Living on the Road

kwikSynCh Dual USB Charger

Juices two gadgets via laptop

I travel a lot, including abroad. With the kwikSynCh, I use one cable to charge all my various toys (US cellphone, GSM cellphone, Bluetooth headset, iPod etc.) from my laptop’s USB port. Typically each device needs its own power supply, but with the kwikSynCh, I only carry one power supply (for the laptop).

You purchase “mTips” (i.e. connectors) to suit your particular devices. I am particularly impressed by the mTip for my 4-year-old 6310i Nokia GSM phone that includes an in-line small adapter (i.e. “booster”) to generate 6V from the 5V the USB port actually puts out.

Yes, only 2 devices can be charged at once with the kwickSynch, but I also have a 120V-to-USB adapter (and the mTips work with any USB source), so I can do three at once. In a pinch, I connect the fastest-charging device (or least drained) as soon as I get to the hotel at night and switch last minute before I go to sleep. Even if I don’t end up with all items fully charged, I’m still usually OK until my next meeting — and I find that the colorful cable hanging off my USB port also makes a great conversation starter.

-- Michael Orr 05/21/07

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