Practical: Here are 9 iPad travel accessories to supercharge your travels

I recently took a quick weekend trip and just wanted to bring my iPad Pro and the other essentials I needed. With just my iPad and a few accessories, I was able to get all the work I needed done while traveling light and without sacrificing power, comfort, or breaking the bank. I wanted to shed some light on these plugins because I think they are really a must have.

What iPad do I use?

I currently use a iPad Pro 12.9 M1 with 128 GB of storage and Wi-Fi only. That means I’m using the absolute base model. I wish I would have gone with the 256GB or the 512GB, especially since my iPad is my only computer, but I do use some SSDs to compensate. Even though I’m using an iPad Pro, most of the accessories I mentioned will have an alternative to your specific iPad unless otherwise noted. I’ll also try not to mention the obvious accessories, but something like the Magic Keyboard is impossible to miss because it simply transforms your iPad into a laptop.

The main accessories

This category of accessories is for products that are usually always physically on the iPad. When I travel, I always have five products on my iPad:

• Origrid by TinyRigs – This is a relatively new product that I have been using for a few months. For travel, this thing is a life saver. It allows you to move and travel with all your iPad essentials without even having to carry a backpack. The Origrid slides over the back panel of the Magic Keyboard and adds storage space to the back of the iPad. The model I have has two zippered compartments and these tension bands that can be manipulated to fit almost anything! I can easily fit a charger, cables, AirPods, SSD, Apple Pencils, a cleaning kit, and a few other items.
• paper type screen protector – I’ve had this on every one of my iPads. As an Apple Pencil user, I love it for the resistance it provides, especially when you’re shading something or just taking notes. It protects the most important part of iPad, the screen, as well as giving it an anti-glare finish so you can use it outdoors. The screen is the most important resale variable, so be sure to keep it scratch and crack free!
• Penoval A4 Pro Apple Pencil Alternative – I could have mentioned the Apple Pencil 2 here, but it would be boring. The Apple Pencil is still $130, five years later! The Penoval pen gives you 99% of the experience for 1/4 the cost. It has tilt sensitivity and palm rejection, fully charges in 30 minutes to give you six hours of continuous use, charges via USB-C, still attaches via magnets, and works with virtually any iPad. . The only thing is that it doesn’t charge magnetically and wirelessly, but it does everything else, including the double tap shortcut.
• Pitaka MagEZ Case I recently did a to post about this case and the Pita!Flow ecosystem. But in short, what this case does is add some side protection to the iPad Pro, and it can stay on even when using the magic keyboard. It also allows you to charge your iPad wirelessly.
• magic keyboard – If you are an iPad Pro or iPad Air user, and you want your iPad to be something of a laptop replacement, then you almost have to get this accessory. Yes, it’s expensive, coming in at $350 for the 12.9-inch. version (currently $50 off for the white version), but it really transforms what the iPad is all about. The touchpad experience is amazing, the floating layout is a conversation starter, and the keyboard is a delight to type on (currently writing this article there). Some other options to consider for this are:

Other essential accessories

Now that I’ve mentioned the accessories that are always on my iPad while I’m traveling, there are a few other products that I bring with me to round it all off. I still need things like a USB-C hub, an SSD, and a way to charge. So here’s the rest!

usb-c hub

The USB-C hub I’ve been traveling with is the 6-in-1 HyperDrive with media controls. What I like about this is that it’s very compact, familiar, and has all the essential ports you’d need on the go. It has a USB-C power pass-through, SD card, Micro SD, USB A, 3.5mm headphone jack, and an HDMI port. But what’s unique about this is the media controls on the front of the hub. These work with any of the media the iPad plays and they work perfectly.

Can

To charge my iPad, I use the new Satechi 108w GAN power block. The 108w is way overkill because the iPad Pro can only support 33W at full speed. But I like this one because it has three USB-C PD ports, so it can charge even the 16-inch MacBook Pro if needed, and it has movable tips, which are always a plus.

various accessories

For the final accessories, I like to bring a few things. I always take my AirPods Pro Gen II with me wherever I go. I know it’s boring, but this stuff just works and the new noise canceling upgrade from Gen I to Gen II still baffles me. Eliminates airplane noise, subway noise, people noise, and just about anything else that isn’t a sudden high-pitched sound. It’s unreal how they do that in a small form factor.

I also carry a Samsung T7 500GB to unload anything that won’t fit on the iPad Pro. Then lastly, I like to take a little cleaning kit with me when I travel to make sure I don’t get any smudges or germs on my iPad. I use the Paper-like cleaning kitwhich I like for its form and function, but there are plenty of other cleaning kits out there as well.

final thoughts

At the end of the day, you should use what works for you. Some people carry a bare iPad with them wherever they go, and others pack enough battery banks, cables, and chargers to last them more than a month, even if they’re gone for two days. These are items I’ve tested for months or even years, and keep as my iPad travel essentials. If you had to choose one of these items, you would have to choose the magic keyboard because it really transforms what my iPad is to me. Let me know what you think! What accessories do you need to take with you? What is something you could never travel without? Let us know in the comments which iPad you use and which is the most recommended accessory to go with it!

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