I just bought 10 travel gadgets... right before changing my life ( Literally).

Hey, Johannes from GearUpYourLife here 👋

I just got back from London and in nine days I’ll be moving from Germany to Bulgaria.

Before that happens though, I ordered a big pile of travel gadgets to test, bring with me, and potentially start using myself. Some of them were actually suggestions from you, and others were those late-night finds where you suddenly think:

“Wait… why don’t I already have this?”

So today I want to show you 10 gadgets I recently bought and I’m most curious about right now.

But first, a quick personal update.

Over the past year I’ve traveled a lot,mostly around Europe and a bit of North Africa. When you travel like that it always feels a little temporary… like you’re just passing through.

This move feels different.

For the first time in a while it’s not just another trip it’s actually starting a life somewhere new.
A new routine, a new city, new places to explore… and that feeling of stepping into something a little unknown again.

And to be honest, that’s exciting.

Before we jump into the gadgets, I want to quickly say one thing.
Yes, you can click the links and check out the products if you want. But unlike some of my usual posts or videos, I honestly don’t know yet if these are good. I haven’t properly tested them yet, that’s exactly what I’m about to find out.

Alright… with that out of the way, let’s jump into the 10 gadgets I’m most curious about right now.

Here are the 10 gadgets I recently bought and I’m most curious about testing:

(Power Bank) INIU Mini Portable Charger 45W — ($28)
I picked this up mainly because it looks like a really solid alternative to the Anker Nano power banks, but at a much better price. What I like about this one is the size — it’s extremely small but still powerful enough for fast charging. I think it could be perfect for city trips, especially for the short trips I’m planning from Bulgaria later this year (places like Istanbul). And it will probably appear in one of my upcoming videos as well.

(Travel Adapter) Anker Nano 5-Port Travel Adapter — ($30)
I’ve been wanting to replace my Epicka universal travel adapter for a while now. It works great, but it’s honestly very bulky, especially when you’re trying to travel more minimal. This one from Anker looks much smaller while still giving you multiple USB ports and a wall outlet. If it works the way I hope it does, it might become my new default travel adapter, especially for my Southeast Asia trips later this year.

(Backpack) tomtoc Travel Backpack 40L — ($75)
I’ve made a few really good backpack videos already, but since I bought the tomtoc Tech Pouch — which I absolutely loved for the price — I’ve been curious about their backpacks. And since I need a new carry-on backpack both for my upcoming move to Bulgaria and for the camper trip later this year, this one went straight to the top of my list.

(Sleep Gadget) Dreamegg Portable White Noise Machine — ($15)
I’ve actually never owned a white noise machine myself. But about two years ago my girlfriend had one from another brand and I remember it helping me fall asleep incredibly well when traveling. Unfortunately that one got lost somewhere along the way, so I decided to test this one. It’s egg-sized, battery powered, and extremely compact, which makes it interesting for travel.

(Cable Organizer) FYY Travel Cable Organizer Pouch — ($9.50)
To be completely honest… I bought this mainly because I’m planning a “Travel Gadgets Under $10” video. So I was curious if something this cheap could actually be useful. If it turns out to be good, it could be THE budget accessorie that surprisingly solve a lot of small travel problems.

(Headphones) Soundcore Q30 Noise Cancelling Headphones — ($90)
I absolutely love working with over-ear headphones. And while the Sony XM5s are amazing, not everyone wants to spend $300 on headphones. The Q30s from Soundcore are often recommended as one of the best budget noise-cancelling headphones, so I wanted to see if they live up to the hype. They’re not strictly a travel gadget, but they can obviously be great for flights, trains, and working while traveling.

(Security Gear) Peak Gear Travel Money Belt — ($26)
Since I’m planning quite a few short trips to Africa this year, I wanted something that gives me a bit more invisible security. A money belt is worn under your clothes and lets you store things like your passport, cash, or cards where they can’t easily be accessed. I’ve heard a lot of good things about this specific one, so this is more of a security “nice to have” for those trips.

(Toiletry Item) GUM Folding Toothbrush — ($8.50)
This one is pretty self-explanatory. If you’ve watched my videos for a while, you know how much I love foldable products. They just save space and make packing easier. A folding toothbrush is one of those tiny upgrades that can make a toiletry kit a lot more compact.

(Sleep / Home Gadget) Blackout Stickers — ($3–5)
This is one of those small things I’ve wanted for a long time. These stickers are designed to cover tiny LED lights on devices like routers, chargers, or TVs, the ones that light up your room at night. Yes, a sleep mask works too, but when you’re at home or staying somewhere longer, these can make your entire room properly dark, which helps a lot with sleep.

(Camping Gear) Naturbummler “Flitzer 1 XL” Roof Tent — (~€3000)
This is by far the biggest purchase I’ve made in a long time — actually the biggest one after my car. For context: my car cost €5950, so yes… the tent was technically more expensive if you consider everything !

The reason I bought it is because I’m planning a long camping trip through Scandinavia. At first I was looking into renting a camper van, but for a month the prices were insane…over €4000 just for the van, without food or anything else. Even combining hotels and other options would have easily been €3000+ for the trip.

So I started thinking: what if I invest that money instead into something I can use for years?

A roof tent basically turns your normal car into a mini camper. You can sleep on top of the car, set it up in a few minutes, and stay in places where a van would normally be required.

And to be honest… I’m also considering turning this into a much bigger project. I’ve seen very few creators actually do something like this properly. If the setup works well, I might even vlog the entire Scandinavia trip around it. Nothing is confirmed yet — but I’m very excited to try it.

If you enjoyed this little update and you’re curious to see how these gadgets actually perform once I start testing them, I’ve got some good news.

My new video from London is already live, where I show exactly how I pack my complete personal item setup for flights, all the gear I bring with me on long travel days and how it all fits together.

I genuinely think this one turned out to be really helpful if you travel often, so feel free to check it out here:

My Complete Inflight Essentials for Every Trip

And with that, as always

Safe travels,
Johannes

P.S. If you also want to see my new review of the tomtoc Tech Pouch and why I honestly think it’s the best tech pouch you can buy for the price, you can watch that video here:

The ONLY Tech Pouch Worth Your Money!