If all you need to bring with you is your DSLR camera, a few accessories and an iPad you certainly don’t want to carry some big, heavy, and bulky bag. At the same time, carrying your camera and your iPad means that you have some rather expensive equipment along with you for the day so you DO want it protected. One option is the Urban Photo Sling from Lowepro. This sling style bag comes in two sizes – the 150 and…
I used to travel a lot — basically once a week. I had a job in California, but my family lives in Austin. (it was 2008–I took whatever I could find.) So I spent a lot of time in airports, eating, pulling luggage, searching for power outlets, unlacing and relacing my shoes, and getting scanned. Over that period, airports were transitioning from X-Ray-only to those “strip you naked” full-body scanners. To say that I am dubious about these devices, their…
Hi, my name is Dan and I am the poster child for Over-packers Anonymous. It’s true. I have a packing problem. When I go anywhere I fill whatever bags I am bringing to overflowing and then I add a bit more. And that holds true for my cloths, my electronics and my incidentals. The result? When I went to Aruba last December I brought three times as much as I needed. When I went to Vegas for CES I brought…
Charles Harvey demonstrating his elevated railroad design on Greenwich Street in 1867, source In the 1930s and 1940s, New York’s elevated High Line ran between factories and warehouses delivering milk, meat, produce, and raw and manufactured goods without creating congestion on the streets below. Rather than run above the streets of the businesses it serviced, the High Line ran through buildings, which was the city’s attempt to “avoid creating the negative conditions associated with elevated subways.” In 1980, the last…
Nostalgia and fun memories can be a dangerous thing – they can lead you to look past some obvious signs of poor customer service until it is too late. Three years ago my wife and boys went back to Massachusetts to visit the town we lived for 15 years before moving to New York. They stayed one night each with friends, but then Sunday night stayed in a hotel so everyone else could get back to their normal life and…
As Judie and I posted last week, the MacBook Pro Retina may be pricey but it is also an amazing computer. Honestly, after using it for almost two weeks I can, without hesitation, call it the best computer I have ever owned. It is fast, quiet, runs cool and it has a screen that must be seen to be appreciated. Yes, it is the best computer I have ever used. It is also the heaviest notebook I have owned in…
Back in December we did a post and video comparing the Spar Zephyr 300 and the JawBone JamBox. (Read the post.) The Spar speaker promised excellent audio and the ability to double as an external charger. Unfortunately it didn’t deliver on the audio front. I returned it and let the company know why. They were gracious about it, refunded my purchase immediately and then shared their own disappointment with how the speaker turned out. I went bcd to using my…
So you got one of the new MacBook Pro with retina displays and love it. But there is a problem. Thanks to its thinner design and lighter weight the 15″ notebook is far more portable than its predecessor but you aren’t quite sure what you should use to carry it. Waterfield SFBags has some great options. In fact, they have a new section on the site that gather’s the best options for carrying the MBPr in one place. You can…
A long time ago Apple released the Airport Express. I have always wanted one of those, and I still kind of do for other reasons. While the Airport Express does more than just WiFi and networking, its price is still a bit high. I am sure there are even some who just want something of a similar size that JUST does networking. Well, TP-Link has brought out something that is even smaller than Apple’s Airport express. In fact, it…
I like to check out the websites and social pages of some of the companies we follow regularly, to see if there is something new and not yet announced that might be worth reviewing. Once in a while I come across a quiet “soft launch,” which was the case this afternoon. I went over to Skooba Design’s Facebook page and, lo and behold, they are pre-launching a new, and as yet unannounced, bag — The Laptop Weekender V.3 Duffel. It looks…
We reviewed AViiQ’s portable travel station last August (read the review). It is a great way to charge and sync numerous devices from one wall outlet. It also is a convenient and “clean” way to carry a charge/sync hub in a compact accessory. It was not, however, without it’s faults. Primary among the issues I found was the fact that the cable management system, consisting of overlapping fabric slots, wasn’t the easiest way to keep everything neat and tidy. Now…
Long time readers of this site may remember that in the past, I have reviewed many different sites, apps and solutions to assist with learning a foreign language. Now I’m looking at some newer language learning sites, namely Babbel and LiveMocha, that offer some interesting and unique things. In addition to the sites, Babbel offers companion apps for both iOS devices and Android devices. LiveMocha offers over-the-counter learning kits that you can purchase at brick and mortar stores like Barnes and…
Esta es una aplicación sorprendente para cualquiera que quiera comunicarse en un idioma diferente, pero no tiene el tiempo para aprender. Sorprendentemente sólo $ 0,99. Se le permitirá hablar en cualquier número de idiomas iniciales y luego se traducirá automáticamente el idioma por primera vez en la segunda. Y para muchos de los idiomas que no sólo va a dar a un texto, sino que también hablará el texto por usted para que usted sepa lo que suena. Por supuesto,…
You’ve heard about racial profiling, but how about pants profiling? Oh, you hadn’t heard of it? That’s okay, neither had I … until I found myself nodding and chuckling as I read the list of what to expect from other passengers on a flight — based on the type of pants they were wearing! Wool Suit Pants: Will board before you. Wool Hunting Pants: Will board after you. Pleated Dockers: Will loudly talk on cell phone about ROIs and vertical markets. Pajama Bottoms: Will…
If you are used to traveling with a pair of sneakers (or boots) and a backup pair of flip-flops, then I know you won’t be able to relate to what I’m about to confess … and that’s fine. But when I am packing for a trip that will last a week or more, and I know that I’ll be in both casual and dressy situations, it is typical for me to bring no less than six pairs of shoes. I would…
There is no way around it, if you use a mobile device you need to have a charge/sync cable handy. The only problem is, most cables are far linger than you usually need and, if you have more than one in a bag, they quickly become a jumble of spaghetti. That’s where AViiQ’s new Ready Clips come in. Ready Clips are small, bendable, clipable cables that go anywhere, stay mess-free and do the job. At just 19.99 to $29.99 (2…
Over a year and a half ago Judie reviewed the Saddbleback Leather Company’s iPad sleeve. This is what she had to say: There aren’t many materials that are more long-lasting, beautiful or more protective than thick, full grain leather; Saddleback Leather Company is one of the few companies who takes advantage of that fact. And this was her conclusion- The Saddleback iPad Sleeve is absolutely beautiful in its simplicity; it’s not pretentious, but it screams “quality”. The sleeve can be…
I’m not much of a shopper, usually. When it comes to clothes, the quicker I can get in and out of a store, the better, so far as I’m concerned. Same with shoes, or cars, or appliances, or pretty much anything, really. Although Judie has made some headway over the years in helping me to see the beauty of quality accoutrements for my gear. Nice laptop bags. Vaja cases for my iPhone. Things like that. But usually, I’m pretty immune….
If you travel a lot… or even a little, then you will want to check out Skooba Design’s new Checkthrough Security Brief bags. The bags are the next generation in Skooba’s line of Checkpoint-Friendly bags. Checkpoint-Friendly bags, something Skooba helped introduce to the marketplace, comply with TSA requirements and let you send the bag through airport screening without having to first remove the laptop. As Skooba Design explains, Aside from the obvious convenience of not having to remove the laptop, Checkpoint-Friendly…
Before attending Mobile World Congress last month, I was a bit concerned that online access would be an issue. Not only is it ridiculously expensive to roam on 3G internationally, but WiFi service typically either carries a steep service charge, or it’s impossible to get decent speeds when the service is free — assuming you can even get on and stay on without being booted off. This year I had the opportunity to try a MiFi from XCom Global, or rather two of them. Since we had minor layovers in Portugal flying each way, XCom Global sent one MiFi that was…
Judie is on her way back From Barcelona where she attended Mobile World Congress. We had a chance to use the Vonage Mobile app (read the Sponsored Post/Review here) to catch up a bit and talk about the hits and misses of MWC 2012. Here’s the call with some of the pictures she took while she was there along with her wrap up video. What we saw… What we brought…
