BlooJoo

Hello!

Heading JFK-LAX-SFO, and I need to bring four laptops with me. Checking is not possible b/c two tickets AA->AS, short connection, and AA won't interline. Am I going to have a problem at the TSA checkpoint in JFK? I am Pre-Check, although I'm not sure that matters. The only other choice is to ship them which is very costly and slow.

I've reviewed the TSA website, and it doesn't indicate a number, and just says laptops are OK.

Since I'm Pre, can I leave them in my large rollie?

Thank you.

nachosdelux

no problem but the bag may be flagged for inspection - will maybe delay you a few minutes.

if you want to avoid this then take them out and lay them individually on the belt, even though it may not be necessary.

droopydog

I carry three devices. I find the need to proactively remove is variable based on location. I rarely get a secondary for the devices in my bag at Pittsburgh but do every time in Atlanta (so I always remove them in Atlanta). One problem is at some locations they will not have any bins in the precheck line and you have to ask for them. The response is usually, "you do not need them", and I have to press with, "trust me, I know I do." They then grumpily hand them to you like you are clueless, but you end up saving time anyway.

Often1

I've got two laptops and two phones in my carry-on as well as all manner of cables and associated accessories. Never been pulled over at Pre-Check for a secondary for that reason. Even a secondary is only going to take 2-3 minutes to check & swab all four of your devices.

droopydog

Except Atlanta!!!!

bhomburg

I've never had any issues with laptops at the JFK T8 (AA) PreCheck checkpoint, and I sometimes had half a dozen and more. Taking them out of your bag and putting them in a bin proactively is sound advice.
Although this is more of an issue outside of the US, keep the batteries charged so you can turn them on if asked.

Be aware that AA policy allows no more than two laptops 'for personal use' in your carry-on. I have never seen this enforced, but it is their policy.

Often1

Do not take them out in advance. At Pre-Check this can hold up the line, which delays both you and the people behind you. On the extremely remote chance that your bag is selected for secondary, TSA will deal with it and you will then have the 2-3 minute issue.

WillCAD

I doubt you'll have any problems. Lots of people travel with multiple laptops.

I've never traveled with multiple laptops myself, but I have traveled with a carry-on bag full of electronics - laptop, tablet, multiple cameras and lenses, batteries, chargers, power bricks, and enough cables to lasso a rhino. In my experience, the best thing you can do to streamline your transit at the checkpoint is to pack everything OCD neat. Put the laptops on top where they can easily be removed. Wrap up each of your cables neatly with a Velcro strap. Put as much as possible into removable organizers.Don't overpack - leave enough room to quickly get everything back into the bag if TSA decides to empty it.

Loren Pechtel

Why individually velcro the cables?

My laptop bag has the big cables (power supply and the power wire for the power supply, and when I still carried it my long ethernet cable) individually velcroed. However, all the small stuff has one mesh bag to live in, nothing else lives in it. I don't travel a lot but PVG normally empties the whole thing (except two small pockets they've never found)--they take one glance at the cable bag, see it's a bag of cables and that's that.

WillCAD

I can't say with certainty that individually Velcroing the cables has a huge impact. But it changes the shape of the cable, and I believe that different shape is less likely make the operator call for a hand inspection than a bunch of wires running through the middle of a bag. My carry-on is compartmentalized with padded dividers, essentially a big camera bag, and I use one compartment for all of the cables, wrapped and stacked vertically. With everything organized and stacked neatly, I have always believed that it becomes easy for the operator to see what's in the bag, and I've never had my carry-on referred for hand inspection. Granted, I don't fly all that much, especially compared to the average FTer, but still, in the nineteen years since it was foisted upon us, TSA has never hand inspected any of my carry-ons, while my checked bag has been pulled multiple times over the years and even had TSA locks cut or lost.

I also think it's easier to manage the cables when they're individually tied. It's easier to find the one cable you need among many, and they don't get tangled and fall all over the floor. But that's just my OCD talking.

paperwastage

i used to stuff/squeeze all my wires into one packed ziploc bag (laptop, usbC, microUSB, travel adapter, extension cord, camera charger...) in my backpack

but apparently it shows up as a black mass on the scanner, so they have to pull my bag, take out the bag of wires and rescan backpack+ziploc separately

now, i put it into two ziploc bags (and not extremely stuffed), no sisues afterwards

chrisl137

I have precheck and routinely travel with two laptops and two phones, and the only time I had an issue was when it was two identical models stacked on top of each other and they happened to line up almost but not quite perfectly. The X-ray guy ran it back and forth and then eventually said "do you have two identical laptops?" and I was on my way.

A couple weeks ago I had a third laptop (in my second bag), so it was two laptops and two phones in one, one laptop in the second. No problem.

Loren Pechtel

The chargers in there also will make it a confusing mass.

WillCAD

I never have any issues with my chargers and power blocks. I think it may be because I have then stacked neatly in my bag's compartments. They're typically all stacked together in one compartment, but they're neatly organized.

One thing, though - I don't have PreCheck, nor do I have a checkpoint-friendly bag, so my laptop and tablet both come out of the bag and go into bins. TSA has always claimed that this makes the image clearer for the x-ray operator.