Krafted Edge Ultra-Slim: a laptop charger made for life on the move
Why a slim, high-capacity power bank could be a travel writer’s best friend on long train journeys, flights and days spent away from a desk.
Travel writers know a thing or two about how frustrating it can be for your laptop to run low on power. We are the kind of people who all too often sit on planes or trains wondering whether we can get to the end of the next paragraph, let alone the article, before that little battery symbol in the corner of the screen starts flashing its unwelcome warning.
It is one of the occupational hazards of working on the move. You might have found a comfortable seat on a train, settled down with a coffee and finally got into the swing of writing, only to discover that your laptop has other ideas. Or perhaps you are on a long-haul flight, making good progress with a feature while the person in the next seat is already fast asleep, when you realise that your remaining battery life is not going to see you through to the other side of the journey.
Of course, there are ways around the problem. Some trains have power sockets, and some aircraft offer charging facilities, but you cannot always rely on finding one when you need it. And even when you do, you may find yourself wrestling with cables and bulky power supplies in the confines of an airline seat.
Which is why I was interested to receive the Krafted Edge Ultra-Slim laptop charger.
A little extra power when you need it most
The first thing that strikes you about this device is its slim profile. At just 16mm thick, it is designed to slip into a laptop bag or computer case without taking up the sort of space that makes you wonder whether you really need to carry it.
For anyone who travels regularly with a laptop, that is a considerable advantage. We tend to carry enough already: notebooks, cameras, cables, phones, headphones and all the other bits and pieces that accumulate in a travel writer's working bag. The last thing you want is another bulky accessory weighing you down.
The Krafted Edge has a substantial 20,000mAh capacity, with USB-C output of up to 65W. That means it is capable of supplying power to many laptops that support USB-C charging, as well as phones and other portable devices. It also has four charging ports, offering useful flexibility when you need to keep more than one device going.
Naturally, the exact performance depends on the laptop or device being charged, its power requirements and what you are doing with it. But the combination of a relatively high capacity and a slim design makes this a useful option for anyone who spends a lot of time working away from a conventional desk.
Keeping the words flowing
For me, the real attraction is the freedom to carry on working without constantly watching the battery indicator.
Travel writing does not always happen in convenient circumstances. A long railway journey can provide a precious couple of hours in which to write up notes, prepare a feature or deal with the backlog of emails that seems to grow whenever you are away. A flight can offer an equally useful opportunity to get some work done, particularly when you are travelling to or from a destination and have deadlines waiting at home.
With a suitable power bank in your bag, you have an additional source of energy for your laptop when its internal battery starts running down. You are less dependent on finding a socket, and you can make better use of those stretches of travelling time that might otherwise be lost to a flat battery.
Using my ASUS Chromebook CX34 as a guide, we estimated that a 20,000mAh power bank of this kind might provide roughly four to seven additional hours of working time, although that is an estimate rather than a guaranteed figure. Screen brightness, wireless connectivity, the applications being used and the efficiency of the charging process all make a difference.
Even a more modest extension of battery life can be welcome when you are halfway through writing an article and have no convenient way of plugging in.
Small enough to carry, useful enough to earn its place
The key thing about the Krafted Edge Ultra-Slim is that portability is central to its appeal. A power bank is not much use to a travelling writer if it is so heavy or cumbersome that it gets left behind in the hotel room.
Its slim 16mm design makes it an appealing companion for a laptop bag, whether you are heading to a railway station, boarding a plane or spending a day exploring somewhere new while keeping up with work.
There is also the convenience of having multiple ports available for other devices. If you are carrying a phone and other USB-powered accessories, that extra flexibility can be handy, although the available power will be shared when several devices are charging at once.
As with any portable battery, it is worth checking the charging requirements of your own laptop before buying, particularly if it needs more than 65W. And if you intend to take it on a flight, check the airline's rules for spare batteries before travelling. Its 20,000mAh capacity is generally within the usual 100Wh limit for portable batteries carried on board, but individual airline requirements still apply.
A useful addition to the travelling writer's kit
I have spent a good deal of my working life travelling around the country and beyond, writing about places, people, food and experiences. One thing you learn along the way is that the small practical details can make a surprising difference to a working trip.
A comfortable seat, a reliable internet connection and a laptop with enough battery life can turn a tedious journey into productive working time. Take away that last ingredient and the whole arrangement can quickly become rather less appealing.
The Krafted Edge Ultra-Slim laptop charger addresses that particular problem in a straightforward way. It offers substantial portable capacity in a slim package that should be easy to carry alongside a laptop and the other essentials of a travelling office.
For anyone who regularly works on trains, aeroplanes or anywhere else away from a desk, that makes it a piece of kit worth considering.
Disclosure: The Krafted Edge Ultra-Slim laptop charger was supplied to me by the PR team. There was no obligation to publish an article or provide a favourable review.
