cigarette lighter of your car to work and the car must have a good working fully charged battery in it. It will work with the car turned off as long as your car battery is fully charged. BUT it will in fact drain your car battery if you use it while the car is turned off for a long time. I have used it for up to 30 minutes to charge a cell phone, and I've used it for about 20 minutes to run my lap top, both times with the car turned off and I had a fairly new car battery but I would not go any longer than that and I would not use it with the car turned off if your... » Read More You must plug it into the cigarette lighter of your car to work and the car must have a good working fully charged battery in it. It will work with the car turned off as long as your car battery is fully charged. BUT it will in fact drain your car battery if you use it while the car is turned off for a long time. I have used it for up to 30 minutes to charge a cell phone, and I've used it for about 20 minutes to run my lap top, both times with the car turned off and I had a fairly new car battery but I would not go any longer than that and I would not use it with the car turned off if your car battery is not new or is not a high quality brand. « Show Less
229812
You can leave it plugged in but be aware that due to the budget construction it has minimal protective circuitry and could have a short lifespan running constantly, and that many vehicles have powered OBD ports when not running so it will gradually drain your battery. Estimates for current vary but are generally between 50mA and 100mA which isn't a lot but is enough I wouldn't leave it plugged in for more than a few days without running the vehicle to keep the battery charge level acceptable.
1012835
The manufacturer suggest keeping the unit plugged in since it has an automatic charger that keeps the unit charged without overcharging. The other models they recommend charging immediately after use but do not provide a shelf life for the charge.
1158818
You cannot plug the unit into the wall and "run it" using an outlet. It comes with cables to recharge the batteries in the unit in your home or car, but you can't play it while it is recharging. The car cable is only a couple feet long; the cable to recharge in the house is a little over three feet long. It's important to remember, however, that you have to disconnect these cables before you use the unit -- you cannot charge and play at the same time.