5 Practical Anker Gadgets That Can Be Useful On Your Next Road Trip

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Road trips are exciting give you the chance to explore and see more of the country, but for as exciting as they are, spending hours in the car brings its own challenges. Phones need to stay charged at all times for navigation, passengers may want to be entertained along the way, and finding a convenient power outlet isn't always possible. The right gadgets can make some of those inconveniences a little bit easier to manage. 

Brand reputation matters when shopping for tech gadgets, and Anker has built a strong reputation on the market for offering reliable products. That's why Anker's phone chargers have become so popular. Beyond phone chargers, the company has a wide portfolio of products, including power banks, USB hubs, and USB docks.

Some of Anker's accessories are useful for when you're driving down a country road or highway, while others will save the day once you reach a campsite, road stop, or hotel. Whether you're going for a weekend getaway or embarking on a cross-country drive, there's likely a gadget in Anker's product lineup that can make your journey a little bit more convenient.

While you're on the road and exploring new parts of the country that you've never been to before, navigation apps come in handy in ensuring that you're not lost. But to use these apps, you need to keep your devices charged, which can be tricky when you're away from a wall charger. That's where a gadget like Anker's Prime Power Bank comes in. This power bank has a 26,250 mAh battery capacity, making it capable of charging your phone several times before it runs out of juice. 

It weighs 1.32 pounds, with the longest side measuring 6.3 inches, and offers a smart display for you to keep track of the charge level. The Anker Prime Power Bank can charge three devices at the same time, thanks to its three ports. You get two USB-C ports with a 140 W fast charging rating and a single USB-A with a maximum output of 20 W. With its 140 W speeds, this power bank can charge a laptop, and Anker says it can take an M4 Pro MacBook Pro from 0-50% in 27 minutes. 

Anker's Prime Power Bank is TSA-approved as well, so it can also provide power backup while flying. For a power bank with high capacity, you might be worried about how long it'll take to recharge. To make it easy, it supports dual-port fast charging with a combined maximum power input of 250 W, which should take around 40 minutes to recharge it to 80%, according to Anker. Anker's Prime Power Bank costs $229.99 on Amazon.

Most modern cars come with USB ports, and some even offer the newer USB-C option for charging devices like your phone or tablet. However, the speeds you'll get from a car's USB port will vary. If you own an old car, the maximum power output is probably not that great, which means juicing up your device takes so much time. A practical Anker gadget that solves this issue is the company's Nano 75W Car Charger. 

It uses your car's 12 V DC port, which allows it to offer faster charging speeds. As the name suggests, this car charger offers a combined maximum charging speed of 75 W across all the available USB-C ports. There are two ports, allowing you to charge two devices simultaneously. For convenience, Anker offers a 29.5-inch retractable USB-C cable built into the charger, with a maximum charging speed of 45 W. 

That means you only need one cable to charge two devices. The second port offers a maximum power output of 30 W. Anker's Nano 75W Car Charger offers enough power to charge your laptop as well, with the company estimating that it can take a MacBook Air from 0-50% in just 34 minutes. The Anker Nano 75W Car Charger has a list price of $29.99 on Amazon.

When you plan to go on a road trip that includes long stops along the way or camping, a power bank might not be enough to keep all your devices charged. You might also need to use traditional gadgets that still depend on AC-style wall outlets. Unlike a power bank, a power station offers a wide selection of ports, and it also has more power, allowing you to recharge your devices multiple times and even run certain small appliances. 

The Anker Solix S2000 Portable Power Station offers 2,010 Wh capacity and comes with a variety of ports. This power station has five AC outlets that can power a coffee maker, microwave, kettle, mid-size oven, and even a hair dryer. Of course, you can also hook a power strip to one of the AC outlets to get more ports for charging your devices. If you need to directly charge your phone, laptop, or tablet, the Solix S200 offers two USB-C ports, with one rated 100 W and the other 15 W, and there's also a 12 W USB-A port. 

That adds up to a total of eight ports. In case you didn't know, Solix is one of the tech brands that are owned by Anker, which specializes in off-grid power solutions. This power station has a list price of $1,199.00 and supports recharging via a variety of ways, including solar, generator, and even a car outlet.

Charging cables are easy to overlook, but they're essential accessories — without one you can't charge your device (unless it has wireless charging support and you have a compatible charger). Since most modern gadgets have switched to charging via USB-C, a USB-C to USB-C cable is a useful addition to your accessories when you go for a road trip. And in that case, the Anker Prime USB-C to USB-C cable is worth considering. 

This cable comes in different lengths, with the shortest variant measuring 1 foot long. It also comes in 3-foot and 6-foot variants. Not every USB-C cable has the same capabilities, and this model from Anker is powerful with support for 240 W charging speeds. Thanks to that rating, it's capable of charging your USB-C-powered laptop. The Anker Prime USB-C to USB-C Cable is built with durability in mind, promising to withstand over 300,000 bends, thanks to its physical build, which includes a copper protective layer and a silicone layer on top. 

The cable is mainly optimized for fast charging, but you can also use it to transfer data at speeds of up to 480 Mbps. The Anker Prime USB-C to USB-C cable is listed starting at $25.99 for a 1-foot variant on Amazon, while the 3- and 6-foot options will set you back $29.99 and $34.99, respectively.

Your car's audio system is ideal when you're driving, but once you've parked, a portable speaker can be handy for listening to music, podcasts, or other audio together with your partner, family, and friends. The portability of the Soundcore Boom 2 Plus and the built-in battery make it worth bringing on your road trip. The Anker Soundcore Boom 2 Plus is a Bluetooth speaker with a maximum power output of 140 W. Under the hood, the speaker includes two 50 W woofers paired with two 20 W tweeters. 

The speaker offers an advertised play time of 20 hours. It doubles as a power bank, although the charging speed is capped at 30 W. It's IPX7-rated to prevent water ingress, meaning a few splashes shouldn't be enough to damage it. The Boom 2 Plus offers a built-in handle that you can use to carry it around. Alternatively, there's a detachable strap for wearing over your shoulder. 

RTings review of the Soundcore Boom 2 Plus calls it good for outdoor use, which is exactly what you want to hear about a speaker before taking it on a road trip. If you fancy RGB lighting, the Soundcore Boom 2 Plus has it. On Amazon, the Soundcore Boom 2 Plus is listed at $249.99 and is available to buy in black, blue, or green.

Anker has lots of gadgets on the market for different purposes, but not every product the company offers is a practical gadget that you can take on a road trip. Based on our expertise, we selected some of Anker's gadgets that we consider handy while hitting the road. We selected these gadgets based on a problem that you might face on a road trip, and in each section, we highlighted how the selected gadget addresses that issue. 

Each gadget we've included also had to meet our minimum user-rating requirement on Amazon: an average of at least 4.6 stars out of 5 from over 150 reviewers. This ensures that all the gadgets we've highlighted are high quality and past users swear by them. We've only listed five products, so this isn't to say that these are the only Anker gadgets that you'll find useful on a road trip.