Keeping Things Charged: Lightening the Tech Load when Traveling

While organizing all the different gadgets we would be bringing to Italy, I felt I had to look for some way to lesson the number of cables and power blocks that I'd need to bring. In our home we have pretty much one whole shelf in our kitchen with a multi-outlet surge protector with all sorts of things plugged into it--and we often still run out of space for those darned power blocks.

Then I discovered this beauty: This is the LEPOWER 40W,  5 Port Desktop USB Charger. This thing replaces all those power blocks... most of them nowadays come with USB cables for each device that plug right into the block. Well, instead of taking all those blocks, take just this one.

The beauty of this thing is not only the 5 USB slots, but that two of them (on the right) are super chargers (higher power). When I plug my Kindle into one of them it charges in less than 15 minutes. We've tried our Motorola Droid phones (3 different models), Ipads, cameras, you name it. They all get charged with this one charger. Plug the larger devices into the two right slots, the rest (like smart phones) into the other three. Also, the thing has some sort of circuitry that speaks to each device and gives it the correct amount of power needed for charging. So far, it works with every type of device and I haven't fried a single one. For Italy, all I have to do is plug in one of those European adapters into its power cord and we're good to go (it works with 120 or 220 volts).

So, even though we might still have to bring a mess of cables (some cables are dedicated to one specific device) not having to bring all those power blocks fantastic.

--Jerry Finzi

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UPDATE 11/30/14: This was one of the most invaluable tech gadgets we brought along with us. It charged every device we had (aside from an older camera) and in most cases, charged them faster than normal. A very valuable tool for travel!

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UPDATE 5/22/17: The LEPOWER unit is no longer available (but is still working well in our home), so we recommend this USB Charger...