Need to extend the usb cable of an indoor camera to about 6 meters
I had a 10m usb extender but when I plugged it in, the camera gets static and disconnects
Any advice?
The spec for USB 2.0 cables says max length of 5 meters. Having said that, you can get away with longer cables if you are just using it for power. The problem when you use longer cables is either voltage drop or bad shielding. Sounds like yours is bad shielding, so you are inducing noise into the cable.
Change the cable for something shorter and/or pickup a higher quality cable. There are lots of cheaply made USB cables available. They have smaller wire size and questionable soldering. Higher quality cables will have 24 ga. wire and be able to carry 2 amps, which is close to what is needed to run the indoor cams.
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Definitely do NOT use crummy, run of the mill USB cables if you truly wish to have the best quality video from your indoor cameras. Inductance can easily occur if running your ‘power over USB’ cable alongside any other power cord, extension cord or power supply…this inductance can present several ways, but ultimately, what you are describing is largely the sort of interference / annoyance that you’d expect to see causing tons of noise, glitchy video streams and distortion if alternating current or spurious voltage from a 120VAC or higher power supply cord were to “leak” into the very thin, often poorly shielded (5V DC supplying) USB power cable.
Moreover, due to the fact that Eufy elected to build all of their wire-powered cameras with the most basic universal serial bus power port (microUSB) to achieve throughput of just the bare minimum 5VDC @ 500mA electrical supply generally required by such small indoor cameras as these, the theoretical and/or IEEE maximum cable length is 5.0 meters (16 feet 5 inches) & is based upon the old but standard USB 2.0 specification.
Had Eufy opted for a higher engineering standard and purpose-built all of their USB powered indoor cams to utilize USB TYPE C (3.1)…first of all, this connector is not proprietary & it is not keyed to only plugin ONE way, thus making power connectivity fool proof. That’s not all; however, because the USB C power circuitry would have by its inherent nature “technically” limited the USB cable length to the recommended 3.0 meters instead of 5.0, it is worth mentioning that this limitation wouldn’t apply because in the USB 3.0 & 3.1 specs. the “recommended” limitation is based upon CONNECTION BETWEEN TWO USB 3.1 (type C DEVICES, meaning specifically the serial bus signal in such a case is COMMUNICATION oriented thus making it prone to degradation of signal and potentially device malfunction when low quality cables are used or when exceeding the recommended length by using passive USB extension cables, etc. The reason I point out that detail is because when you’re only transferring DIRECT CURRENT VOLTAGE over the internal pins/wires of your normally high or super speed USB cables, there is NO COMMUNICATION between devices, i.e., the wall adapter isn’t actively “talking” with the camera connected to the other end. Rather, it is just providing a steady stream of electricity in the form of 5volts DC at a minimum current of 500mA and a maximum that is likely less than 1000mA (1A). A high quality, well shielded USB C cable would absolutely perform splendidly and you’d have no reason whatsoever to be concerned about that 3 meter ‘recommended limit.’
Now, with this all being stated, it is important to l understand that basic electrical circuit theory DOES PRESENT REAL, RATIONAL, UNEQUIVOCAL LIMITATIONS (on the basis of safety first & fforemost) when it comes to establishing clean, efficient, unimpeded power conductivity! Hence the worldwide standards & limitations outlined in the body of detailed specifications set forth by the International regulatory body known as the Institute of Electrical & Electronics Engineers , who establish the DETAILED PROPOSALS for all modern computing & communication protocols, which must be RATIFIED to become ADOPTED as a universal specifications…such was the case decades ago with USB 2.0 (USB 1.0 backwards compatible) “full speed” serial communication protocol used by many basic computing devices
That clarified, please permit me to point out that there are high quality USB 2.0 & 3.0 ACTIVE EXTENSION REPEATER CABLES that are available in lengths reaching up to 65 feet! Be certain you aren’t buying a crappy ‘passive’ inline extender! That won’t work. You want an active circuitry equipped extension that is incredibly well constructed and that does not skimp on shielding.
Best of luck.
And so ya know, you aren’t the only one to feel the PAINFUL SHORTNESS OF THESE microUSB EUFY CAMERA CABLES! 