PACKING SOME POWER

Keep gadgets brimmed on your travels with this charging-ready luggage

TIMBUK2 POWER COMMUTE

Perfect for frequent travellers wanting to carry multiple gadgets at all times, the Power Commute has space for your 15-inch laptop, tablet and more.

Another pocket houses the Joey T1 battery, which offers up to two full smartphone charges. It’s TSA-compliant, so you needn’t remove it when going through US airport security, plus a handy access port on the side allows you to pass the charging cable through to the back tablet pocket without removing it.

$200, RUSHFASTER.COM.AU

BIRKSUN BOOST SOLAR

Despite what you might think on first look, that big panel on the back of the Birksun Boost isn’t a built-in IPS screen for watching HD movies on

your travels. Instead, it’s a solar panel that’s perfect for charging your gadgets as you go without having to worry about running out of precious

juice. Just one hour of the big yellow thing in the sky provides 20% of charge for your smartphone, and the USB outlet means you can top up almost any device you’re carrying.

US$100, BIRKSUN.COM

NORTH FACE SURGE II CHARGED

North Face knows a thing or two about backpacks, but its latest – the Surge II charged backpack – takes things to another level. This 32-litre

daypack has a small Joey T1 battery pack nestled inside that charges gadgets over USB, with enough capacity to fully charge a smartphone twice – not mind-blowing, but the battery’s small size keeps weight down. There’s also a variety of pockets for carrying phones, a tablet and a 17-inch laptop.

$270, COTSWOLDOUTDOOR.COM/AU

PHORCE PRO

On the outside the Phorce Pro looks like a conventional laptop bag, but the lofty price tag hints that something else is going on. That something is an integrated 26,000 mAh battery, which can fully charge a laptop or revive a smartphone many times over, and its three USB ports enable you to charge

all your gadgets at once. The really clever bit is that the battery can communicate with your iPhone or Android phone over Bluetooth, giving you the skinny on its charging status in the palm of your hand.

$780 PC/$850 MAC, PHORCE.COM