Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Traveling with Too Many Chargers?

Posted by Cliff on from the mitigating-the-proliferation-of-wall-warts dept.

MotorMachineMercenar wonders: "I just took a roadtrip over a long weekend and noticed that I need to lug around too many chargers. I have a charger for my cell phone, Nintendo DS Lite, my two digital cameras and an iPod. Sometimes I will have one for a portable HDD and laptop. In addition I have to carry a plug converter as some of them have been bought overseas. That's up to eight gadgets just to give juice my power-hungry devices, and they take precious space and weight in my bags. Is there any way to limit the number of chargers without gimping my roadwarrior gear? Most devices have more or less fixed batteries, 'smart' chargers and proprietary plugs, but is it possible as DIY, or is there an existing product? I'd like to see a universal charger for which plugs for any current device with the flexibility to add more in the future. What are the limitations and caveats with 240 vs 120, wattage, cutting and connecting cables, and so forth?"

2 of 131 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Asking the wrong question by Amouth · · Score: 0, Redundant

    that is damn annoying.. USB was not ment as a damn power source it was 5v .5 A for a total of 2.5 watts.. now shit is taking too much power and trying to use the USB port for power .... why the hell would i plug my phone into my laptop just for power.. i could see if it is a data cable and power was a plus .. but power only.. that is crap..

    and they are shoving them on everything.. i recently boguht a boster box.. (a self contained box to jump cars) and it had a damn USB port on it.. why.. someone tell me who's bright idea this was.. mabey we can plug them into a USB port....

    --
    '...if only "Jumping to a Conclusion" was an event in the Olympics.'
  2. Re:When travelling only? by planetmn · · Score: 0, Redundant

    Reread your post. You said:
    Wow, if you've got a 400A supply to your house you should get it upgraded. That's like 1950's standards.

    Household supply is measured in Watts, not in Amps. Get it through your head. I agree, a 500watt supply won't burn down your house. 100A supply at 120V will provide 12kVA of power. Given a decent power factor, you could power 20 500W supplies from the standard household service.

    -dave

    --
    /., where "Apple and Google provide Iran with nukes" will be refuted with "But Microsoft is a convicted monopolist"