Jul 03 2008
Traveling with Gadgets; Battery Power
2008-07-03 20:17:46
I will be traveling during this July 4th holiday. Filling my gas tank will take some of fun out but so will the work that I have to do. I take work with me – that is about the only way I can get out of town.
There are a few electronic gadgets that I depend on while traveling. They have to be small and compact yet pack a punch of power. First of all, before I leave home, I fully charge my batteries. I then pack each power cord and charger.
My Sony Vaio laptop battery will typically last about 5 hours with normal use. Normal use would include writing, QuickBooks and spreadsheets. The story changes once I plug in my USB AT&T broadband card. After about 1 hour the battery is nearly depleted. I have thought seriously about purchasing a second battery.
My Cannon digital camera battery seems to last forever. Well I exaggerate a bit but I can take at least 100 pictures before I notice the battery running down. I am power conscious. One I snap a photo and check it out – I turn the camera off. I use the SD card to transfer photos to my computer instead of the USB cable.
My AT&T 8525 PDA cell phone battery lasts for about 2 days. I use a wireless Bluetooth headset and it drains the battery faster but the benefit outweighs the down side. I also set my cell phone to check my email automatically. Texting and instant messages add to the battery drain as well. So, two days of battery life is pretty good.
I carry an AC adapter in my car. It plugs into the cigarette lighter and allows me to plug in one device at a time using my ordinary power cords. This adapter charges most devices fairly quickly except my laptop with the Broadband card plugged into the USB port. It seems that the battery cannot be charged fast enough to make up for the drain.
Last but not least I throw a surge protector into my trunk. When I reach my destination I recharge my batteries and begin again.
