New fuelrod kit

I was already a fan of the fuelrod chargers available at the Disneyland parks, as I’ve discussed before. But the old ones, with the USB A port for charging and a USB B Micro port for recharging the fuelrod, were compromised devices: Good in a pinch and easily swapped for a fresh battery inside the parks, but with the caveats of a slow 5 W charging speed and relatively small capacity.

A few weeks ago, trying to swap the old fuelrod for a new one resulted in a notice that the old device would be upgraded free of charge to the new kit, which comes with a redesigned fuelrod itself (“Mobile Power Bank Model R32A/B”), USB C to Lightning, USB C to USB C, and USB C to USB B Micro and USB A to USB C adapters. The rod itself now has a single USB C port used for both charging other devices and recharging itself. Four green LEDs display the state of charge (full to empty). And, critically, the batttery appears to be larger capacity (11.52 Wh, 3.6V 3200 mAh), and the charging speed is greater, now outputting 5V ⎓ 1.5A, which is 7.5 W.

While that’s not amazing (I have a $16 Anker Zolo battery pack with a 10,000 mAh capacity (guesstimating that to be 36 Wh) that can charge at up to 30 W, but it’s naturally bulkier), it’s a significant improvement. Couple that with the convenience of being able to swap for a fresh battery at kiosks located throughout the parks, and it’s something I’ll always have with me (along with a MagSafe battery pack, of course, you just can’t beat that convenience, especially when getting in your 30,000+ steps...).

New fuelrod kit