I'm a huge fan of USB-C and the convenience of Power Delivery (PD). However, I'm curious about the safety of using non-proprietary USB-C chargers with different wattages for my laptop. Here are a few scenarios I want to clarify:
1. Can I use a 140W charger from Dell when my laptop's native charger is 100W?
2. What happens if I use a 100W GaN charger while my laptop's original charger is 200W, especially when using GPU-intensive tasks?
3. Is it safe to use a non-native 100W charger when my laptop also uses a 100W charger? Any insights on the risks involved?
1 Answer
So, for the first and third scenarios, you're generally in the clear as long as the voltage is within the safe range of your laptop's requirements. If your laptop normally uses 100W, using a 140W charger won’t hurt it since the device will only draw the power it needs.
In the second scenario, if you connect a 100W GaN charger while the native is 200W, the laptop might throw a warning when you push the GPU. It could drain the battery slowly if it demands more power than the charger can provide, or even refuse to charge. Just check the voltage on your chargers to avoid any potential damage!
Appreciate the info on voltage! For that second scenario, if my laptop's 200W but I use a smaller charger that supplies 100W while gaming, will it just throttle or could something bad really happen?