[Cheetah223]

Is there any way to supply external power to a powerbook on an airplane? I'm going to be flying to Europe this summer and I don't exactly feel like buying 2 spare batteries to run on the flight.

[Fusion]

This is really one of those "google it" answers because it will be much more helpful. There are probably hundreds of companies that make such a device that works with powerbooks. The one I would personally recommend is by kensington.

Kensington In-Seat Airline Power Adapter

You can also find that on the Apple online store.

[Randman]

What airline will you be flying? And what class? Make sure it will have the ability to use a charger? If not, a second battery isn't a bad investment over the long run. And you can carry it in a case (make sure you have a good case for carrying the PBook around).
Also, depending on the airline, your entertainment choices are expanded. For instance, on all Singapore Airlines flights (and many others on trans-oceanic flights), you have full video-on-demand on in-seat screens which helps the time pass by (if you can't score sleeping pills to doze the time away).

[Cheetah223]

I'm not sure which airline I'll be flying, but almost guaranteed coach. The friend I'm going to be visiting is an air traffic controller for the US Air Force so he'll get an FAA discount on the ticket for me, but it'll most likely still cost enough to sway me out of first class. I wasn't sure there was any way/place to hook a charger to in a cabin, I've been on a decent number of flights, but never thought to look for any kind of power outlet. Do the outlets vary from air carrier to carrier? Actually I guess it would be a better question of whether they vary from Boeing to Airbus, etc.

[Freeflyer]

If you're flying coach you have very little chance of having a power socket available. Continental have a few rows in coach with empower sockets, but I don't know of any others. You might chat up the flight attendants and see if they'll let you plug it in to a regular power socket in the galley, but don't count on it.

If you're not flying business, you're best option is a spare battery.

J.

[jpg71]

Here's a site that lists what airlines have available in the way of EmPower ports:

http://www.rentcomputers.com/sosair.html

Keep in mind that you'll need an EmPower capable charging system.

An alternative is to get a high-capacity battery. I've had good experiences with Valence's products, specifically the N-Charge system, while travelling with laptops. These batteries can provide up to 10 hours of power, depending on which one you get and what kind of laptop you're charging. Their new product, N-Charge II is probably what you'd want for your PowerBook:

http://www.valence.com/ncharge2.asp

Good luck!

[cwagar]

www.seatguru.com

[Leo the 3rd]

Thanks. This thread helped me determine I just needed a spare battery instead of a Empower unit - AirTran doesn't have any power ports on their planes. Oh well. Good job folks.

[tooki]

Originally posted by cwagar:
www.seatguru.com

What a dreadfully designed menu on the left of that site -- and no way to get around it. (THAT is why people without usability training shouldn't be designing user interfaces!)

tooki

[Macfreak7]

Don't bother buying one if you're travelling singapore airlines, they bave spare adapters. and what's even better is that they typically have a dc outlet for each seat, so just bring your apple adapter.

[Cheetah223]

Thanks for all the help, I'm probably going to be on British Airways and Lufthansa out of the country, while I'm home I've been on everything that flies in the continental US..Mostly Northwest and Delta though.

[xavier1]

FYI: I know for a fact that all Delta Airlines 737-800 have the empower plugs on board,well atleast I think the Delta Shuttle aircraft.