Have you ever thanked your phone? I’m not sure it would care but it’s no doubt you and most everyone else depends on tech to help them live their lives. From phones to medical equipment to the system that regulate traffic lights. Granted more people would thank their phones, the others have their merit.
As a life long gadget-head I’ve seen all sorts of things claiming to be useful. Things you wear, carry, put in your pack. Things that organize to-a-T or that have hardshells for no reason. Through handhelds and laptops, peripherals and camera gear there is rarely items I actually recommend as “necessary”. Not because they aren’t cool but you probably won’t get the type of use out of them that you think. Most of the time it’s true, you don’t need much to start anything.
However there is a small list of things I’m constantly pitching to friend, family and any stranger who will listen. Each would help you pretty much all year and when you probably need them the most. You can get cheap versions or expensive versions but just get them, have them and be amazed at how they help you.
Portable USB Battery
When your out and about there is very few things that can ruin your cool worse than your phone dying. This is not really a new item but one you should definitely replace every few years and will likely have to with connection changes. Sometimes charging speed can be improved with a better connection or a higher rated plug. In this day and age it’s almost a safety issue if your phone is out of commission. Especially when the weather is bad or being able to be contacted is really important.
These things are all about convenience so choosing a model should be based on needs. If you want something to last a long trip get something big. On the other hand a nice slim pack could fit perfectly in your glove box. Power banks come in handy when flying, driving, boating. Basically everywhere you can eliminate the “my phone is almost done” jitters.
- Jackery 12000mAh Power Bank
- Jackery Mini 3350mAh Portable Power Bank
- Jackery Bolt 6000 mAh Power Outdoors – Power bank with built in Lightning Cable [Apple MFi certified]
Extra cable in your car
Along with power you will likely need a cable to connect things. It’s bound to turn out that you forget to put your normal cable in your bag at least once. I suggest either using your old ragged one and putting it with the charger. It’s a last resort.
I would also say getting some sort of multi-type cable would be ideal. You never know if you have to charge an iPhone, an Android device or a camera. There are a ton of branded and unbranded cables for both single and multi.
- Nomad Kevlar Lightning Cable | 3.0 Meters | USB-C to Lightning
- Nomad Lightning Cable | 1.5 Meters | USB-A to Lightning
- RISLOG MFi Certified iPhone Charger, Lightning Cable 5Pack
Thumb backup for phone
Have you ever done an update on a phone, tablet or computer just to realize you lost some pretty important things. Like say, your photos? Maybe your contacts? I have. It’s not a good feeling and knowing there is nothing you can do makes it worse.
As with all backup situation you want to think about it before something goes wrong. Now that mindset should extend to you devices. Your phone in particular.
Keeping one of these little mobile drives in your pack not only gives you a way to back up your files from the phone but also to keep sets of templates or images you repeated want to use but not keep on the device. Say you want to keep your branding and social templates and only pull them onto your phone when you compose a post.
As a natural bonus it becomes effortless to transfer files from your computer to your phone. Simply plug in either device, transfer your files and then do the same on your computer. I keep and use one regularly, which will be discussed in an upcoming EDC rundown.
- SanDisk iXpand Flash Drive 64GB for iPhone and iPad
- SanDisk 128GB Ultra Dual Drive m3.0 for Android Devices
Wired headphones
Batteries don’t last forever. Nor do those tiny Airpods stay in. You won’t always be able to pump the stereo, no. At that moment you will need a basic, designed in 1999 pair of cheap earbuds. You WILL need these someday.
At a whopping 0.005oz(don’t quote this) they are super light for what they can save. Wired headphones can pretty easily be stashed with the other items on this list. They are almost weightless and can be bent and packed down. You don’t need to buy the best either. Remember these are likely your backup. It seems everyone had gotten their hands on everything from 15$ Bluetooth earbuds to 500$ giant over-ear Bluetooth headphones. Personally mine are crap.
One warning however: Be willing to lose them. As a piece of backup equipment it should just be there to make it through. This should help you determine that the 10$ set will be just fine when you need them most.
Beefy charging hub
It’s undoubtedly the most charged world we’ve ever seen. Okay, that didn’t work. At home when your charging it’s going to come a time when that one brick that came with your tablet is going to break or be used by someone in the house. Not pointing any fingers but that could be you. If you have a big family or a lot of devices this is a can’t miss.
A higher count USB charger lets you charge without fighting over who goes first. Some even have higher rated plugs for faster charging. Of course there is a huge selection of connection types and number of connections. Serving as a perfect place for your charging, maybe you can keep everyone’s devices in the same place, charged and out of the bedroom at night.
- Anker 40W 5-Port USB Wall Charger, PowerPort 5
- Charging Station for Multiple Devices – 5 Port Cell Phone USB Charger Hub
- Anker 60W 6-Port USB Wall Charger, PowerPort 6
It may seem odd but having these simple tech items on hand are going to make you life easier. The general idea of these is being ready. You’ll ease your mind a bit on top of having the perfect tech arsenal when things go sideways. Maybe they will even make you the hero of the day bringing your USB power bank out for a friend or family member.
