Bluetooth speakers work on batteries, so they can be used anywhere you need loud music. They are great for picnics and parties! Bluetooth speakers are a great way to take your tunes with you wherever you go.
Most portable Bluetooth speakers require a USB power supply for charging, so you can measure the current draw with a simple ammeter in series.
For example, my JBL Flip 3 draws about 0.2A when charging. JBL Go draws about 0.04A when charging.
To figure out how many amps a device draws, you need to know the wattage (volts x amps = watts). Most devices, like modern computers and phones, list their power usage in watts.
How many amps Does a Bluetooth Speaker use?
If you multiply the voltage by the number of amps a device uses, you’ll get the watts. This can be helpful to determine how much power your device uses over time. If a laptop runs at 15 volts and 0.75 amps, it uses 11.25 watts (15 volts x 0.75 amps = 11.25 watts).
If you’re interested in how much power the speaker uses, then yes, many Bluetooth speakers do not consume much energy when idle. A typical high-end Bluetooth speaker will draw something like 2mA (0.002A) when idle. That’s around 0.1W of power at 5V, which is a fairly standard voltage for USB powered devices.
If you’re using a battery to power a 5V USB port, it will take somewhere around 100 hours to deplete a fully charged battery. That’s assuming that the battery has no self-discharge over that time – some batteries do have a small self-discharge rate (1% per month is common for Lithium batteries), but this won’t affect the overall calculation much – it will just mean your battery runs out somewhat earlier than 100 hours after being fully charged.
A typical Bluetooth speaker will draw 1 – 2 amps
A Bluetooth speaker is a great thing to have. It’s small, can be battery powered, and will connect wirelessly to your phone. The problem with the battery-powered speaker is that the battery will eventually drain. If you’re camping or partying outside, you don’t want to run out of music when you run out of batteries.
So what if you want to plug your Bluetooth speaker into an AC outlet?
The answer depends on the type of speakers you have. A typical Bluetooth speaker will draw 1 – 2 amps. There are more powerful speakers that will draw 5 amps or more.
If you have a low-power speaker, then you can use an AC adapter like this one:
On the other hand, a big 5-amp speaker needs an AC adapter that can handle a high current draw like this one:
The higher amps (5A vs 1A) means the device can provide more power without overheating.
The higher the mA rating on your power adapter, the faster it will charge your device.
The higher the mA rating on your power adapter, the faster it will charge your Bluetooth speaker. For example, if your Bluetooth speaker has a 1000 mAh battery and comes with a 500 mA charger, it will take 2 hours to fully charge. However, if you use a 2000 mAh charger, it will only take 1 hour.
You can always use a charger with a higher mA rating than your Bluetooth speaker requires (e.g., using a 2000 mAh charger for a 1000 mAh Bluetooth speaker). The only downside is that it will cost you more money, and the extra amps will be wasted.
Bluetooth speakers usually come with a standard USB cable and an AC adapter (wall wart) which plugs into the USB cable. The AC adapter converts AC electricity from the wall outlet into DC electricity that is required by the Bluetooth speaker. Some AC adapters have interchangeable power tips so that you can plug them into any socket in any country around the world.
You can also use any USB charger to charge your Bluetooth speaker – not just the one it came with – as long as its voltage is compatible with the Bluetooth speaker’s voltage requirement and its amperage rating is at least as high as that of the original charger.