The Best Festival Gadgets and the Ones to Avoid

Gadgets are useful in all sorts of situations, but at festivals I’d say they’re a must-have. So here’s what I took to Reading Festival this year.

I only brought 5 simple devices to make sure I stayed connected and didn’t pass out from heatstroke. All were fairly modest gadgets, but the combination made the festival experience all the more enjoyable and relaxed.

However, I also decided that a smart device that I’ve been using a lot lately wouldn’t do the trick. In fact, I thought it was a bad idea to bring it along.

Stay cool

My colleague and Home Tech Editor, Emma, has become something of a fan expert and now, an influencer.

I read their review of the John Lewis Anyday fan and was immediately convinced that it would be perfect for a festival. It’s big enough to move a good amount of air (with three speeds) but small enough to slip into a bag without any hassle.

I went with the lovely sage green colour and w ith its 9 hours of battery life it can run all day if needed. Plus the foldable design also makes it easy to put down.

It’s a brilliant little thing and even at the full £12 price I paid it was worth every penny and was still cheaper than many similar options on Amazon.

Getting those tough shots right

Although I also brought the Pixel 9, the Xiaomi 14 Ultra quickly became my device of choice at the festival for a variety of reasons.

In addition to its large screen, useful for checking your schedule, and its good battery life, it is its incredible battery that has won over the smartphone. It has no fewer than four rear cameras, including two telephoto lenses.

Since it was very difficult to get in front of the crowd, the 14 Ultra was able to take photos that simply wouldn’t have been possible otherwise. The Pixel 9 only has a regular camera and an ultra-wide.

A typical example was arriving late to Teddy Swims and finding I couldn’t even get into the tent where the Radio 1 stage was. However, despite being very much outside, the Xiaomi allowed me to take a few photos of Teddy singing under the spotlights.

The Radio 1 tent at the Reading festival

Stay energized

Next on my list was a power bank. I picked up Ugreen’s new Nexode model, which offers 100W of fast power to keep devices charged.

Compact and light enough to slip into a bag, it allowed me to be sure not to run out of battery on my smartphone or other, thus avoiding having to use the festival’s charging stations.

The Nexode has a 12,000mAh capacity, which is enough to fully charge multiple phones, as well as convenient features like a small display and non-slip feet.

Chris Martin / Foundry

Something to carry everything

Since only bags smaller than an A4 sheet of paper were allowed into the main arena, I needed a bag to carry all of these things – plus things like sunglasses, sunscreen, ID and more.

The Stubble & Co shoulder bag was absolutely perfect for the job; it was small enough to be allowed inside, but with enough room for everything I needed to carry. Despite its compact size, it has a number of different pockets and compartments, making it easy to find things.

I chose an Urban Green colourway, but it also comes in Sand and All Black. It kept everything safe and dry as the material is also waterproof.

The gadget I couldn’t take

At the beginning, I mentioned that there was one gadget I couldn’t bring myself to bring to the festival. It was the Samsung Galaxy Ring (or any smart ring if I had used another one).

The fit on my size 12 Galaxy Ring is snug, without being too tight, but I knew I was going to be paranoid about this little £399/$399 piece of tech falling off, even without participating in any mosh pits. A bit of rain or sweat and the tight fit becomes a thing of the past, so I knew there was a reasonable chance I’d be emailing Samsung to say it’s now in a field somewhere.

Another reason I didn’t want to take the smart ring was to avoid it telling me how exhausted I was and how little energy I had to enjoy the festival. My twenties are a distant memory, so ignorance was bliss in terms of energy score for such an event.

Chris Martin / Foundry

The replacement

I did bring a wearable with me, though. The Withings ScanWatch Nova was a great option for the festival in a number of ways, besides not having to worry about it falling out during Blink-182.

It has a battery life of up to 30 days, so I have no chance of needing to recharge it, even with the power bank. It is also very durable thanks to its waterproof stainless steel casing, so more than capable of withstanding anything the festival could throw at it.

While it looks like a traditional watch, it has built-in smarts that allow me to track things like steps and heart rate. I just chose not to wear it at night to track my less-than-ideal sleep.