The Secret To Packing All Of Your Chargers With No Tangles

Picture this: You're about to board a flight to your dream destination. You're next in line to scan your boarding pass and realize your phone is about to die. You scramble for your portable charger and charging cable, only to discover they've knotted around another item in your backpack. Cord tangles, like necklace tangles, feel like an inevitable part of travel, but they don't have to be. With a little packing organization or alternative charging methods, you won't have to deal with an electronic version of a rubber band ball.

The secret to keeping cords nice and neat is careful, diliberate packing — take that from extensive personal experience. It's no fun hunting around for a functioning phone cable at 10 p.m. in a foreign country, so it's worth the little extra TLC to prevent damage. Don't just throw your cords in your bag. For ultimate success, you'll want to reach for a tech pouch, cable ties, or anything that will keep those cords separate from other items. 

Even if they seem indestructible, power cables may get damaged if you don't handle them gently. Once you've twisted and tangled them beyond recognition, it may cause the inside of the cord to malfunction. "Since some strands in the wire are still intact, it may allow a charge, but the cable is now effectively thinner at the point of damage, and less electricity can flow through," Geek Squad Agent Derek Meister told Reader's Digest. Thankfully, you have options for avoiding this fate.

As we mentioned, the secret to keeping your chargers free from tangles is all about containing your cords in an organized manner. However, how you organize your cables and tech depends on your individual packing style. Folks who don't mind a little more baggage or are checked-bags-for-lifers may prefer something like a tech pouch. These helpful accessories have loops, zippered pockets, and lots of space to organize your cables and chargers in one convenient location. You can often find tech pouches with different compartments or create a travel kit, which is perfect for tech enthusiasts with lots of different gear.

These pouches can, however, eat up valuable space. Knowing how to pack for a seven-day vacation in only one carry-on is a skill, and if you prefer to pack light, you can achieve a similar level of anti-tangle packing by utilizing other smaller accessories instead. Cable ties are an old standby that does the job without minimizing your luggage capacity. Once you carefully wind your cable together, secure the tie around it, and voila! To paraphrase Piglet from the 2011 "Winnie the Pooh" film, now you cannot knot (your cables.) Alternatively, you could get a strip of Velcro to loop around the cables. What matters is keeping your cable in one spot so it can't wander and canoodle with the other cables in your bag.

Besides cutting down on your tech tagalongs, you might feel like there's not much you can do about the number of chargers you need. You could pack one or two cords and divvy up the time you charge different devices, though that takes additional planning, and you may not want to cram it into an already-packed vacation. There is something to be said about not bringing a cord for every piece of tech if you don't need to, particularly if you use the same brand across your products using the same charging port. But if you must, a cord management organizer could sort out your charging cables and wired headphones. You could always opt for a three-pronged charging cable, which is helpful for same-family tech. 

Other options reduce cable carrying even further and become the ultimate space-saving packing hacks to try on your next trip. Take, for instance, a three-in-one magnetic charging stand. These technology home bases only need a short cord to plug into a block or outlet but can simultaneously charge earbuds, a phone, and a smartwatch — all without individual cords. Charging stands are also terrific for reducing clutter on hotel room bedside tables. Some stands are even made for portability and can fold up to the size of your phone, making them ideal for minimalistic packers.