Douglas Adams lamented that his life was filled with bricks.
Not the sort one uses to build chimneys and walls, (although it certainly seems like that's the end goal) but the sort that tend to dangle between outlets and the sort of digital devices we've learned to love. To be honest, i think anyone who lives in a digital age can pretty much nod in agreement. Our lives are filled with wall-warts of various sizes.
We have bricks for our phones, game systems, PCs, routers, and all manner of devices. When i travel, i'm usually fishing around for the right bricks so i can make sure that the various portable energy sinks i need don't run out of power unexpectedly.
Actually, let me change that. i USED to fish around for that stuff, i don't have to anymore.
Something interesting happened not too long ago. A surprising number of devices figured out that they could be powered via USB connectors. In fact, that's actually become a requirement for me for travelling. This means that when i wander, i really only need to worry about one brick, the one that powers the laptop. i have a USB power adapter for my phone, my mp3 player (yep, they're out for iPods too), and now my game console (PSPs as well).
The cables are small, and self reeling, meaning i don't have to worry about wrapping them up (and since they're for power, i don't have to worry about USB2 vs. USB1, they both carry the same voltages).
Since the combined voltage output of these things is around 2.5w at 5v per port, i could even see low power laptops being driven by power from a USB connector. (And this doesn't even touch on the USB+Power spec being worked on that will allow higher voltages and watts.
Silly thing is that i could also see similar USB power ports available on things like planes since the connectors are generally lighter weight and easier to install than the current, modified cigarette lighters they currently barely have in place.
It's kind of sad that Mr. Adams wasn't around to welcome our new semi-brickless future. i have a feeling he would have liked it.
Well, up until he forgot the damn connector cable back at his flat and now he's 20 minutes into a five hour flight with 2 minutes of battery left.
