How do laptops work on the plane?

Okay I know I ask some stupid computer questions My laptop has never left my desk at home. I have no idea what I need to take with me (cords and such). I see people using their laptops on the airplane. Is there somewhere to plug them in or do they work on a battery? If they work on battery how exactly does that work? Can you use them to watch a DVD on the airplane?

Please forgive my ignorance

Whether there is access to power on the place for the laptop does depend upon the type of plane.  Some of the newest ones do otherwise they are using the battery on hte laptop.

....Can you use them to watch a DVD on the airplane?

Yes.  But that's about all you're supposed to do with it on a plane, and only whilst flying high (in the plane).  Using the laptop for anything else can bugger up the airplane's communications/electronics.  Not a good idea

Most laptops come with a battery, and the charge should last for about 4 hours.  Then it (laptop/battery) needs to be plugged into an electrical outlet for re-charging.

Quote from: babala on July 06, 2009, 12:28:50 AM

....Can you use them to watch a DVD on the airplane?

Most laptops come with a battery, and the charge should last for about 4 hours.  Then it (laptop/battery) needs to be plugged into an electrical outlet for re-charging.

mines special ..it lasts four minutes :-D

You might want to get a power inverter, just in case you happen to find a power outlet on the plane. They're typically car charger ports. American Airlines usually has them right beneath the seat.

www.seatguru.com  should be able to tell you where the power outlets are on a plane, and which seats to choose as well, if you choose the plane you will be traveling on.

This shows you what a power inverter is (for the US):
http://www.jcwhitney.com/autoparts/Search?catalogId=10101&storeId=10101&sku=ZX455939&zmam=73771597&zmas=4&zmac=76&zmap=ZX455939

Some flights DO offer internet access nowadays. The stuff about electronic devices on planes mostly applies to takeoff and landing and other delicate navigational moves. Once the plane is at cruising altitude and has found its vector, the rules are relaxed.

Of course, being an airline amenity, it costs a f**king fortune.

I would leave the laptop at home (as you obviously have done in the past) - or check it through in your suitcase.

I was watching a guy using his laptop on a plane the other day and noticed:
- no interaction with other passengers
- sat by the window and never looked out
- passed on the meal ... would have to put the laptop somewhere else
- never once looked at the beautiful hostesses passing by
- gave no indication of reflecting on how planes defy the law of gravity
- had to sit bolt upright for the entire trip so he could see the keyboard

whereas I got to:
- listen to the old man next to me talking to his wife  in some dialect i had never heard before
- see the same Chinese movie (without sound) I had watched on a flight 3 days before
- chomp my way through the 'standard issue' noodles that masquerade as an airline meal
- smile at the beautiful hostess when she said they had run out of coffee
- reflect on why we had to sit in the plane for 1hr 10mins awaiting clearance ... after a 40min delay in boarding
       

   

I dunno....quite often, especially on domestic flights in pretty much ALL your larger countries, the

- no interaction with other passengers

part can be quite the blessing.

But yeah...trans-Pacific flight attendesses can be really the something.
I first flew to China (to live) on Japan Air Lines. Most of the passengers were Japanese and very much kept to themselves, preserving that wa  at all times.

The hostesses, on the other hand, were all young Chinese lovelies except of course for a gimlet-eyed Japanese supervisor. The Chinese girls, naturally, loathed  the Japanese and did their best to ignore them. They made me the main object of their attention, rotating turns to come talk to me and plying me endlessly with drinks, snacks, and official JAL goodies.

That long flight was way too short.

Um, xwarrior, not sure which arguement you are endorsing   

I would leave the laptop at home (as you obviously have done in the past) - or check it through in your suitcase.

Don't place laptops or other delicate/valuable items in checked luggage.  Items have been known to mysteriously disappear from checked luggage at many airports worldwide.

Even if you completely trust the honesty of everyone who will handle your bag, the laptop could still be damaged.  The next time you are waiting for a plane, spend a few minutes watching how delicately luggage is handled as it's loaded and unloaded.