iPad power on board - I'm confused!

Hello,

I am sure I must be missing something obvious and I am hoping one of you kind members will be able to help me out.

I asked VS customer service if the cables supplied as part of the onboard "gaming pack" would enable me to charge my iPad whilst in flight.

Their answer was
"You can use our inseat power to listen to music on your iPad/iPod/mp3 player. However, you will not be able to charge your equipment onboard.

Passengers are reminded that in the interests of cabin safety, inseat power must not be used as a charging facility."

My question is, why would i want to plug my iPad into a VS aircraft to listen to my music - I can do that completely independently. What is the point of plugging a device into a power outlet if it won't charge it....

I am clearly being a bit dim here ?| ?| ?|

Thanks, MrsB

A bit of an asinine response from VS. BTW you use in seat power to power your devices when the battery is low or out, they provide enough energy to run things, not charge them.

What is the gaming pack, if it is supposed to be something to buy on board then I don't believe it is there anymore? I have one of these which has a side USB power supply. It does not charge in the conventional sense, but emits a lower power source to run a USB device. In reality, it does charge on VS planes very slowly.

I bought it at Dixons in T3.

Unless that is you're on an A333 which has USB power at seat (in PE and UC?).

Thanks Slinky.

The "gaming pack" is mentioned here - http://www.virgin-atlantic.com/en/gb/whatsonboard/upperclass/servicesandextras/laptoppower.jsp

It says
...For other gadgets, our Gaming Pack which we offer onboard supports a full range of iPods and the Sony PSP.

So, to keep my iPad running for the duration of the flight, i should plug it in to the seat so it will not use it's own power...?

Thanks - that makes sense now - I think

MrsB

I use this to power my mac on board. Just to stop it draining the battery. I don't know if it charges iPads directly but it means I can also stop my iPod and iPhone running out of juice using a USB charger connected to the Macbook.

http://store.apple.com/uk/product/MB441 ... TY3ODQ5OTY

I think what they mean when they say don't use it as a charging facility is you should only plug it in when you are using it. I had this explained in PE once by CC who said it can starts fires(!)

I think what they mean when they say don't use it as a charging facility is you should only plug it in when you are using it. I had this explained in PE once by CC who said it can starts fires(!)

I don't know about fires but IIRC, didn't the inseat power kill Honeylamb's ipod?

The whole fires thing was H&S gone mad.

Mrs Bear - your iPad power connector is via a USB cable, VS in seat power does not have USB connectivity except on the new A333s, hence you need an adaptor like the one I linked to.

That said, if you fully charge your iPad it will last a long time ...

[honey lamb]

I think what they mean when they say don't use it as a charging facility is you should only plug it in when you are using it. I had this explained in PE once by CC who said it can starts fires(!)

I don't know about fires but IIRC, didn't the inseat power kill Honeylamb's ipod?

It did but I suspect that the said iPod was on the blink in any case and it fried within minutes of plugging in

I posted about this adaptor recently. It may prove useful to you.

http://www.maplin.co.uk/empower-aircraf ... tor-543088