I tend to think of business travel with gear as a funnel — it starts out big and gets smaller. And by that I mean a trip in the morning usually starts at my desk with dual monitors, ethernet — you know, a nice big set up for getting a lot done: video editing, presentation, design work, big stuff. Then you untether and you’re hauling around a laptop, maybe an extra battery, EVDO card, power cords — a cabley nightmare. By the evening you’re down to a cell phone and maybe a music player — this is where I feel most vulnerable.
Sure, I can pretty much do “most” things with a phone, phones are so much better now — but more often than not, no matter what I do, my battery on whatever cellphone du jour I’m using, runs out. I tried to keep buying specific battery add-ons, or extra batteries when they were available, but it never worked out. Nothing is standardized, so one battery for one phone, of course, won’t work with the other. But something did change recently. Most/many phones plug in to USB and also can be charged via USB. This is good news; it’s almost like a universal power supply. USB charging means your phone can get charged from a computer *or* something that can provide 5 volts just like a USB port would.
So, about 2 years ago I starting toting around a MintyBoost USB charger — it’s a small USB charger that can charge just about anything that takes USB as a power source. It fits in an Altoids tin too, yay — recycling. It uses rechargeable batteries (more on that in a bit) and it’s an “open source hardware” project — in other words, as some companies changed the way they allow USB to power their devices I was able to modify my charger and not need to buy a new one. Depending on the device or phone, I can get an extra day of battery life. I don’t always need it, but it’s like nuclear weapons, I’d rather have them and not need than, than need them and not have them.
As far the the rechargeable batteries go I’ve been using these “USBcells” they’re AA batteries that can flip open and charge via USB too — so at home, office or on the go I can charge them with the “big” devices like a laptop or desktop, and when it’s just me and my phone I use those batteries for the USB charger when my phone needs it. In the last couple years this set up has saved me more than a few times, it’s also helped anyone I’ve traveled, with since someone always seems to have a dead phone that needs recharging.
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Nomad Contributors
by Greg Rollett / August 26, 2008
Wow, awesome tip. Any clues as to where to get one? I’m sure Amazon, but are there any local suppliers? Thanks for the info!
by pt / August 27, 2008
hey greg - for USBcells just visit their site, for the mintyboost MAKE or adafruit.
by Aud1073cH / September 20, 2008
I’d go direct to adafruit for the MintyBoost kit. http://www.adafruit.com
True the USB cells charge from a USB port, but they only hold 1300mAH charge.
http://www.thinkgeek.com/homeoffice/gear/8e82/
Energizer makes some rechargable NiMH cells that hold 2500mAH - about double on a full charge.
they also sell a 15 minute rapid charger. - for me, that’s a full charge on a coffee break.
by Gregory Schoppe / September 22, 2008
duracell makes 2650mAh batteries