Entertainment Essentials for Deployment

Wired Earbuds

The ship will secure Bluetooth while operating in certain areas of the world. You need to have wired headphones so you can still listen to music.

When emissions control goes into effect your wireless gear is useless, sometimes for weeks. A cheap wired pair is the backup that keeps your music and movies going.

Bluetooth Speaker

Great for your workspace or during the daily “Clampdown”.

Cleaning stations go faster with music, and a good speaker makes you the most popular person in the shop. Get one that can take a drop on a steel deck.

Auxiliary Cord or Phone Adapter

When Bluetooth is secured this will enable you to still be able to use your speaker with an auxiliary cord.

Most phones no longer have a headphone jack, so the adapter is what connects your phone to the speaker and the earbuds above. Buy two, because they get lost.

Portable Charger

While on liberty, the last thing you need is a dead phone. Stay charged up with this!

On a port call your phone is your map, your translator and your way back to the ship before liberty expires. A power bank also covers you during a long watch or when berthing power is secured.

Bluetooth Headphones

When Bluetooth is not secured you can enjoy these.

Berthing is 100 people, one passageway and zero privacy. Noise-cancelling headphones are how you get a movie, a nap or a phone call to yourself.

Charger Block with Multiple USB Ports

Your rack only has one outlet so having this will enable you to charge more than one device.

One outlet has to cover your phone, headphones, watch, speaker and fan. A multi-port block solves that without the power strip your ship's electrical safety rules will not allow.

Pop Socket or Socket Holder

Gives you an in hand luxury feel with your phone. The socket holder is great to stick in your rack so you can “mount” your phone to watch movies.

Stick the holder on the rack above your head and your phone becomes a screen you do not have to hold. It is the cheapest rack upgrade in this whole list.

Laptop

Having a computer is great if you want to watch movies or play computer games in your free time.

It does not need to be a gaming rig, but a laptop you own means movies, college courses and games that do not depend on the ship's network. Load it up before you leave the pier.

Portable Hard Drive (SSD)

Store anything you want on this. Most common is to put movies/shows on here. Trade with your shipmates and build your collection!

Streaming does not exist underway, so the drive full of shows is your library for the next seven months. Solid state drives shrug off the vibration and knocks that kill spinning disks.

Kindle

With limited storage space this allows you to have as many books as you want!

Paperbacks take up locker space and fall apart in the humidity. A Kindle holds a whole deployment of reading, and the battery lasts weeks between charges.

Game Console

Don’t forget to buy extra games so you don’t get bored!

A handheld console fits in your rack and gives you something to do that is not scrolling through the same downloaded photos. Local multiplayer with shipmates is where the real hours go.

Playing Cards

Spades on the mess decks is a Navy tradition for a reason. A deck of cards fits in a coverall pocket and never needs charging.

Uno

Everyone knows the rules, a round takes ten minutes and it gets loud. Perfect for the gap between chow and your next watch.

What Do You Meme?

Long deployments run on inside jokes. A party game like this one is how a new work center turns into a crew.

Jenga

Jenga on a moving ship is a completely different game. Bring it for the laughs alone.

Fidget Spinner

Standing a four-hour watch with nothing to do with your hands is harder than it sounds. Something small and quiet to fidget with helps the time pass.