Power usage of RTL-SDR USB dongle

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frankvdh
 
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Power usage of RTL-SDR USB dongle

Post by frankvdh »

Hi,

Just to be sure, I'd like to know how much current the RTL-SDR dongle consumes. I'm wanting to run it on a Raspberry Pi, so the amount available from the USB port is limited.

Thanks

Frank

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adafruit_support_mike
 
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Re: Power usage of RTL-SDR USB dongle

Post by adafruit_support_mike »

I think that will want more power than the RasPi's USB ports can deliver.

I can't find a datasheet for the RTL2832U, but the R820T datasheet (http://www.superkuh.com/gnuradio/R820T_ ... locked.pdf) defines "ultra-low power" as less than 178mA.. which leads me to think the actual limit is somewhere around 177mA.

A RasPi's USB ports are limited to 140mA, so you'll probably need a powered USB hub to make it work.

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