Put a Little Power Cube Under Your Couch Leave a comment
I’m penning this from my sofa. My laptop computer was at about 10 % once I sat down, however I’m not fearful. I’ve a secret weapon for conserving my devices charged in the lounge: a little block with retailers and USB ports. I like my energy dice.
I can’t bear in mind once I began doing this, nevertheless it’s been years of pure charging bliss. Prior to getting that energy dice, I’d use lengthy USB cables operating throughout the sofa or a transportable battery to cost my cellphone whereas it sits on the espresso desk. These had been ugly and unreliable choices, and so they didn’t get higher as I began accumulating tablets, a Switch … and all my visitors’ units.
There are a number of respectable choices for charging devices on the sofa. A facet desk with a drawer filled with cables and a few retailers isn’t a dangerous concept. I nonetheless have this charging station sitting on a small shelf subsequent to my sofa, although that doesn’t resolve the cable downside for individuals on the other facet. Surge protectors are large and hulking, and wireless charging pads can solely go to date.
Enter the Cube
Photograph: Eric Ravenscraft
The first energy dice I acquired was really referred to as the PowerCube. It featured 5 full-size retailers. The unique was designed to plug directly into a wall socket, however later versions came with a cord attached so you might run these additional plugs additional away.
That’s the bit that makes this complete factor work. In many locations I’ve lived, there’s been an outlet proper behind the sofa. That’s a terribly inconvenient place for an outlet, leaving you with an eternity of scooching one finish of the sofa away from the wall to finagle a plug. But the cable on the PowerCube was simply lengthy sufficient to move below the sofa and let the dice sit proper within the center. If you have got a nook sofa, it’s much more handy. You can stick it proper within the nook the place it’s nearly unattainable to kick it or journey over it.
Now, regardless of the place somebody is sitting on the sofa, it’s straightforward to plug in a cable of any variety. Full-size charger for a laptop computer? No downside. USB cable for a cellphone? Easy. Eventually, different firms began making comparable units, which led to my present favourite, this cube from Anker. It has three common retailers, three USB ports, and—crucially—one facet that’s merely flat with nothing on it.
That may sound like wasted area, nevertheless it got here in useful once I acquired a new sofa that was simply a little too tall. Some couches are low sufficient to the bottom that the dice will merely catch on the underside of the sofa and keep put. But if it’s taller, the dice can slip too far below the sofa and get misplaced or caught. I solved this downside by placing a little little bit of velcro tape on the ground and the dice the place I needed it to remain. (Folks with carpets, this may not be as straightforward.)
