Can I use an alternative charger?

[Marco Arrichiello]

I have a Samsung Ativ S from 2 years, and seems the 2nd charger is going to die.
The cable works fine when I connect to PC, but when I connect to phone, it shows charge icon...but actually doesn't charge anything.
The problem seems to be the detachable black plug part.
This http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/316fpKMWKdL.jpg

I had same problem 1 year ago, and I resolved it simply buying a brand new charger.
Now the question: can I buy an alternative charger, not Samsung and without the detachable part?
I really like Lumia charger with a long cord and not detachable.

 

[rhapdog]

You can use pretty much any microUSB charger, as long as it provides the minimum required mA to the phone for charging. Look for a minimum for 700mA, up to a maximum of 2400mA. 1000 to 1500mA is more than enough, but 700mA should be fine as well. 500mA will charge it, but it would be a very slow charge.