I’m a travel expert – there’s a game-changing item I always upgrade before going away
A TRAVEL expert has revealed which item she feels is worth upgrading almost every time she goes away.
Some gadgets will last a lifetime, while others quickly become out-of-date.
One item frequently upgraded are phone chargers, which are constantly being improved, charging more devices at once and at even quicker speed.
Travel show presenter Samantha Brown explained why she thinks it’s worth upgrading her charger before taking a trip.
In a video on Instagram, she said: “I always like to travel with the latest and greatest charger.
“Every year, they make these stronger. They charge your devices faster.
“Older chargers are like, ‘Hey, I’ve got like nine hours to charge my phone overnight’. This new one is like, ‘I’ve got 30 minutes'”.
Newer chargers are also compatible with different devices, including laptops and games consoles, meaning bigger and bulkier cables no longer have to take up valuable bag space.
Samantha continued: “This new generation also has the USB C port, which means I can charge my laptop or my kids’ Nintendo Switch.
“I used to always have to bring a big, bulky charger, and that’s not travel friendly at all.”
As well as picking the right charger, bringing the right cable can be almost as important.
Samantha recommends using smaller ones while travelling, but taking longer ones for hotels, where plug sockets aren’t always where you’d want them to be.
She said: “Cords. The standard cord you usually get with your phone is okay. It’s nice if you want to charge something while it’s in a bag because it doesn’t get really tangly.
“But I always like to travel with six foot long cables too.
“Six footers are perfect if you need to weave in and out of furniture to get to your night stand or wherever you want to go.
“Six foot gives you a lot of room to work with.”
Samantha isn’t the only traveller to reveal how to get more out of chargers while on holiday.
In a video on TikTok, Liv Brooke showed how she uses a multi-plug adaptor, so she can use six chargers at the same, with just one travel plug.
Liv said she needs all six of the outlets to charge her two phones, air pods, Apple watch, her vape and a battery pack.
She describes the hack as “life changing” and it seems plenty of others agree, with the video racking up more than 1.5million views.
One user said: “I feel really stupid for never thinking of it.”
Another added: “The year we did this it was life changing, no silly money spent on plug extensions.”
Meanwhile, this charger means you can keep several items fully charged, while only using one plug.
And this power bank can remotely charge four items all at once, making it perfect for travellers.