Recently I had to help a client set up an iPhone 7 that was gifted to her. But there were two issues right up front that I had to deal with. One was that the phone did not come with a charger or a Lightning cable. The second was that the phone’s battery was dead. As in completely drained. In terms of the latter, that’s where this came in:
This is the Anker 323 USB-C 32W two port charger. It’s a 32W cIharger has some neat features:
The first is that it has fold out prongs. While they aren’t removable and are clearly intended for North America, this is handy as it won’t poke through anything in your bag or your pocket. By the way, this fits in your pocket with ease and doesn’t weigh a lot.
The business end of the charger is here with one USB-C port capable of charging at 20W, and one USB-A port capable of charging at 12W. It also has smarts to make sure that nothing gets overcharged.
I used this via USB-A to charge her iPhone 7 to get it to the point that it would turn on. That took about 20 minutes as the iPhone 7 as that phone supports fast charging at 10W. So that part worked. But in the interest of going down the rabbit hole further, I drained my iPhone 12 Pro and I was able to charge it from 10% to 50% in just under 30 minutes. I also tested charging two devices at the same time and that worked as well with no issues. Build quality seems good as well which means it should last for years.
So all of that sounds great. But what cons do I have? Well, other than the fact that this is clearly designed for North American use only, none really. This really doesn’t go out of its way to do a whole lot other than to be a good charger that is easily transportable. At $35 USD, it’s at a good price point that it deserves a place in your gear bag.
Oh. In case you were wondering, I gave the client a brand new Apple 5W charger and brand new Lightning cable so that she could charge the phone and do data transfer.
Some Thoughts On Women’s Equality Day
Posted in Commentary with tags Retrospect, StorCentric on August 26, 2022 by itnerd“Women’s Equality Day is celebrated in the United States on August 26 to commemorate the 1920 adoption of the Nineteenth Amendment (Amendment XIX) to the United States Constitution, which prohibits the states and the federal government from denying the right to vote to citizens of the United States on the basis of sex.” Today, we celebrate with gratitude those strong women that came before, and their efforts to ensure a brighter more equitable future for women everywhere.
I have some thoughts from Samina Subedar, Vice President of Marketing and Communications, StorCentric; and Lindsay Mantzel, Senior Full Stack Developer, Retrospect, a StorCentric Company:
Samina Subedar, Vice President of Marketing and Communications, StorCentric:
“Each year on August 26, Women’s Equality Day is celebrated. While a tremendous amount of progress has been made, in the workplace in particular there remains work to be done. For instance, Catalyst reported that women currently hold just 32 (6.4%) of the CEO positions at the S&P 500 companies. Likewise, according to Pew Research, even though women now earn the highest percentage of both undergraduate and advanced degrees, they remain a small percentage of degree earners in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) – areas where women remain underrepresented in the workforce as well.
Yet, while there remains work to be done, we cannot ignore how far we have come. And, as a woman that has built a successful career in technology, I can personally attest to how fulfilling and rewarding it can be. So on this Women’s Equality Day, I am reflecting on and appreciating all those that encouraged and supported me along the way. The importance of gender parity in the workplace is preceded by equal access to education across the globe, thereby cultivating an environment of gender equality. It is critical that we actively advocate for educational programs that show real world examples of successful women in technology, which can in turn provide inspiring role models. It is also important to champion female-based technology internships and hiring at your organization (not just the right thing to do, diversity optimizes business processes and creates competitive advantage for your company). And, are you a woman in technology? Then, please consider acting as a mentor. There are many organizations around the world focused on such mutually rewarding opportunities.”
Lindsay Mantzel, Senior Full Stack Developer, Retrospect, a StorCentric Company:
“Women’s Equality Day is a holiday that evokes optimism when you reflect on the great strides that have been made, while also reminding us that there are opportunities remaining for further improvement.
I am indeed fortunate to work for a company that greatly values diversity in the workplace. Likewise, from an early age I was encouraged to strive to be the best I could be, and to freely pursue my interests in STEM.
Are you wondering what you can do to help fan the fires of a girl or woman with an interest in STEM? My advice would be that to start, all you really need is to show a positive attitude! Next, encourage curiosity and focus on the fun of learning something new. You can also highlight successful women in STEM that came before and are still blazing trails. However, most importantly, whether it is STEM or they decide they want to pursue another career path – it’s all good! And remind them, as Dr. Seuss astutely stated, ‘If you get the chance, take it. If it changes your life, let it. Nobody said it would be easy, they just promised it would be worth it.’”
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