Asklemmy @lemmy.ml

1y ago

What are some small, pocketable/keychainable items that are worth carrying everywhere you go?

136 comments

keys: very handy for when you need to unlock the door to your apartment. If you add car keys you can also drive somewhere which is very helpful. I use mine pretty much every day
cellphone: it's like a multitool with a camera, flashlight and a phone. If it's a smartphone you can all use it to access internet. Saved my life many times when I was bored and had to look at some videos online or check the news
wallet: great for carrying cash, ID and credit cards. It's good to have your ID with you when people ask for your name but you live in a foreign country where no one speaks Polish. You can use cash or credit cards to buy other stuff you need like a bottle opener
- Not quite the spirit of what I was asking for, but upvoting anyway cause it reads like item descriptions you would have seen on r/outside lol.
- Multi tool wallet or include a multi tool credit card in the wallet. I have a wallet that is two pieces of metal with a rubber strap holding it together, with 2-3 cards in between. The wallet has a frequently used bottle opener and a pointy bit meant for screws that I use to cut tape.
- Keys for opening doors, driving etc. Also for defense…My brother got jumped by a group of teens in college. They came up behind, shoved him down. To defend himself, he pulled out his keys and slashed one in the face. They didn’t expect him to do that and took off running. They only got a cheap phone from the ordeal and not his backpack which had expensive books and a laptop in it. I always have my keys on me now.

Earplugs
- Can't go anywhere without mine now. Movies, sporting events, bars. Just way too loud without earplugs
  
  Guess I'm deaf 😭
  
  I just use my in ear earphones, they work decently well and I'm getting them around anyway.

For OP and anyone into this thread - If it's not on lemmy already, there was a dedicated subreddit for this called EDC (every day carry).
- What's a subreddit?
- !edc@sopuli.xyz
  That's the one I've been using, not the most active but seems decent.
  Back to the OP. I carry a Rovyvon A8x flashlight and yubikey on my keychain.
  
  thanks for the input giant smeg

A towel.
- "Any man who can hitch the length and breadth of the galaxy, rough it, slum it, struggle against terrible odds, win through, and still knows where his towel is, is clearly a man to be reckoned with."
- You hoopy frood!

A hardware security key, a knife and some pepper spray is usually what I have, plus my phone but thats a given
Edit: I live in a bad area haha
- I didn’t realize that even good areas are bad areas until I was homeless. Got jumped by a preppy-looking frat boy in a nice part of Boston.
  Now I carry the knife everywhere because it all feels dangerous to me now.
  
  Damn sorry to hear that. I got mugged when I was going through my photographer phase. Recommend pepper spray since its a lot more effective and gives you distance to run. My knife is more for everyday use in my case
  
  Boston
  the whole place is a bad area
- What's a hardware security key?
  
  Its a method of 2fa that uses a physical "key" a yubikey is an example if u wanna search it up

A tiny keychain tape measure. It's one of those things you have no idea how much you'll use until you have one on you all the time.
Looking at something online? How big exactly is it? It says 16.5" but can you picture that in your head somewhat accurately? It's just easier to pull out your tape measure and see.
I've also started carrying around a small flashlight everywhere I go. I have an Imalent LD70 Mini. It's small enough to fit in my change pocket and it'll put out a blinding ~4000 lumens on turbo (for about a minute before it gets too hot). I do admit that it's not the best flashlight ever. It has a ridiculous magnetic proprietary charger that will short on whatever if you leave it plugged in but it does what I need it to do.
- "Tape measure"
  I measured my fists. Does well enough.
  
  And know the sizes of some common items; paper currency, coins, hand, arm, length of stride. You can use these to get a close approximation.
  
  My hand span is exactly 7", and my thumb knuckles are exactly 1" long, with the nailbed exactly halfway back.
- I have to admit I don't get the flashlight, unless you don't have a phone. Tape measure is funny though. I have to admit I've been in that position many times about ordering online, but usually I wait till I'm home to measure 🤣
  
  Don't discount the flashlight so quickly. I avoid an excessive amount of shit in my pockets and it's always the same. Money clip, knife, truck key, pen, phone and my flashlight. The Flashlight is fairly small, takes a AAA and is slightly bigger than an AA battery with a pocket clip. It gets used multiple times a day. Makes small print in dimly lit areas easier to read also. Honestly for some reason I despise using my phone as a flashlight:)
  
  My tiny flashlight will light up my whole yard and then some like it's day. I do admit that's a little bit excessive but it's great for when I hear something out there at night. I don't exactly live in the best neighborhood.. Makes clearing the property a hell of a lot easier and when that things pointed right at you, you can't see shit.
  Even on the lower settings though it's far better and faster than using your phone. Also I guess it's a little bit more specific to my needs because I am a machinist, it's a lot easier for me to just pull out a flashlight than to strain my eyes trying to see something.
  
  Whenever my dad visits he always insists on making sure I have multiple flashlights. I always tell him I just use my phone...

Swiss Army knife, bottle opener, pocket pen, and most important of all: one of those wavy keys to open toilet paper and paper towel dispensers
- Sauce for the wavy key?
  Are we still doing "sauce" in Lemmy? It seems a little passe now.
- I Second the swiss army knife. Such a handy tool.

Depending on how much you want to carry, some of these:
Screw-lock karabiner, rated for climbing.
Loud whistle.
Resqme car escape tool.
Mini pry bar.
Mini flashlight.
Keychain Fisher space pen.
Mini swiss army penknife.
Keys ;)
- Found the impromptu can burglar
  
  Lock up your cans
- Soft shackle over a carabiner. It's lighter, stronger, cheaper, and more versatile.
  
  Huh, interesting, I'd never seen those before! Thank you!
  
  You piqued my curiosity. Has to go check into these.
  Shortest one is 22"?

Gerber Shard multitool. Thing has come in handy so many times.
Bonus: Only useful multitool I've found that the TSA won't give you shit over.
- I just looked this up. It looks amazing! Thanks for the recommendation!
- Seconded. My partner has had hers for well over 10 years and it's barely scuffed. One of the best 10$ I've ever spent!
- Came here to post the same. Been carrying mine for at least eight years now. Always useful.

Less.
I was the guy with all my keys and fat wallet with all cards and phone + Multitool knife.
Then I got inspired by my sister that travels a lot and tries to optimize for what she REALLY needs.
First I realized that most of my wallet is useless. I started carrying a smaller flip style one with my most used cards and some cash.
Then I reduced my keys to a carabiner with sorted keysets on keyrings, so I carry only the needed ones. Home + bike + cellar for daily use. Home + family keys for vacations. Home for going out. Added a very small key knife and a bottle opener that is part of my daily driver but left when not needed/forbidden.
The current setup is a phonecaee with space for 4 cards and maybe 3-4 bills. And my key setup. Yes you have to remember to take some Special thing. But usually I have my old wallet in my backpack when traveling or when needed.
Sometimes less is more.
- I second this!
  I actually use an Orbitkey holder to keep things neat and less bulky. Strongly recommend adding their multitool to that too, which I find super helpful.
  I have a Secrid Miniwallet for cards and some cash, but usually I just use Google Pay so rarely even have that with me now.

A bottle opener, if you can't open bottles with anything like apparently everyone else.
inb4 reply guys: Please don't explain it to me and don't send tutorials I am not asking for help.

Titanium whistle, one saved my life when I was incapacitated and freezing to death.
- If you're willing to share, I would be interested in hearing your story.
  
  I think they were freezing and somehow got incapacitated. Thankfully they had a whistle, so they blew into the whistle and someone heard it and came for the rescue. I think that may be the story.
- Does it have to be titanium?
  
  Of course, it's tacticool'

A bottle opener.
- I second this. Worth it just for the countless “I got you, bro” moments when you’re with friends and family.
- I used to carry a bottle opener but it had been YEARS since I used it and decided that 99% of the time that there’s bottles that aren’t twist, that it’s at my house and I have to walk further to get my keys than the opener that is attached to my fridge.
  
  A bic lighter works good too, or anything about the same size and shape.
  
  My bottle opener is built into my wallet, two for one and solves that issue!

I don’t know about pockets, but my bag usually has(besides the usual stuff) a tiny sketchbook with a pencil. I use it as an alternative to browsing my phone whenever I have time to kill.
Mostly because I feel I spend way too much time on this thing.. like now..

Leatherman. I carry a Wave. Got a Gerber and a couple others, but the original (this replaced my 1st gen) is best.
Pen & notepad. Always having your own pen that is kept full, and some paper to write someone a physical note, is an amazing superpower.
Face masks. COVID is still a thing, don't be dumb. Also carry hand sanitizer or alcohol wipes.
Flashlight. I have a small tube 9-LED that's usually in there, but also a 1-LED watch battery thing for the keychain, and I've got a few more around here. Yes your phone has a flash that can be kept on, but it burns battery, and is often awkward. Having light whenever is magic.
Switchblade, survival knife, folding knife, etc. Defensive uses, but also heavier utility knife than the Leatherman.
Pepper spray, derringer, etc. if you live in a dangerous area.
Survival kit. This is more of a backpack item. Get a tiny survival, first aid, etc. kit, there's a million uses for having some cord, bandages, shiny foil blanket, etc.
Cigarette lighter or box of matches. Even if you don't smoke, being able to make fire is another magic skill. I keep this with the survival kit.
Headphones, I have slightly-better-than-earbuds tucked in my coat. Noisy annoying people just stop being a problem.
And then my phone, keys, wallet, shades. Yes, I buy clothes with a lot of pockets.
- Do you carry a fuckin lifejacket too mate, fuck me if you fall into water you'll sink like a stone
  Do you rattle when you walk 😂😂
  
  I haven't figured out how to keep a lifejacket in my pockets or pack yet. Perhaps a puffy coat that doubles as a flotation device? Good idea, keep workshopping it.
- Why are so many people saying "Leatherman" as if it is a common term or globally known brand? Is this my first Lemmy ad?
  
  Im outside the US and i know what a leatherman is. Just one of these brands that made it into the public vocabulary
  
  Leatherman and Gerber are the 2 major brands in the multi tool world and have been for 30+ years. The posters are definitely not ads, just people into EDC who are used to people knowing those brands.
  
  ...because it is a common term and a globally known brand? It's the most popular multitool by a country mile
  
  Because it’s one of the most popular multi-tools on the planet? The only one more popular is Victorinox
  
  I'm not a sponsored read, or I'd've linked and not included Gerber as well! It's pretty common, but prob. could've said "multitool" there too, so: A multitool. A folding pliers, knives, screwdrivers, files, etc. gadget.
  
  Leatherman to me is synonymous with "multitool with foldout pliers" as I believe they popularized if not invented the form. I think if you're into multitools you know the name, up there with Victorinox and Gerber. It's my preferred form factor for a multitool, I get way more use out of the pliers/wirecutters than pretty much anything on a Swiss army style multitool. Leatherman had an amazing tiny keychain model, the Squirt PS4, that I would recommend for keeping in your pocket but it was recently discontinued, and their other keychain tool, the Micra just isn't as good imho

A variety of Linux live USBs, you never know when you might want to convert someone
- With ventoy you only need one.
  
  I use ventoy at work, completely indispensable
- Knock knock knock knock knock...........

Victorinox knife; FIDO2 key with USB-A, USB-C and NFC; small USB-A to USB-C cable with magnetic cable tie thingy
Edit: I regularly throw in a bootable Linux drive, too
- How often is that bootable Linux drive useful to have on hand though? I can't imagine it being useful more than once a year or so, but maybe I'm not thinking creatively enough.
  
  It's nice to have when a system breaks, to test stuff or when I'm at a new computer but want to use my current distro of choice. But yeah, I don't use it on a daily basis or anything.

I have a tiny led light that fits on my keychain that I find really useful. It's better than the light on my phone and is a good backup light when I go camping. I also really like the Victorinox Rambler knife. It has a Phillips screwdriver, bottle opener, and scissors.

A security key for your online logins.

This handy aspirin holder. Could save the life of someone having a heart attack. https://www.saveaheart.ca/

I have foldable scissors that are always attached to my keys. They're useful for, well, cutting stuff.
Safety pins. Not only that you can use them for clothes (for example if your coat's button decided to detach), you can use them for self-defense if you can't have weapons or pepper spray.
A small notebook and a pen. You can write down important things or just doodle out of boredom.

If you really want to go deeeeep down this rabbit hole, the words to search are "every day carry". Hide your credit card first though 😬
- Carrying stuff is a weird hobby.

A hardware authenticator

Chapstick

My kit:
pocket knife
flashlight
wallet
folding phone stand
phone
earbuds
pen (with a cap, not a clicky)
sharpie
breath mints
4' multi-end charging cable
thumb drive
lightning > 3.5mm (aux)
USBC > 3.5mm
bandaids
OTC drugs (Advil, Tylenol, Aleve, Benadryl, lactase (I'm lactose intolerant))
Everything on that list was added because I needed it and didn't have it on multiple occasions. There have been plenty of other things that I would love to carry, but found too bulky to justify.
A note to everyone recommending condoms: they do expire, and can wear through if carried in an environment with friction (wallet, pocket, etc). I prefer to play it safe and make a stop at a drug store should the need arise.
- You a fan of cargo shorts?
  
  I actually fit it all in my blue jeans! I have a pocket organizer that holds the small stuff and it all works out spacewise. Heavy though, have to wear a belt to keep everything in place.
- You must have very deep pockets!
- This feels less like a pocketable list and more solidly in purse territory. Not that there's anything wrong with carrying a purse, but I would struggle to fit all this stuff in even my most pocketed cargo shorts.
  
  I have an awesome pocket organizer thing I was gifted that holds all the small stuff. So I'm really only putting like 5 things in my pockets when I'm getting ready to walk out the door.

A carry this kind of multitool with my keys

And this ceramic blade box cutter
- does that multitool have any sort of name so I can find it
  
  Looks like the Geekey Multi-tool
  https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07T5JZD9H?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share
- Haha I was trying to figure out what the battery was for, if it had a flashlight built in or something. Finally figured out it was sitting on a bolt head.

A bottle opener. You never know when a wild beer might appear

I always carry a pepper spray with me just in case!

Hand sanitizer.

Leatherman Skeletool and a bullet space pen pretty much cover all my day to day needs. I used to carry a bootable flash drive with all the software tools I used frequently but haven't needed that on the go since I changed jobs so it lives in my desk at home now.

I’ve found a Gerber Dime to be really handy when I can’t carry my Leatherman. I usually carry a lockblade knife, multitool, and Fischer space pen. Also have a USB drive on my keychain partitioned with NTFS (bulk storage) and Tails with persistence.
- Calm down there Mr Bourne.

A knife. I use mine about once a week.

A lockpick set. You never know.
- As long as you know how to use it. Otherwise you might as well grab a rock.
- For anyone thinking about carrying lock tools, watch some of Deviant's videos about everyday tools - he recommends like 10 things that are more useful for opening locked doors (that you don't have a key for) than lock picks.

A tracker on my key for when i lose it.

I've carried a Swiss Tech Utili-Key on my keychain for 20+ years now. It's got a knife, a flathead screwdriver, a Phillips screwdriver, an eyeglass screwdriver, and a bottle opener. It's the same size and shape a regular key and security never notices it.

They make belt buckles that double as bottle openers for roadside Topo Chico and tacos, or beer (not roadside, don't drink and drive).
I have a tough little metal USB drive with a size A jack on one side, whatever fits my phone on the other, and firmware to be able to plug into said phone.
Musicians ear plugs in a tough metal keyring pill case.

A good flashlight.
Mostly indoors? Small, 300lm light that takes a AAA battery like the Maker E02II.
Mostly outdoors? Medium sized light that uses an 18650, like the (now discontinued) Zebra Light H600w Mk IV.
Mobile gaming? Battery bank flashlight like the Wurkkos HD20!
Right angle flashlights are easier to hold, use in a headlamp strap, and often have magnetic tail caps to mount to a metal surface.

I always carry a small Victorinox Navaja classic swiss army knife linked to a small Fenix torch E01. It fits inside the lighter pocket of my jeans.
Also always carry a handkerchief (fabric, not disposable).
As mentionned already, I usually also have earplugs in my jacket or bag. A Go-Girl is a must have too when traveling if you don't have a pee-pee.

Cellphone and key to your car/house. Eftpos card, bus card and $20 and library card.

https://www.streamlight.com/products/detail/nano-light#
I have had one for a lot of years, I use it a lot.
- Streamlight is good but pricey. I've got one of their rail-mount lights and it is great.
  I found an excellent pocket LED flashlight on eBay called "Boruit" for under $20. That little bastard will blind you on max brightness. Also has other lights on it and a magnet to mount it on things
  
  Under $10 and smaller than my house key. I don't think this is the stream light you're thinking of

SIM tools :)

A small bag of salt
- Salt?

I have a Leatherman micra on my keychain. Carry it everywhere, and has come in handy in multiple occasions. Worth the price IMO.
- In a similar fashion, I have a gerber dime on my keychain. Slightly different tool loadout from what I could spontaneously see.
  
  Certainly similar. Major difference between the two is that the Gerber has pliers in place of my scissors, and your scissors are in place of my tweezers.
  The pliers would be nice to have, but I definitely use the scissors quite a lot. Surprisingly super strong. I've never used the tweezers before.

Condoms
A usb drive with handy software (and data backups)
- Isn't the second item enough protection?

A Victorinox Manager. It contains a small blade, a bottle opener with a magnetic Phillips screwdriver, a pen, a nail file, scissors and tweezers, all in a very compact form factor.

I keep CarMex on my keychain

I was gifted a tiny refillable keychain lighter. I didn't think I needed it at first but it's turned out invaluable to always have some fire handy. I don't smoke so I don't normally have a lighter with me otherwise.
Like this: https://sdjsports.com/products/true-utility-firestash-mini-tool

Is there a reason to carry both some kind of lighter and a bottle opener? A bic does both…

136 comments