Top new travel gear you'll want to consider when packing for that next trip. Photo by Doug Bardwell
What's the best camera? What's the best camera bag? What do you pack when you travel? What technology items do you take with you on the road?
Being a former, photo/video road warrior, seemed like every week I was always being asked to recommend gear for someone. I recently began to wonder if there were some new travel technology items out there I hadn't seen yet, so I set out to see what's new in the market.
I spoke with over eighty PR and marketing reps, who pitched every conceivable product in the book. I'll admit they all sounded interesting, but I couldn't take time to check them all out, so I narrowed the list to 24. Happy to say, many truly are innovative and I'd recommend them highly. Over the next week, I'll give you my preferences for those which really are the best of the best. In the photo above you'll see eleven products that I'd now take with me when I travel. These are all new discoveries that I had never seen before.
First, the bag. Lowepro has introduced their Fastpack250 backpack. As big as it can be, and still be under-seat legal on the airlines, this bag can pack a lot. Sure, all the items you see can fit, but it can actually hold a lot more. On my trip to the Grand Canyon, in addition to some of what you see here, it also held my Lenovo tablet PC, my pro body DSLR, SB800 flash, two extra lenses, a half-dozen DSLR batteries, miscellaneous other filters and compact flashcards, as well as a large water bottle. You'll see some interior shots of the bag in the slideshow below. Adjustable dividers let you arrange the interior to your liking.
The bag is designed in such a way that you can slip one arm out of the two backpack straps and slide the bag around in front of you. The camera section then lets you unzip only a small flap which give you immediate access to your camera with lense mounted. I routinely travel with an 18-200 mm zoom on my Nikon D300S with extra battery grip. If it holds that, it should hold whatever you are shooting.
The computer slot is on the back of the bag, so your computer lays flat against your back. There is generously thick padding on both sides of the computer. It's designed to take a computer with up to a 15.4" screen. The top of the bag is then one large section for clothes, food, video gear or whatever else you need to pack.
Next to the computer bag, in the center of the picture is the iHome IP49 rechargeable, portable alarm clock and FM radio for the iPod and iPhone. Admittedly, it's a little larger than i would like, but it has so much else going for it, I'll gladly make room for the extra pound of weight.
Whether I'm editing photos or writing an article, I love to have music playing. Inserting your iPhone or iPod on the Apple connector, you instantly have super fidelity speakers for your music. A remote control which is included, controls your Apple device from across the room.
The sound from this unit is nothing short of phenomenal for a unit its size. If your tunes are packed on another device, it'll handle any other device that can be connected to its AUX input with a 1/8" stereo mini plug. I've used it to replace my laptop's less than stellar speakers and I also used it for better sound while watching a movie on my portable DVD player. Teamed with the HP projector we'll discuss tomorrow, you can have your own theater experience in your motel room.
In addition to the great sound, there's much more to like. While plugged in, your iWhatever is being recharged via the Apple connector. The IP49 comes with an internal rechargeable battery and uses a typical wall plug convertor with a 6 foot cord. What amazed me was the battery life of the internal battery. After charging it the first night, I played it all day the next day, and didn't have to plug it back in until day two. That's nice. Need to catch up on the basketball playoffs, it's also a digitally tuned FM receiver. The clock/alarm has nice large numerals, making it easy to reach from across the room. With your iDevice removed, it only takes two seconds to fold the clamshell style case and it's ready to hit the road.
This report will continue for the next week. You might want to "Subscribe" above, so you don't miss any of the posts. You can easily unsubscribe at any time if you want and I guarantee you won't be spammed. Check out the slideshow for more pics of the products featured in this series.
Click "NEXT" in the upper right corner of this article to continue with this series.
Doug Bardwell, based in Cleveland, OH, writes about interesting new travel and photography topics across the country and around the world. Feel free to drop him a line at travel.dougbardwell@gmail.com with suggestions for future stories.
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