CES 2025 is back in full swing, starting tomorrow. Dave McQuilling and Adam Doud are on the ground in Las Vegas, covering the latest in technology to come. Covering technology in a conference as large as CES is rarely easy, but it suits our “road-warrior” lives. You never know when you might need to drop down in a coffee shop and write out an article based on a cool thing you just saw.

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To help with that, we at Read thought it might be helpful to know what gear is helping our two writers get around town to tell you about all this great stuff during CES this year. Both writers have a few different items in their arsenal that are their standard, go-to pieces of equipment, and they’re trying some new things along the way as well.

So, without further ado, here’s the tech that’s helping Adam and Dave bring you the latest at CES.

There are two stages when it comes to writing about what we find on a tradeshow floor. The first stage is what you’re carrying around on the show floor itself. This rig has to be super portable, and flexible enough to work just about anywhere. To start, I have a 16L backpack sent to me by STMspecifically for this show. Normally, I’m a messenger bag kind of guy, but when you’re at a trade show, it’s not uncommon to get flyers, tote bags, and even the occasional review sample to carry along with you. I find a messenger bag doesn’t work well for that. A backpack offers more space inside to hold everything you leave your hotel room, as well as everything you pick up along the way.

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Inside the bag, I have a Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 13which is running Intel’s’ Core Ultra 7 processor, and has 32GB of RAM and 512GB of storage. Is that way too much power for a writer? Yes. But it’s ridiculously light at just a hair over two pounds and has a 14-inch display, so it’s lightweight and powerful enough to handle a variety of tasks.

As for photos and notes, I have my typical pair of smartphones. My iPhone 16 Pro Max is my constant companion — due mostly to the fact that both of my children have iPhones, so I need it — and the Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold is my main phone. Both phones have ridiculously great cameras, and the Pixel’s recording/transcription ability is gold when you’re conducting interviews on the show floor.

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Once I get back to my room — far later than I should — I have a few other devices to aid in my writing. ProtoArc sent its XKM01 combo package which includes a portable keyboard, mouse, and laptop stand. This is meant to be a portable setup, and it works for that, but I find it’s better to use in the hotel room. The laptop stand in particular is nice because it elevates the screen. When you’re constantly looking down at your computer screen, it can have adverse effects on your back. The mouse and keyboard are both very solid, so much so that I wrote this article with them.

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I added a Plugable 15.6-inch portable second monitor to the mix as well. My workflow really functions much better if I can have second (or third or fourth) monitor, and the thing I really like about Plugable’s offering is the ability to get power from a 65W plug, take the 15W that it needs to power itself, and pass along the rest to charge the laptop. Less cables is always preferable.

Aside from all that, I have my tech go-bag that I wrote about a few weeks ago. This has all the plugs and chargers I need to get through any trip, including a trade show like CES. It keeps my phones, watches, and everything powered up and ready to go.