What electronics do you use in your seat?
 

In coach space is at a huge premium (and perhaps to a lesser extent in business) so what devices do you take with you to your seat and how do you manage them?

I usually take my Kindle, Bose headphones, Surface Pro 4, my cellphone and a USB charger if the seat has power.

I have not taken my Surface Pro 4 out of it's case though because at 12.3" it is just too big and unwieldy. The cellphone I feel is too small to watch anything if the IFE sucks (which it does 50-60% of the time) or if there isn't any IFE on shorter flights. Now I am thinking of getting a 8" tablet which would be easier to take out and stow away when the meals come out!

Also, was using the seatback pocket to store my stuff but I felt that is bad, last time I had a travel case and got a hook to hang it from the side of the seat which worked out well.

I usually have my little messenger bag at my feet, perfect size for phone, 7" tablet, camera, usb charger and headphones.
I can take what I want out at any given time and very easy to store things again.
Also helps that I can put my passport and other travel docs in it too along with essential medications, so that in the event something happens I'm not going to be left without.

iPad and headphones are my regular kit these days.

Laptop if I have something I need to work on. It really annoys me when the front seat recline and squish my monitor though. With some short legroom, reclining seat means I have to type on my stomach arching my elbow back like a T-rex with tiny arms.

Mainly fly international routes, so longer periods in the seats and often more room, even in coach.

* Nexus phone
* Cheap active noise canceling earbugs
* 13inch Chromebook (10+ hrs on a charge)
* Canon SX700 "travel zoom" + extra battery
* 12K USB battery

Since around 2010-ish most planes I've flown have had USB charging ports in the seatback.

Even on 14+ hr flights, the chromebook (running Linux) has been fine working on a presentation, writing some code or dealing with emails. For multi-day travel, I'll bring the power cord. A tablet just isn't enough operating system for my needs. Tried on one trip and it didn't work out.

For 3 hrs or less, I'd never pull out the chromebook.
I've been eyeing an 8inch tablet. 7 is too small and my 5+ yr old 10inch is too large and has relatively short battery life.

Same, except I use my phone (old iPad is to my kids now) and noise cancelling headphones with wireless adapter. Feel the same way about working on my laptop, the times I need to. Bulkhead and exit rows with non-reclining seats in front are good for this, though.

A phone in handbag. I don't use it in my seat. I'm boring.

IPad and Bose Headphones

iPad air2 and noise cancelling ear buds. And my favourite on LH is a small tens machine to give the back muscles a massage

BlackBerry PRIV, Kindle fire HD, Bose QC30, Anker USB pack, Anker USB 4port charger all in a pouch that I pull out of my carry on and toss in the setback pocket.
The pouch is in a ziploc.

For Int'l flight maybe the Lenovo MiiX.

Reading kindle and listening to music on my iPhone. I don't watch movie on the plane.

My life/work are complicated at the moment, so I generally have with me at my seat good noise canceling headphones, an iPhone, a Mac laptop, a Windows laptop (different machines for different jobs/clients), two Ipads (ditto), a kindle and a usb hard drive. Most flights the only things I actually take out of my briefcase are the iPhone, headphones and the kindle, and occasionally one of the two iPads. But I've found if I don't have these at hand, inevitably the one I need is the one I did not bring with me. I used to carry an iPod as well (and occasionally still do).

IPad Mini, bose headphones, laptop if I have work to do, or happen to be in a row with extra room (bulkhead, exit).
Also carry some bluetooth noise cancelling headphones for shorter hops where I don't want to carry the bulk of the Bose set.

I usually use time on planes to catch up on reading. My kindle just squeezes inside my Bose QC35 case. So if it is a shorter flight normally its just my headphone case with the kindle inside. The one thing I liked better about the QC15 case is it was thinner although larger, and it had an elastic pocket on the back, so I would put my kindle there along with my battery pack. If it is a longer flight then I will also take out my iPad. Although I rarely watch what I have on it, or watch anything on the IFE. I have all kinds of season subscriptions for TV shows that I tell myself I'll watch on the plane, but rarely actually do. I will say my reading picked up significantly when I got one of the Kindles with a backlight. Night flights I always felt the individual reading light wasn't that great, but now with the backlight I don't have to worry about what kind of flight it is I can read on it.

Always Notebook & auxiliary battery, Android pad, noise cancelling headphones, 2-3 phones.

Sometimes: GPS logger, power adapter, external drives, camera, flashlights, reading lights, VR goggles.

Still looking for: good thermoelectric cooler, compact air filter, pen sized printer and scanner. high pitch focused noise generator against parents who let their kids watch media players without headphones.

17.3" HP Elitebook with charger

LG G5 with charger

Earbuds

If the plane has 110v outlets, I prefer to use the HP, obviously. However, the 5.5" screen on the G5 is plenty bright and 2k resolution, more than sufficient for watching movies. I can load 4 or 5 movies in decent quality on a 128 gig microSD and pop it in the phone. I'm actually leaning towards leaving the laptop home from here on out, I find myself using it less and less, and it's a heavy SOB (8 lbs plus the reinforced bag, call it 10 with charger).

Kindle for reading. iPhone (in my pocket) for listening to my playlist and Bose noise canceling headset.

QC20 (and a book...)

Usually it's my laptop (Lenovo T530 - 15"), headphones (B&O H3), iPad mini, OnePlus 3 phone, and a book. But I've been looking to downsize the laptop because mine is pretty chunky and it's hard to use in coach. And if it's a long trip (transoceanic or deep South America) I'll bring along my Bose QC15s.

I keep all of this in my backpack at my feet.

After flying bulkhead recently, keeping all my stuff loose around me, I bought an Eagle Creek medium size sac for the plane. I pull it out as I approach my seat, putting my carry on bag overhead. Contents generally include: tablet, phone, tablet stand, charger, earbuds, eye drops/nasal spray and print book.

OP: I have a Kindle Fire which works great for movies. Mealtime is for listening to an audiobook!

Although I travel with a Kindle, iPhone and iPad, I tend to only use the Kindle unless there is in-seat power. Have been diverted too many times, with unexpected whole night delays, to risk running out of battery. These days, you get more information from the Internet about your flight than you do sitting at the gate.

I put all the stuff I need during the flight in a pack-it cube at my feet. Never put anything of value in the seat pocket as I am likely to forget it.

iPhone and my Bose noise-cancelling headphones. While I can watch stuff on it, I agree it's small, but even if there's no IFE, I will listen to audiobooks or music, or sometimes play Scrabble and word games.

However, now that I can download Netflix movies to my 7" tablet, I might start bringing that too.

QC15's and iPhone. Charger if power is available. Rarely I'll have a 3DS along too.

I'd love to work on the computer, but there isn't enough room in economy for a 15". Besides, sleeping is also really nice :D

My phone, my kindle, and a large power bank.

The seat back pocket in front of you is probably the nastiest place around the seats so I don't use it.

I have my Bose N/C headphones, my iPhone and iPad mini if it is a long flight. for 2 or 3 hours just the headphones and iPad mini. I fly F or J.

None.
On longhaul flights we just use the IFE.
Sometimes the wife chrges her phone but that's about it. Used to bring a small paperback to read, but haven't done that in a while (eversince there's IFE at every seat).

Back in the day the A310s didn't really have IFE in every seat so books were good.

In shirt breast pocket, Noise cancelling ear buds and iphone with current NY Times and Economist pre-loaded. The earbuds aren't as effective as headphones, but they are compact.

In seat back: Macbook Pro. If long flight with bad IFE, add Apple DVD player attachment.

QC-25
Fiio X5ii HD music player
Fiio E12 headphone amplifier

And for long flights:

Samsung 12" tablet with books and movies
Portable USB battery

The only IFE I ever look at is the map display.

These are the only things I access in-seat:

iPad Pro (smaller size) with keyboard and stylus
iPhone
QC20i noise cancelling earbuds
Wireless noise cancelling headphones (unless space is at a premium in which case they stay home)
portable USB battery (in case in seat power isn't working)
charger

Since I got the iPad Pro I have barely touched my laptop and would now never contemplate bringing it with me when I travel.

iPad mini (loaded with books and recently, a few Netflix downloads)
QC20 noise cancelling earbuds (worth every nickel)
iPhone
Portable USB power bank (haven't needed it too much, but when I have ... whew!)

Sometimes on long hauls I'm interested in something on IFE, but I've got enough to keep myself entertained if nothing looks appealing.

If it's a work trip, I bring my Mac Book Pro and my iPhone. If it's pleasure, I frequently just bring the iPhone. It might not be ideal for writing emails, but it lets me do things like look up websites and phone numbers.

I tend to (day flights) read a book, or (night) try to sleep or zone out to IFE.

Chuck

Nexus 6 phone. I normally just listen to podcasts but occasionally I watch a movie on it.

For short flights usually just my cell (Sony XZ) to listen to music or audio books.

For longer trips I usually will usually use in addition to the above mentioned cell, Kindle Fire and an Asus transformer book.

Typical kit includes an iPad Air with Zagg toughcase/keyboard, iPhone 6 (with a slightly cracked screen that I am too lazy to upgrade or do an insurance claim on), Bose earbuds, travel adapter, usb charger with two ports, inflatable neck pillow, paperback historic novel and a couple of magazines and a change of clothing. Everything all in a backpack at my feet.

I never read the magazines, end up bringing them home again. Still working on the novel after about 10 trips. Neck pillow sees use about once each year. Hardly ever use the change of clothes unless I am on EK F after my shower. Maybe I need to think about pairing down my selecttions a little bit?

Top tip that I learned from somewhere else on FT: the British plug on the travel adapter is remarkably good at staying plugged in to worn out in seat power. With the dual usb plugs I can offer to share with Mrs. Flaneurs.

Usually end up watching some free Amazon Prime downloaded stuff on the iPad (with earbuds of course) and wondering why I can't sleep on airplanes anymore. New addition to my routine is in flight WiFi via Amex Business Plat. vouchers.

Bose QC20 ear pieces and my iPhone for music. And then I read real books. If there's work to do, then my Surface Book.

Phone (just for music), earphones, sometimes an e-reader.