When I travel, I carry at least a Smartphone, iPod Touch, and Jawbone headset that all charge over USB (and occasionally several other devices). This translates to me leaving my laptop running all night while I allow these devices to charge . I know it’s a waste of energy, but it’s the only way I have to charge everything without carrying each product’s charger.
While on a layover in the Dallas airport yesterday, one of those crazy gadget vending machines caught my eye. Before I knew what was happening, I was swiping my debit card to purchase one of the Belkin Mini Surge Protectors that I had been wanting for a while. I wanted one not because I want to run my laptop through a surge protector (although I know I should), but because this particular surge protector also features two powered USB ports.
The product operates exactly as promised and gives me the ability to charge my laptop, UMPC, Smartphone, and iPod all off one socket and all at the same time. The fact that I’m protected from power surges is an added benefit. My only gripe is that the device is a little on the thick side, but I have found that it makes for a nice little platform to rest devices on while charging.
If you’re interested in purchasing a Belkin Mini Surge Protector with USB Charger and don’t feel the need to use a gadget vending machine (I have to admit that the novelty was amusing), you can purchase one at Amazon for less than $20
Nice! I’ve been wanting to get one of these for a long time. Glad to hear that it functions as advertised. And I love the idea of using it as a little gadget shelf.
Whenever I travel (like I am right now, in Seattle for Gnomedex), I bring a full sized surge protector/power strip. Not because I’m overly worried about conditioning my power, but because I have so many things that need to be plugged in (iPhone, Kindle, BiPAP breathing machine, computer(s), camera(s), etc.), I always need more plugs than are available in hotel rooms. And so many of my gadgets can charge off of USB, that the idea for this strip from Belkin seems obvious.
I may have to get around to picking one of these up!
I hear you Josh. As crazy as it sounds, I often travel with both my laptop and UMPC and can’t tell you the number of times I had to plug them into outlets on opposite sides of a hotel room. It’s crazy that so many hotel rooms are outlet deficient when they make most of their money off of business travelers.