Make computer go to sleep after USB phone charging is complete

I used to have my desktop Windows XP pc go to standby (S3 suspend, I think?) when it idled for over an hour or so. Now I charge my iPhone 3GS from a USB port, often right when I go to bed. Ideally I'd like to save electricity by having the computer go to standby as soon as the phone is done charging.

Is this possible? Is it a pipe dream? I am open to whatever crazy solutions might work, including jailbreak apps working over my wifi network.

Edit: The reason I don't use the included charger is that I want to avoid buying another piece of junk that will eventually hit the landfill. Rather than buying car chargers for everything, I have a power inverter in my car, and the AC charger stays there. (I did buy an extra data cable.) So I'm looking for a solution that does not involve buying any hardware (nor moving my wall charger around every day).

Also, the iPhone 3GS won't charge from most USB chargers such as the ones linked in the answers so far.

stone

Posted 2010-01-15T21:48:08.543

Reputation: 1 187

Answers

Similar to @Jared's (admittedly "cooler" answer) you can buy a simple USB wall charger for a few dollars. They are cheap, and simple. Or, you might do like this guy's Instructable and DIY your own.

This doesn't in any way actually answer your question of how to make your PC shut down after the phone is finished charging via its USB cable, but it does seem rather superfluous to run an entire PC just to charge the phone via the 5V line on its USB hub. :)

JMD

Posted 2010-01-15T21:48:08.543

Reputation: 4 427

Good point... +1 even though it's not "the" answer! Still seeking an optimal solution for this. – stone – 2010-07-25T19:33:03.420

USB charging isn't going away, so it's not going to kill me to have an extra wall charger or two. The solution I went with was... to buy a USB port for my car, and an extra cable for the car. At this point I've replaced the phone as well, so I have no business whining about not wanting to add to the landfill after all that! – stone – 2013-01-15T01:15:04.450

I think a less complicated solution would be charging your phone through an outlet by using the included charging adapter or a powered USB hub. That way you don't have an entire computer running just to charge your iPhone.

I am currently waiting to receive my pre-order on 3 TruePower UCS Power Outlet with USB ports so I can plug devices in at night without needed a special adapter or a computer.

Our custom TruePower power outlet solution includes two Universal Serial Bus (USB) charge ports in addition to the two standard three prong power outlet ports.

Perfect for charging any USB powered device including- mobile, iPod, iPhone, PDA, MP3, PSP, MP4 player & digital camera.

Installation: This item can be installed on any existing wall outlet.

We will have an installation video available shortly so that you can see exactly what is involved and if this is something you feel comfortable doing on your own or if you will need assistance.

Please also note that the USB ports only draw power when something is physically connected to the port. We didn't want a vampire port that continually sucks and wastes power when not in use so this was one of the features on the top of our priority list during the design phase.

Jared Harley

Posted 2010-01-15T21:48:08.543

Reputation: 11 692

While that is cool, I don't see iPhone 3GS on that list of supported devices! (I neglected to mention that mine is a 3GS; fixed.) If you're hoping to charge a 3GS (not that you said you were), you might be out of luck. http://superuser.com/questions/1348/why-cant-i-charge-iphone-3gs-from-portable-usb-device-charger

– stone – 2010-01-15T23:40:56.130

I guess I'll try to remember to come back here and update this when I finally get mine - both my wife and I have 3G iPhones. The website that produces these makes 3rd party Apple devices, so maybe they have the required authentication chips... – Jared Harley – 2010-01-16T00:35:38.560

Check whether your computer's BIOS has an always-on USB option. This provides power while the computer is asleep, so you can put it to sleep immediately while the phone charges. Some computers have yellow USB ports for this purpose. (I'm not sure if they have them on desktops, though.)

Mechanical snail

Posted 2010-01-15T21:48:08.543

Reputation: 6 625

Will give it a try and report back. Good suggestion, thanks! – stone – 2011-09-20T18:12:37.447

@skypecakes: Did it end up working? – Mechanical snail – 2012-06-06T01:53:32.637

Nah, my computer doesn't have one of those (it's a desktop). – stone – 2013-01-15T01:13:01.847