Power Your Gadgets in the Field: the Bolt USB Device Charger

Many photographers depend heavily on smartphones, tablets and other gadgetry to keep in touch with others, to keep track of their locations and to share their portfolios on a moment’s notice. Photographers, like many other kinds of professionals, have found mobile gadgets to be indispensible tools for daily work and life. However, like a digital camera or a flash, these devices are only useful when they have juice.

A unique new tool is now available that makes it possible to power and charge mobile gadgets with the same kind of external battery packs that are used to power on-camera flashes. If you own a Quantum Instruments Turbo Series battery pack, such as a Turbo SC Slim or a Turbo 3, or a Bolt Cyclone PP-300, the new Bolt USB Device Charger gives them all USB charging capabilities.

The Bolt USB Device Charger is a short cable with a five-pin power connector on one end (which plugs into the power socket on a battery pack), and a female USB A receptacle on the other. Operation is simple. You plug the Bolt USB Device Charger into a battery pack, and you plug the syncing/charging cable of your device into its USB receptacle. It’s an easy way to keep your gadgets running in the field when you’re away from power outlets. It’s also a handy system to have around during a power outage, such as the one we recently suffered through here on the East Coast of the USA, in the wake of Hurricane Sandy.

External battery packs for on-camera flashes are extremely beneficial accessories for photographers who need to fire off a large number of shots in rapid succession. Thanks to the Bolt USB Device Charger, the same battery packs that you use to rapidly recycle Canon, Nikon, Sony, Olympus and Metz flashes can now be used to portably charge your smartphones, tablets and other gadgets.

If you’re not familiar with the Bolt Cyclone PP-300, it’s a battery pack that features a built-in Nickel-metal hydride rechargeable battery. The PP-300 provides fast recycle times of one second with flash units like the Canon Speedlite 580 EX II, Nikon SB-910 AF Speedlight, and the Sony HVL-F58AM. You get up to 400 flashes per charge at full power, and thousands of flashes when in full-automatic mode. The PP-300 charges in two hours, and with the addition of the Bolt USB Device Charger, you can use it to keep your tablet and smartphone charged at all times.

On-camera flash battery packs are must-have items for wedding, sports and event photographers, and these are three environments where having an additional power backup for your portable devices can really save the day. It makes a lot of sense to have the Bolt USB Device Charger in your bag every time you shoot.

If you have any questions about the Bolt USB Device Charger, we encourage you to submit a Comment, below. You can also speak to a B&H Sales Professional by visiting our SuperStore in New York City, giving us a call at 1-800-606-6969, or you can connect with us online for a Live Chat.