(image courtesy of Wikipedia)

An upcoming disaster has made me why sharing the power helps smartphone and PDA users Maintain a Mobile Lifestyle Despite Disaster.

In a few hours, Typhoon Reming (you guys probably know it as a Durian) will pass by. The forecast says it will be stronger than Milenyo, a tropical storm that passed by two months ago, knocking out a third of my country's power grid. I'm bracing myself for yet another week of no power.

Once again, after the storm has passed, I'll be going to malls, coffee shops, and hotels to look for the energy and connectivity crucial to my freelance career. So will many others. Power sockets will be in high demand; first come, first serve.

I'm currently reviewing a Samsung SGH-D830. Like the Z560, a USB port (aside from the good ol' wall socket) can power it. Too bad the Sony DSC-T50 I'm also evaluating isn't capable of that. It would've been an interesting way to share one plug among three gadgets: my laptop plugs into the wall, while the smartphone and camera get power from its USB ports.

Of course, why go all fancy and make a laptop a glorified charger, or buy a wall socket-USB adaptor, when a simple extension cord will do? However you decide to share the power of a single plug, make sure you aren't overloading it!