I’ve been on the road a lot this year, and as much as I love exploring the country and other parts of the world, some travel annoyances are difficult to overcome. One of them is remembering to pack the right charging cables for phones, smartwatches, and other gadgets. Even when you bring all the right charging accessories, you’re often left with a messy hotel desk strewn with cables to charge all your devices. It’s a frustrating situation all around.
Thankfully, I think I’ve finally found a solution to this problem — at least when it comes to charging my iPhone and Apple Watch. Belkin recently sent me its BoostCharge Pro Travel Pad, and after using it on a recent three-day trip to New York City, it’s earned a permanent spot in my backpack as an accessory I’ll never travel without again.
A small, flexible, and fun design
My favorite thing about Belkin’s Travel Pad is its design. When folded, you have easy access to the magnetic phone charging pad. On the backside is a rubber ring to prevent it from sliding on a table, and that’s also where the Apple Watch charger puck lives — which you can flip up and use, too.
The body of the Travel Pad is made of fabric that looks and feels excellent. It’s soft, well-constructed, and gives the Travel Pad a cozier feeling than any of my other charging accessories.
The Travel Pad’s size makes it even better. It easily fits in the palm of my hand and even the smallest pockets of my backpack. It’s a compact and portable square with a magnetic phone charger on one side and an Apple Watch charger on the other. That’s pretty cool, but the real magic happens when you open up the Travel Pad.
Do this, and you can charge your phone and Apple Watch simultaneously. A single USB-C cable powers the Travel Pad — which is included in the box, along with a 30W power supply. It’s an extremely neat and tidy setup, and it’s precisely what I’ve been looking for in a travel charger.
During my latest work trip, the Travel Pad was an incredible tiny home for my iPhone 16 Pro and Apple Watch Series 10. At the end of each day, I had a single, organized place to charge my phone and watch. I also only had one cable to keep track of, and when I needed to put the Travel Pad back in my bag, it took up hardly any room. It’s fantastic.
Charge speeds and Qi2
Belkin got the hardware right, but it also nailed the nerdy charging specs. Put your phone on the charger, and it’ll charge at up to 15W. The Apple Watch charger also supports fast charging for the Apple Watch Series 7, 8, 9, and 10.
While the watch charger is specific to the Apple Watch, the magnetic phone charger works with MagSafe-compatible iPhones and any other device with Qi2. Although there aren’t many Qi2 Android phones available yet, they’ll work perfectly with the Travel Pad once you get one. You can also use any wireless-charging-capable device with the Travel Pad’s charger; it just won’t work with the magnets unless your device has MagSafe or Qi2.
On that note, if you prop the Travel Pad up into its tent mode and place your iPhone on it, it’s the perfect orientation to display StandBy on your iPhone. You can also still flip out the Apple Watch charger and charge it in this mode.
My new favorite travel accessory
Belkin already impressed me earlier this year with its three-port USB-C wall charger, and the Travel Pad is another excellent addition to the company’s line of high-quality charging accessories. It’s portable, well-made, tidy, and powerful. In other words, everything you want in a travel charger.
I have a few final trips planned for 2024, and I can confidently say that Belkin’s Travel Pad will be joining me for all of them. If you’ve been looking for the perfect iPhone/Apple Watch travel accessory, you just found it.
The Belkin Travel Pad is available now for $120.
