We’re planning a cross-country trip and I’d love to be able to use my laptop in the car to keep the kids busy. The only problem is that my battery doesn’t last all the long. Is there any way I can charge my laptop battery in the car?

Laptops are great; there are so many things you can do with them; but they’re only as good as long as they have power. There are loads of things you can do to extend the length of time you can use the laptop. You can get yourself a spare battery and keep it charged up, you can get yourself a solar charger, or my favourite, you can get a power inverter.

A power inverter is a piece of equipment that converts power from a DC power source to an AC source similar to what you’d get at an outlet at home. Your car’s cigarette lighter gives as 12V DC output which can be used successfully for this purpose. One such inverter is the Black & Decker 100W Power Inverter shown below:

Not only does this let you use your laptop in the car, but it can also be used on a place if it has an adequate power outlet. It’s currently on sale at Buy.com for around $15, which really isn’t much for the ability to use your laptop in your car. One word of warning about using your car battery though, it doesn’t last forever. If your car engine is running, it will charge the battery, but if you’re stationary, you run the danger of draining the battery. Just keep that in mind, otherwise you might end up stranded!