When I first traveled abroad, the only electronic gizmo that I carried with me was a camera and that one was made well before the digital age. Nowadays, it seems that we are carrying a wide range of electronic items with us when we travel.
For myself, I am carrying my MacBook Pro to keep up my blog and with my Email, a compact digital camera with an extra battery and SD card, a SD card reader to offload the photos into my Mac, an unlocked cell phone so that I can buy SIM cards to use it in Hong Kong and Singapore, an I Pod Touch that not only has my music on it but a host of travel apps such as subway maps, tourist information, airline websites, currency converter, etc., a headset to use on the airplane in lieu of the lamentable ones that the airlines pass out, and all of the requisite cables and chargers. Needless to say, I also have to bring adapters that will fit the outlets in Hong Kong and Singapore in order to keep all of my gadgets fully charged. Are all of these items merely convenient to have or are they absolutely essential for our travel?
My MacBook Pro with the Magritte skin under the shell
Frankly, IMHO, these items are essential to have. Hotel computers in the business centers are usually antiquated with outdated software. Hence I prefer to use my own MacBook Pro laptop. Cell phones are critical to keep in touch with each other and with relatives in foreign locales. Moreover, it is much cheaper to call back to the United States, as little as a few cents per minute, with a SIM card purchased locally than via the AT&T International calling plan that can be as much as $1.95 per minute. The I Pod Touch has all of my travel information in a compact package plus I can listen to the music I want while on board the plane. Naturally the audio and the comfort of my own headset are far superior to the cheap sets the airlines provide.
In addition, Pat has a similar list of electronic gizmos. But instead of a laptop, he will be bringing an I Pad. Will the I Pad become the preferred "computer" when we travel? Will it replace the netbooks and laptops? Time will tell.
I'm bringing along my Netbook, a digital camera with 5 SD cards (1 gb each--I know, that's so yesterday...), an ethernet cable for the hotel in Japan, my iPod Touch which is probably my favorite gadget of all (tons of apps, Japanese language Apps, music, etc), and a "universal" adapter which doesn't work in Japan I believe.
ReplyDeleteIpad as the preferred computer? Not likely. Good luck banging out a blog entry on that thing. It's no macbook wheel, but unless you've got an external keyboard it's not exactly efficient. And if you have to bring a separate keyboard, why not just bring an actual netbook or laptop? Official Ipad hater since 2010. Your Sony phone is a quad band right? That's perfect for your travels.
ReplyDeleteOh yeah and I like your Macbook skin!
ReplyDeleteAh rim3hc, ye of little faith, Apple's I Pad is too magical and beautiful to resist. The I Pad will conquer all before it. :-)
ReplyDelete