You can learn a lot from the ultra light dudes.
I replaced all my travel electronics to be powerable from USB-C. This saved me from a lot cables and adapters.
Even re-soldered the cable of my electric shaver to use a USB-C PD adapter PCB. As long it's somehow close to the standardized voltages (5/9/12/18/etc.) there will be no problems.
I'm not trying to be gatekeepy or anything, but in 2009 (not so long ago), I did an "ultralight" 40-day on-and-off-road motorcycle trip without any electronics. A few years before that, I did a 10 week "backpacker without a backpack" trip with no electronics. This is still very possible.
The weight savings, the "escape from electronics" bonus... It's not nothing.
> in 2009 (not so long ago)
That's 16 years ago...
In some places it's no longer possible to travel without a smartphone. For example, where I live you can't buy a ferry ticket without an app. So if I want to travel to another island with a motorcycle, I'll have to bring a smartphone.
I think that it's a bad trade-off. A cell phone is a literal lifeline.
Cell phones are a crutch. Us real hikers/backpackers/outdoorians don't need such hand holding as "doing it on easy mode". You look danger in the face and call for help, I look danger in in the face and I say "you ready?". We are not the same.
Why do you need to ask if you're ready? You should always be ready. Not being ready is a sign of weakness. We are not the same.
Fully committing to USB C was a wonderful move. It's much easier to pack for the day, but also for hiking, cycling and motorcycle trips. I wired my motorcycle panniers to have USB C chargers inside them.
Retractable C to C cables are also worth it.
Which brands of retractable USB C to C cables do you prefer?
The random ones I got from Amazon a few years ago have been just fine. I have a longer one for my MacBook on longer trips.
And if soldering is beyond your optimization ambition, there's aliexpress where you can find small USB-PD adapters for most electric shavers. It's little niche innovations like this that drive my ordering flow, not saving a few cents.
For those that want to travel light the Panasonic MultiShape[1] is great as you can share one rechargeable base with multiple tools. It is annoying as it's not USB, but inexpensive cables are available[2] and work great.
[1] https://shop.panasonic.com/pages/multishape [2] https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CMGQWM1B
The trick is to make sure to get a power bank that can do all kinds of voltage. 12V is especially useful for obvious reasons.
(Coincidentally, the Nitecore power bank briefly discussed in the article supports that.)
Can you talk more about this? I have a waterproof Braun one and I was thinking of making. USB-C dongle for it so that I don't have to crack the case and ruin the waterproofing.
If you're taking a shaving device of any sort on your backpacking trip, you've missed a core lesson of the ultra light dudes.
They never said they were packing for a backpacking trip.
Ah, true. I made an assumption.
Wouldn't it be logical that ultra light people have no body hair left? And want to keep it so? After all that is lot of grams...
Well it's only useful if you go on such long hikes that the weight of your hair exceeds the weight of your shaver
Not to mention all the energy loss from air friction!
just think of all the excess weight of dead skin cells covering your body!
Should be one safety razor - just the blade. Just need a steady hand...
You're budgeting for the weight of a safety razor?
Surely the hunting knife you use to kill your dinner when combined with the mirror you use for starting your forraged twig fires, that would be the ultimate solution.
...or just not shave for a few days. I guess you could do that too.
Think of the weight of all the extra hairs though.
That's a good point. Personally, I compensate for that by drinking slighly less water each day.
It's a trade off but I think it makes perfect sense after a few nights of not-sleeping directly on the ground under a miniture dyneema tarp.
About 12 days per gram.