Heres a list of items that are essential for everyday life. Seriously, how are you even alive if you don’t have 3 out of the 5 mentioned here?
So I was coming back home from uni one day in the train, really late and I suffered what everyone else would have suffered many a time by now, a dead battery on my cellphone. Yes I know it is as frustrating as anything you can think of in the world. So I thought to myself, “I need to get one of those portable power bank things. So first thing I did when I came home was look online for one. I started recommending it to friends as they were constantly running out of battery or texting “I’m on 5% so if you can’t get through meet me at *wherever*”. That is beyond annoying when you can’t get through to someone cos their smartphone has lost its juice!
Taking all this into consideration, I compiled a list of items that you have to have on you at most times, if you are travelling or out and about.
here they are :
1. Power Bank
It is much like a regular bank, just instead of money, it gives you power, that you have previously put into it. Yes, you charge this device and it stores enough power to recharge your phone another full cycle. These power banks come in many shapes and sizes so you can pick what is most comfortable for you. They are measured by the amount of charge they store. most start from around 2000mAh and go all the way up to 10-20 thousand mAh. For those of you who don’t know what that is, your iPhone has 1400mAh on full charge. So comparatively these will give you another full charge at the very least. I prefer a light slim one with about 5000mAh, that way you can accidentally forget to charge it one day and still have enough juice for another cycle.
There are even power banks that double as wristbands that make it really easy to carry them around if you are concerned about “excess baggage”.
Whoa! nevermind, lets stick to the slim pocket sized ones
2. Phone cable
Yes you should pay $30 bucks and get yourself a spare cable, because it is that handy. Even without a power bank, it’s still possible to charge your phone if you find one of the many mystical devices that has a USB port. By having a cable on you at all times, you can charge, access or even use your phone as an access point to the internet. Pretty handy considering it is just a piece of cable, and weighs less than 100grams. Trust me, a phone cable could save your life.
3. Headphones
Ever been on the train, and staring out the window, only to realise you forgot your headphones and now you literally can’t listen to anything on your phone without anyone else hearing you. Or been scrolling through Facebook and come across an interesting video link, but you can’t listen to it cos everyone else will hear you? well this is why you need your headphones. Your standard smartphone headphones should do. Many a time headphones have saved me from a gruelling bus or train ride, or just a day at work from boring me to death. If you want to live, get some headphones!
4. Storage Media
Storage media ranges from USB thumb drives to SD flash cards to Portable USB Harddrives. Why is it essential? Well I guess this is more of those niche requirements. But a lot of information is shared digitally these days and whether for work or personal use, you may need to be able to take information from one place to another. For example, I need to take some of my work with me to uni, or from uni back home. Or even if I visit a friend who has tonnes of TV series that I would like to watch, I would need to copy that over. Especially for those working in tech centric jobs, a portable hard drive is essential to take your work with you. Or if you need those photos from your trip to the Bahamas so you can get them printed out at the Photo kiosk. Whichever. you still need one, even for backups.
5. Smartphone
Lastly but certainly not least, a smartphone. What is a smartphone? well if you don’t know by now none of this will matter to you. A smartphone is an internet enabled device that has more capabilities than your standard early 2000s desktop computer. Yes a phone that you can use to take calls, send messages, email and browse the net. It also has features such as music playback, fitness tracking, GPS and a host of other helpful services that make it an essential part of your life. I would feel dead without my smartphone, I wouldn’t even be able to find my way home from somewhere I have never been before, nor will I be able to call anyone because I wouldn’t remember any of their numbers. A smartphone is as essential as an ID card these days, if you don’t have one, go out and get one right now! they are free with most mobile plans by any of the Telco providers.
That’s my list, according to what I feel are essential. If you have any suggestions of other gadgets or devices that are essential, drop a comment below to discuss them. (if you are viewing this on the feed, the comment link might be on the left). Thanks!
teaguegray 