Another month, another quick low-effort post written on the last night. I hope this will be relevant for the upcoming holiday season, however.
I think portable chargers are a good default gift. That is, they are a useful gift to a wide variety of people.
1. Most people could benefit from a portable charger
I've had a portable charger for about a year now. At no moment has it saved me from a crisis. But it has often eased my stress if my phone battery is getting low while I'm out, or let me be a good Samaritan when someone else's phone is running low.
I'm not alone in this either, however. A low phone battery is a fairly universal experience — at least for the 91% of Americans who own a smartphone. So there's a good chance you know someone who would benefit from a portable charger.
2. Few (Americans) think to buy one themselves
Despite portable chargers being so useful, few people I know own one.1 So if you buy someone a portable charger, it's unlikely that they would have gotten one themself.
Moreover, I think that few enough people think about portable chargers that it comes across as a somewhat clever gift. Socks can a helpful or fun gift (who would spend $15 to buy themselves a pair of socks with a repeating dog pattern?), but it's also a really basic choice. A portable charger on the other hand — that's genius...
Conclusion
Putting these together: we have an object that many people would likely benefit from but aren't likely to buy themselves. There's a good chance that someone you know might enjoy it as a gift. That doesn't mean it's the right gift, but it's not a bad default to start from.
I don't have a good recommendation for what portable charger you should get someone else. I own a crappy little thing I bought for $20 in a 7-11 in China. But Wirecutter exists?