I reckon that solutions for recharging smartphones and tablets on the move are going to prove popular as stocking fillers this Christmas.
There are plenty of items to choose from at the usual online shops. Mains chargers are a pain to carry around. Consequently, a handy pocket solution for keeping phones and tablets going, while out and about, is increasingly essential.
Brands such as Anker, EasyAcc and RAVPower provide a wider range of rechargeable packs, which can keep a device going as its own charge fails, and range in price from about £20-£50.
The downside of these, though, is that they can be bulky. Sizes range from bigger than an iPhone down to that of an oversized memory stick.
A new breed of solution looks to solve this size issue by being credit card shaped and sized, and claiming to fit in a wallet, though they might be a bit thick for that.
The DigiPower charge-card, typically costing around £30, is a credit card style version of the products described above. It holds about two hours worth of charge and weighs just an ounce.
Care is needed, though, because the term 'Chargecard' is becoming confusing. There is a range of charge-cards with a totally different purpose. These do not hold any charge at all. They set out to solve a different problem – that USB charging cables are a pain to carry around and readily get lost and/wall tunnel.
For instance, the product that simply called itself Chargecard, costing about £20, is a clever credit card size file USB connector that will not tangled up and Chargecard is thin enough to keep in a wallet.
