Cables and Chargers

Moderating the cables and chargers I'm taking on trips has really helped to deduce my weight and volume requirements.

Laptop Chargers

If I'm going on a short trip for a day or two I just won't take my laptop charger at all. This is an especially good saving as my colleagues and I borrow each other's chargers when travelling to each other's offices.

For times when I need to take my Windows laptop I've replaced the long cable between the wall and transformer with a short cable from eBay. Here's European example.

Phone Chargers

If I'm confident in my laptop remaining charged I often won't take a wall charger for my phone, instead I'll just take a USB cable. My laptop can charge a phone even when powered down so this is ideal.

USB Cables

Instead of taking the 3 ft long USB cables I have shopped around on eBay and bought some tiny 6" USB cables to charge my phone. Even a normal USB cable takes space and weight, and wound up they're also an inconvenient shape. Here's a great "flat" short USB cable "Mighty Mate MM2" I bought recently.

Foreign Adapters

I rarely take a foreign plug adapter, instead on eBay I will buy cheap native adapters for that country. When I travel to the USA, I take a "native" USA plug. Most non-Apple laptop manufacturers have a separate "socket end" of the cable precisely so they can be changed depending on country. I have bought the two-core and three-core cables for the laptop transformer I'm using at the time, and it's possible to buy USB chargers too. If I can't source a cheap cable at home, I will also look out for them when travelling for next time.

External Phone Batteries

Some external phone batteries come with built-in cables, which can serve a dual purpose and can sometimes not be much larger than a coiled USB cable. I use this one from Native Union. It offers a some charge for my device and acts as a pass-through USB cable.

Thanks

This is my first pointers post. Please let me know what you think.

About me

I've been a light traveller for years. As soon as I started travelling for business I'd always get comments like,
"Is that all you're taking?"
Or,
"Where's your bag?"

Carrying my usually small bags I've travelled to a few places internationally, but this blog isn't about my dazzling travel experiences. Instead it's about packing light, whether you're going on a life changing trip, or just to see that satellite office in a grey suburb.

I'll naturally focus my pointers around my needs and experience and mention some products along the way. These aren't endorsements, nor am I getting paid to mention them.