HACKER Q&A
📣 sltr

How do you remember to keep all your devices charged?


In my household there are just two of us and I can name at least 20 smartphones, laptops, e-readers, tablets, bluetooth headsets, and smart watches. Some infrequently used devices are at 1% or dead when I reach for them.

Wish I had a dashboard showing the charge of everything and email alerts when they go below e.g. 20%.

I'm not asking for full on MDM solutions. I know there are other metrics folks might want to track, like location, RAM, CPU load, security patch status.

  👤 benoau Accepted Answer ✓
Get a smart plug or basic timer for your electrical socket and set a schedule to be on periodically for a limited amount of time. Plug a powered USB hub into it and connect everything that doesn't require daily charging when they're not in use.
👤 andsoitis
> so it falls on me to keep everything charged for her.

Assumption worth rechecking.

She's an adult with autonomy.

Spoonfeeding limits her independence and learning.

👤 apothegm
“A place for everything and everything in its place”.

Each device’s place is on its charger. Done.

The exception is my phone, whose place is wherever I am, but I keep an eye on the battery and it warns me at 20% so I’ll plug it in for a bit when not actively using it; and in an emergency can use a power bank and then plug it and the power bank back in as soon as wall chargers are an option.

👤 k310
Partial solution. "Find my" reported my daughter's dog's air tag was on low (non-rechargeable CR2032) battery from 200 miles away.

Not scaleable, but fun to share. I'm not sure that a computer could be (Apple)scripted to BT monitor so many gadgets.

Worth exploring? Does some app already do this?

Alternately, rejoice in short battery cycles and recharge daily/nightly. Batteries rarely blow up on float charge these days. It was exciting in the past. Never left anything charging when I left the house.

👤 jasonthorsness
Maybe modern houses need a “charging room” like a coat closet with lots of outlets and shelves.
👤 rgreekguy
I am taken aback by the amount of devices you two people seem to have, honestly.

For me I just... use them. And I have a tendency to not forget such things. The unused ones will lose their charge over time, indeed.

My phone I use. My old phone, that I use as GPS, I have to remember to charge before I need it.

My laptop I use all day, my previous laptop has no battery anymore.

My iPad Mini has got the short stick some times, to be honest, because it is mainly a secondary device. I have it always with me, but I rarely use it outside the house. And in the house it's not the top device, either.

The Steam Deck I use throughout the week, so I see its charge. But now I used it again the day before yesterday after half a year, or something. It happens, no need to have it charged in the meantime, frankly. Same for my controller. The little Anbernic handheld faces a similar fate.

Wireless keyboards I do not possess currently, and the one wireless mouse I have takes an AA battery, and is Logitech, 2-year battery, no worries.