Let’s face it, these days we are lost without our phones – especially in a foreign country. Whether you travel a few hours down the road or take a trip to Europe, you need your electronics and you want the best travel power strips. You want the best travel strips for international travel as well as domestic. Above all, you really don’t want your battery to die when you need directions in Rome.
We know how important it is to keep your devices topped-up, so we put together what we think are the best travel power strips to bring with you on the road. Want the best travel strip for international travel? Then keep reading!
What We Look For In The Best Travel Power Strips
Build Quality
Many manufacturers churn out power strips and adapters these days. This means that looking for build quality is more important than ever. Knowing how to spot the difference between a good value and a cheap product is tough, but it often comes down to the materials used.
Reputation
Certainly every company has to start somewhere. Customers will take a chance on an unproven company to see if they’ve found a gem of a product. But that doesn’t mean you need to be that customer.
From time to time we’ll try out a totally new company, and we’ve been pleasantly surprised a few times. More often than not though, we wish we hadn’t bought it.
These days, we look for companies that have a good track record.
Customer Experience
Even when we’ve had a great experience with a product, that’s only a sample size of one. Before we recommend it to you, we take our time and see what other customers say about it. We take time to read through negative reviews and cross reference different websites gives us a clearer picture of how well a product is performing.
Best Travel Power Strip for Apple Users
Right out of the gate we want to confess that we are not Apple users. We don’t have iPhones or iPads and we don’t use MacBooks for our laptops. We are Android fans. However, just about all of our family members do use Apple products.
From time to time these family members forget their charging cables and ask us if we have Apple chargers, which we don’t.
Once Apple finishes switching to using USB-C for all its devices in the long run, it finally means that we can say yes to our Apple using friends and family when they ask for a charge.
Our Recommendation for Apple and Android Users
With the MacBooks already switched over and the iPhones and iPads switching very soon, we really like the Anker 647 for our future travels.
Although this particular product is very new, we’ve been using Anker products for years. We’ve used and recommended their USB hubs and power stations to all our friends and family.
Also, Anker tends to focus on Apple brands, so we have no doubt for us that this is going to be a great item.
Features
- Designed for multiple users to plug into at once.
- Multiple USB charging ports.
- Active device monitoring to protect from thermal damage.
Pros
- 2 Built in and retractable USB-C cables to power devices.
- 6 standard power outlets to accommodate all sorts of non-USB devices.
- A sleek design
- A flat-back wall connector means that it can be set up almost anywhere.
Cons
- Expensive. Although we often feel the quality has justified Anker’s prices.
- It is new and needs more field-testing.
- Current Apple users with older devices will need to plug in using their cables through the standard power outlets.
Best Compact Travel Power Strip
Yes, this is more of a cube than a strip, but it’s still amazing. Without reservation, we think that it is easily one of the best travel power strips.
I’ve had this little beauty in my suitcase for a while now and I won’t leave home without it. At least if leaving home involves and overnight stay.
As we said above, Anker has a great track record.
What’s more, the best part of this little guy is how small it is. I mean, look at it!
It’s barely bigger than a credit card and it has three power outlets and 3 dedicated USB charging spots including Power Delivery (PD). You can even get one with a 10 ft. wall connection.
With all the concerns about “juice-jacking“, we recommend that you take this with you through the airport to protect you from data thieves. And if you are flying, check out our tips to get the best price on a flight!
Features
- Compact design that saves you space when packing.
- 3 Power outlets and 3 USB charging ports with PD.
- Lots of safety features to protect devices including short circuit, temperate, and over-voltage protection.
Pros
- Long cables for wall connection with 5 and 10 ft. options.
- Stunningly small! This could almost fit in your pants pocket.
- That voltage monitoring is a real important safety feature on a cruise or in a hotel.
Cons
- It slides around on a table top and is best used on a floor.
Best Travel Power Strip For International Travel
If you’ve never traveled abroad, you might not realize other countries have their own power outlet design. They operate on different voltages and use different connection pin configurations. Check out this really useful site to get an idea of what we’re talking about!
Finding the best power strip for international travel can be quite a challenge. Worst of all, people think they can get by with just a wall adaptor. If you want to protect your hair dryer or laptop or CPAP from burning out you need to get a power converter.
That’s where a universal power adapter comes in handy and our favorite is the Bestek Universal Travel Adapter. It’s fairly compact and it has a lot inside it.
You might not have heard of Bestek, but they’ve been quietly making quality products for years now and we’ve got a few of their products.
This model will safely step up or down the voltage from the wall and convert it into U.S. friendly electricity. It comes with a type C wall cable and adapters for types A, D, G, and I.
Type A is used in the US and Japan. While type C is used in most of continental Europe and Iceland. Type D is used in India and many parts of Africa. Type G is used in The United Kingdom and Ireland.
We wish this adapter came with type E, which is used in France, and type F, which is used in Germany. To be fair, the type C adapter will fit into both types E and F, but it fits loosely and can fall out easily.
Still this power adapter can be used almost anywhere. It protects your devices from incompatible voltage, which can wreck your electronics.
Features
- Is both a voltage and outlet adapter in one.
- Outlets for multiple devices, including 4 USB outlets.
- Small size that does a lot of work to keep your devices safe.
Pros
- Comes with the most common and widely used plug styles.
- Well-reviewed for years.
- Wall cable is almost 5 ft. long. We like a longer cable, it gives you wiggle room to position it.
Cons
- Type E and F adapters are not included.
- Only 3 AC outlets on it.
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