10 Gadgets That Make It Easier To Work In Your Car

We may receive a commission on purchases made from links.

If you have a remote job, you get the added flexibility of working from just about anywhere you like. You could be flying in an airplane or relaxing in your massage chair while wrapping up your deliverables. You might even decide to work from your car. Even if you're on the road for long hours as a part of your job, you may want to consider setting up a mini office of sorts in your car to make it easier to work. After all, it's vital to have a comfortable experience and all the necessary gadgets to ensure your work remains uninterrupted. If you decide to convert your car into a makeshift office on wheels, several gadgets can improve your workflow.

From the best portable chargers for keeping your laptop powered, to good portable monitor brands to boost your productivity — we've included it all. Depending on your requirements, you can choose which accessories you want to buy to store in your car at all times. It's worth noting, though, that you must ensure all the gadgets adhere to your local laws and regulations, as some of them may be potentially outlawed in some U.S. states. Most importantly, use the gadgets only when the car is stationary and parked, and it's safe to do so.

The first thing you would need when working from your car is a place to put your laptop or tablet. After all, resting a computer on your lap for long durations can get uncomfortable — especially in a crammed space like a car. Thankfully, the Xergur 2-in-1 car tray solves this problem. It can be mounted on the steering wheel of your car, so if you prefer sitting in the driver's seat, all you have to do is mount the tray using the clamps and rest your laptop on it. However, if you want a more comfortable experience, we recommend shifting to the back seat, as it tends to be more spacious due, and mounting the tray to the front seat's headrest.

If you decide to mount it on the rear seat, you can leave it on permanently — especially if you don't have other passengers in your car. This way, you can quickly switch from driving mode to working mode whenever necessary. The surface of the tray is large enough to house a 16-inch laptop. Additionally, there's a slide-out tray on the right side, which is helpful if you prefer using a dedicated mouse for better ergonomics with your laptop instead of the trackpad. When you're done working, use the same tray as a makeshift dinner table to enjoy your favorite snacks.

Once you have the laptop stand sorted, the next thing to tackle is making sure your laptop and other accessories don't die on you when working. That's where the Baseus 160W car charger comes in handy. It's a powerful car charger, with the primary USB-C port outputting a whopping 100W of power. That's generally unheard of, typically reserved for wall adapters. However, Baseus managed to cram in the required tech into a small car charger, so you don't have to worry about your charging needs when working from your car. If you're wondering if it's safe to charge your electronics using a high-power car charger — rest assured, as Baseus is a renowned brand making high-quality accessories. Moreover, I've been using this exact same car charger for over a year now, and I haven't faced any issues.

Apart from the 100W USB-C port, there are two additional ports on the charger — another USB-C port and a USB-A port that can output a combined 60W of power. So, not only can you power your laptop, but the two extra ports can be used to charge your smartphone, headphones, or any other accessories. In fact, you can use the USB-A port to permanently connect your car's dashcam. This way, it's the only car charger you need for all your power requirements when on the road.

If you want to free up a USB port on the car charger for an additional monitor or a larger peripheral, you may want to consider a dedicated car mount for your phone, like the ESR MagSafe wireless car charger. It's a 2-in-1 accessory, acting as an iPhone holder while charging it wirelessly. The advantages of the holder are twofold — apart from clearing clutter on the car seat or dashboard, your phone will remain at your eye level when working. This is beneficial since you can quickly perform a task on your phone without removing it from the holder, or glance at your notifications and decide whether you want to reply to them.

Since the ESR mount is a MagSafe accessory, it natively works with iPhone devices above iPhone 12. However, if you have an Android device, you will have to use a MagSafe case or an external ring to use this particular mount. Ideally, we would recommend installing the mount on an AC vent since wireless charging produces heat, so the cool air from the AC helps with keeping your phone's temperature low. Apart from when you're working, the ESR car mount is also useful for navigating when driving, especially if your car doesn't have an Apple CarPlay or Android Auto head unit.

Depending what gadgets you'll be using in your car office, a USB car charger may not meet your needs. If you need to charge your laptop, smartphone, and power external monitors or routers, you'll certainly fall short of the power you need without something like the Bestek DC-to-AC inverter. As the name suggests, it converts the DC via your car's cigarette lighter into two AC outlets. You can then connect your laptop charger, monitor adapter, or just about any AC plug, even when you're inside your car. This gives you extreme flexibility, since you can connect just about any gadget without worrying about the connector it uses.

It also unlocks wild possibilities like carrying a gaming console like a PlayStation 5 in your car, and using it for gaming with a portable monitor. Along with an office on wheels, you can even build a mobile gaming den! Apart from the two AC sockets, you also get two USB-A ports that can be used to charge smaller accessories that don't have high power needs. For instance, you can connect the ESR car mount to one of these ports, since all it needs is 15W of power to charge your phone wirelessly. The brand has also added a cooling fan to keep the temperature in check. If you wish to run high-power devices in your car, the Bestek inverter is a no-brainer. It's also surprisingly affordable for what it offers.

With so many accessories and gadgets requiring external power, you may run out of USB ports inside your car. Even if you add extra ports via the car charger inserted into the cigarette lighter, you may feel the necessity for more ports to cater to the power needs of all the electronics running your mini office. That's why the Joyroom 9-in-1 cigarette lighter splitter is a must-have. It plugs into the cigarette lighter inside your car to provide nine different power outlets. Most importantly, it extends the single cigarette lighter into three different ones. This is extremely handy, since most car accessories use the cigarette lighter port for power.

Apart from that, there are five USB-A ports and a USB-C PD port to charge smartphones. Even if the USB-A ports aren't useful, we would recommend getting this accessory solely for the additional connectivity options it unlocks. As a result, you can connect the Baseus car charger, the Bestek car inverter, and any other device that needs high power and doesn't have a USB connector. However, note that the adapter takes up a substantial amount of space due to its physical size, so ensure you have sufficient space on your car's dashboard. Moreover, it's advisable to keep your car's engine running when using the splitter, so that it doesn't drain the car's battery.

Even if you have a large 16-inch laptop, a single display may still limit your productivity. This is especially true if you're like me and you're used to working with a dual or triple monitor setup. Thankfully, there are portable monitors out there that can be carried anywhere to extend your laptop's display. The InnoView 15.6-inch monitor is one such example. It's a slim display with an attached stand that can be placed on any flat surface. Due to the thin and light form factor, it can be carried easily inside any backpack, so you can carry it with you to a cafe or any other working space and use it there as well.

There are two ways to connect the InnoView monitor to your laptop. If the laptop has a Thunderbolt port, all you have to do is use a single USB-C cable to connect the monitor to the port, and that would supply both the video signal as well as power. This is the ideal way to interface the devices, since it would save a power port inside the car. However, if there's no Thunderbolt port, you can use an HDMI cable to connect the monitor to the laptop, and an additional USB-C cable for power that can be plugged into the Baseus car charger. If you're going to use the monitor with a console like the PlayStation 5, you can use the 3.5mm audio jack on the monitor for audio.

Practically speaking, you cannot keep your car's engine running all the time. But that also means you lose out on power sources linked to your car's USB ports or the cigarette lighter port. That's exactly why you need to have a reliable power bank handy for the times your car can't supply power. There are plenty of options from various brands, but the Anker 737 ticks most boxes — making it our top recommendation. For starters, it has a massive 24,000mAh capacity that can charge a standard laptop from 10-100%. It also has two additional ports that can be used to power the external display or even charge your smartphone.

Apart from the high capacity, the Anker 737 stands out due to its 140W output. That's sufficient to charge the most powerful MacBook and even some high-end Windows gaming laptops. Anker has even added a small display on the power bank that indicates the input and output voltage, current, and power. This is useful for monitoring how much power each connected device is consuming. When the power bank runs out of power, just plug it into that Baseus USB-C car charger or the AC inverter (with a charger) to top it back up quick. Using a 140W adapter can top up the Anker 737 from empty to 100% in under an hour, which is rather impressive.

Working while on the move requires an active internet connection. However, you obviously cannot use a standard Wi-Fi or broadband connection inside your car. So, what's the solution? Most people may rely on their smartphone's mobile hotspot feature to connect their computers to the internet. However, this drains the phone's battery substantially, and won't give you optimal speeds. Instead, switch to a portable hotspot router like the Netgear Nighthawk M1. It's a tiny device that accepts a 4G LTE SIM card from any network provider of your choice. However, the brand claims that the device works best when used with an AT&T or T-Mobile SIM card.

The Nighthawk M1's top speed is up to 1 Gbps, and you can connect up to 20 devices at once. When you're not in your car, it can double up as your backup (or even primary) internet router at home. This is because it has a Gigabit Ethernet port that you can use to connect an RJ45 cable. The brand claims that the battery life of the Nighthawk M1 is good enough to last an entire day as a portable hotspot. The display on the front shows the data consumption, number of connected devices, and the number of days left in your data plan. If you often work outdoors, the Netgear portable Wi-Fi router is a must-have in your arsenal.

Once you've accumulated all these useful gadgets to help you work like the Lincoln Lawyer, you'll need a storage solution to carry all of them to and from your car. After all, leaving expensive gear in your car isn't the wisest thing to do. Plenty of backpacks offer varied capabilities well suited to the number of gadgets you plan to use, but the Razer Rogue v3 gaming backpack has enough room for a bucketload of gizmos, in addition to being rugged, too. It may appear rather small, but open the zippers and there's enough room to house a 16-inch laptop, a portable monitor or tablet, and several small items like mice and adapters.

Of course, there's also room for extras like water bottles and headphones. We appreciate that the compartment on the front has small pockets to house tiny adapters and cables that can easily get lost inside a large backpack. It's waterproof, has a nice green interior that makes it easy to find stuff even in the dark, and the exterior can certainly take a beating. Most importantly, the bag is rather lightweight, which is important if you're going to be stuffing it with a lot of items and carrying the bag for long durations when traveling. If you're looking for a reliable laptop bag that won't break the bank and can accommodate all your car office peripherals, the Razer Rogue v3 gets a solid thumbs up.

You obviously can't be working all day in your mini car office. When you get hungry, let the Aotto portable oven heat up your food in just a few minutes. This is an absolute godsend for those who either carry food from home or want piping hot food, but the take-out has already turned cold. All you have to do is place a container with the food inside the box, close it, and connect the attached cable to the cigarette lighter port inside the car. The oven heats your food evenly without dehydrating it, so it remains fresh during consumption.

The best part is that it doesn't require any manual monitoring. Once you place the food inside, you can continue working while the Aotto food heater does its job. Once the food reaches the right temperature, the oven automatically shuts off, and you can remove your food to eat it. Its portable nature, along with a carry handle on the top, ensures you can carry it with you even outside the car. For instance, you can take it with you when you're out camping, or even place it next to your work desk so that you can quickly heat up your food when you're busy. It's affordable, and you get to have hot and fresh food every time in your car. That's a win-win for sure!