It’s no secret how attached I’ve become to my mobile phone. It’s actually a little shameful. As someone who used to carry around a leather-bound daily organiser complete with address book, calendar, notepad, pen holder, credit card slots and a calculator, a smartphone is a God-send. These days anyone working a job that requires continuous connectivity is practically useless without one.
I read my emails on the go. If I’m on my way to a meeting in an unfamiliar building or address I just check my phone. If I need to call a colleague I can search the entire staff directory of 7000+ names with just a few taps. I get automatic reminders, can read industry and social news while I’m waiting for my train, open and edit documents during my daily commute, receive instant notifications if there’s a “Priority 1” incident I need to deal with at work, or instant-message my staff if I need to communicate something brief or urgent. I can use my smartphone to check my bank balance and pay my bills, read short prayers or entire volumes of books, watch a TED talk, publish a blog post, send a Tweet or message an entire group of friends who are kilometres or continents apart, and teach my toddler how to recognise shapes and colours. The only thing I can’t get my smartphone to do is finish the bloody ironing.
Having a smart phone is pretty incredible.
So when I forget it at home or when the battery dies on me while I’m halfway through my day, I feel sorta naked and lost. Sad, I know… but true.
Enter the Powerpod.
A few weeks ago, I came across this at the Pitt Street entrance to QVB. It’s a vending machine with Powerpods:
What’s a Powerpod? It’s a rechargeable, portable mobile device charger. You have the option of purchasing it with or without charge (it’s $5 extra with charge) and plug it into your mobile device (tablet or smart phone) should you be in dire need of battery life. It comes with 3 different adaptors (iPad, mini-USB and micro-USB) and you can buy a iPhone 5/iPad mini charger from the same vending machine.
It was today’s impulse buy and it saved me (I needed to get in contact with my husband, who was still a one-hour train ride away). It gave my phone 70% battery life, and that was while I was using it on the train to text, blog, and watch a 20min video.
At just 80g this portable mobile phone charger is pretty handy to have in your handbag. And the Powerpod itself is rechargeable – just switch the socket the supplied USB cable is in and plug the battery pack into your computer’s USB drive. Pretty nifty hey?