What Will Happen If You Charge Devices Using Public USB Ports? This Reddit Thread Has The Answer

Charging your device on public transport or at public charging stations carries several risks that you should be aware of before plugging in. Beyond the potential for an inconsistent power supply that can damage your device, public USB ports are vulnerable to cybercriminals who might use them to install malware or steal sensitive data from your device. Recently, a Reddit user raised a concern about this issue. The user shared a picture of a charging port labelled as suitable only for phones and not laptops and wondered what might happen if a laptop were charged using that port.

The title and caption read, “What will happen if I charge laptop. Any electrical degree holders? Please explain the logic.”

Many people had offered their opinions — both funny and pro.

Starting with a pro advice, a comment read, “Electronics engineer here. The main reason they don’t want laptop charges is the current requirements for a laptop charger, it can pull a lot of amps that could strain the wires and melt (@ 100+ watts). And yes high wattage (65+) mobile chargers can also cause this issue. This is what I think is the reason.”

A user humorously stated, “The train will explode.”

Another pro wrote, “Do not connect your laptop charger here not because the train will explode but because such high DC current is bad for your device which is meant to charge between 100-230 V AC which we have in our homes. If you still do this you kiss goodbye to your laptop charging adapter and most probably the laptop battery also.”

There were many hilarious reactions like this one: “The train will start charging.”

“Nuclear weapon will be activated,” read another.

Amidst these humorous responses, a serious comment claimed, “Nothing will happen. Both laptop and phone chargers use SMPS so the type of input voltage doesn’t matter (can be AC or DC). Laptops draw more power (usually 65 W) to charge compared to phones (usually 5 W). However, due to the lower voltage, the current is higher so there is a risk of the charger overheating for the higher wattage device.”

In conclusion, we think it’s best to use personal chargers, carry portable power banks and enable security features of your devices.