On an overnight stay at a Fairfield Inn a few years ago, I encountered a dilemma I’ve faced many times before—there was no apparent way to charge my phone conveniently.
Many hotels have addressed this issue by installing lights with plugs or USB outlets on their base. Unfortunately, this hotel had neither. When I looked behind the nightstand, there was only one outlet, already occupied by the lamp and clock. Sure, I could have unplugged the clock, but I still have flashbacks to a childhood incident where unplugging a hotel room TV to move it led to staff knocking on our door to make sure we weren’t stealing it! (In retrospect, it probably wasn’t that great of a hotel, but we booked it for 1/2 price with the Entertainment Book). (Note from Sharon: OMG, they came to your room? We’ve been married for 22 years—why have you never told me this story before???)
Looking around, I noticed the Timex clock on the nightstand had two USB ports on the front. I’ve encountered similar clocks in hotel rooms, and they have never successfully charged my phone. They’re almost as useless as the iHome speakers in some hotels with docks that only fit an iPhone 4.
Much to my surprise, when I plugged in my phone, I heard the charging tone. Sure, connecting to an unknown USB outlet comes with risks—your personal information could be compromised—but I doubted that hackers or government agents were targeting the Timex clock in my first-floor room at the Fairfield Inn in Savannah.
To be fair, I’ve had USB ports in hotel rooms work before. For example, the fancy clock radio in a suite at the Renaissance St. Pancras in London had a USB port hidden on the back (along with an old-school extendable antenna). It was both high-tech and retro at the same time.
So, what’s your experience with hotel USB ports? Have they worked reliably for you? Would you unplug the clock to charge your phone, or do you bring your own multi-outlet adapter? And, seriously, how many people even use the hotel alarm clock anymore?
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7 comments
I’ve made use of usb jacks on the TVs a fair number of times.
Hotel clocks usually are way too bright for the hotel room but it’s nice to have for the cost involved. I try to avoid the USB lamps, clocks, etc. in hotels as I’ve had some bad charging experiences with them where it starts to charge but kicks off after a few minutes leaving you with a dead phone first thing in the morning. The USB wall outlets are usually better. The worst experience I ever had with a hotel clock was at a Marriott or Hilton property (can’t remember) where they had a Sony Dream Machine or some such high tech type clock. Trouble was this was when they changed the day light savings time dates around and there was no way to change the time on the clock manually so the time was wrong during the whole stay. Not a big deal but it just bugged me.
@Joe, there are USB-A data blockers for sale that are useful. Since USB-A ports are still ubiquitous, I always use them when traveling. I always bring a universal adapter when traveling, even within the US/Canada. They have multiple ports (A and C) to charge everything. As for the clock, I mainly use it to see the time, but if I have to get up early, the alarm is a backup (+ phone + wake-up call)
It’s when you least expect it that you’ll end up compromised. If you insist on using these unknown origin trickle chargers, you may wish to invest a few bucks in a USB data blocker adapter that you put between the port and your device. It’s smaller than a thumb drive and allows the device to charge while blocking data from transmitting. All travelers need this important tool these days. 👍🏼
Whether it’s on in a hotel room, an airport waiting area, an airport lounge or on a plane, I always hold my breath when I plug in a USB to charge a phone. The outlets often don’t work. Airlines really shouldn’t really make a blanket statement like “power at every seat” or “this flight has wifi.” Your seat port may or may not work, just as the wifi may or may not work. I’m glad whenever I see USB outlets at a hotel, and I hope they work. At least I don’t have to dig out my adapter and hunt for an outlet to plug it in to (unless the USB plug doesn’t work). Good to see the comments about USB data blockers. Wasn’t aware of them but they sound like a good idea.
Always bring your own charger and use the power plugs/outlets, not any USB ports anywhere, even if they are placed on a power outlet. Risk is simply too high. Get a reliable fast charger with multiple USB ports & surge protection, Anker is a good brand for these.
My husband once plugged his phone into the USB port on a hotel-room lamp… and the following week had to have his phone’s battery replaced because it no longer would hold a charge for more than a few hours. We have no proof per se, but it certainly seemed like that charging port fried his battery.
And now that almost all our tech has USB-C chargers, all those hotel/airplane USB-A charging ports are pretty useless without a special cable.