Gadling gear review – Tekkeon myPower ALL MP3750 portable battery pack

by Scott Carmichael on

Regular readers will know that I’m a huge fan of any gadget that can keep my other gadgets powered. Last month, I wrote about my “power anything anywhere kit“, and in it, I described the equipment I recommend in order to keep your gadgets going, even when you are away from a power outlet.

One thing I mentioned in that article, is that my current universal notebook battery pack (from APC) was a discontinued item. Because of this, I started on a quest to find a replacement product, and boy did I find one!

My search for a better notebook battery pack took me to Tekkeon – manufacturer of portable power products. Their myPower ALL MP3750 is a universal notebook battery pack that is better than my previous notebook battery in every possible way.

The MP3750 weighs just under 16 ounces and houses a 50Wh Lithium-Polymer battery pack. The unit can charge a laptop or any device with USB charging capability. The MP3750 comes complete with a charging cord and a variety of input and output power tips.

To charge the unit, you find the correct input tip for your current laptop charger, then plug a tip onto its output cable. This sounds more complicated than it is, and unless you are swapping laptop computers on a daily basis, you’ll only have to find the correct power tips once.

If you only use the USB power outlet, you’ll be provided with enough juice to keep an iPhone or other low power device going for over a week.

The unit can auto-detect the input power being provided by your charger, so the entire setup is pretty much plug and play. Alternatively, you can switch the unit to “manual” and select the required output power using the power button on the top.

The biggest advantage of a universal battery pack over a second battery for your laptop is that the universal pack is future-proof. If you buy a new laptop, you’ll be able to use the same battery pack for the new machine. Another huge advantage is that you can keep the battery pack in your bag until you need it. Once you find the need for some more juice, you can plug the Tekkeon MP3750 into your laptop, without having to shut down or potentially lose work.

The extra usage time you get out of your laptop with the MP3750 depends on the kind of laptop you are using. A large 15″ laptop will gain about anywhere between one and two hours. My small 10″ netbook was able to run about 3 hours longer off a fully charged MP3750.

If the capacity of the MP3750 is insufficient, you can double its power by adding a second battery pack. The MP3450 second battery pack includes a bracket for connecting to the MP3750, providing twice the power ( an additional $99.95).

The Tekkeon myPower ALL MP3750 costs $189.95 and is available directly from Tekkeon, or one of their online retailers. If you already know that you’ll be needing more power, you can purchase a bundle of the MP3750 and its second battery pack for $259.95.

Included with the MP3750 is a laptop charging cord, assorted power input/output tips in a carrying bag and a carrying pouch for the battery pack.

Seriously, there is nothing negative I can find about the Tekkeon MP3750 – it is lightweight, supports virtually every popular laptop computer on the market, and has a bonus USB port. Anyone who needs to keep their machine going, should consider the investment. The price is on the high end, but the quality more than makes up for that.

Daily gear deals – $220 Netbook, cheap HD camera and iPhone accessories

by Scott Carmichael on

The star of today’s lineup is the Acer Aspire ONE AOA150 refurbished Netbook. Outfitted with a 1.6GHz processor, 1GB of memory and a 120GB hard drive. Normal retail price is $299, but it is currently on sale at Tiger Direct for just $220. The unit is refurbished, but usually this is not visible in any way. Available from Tiger Direct. Shipping is just $2.

The Kodak ZI6 pocket digital HD Camcorder goes on sale every other week, today’s price is just $99, but this does mean you’ll be getting a refurbished unit. At about $80 under retail, this is still an awesome deal. Available from Amazon and comes with free shipping.

Looking to listen to your iPod/iPhone in the car? Then check out this (horrible looking) charger dock/FM transmitter. The product will not work with the second generation iPhone/iPod Touch, but other versions of the popular player will work just fine. The unit even includes a USB charger port for charging other device. On sale for just $16.99 + free shipping!

Another sale which may interest iPod and iPhone owners is this huge lineup of Kensington accessories. Many of their most popular products are on sale for as much as 50% off. One of the highlights is this pocket battery pack, which we reviewed here last year, on sale for just $27.99

The Gadling power anything anywhere kit

by Scott Carmichael on

It is no secret – I love my gadgets, and I love traveling with them. But even the most advanced gadget becomes useless when it runs out of power.

In the past, I’d occasionally arrive at my destination with a dead mobile phone or an iPod that only made it halfway through the flight.

It’s a pretty frustrating experience, so for the past years, I’ve been putting together the perfect kit for powering any of my gadgets on the road.
When it comes to powering gadgets, there are several things I am looking for:

  • Powering and charging my laptop and gadgets on the plane
  • Powering and charging my laptop and gadgets when I am abroad
  • Emergency power for my gadgets and laptop

Here is the kit I put together, with some of the reasoning behind each device:

Callpod Chargepod

The Callpod Chargepod passed through Gadling last year, and it has quickly become of the most important gadgets I carry with me. The device charges 6 things at the same time, which means I can charge 2 phones, my Bluetooth headset, a backup battery pack, a game console and an MP3 player off a single outlet.

The Chargepod itself can be powered off AC or DC (car) sources, and the company has power tips for almost every portable device on the market.

Price: $79.95 for a Chargepod bundle (AC and DC chargers and a selection of power tips)
From: www.callpod.com

APC External laptop battery pack



The APC universal notebook battery pack comes with a large selection of power plugs, for most brands of laptop computers. To charge the pack itself, you simply use your existing laptop charger. I’ve always preferred the APC battery packs over the “official” spare battery from laptop makers because I tend to change my laptop quite regularly, and by having a single battery that covers multiple brands, I don’t have to waste an investment in batteries every couple of months. The long cord on the battery means I can leave it in my bag and still have it hooked up to my laptop.

There is one annoying issue with the APC battery pack – APC stopped making them, and the only ones out there are the remaining inventory at local retailers. A good alternative would be a power pack from Tekkeon, who actually produce an external battery pack with more power than any of the APC units.

Price: From $70 (discontinued product)
From: www.apc.com


Proporta emergency battery pack

The Proporta emergency battery pack is a compact Lithium-Polymer power source that can be charged using your computer, an AC adapter or DC (car) charger. The battery pack houses a 2500mAh battery, which provides enough juice to fully recharge most gadgets at least two or three times.

The battery pack has a standard USB out plug for charging your device and a handy button for checking the remaining power.

Included with the charger is an assortment of power tips for most mobile phones and the iPod, as well as a retractable USB cord and an AC adapter. Since it has a regular USB port, you can also use any existing power cable with it.

Price: $56.95
From: www.proporta.com

Kensington ultra slim universal laptop adapter



As I mentioned in the description of the APC battery pack, I change my machine quite a bit, so this Kensington ultra slim universal laptop adapter is another wise investment – it comes with power tips for most brands of laptop computers. In addition to being able to charge/power my laptop off AC, it can also be plugged into the Empower power jacks on many airlines. The charger is smaller and lighter than most original laptop power supplies. One oversight with the product is that they did not include a DC (car) plug with the AIR cable, so I had to invest $10 to get one from a different vendor.

As an extra bonus, the charger features a USB charging power port on the side, plus it operates off 100-240V, making it perfect for taking abroad. Along with the slim charger, I also carry the Kensington travel plug adapter with USB so I can plug my stuff in when I am abroad.

Price: $140
From: www.Kensington.com

The total kit weighs just under 3 pounds, which is not too bad when you consider that it replaces every charger I used to carry, and that I can keep my laptop going for almost 8 hours (longer when I carry the 6 cell battery for my machine).

Every part of the kit fits inside 2 Tom Bihn packing organizers. The whole setup may seem quite extreme, but to someone who carries (too many) gadgets, it’s the perfect way to carry all that crap, and keep it all working. Total price for the kit is a bit over $300.

Do you have a favorite power product, or something you think is better than what I carry? Let me know in the comments!

Product review – JuiceBooster 2.0 – up to 3 weeks of backup power for your phone

by Scott Carmichael on

At one point every one of us has probably arrived at the airport with a dead phone battery.

If you arrive early enough, you can probably try and locate an outlet, but if you are in a rush, the best solution is to invest in a portable backup power product.

One of those products is the JuiceBooster 2.0. This highly portable power device combines an electronic regulator with a standard lead-acid battery.

The entire thing is easy to carry, and won’t add too much weight to your luggage.

On a recent test, I took the JuiceBooster to the airport with a phone I had deliberately let run out of power – not only did the device get my phone powered back on, I was able to use it for almost 3 weeks of charging cycles for my phone.

The JuiceBooster 2.0 setup – on the left is the compact battery pack, and on the right is the power regulator. In addition to providing standard 12 volts for all your gadgets, you get an integrated lamp and air compressor.

The product retails for about $59.99 (plus an additional $79.99 for the battery pack). The optional rolling cart will add another $49.99 making the entire package a very reasonable $189.97.

You’ll find the JuiceBooster 2.0 at your local auto parts store.

The NoPoPo pee powered battery is finally here!

by Scott Carmichael on

Back in 2005, Gadling Alumnus Erik Olson wrote a piece about advances in pee powered battery technology.

I’m sure many of you have been awaiting the moment that these new batteries would finally become available for the masses.

That moment has finally arrived!

The NoPoPo battery cells (Non Pollution Power) come in packs of 2, and each set includes a small pipette. The batteries are rechargeable, but only between 5 and 10 times, depending on how you use them. They are capable of delivering about 500mAh, which is only enough to power simple devices like a radio or alarm clock.

Thankfully, pee is not the only liquid you can use to recharge these cells, they’ll also take juice, coffee, tea and plain water. Naturally, a product like this can only come from Japan, where there is clearly a huge demand for batteries that can be recharged by peeing into them.

If you really need access to pee power, or just want one for the fun of it, you can pick up a pack of 2 AA’s for the totally unreasonable price of $15.

All joking aside, given the poor state of battery technology, any development like this should be applauded and I can certainly see the NoPoPo batteries being quite handy on a trip where you don’t have immediate access to a charger.

(Via: Technabob)