Travel Gadgets in the Wild

Gadgets for travel in the wild:

When traveling, the less stuff to pack the better. So any gadget that can perform double duty well, think Swiss Army knife, is a go to for traveling outdoors. That is why when I came across Sony’s DEV-3 Digital Recording Binoculars I did a double take (pun maybe intended). It is binoculars that have a great 10x zoom and are also able to take full HD 3D video or still pictures. The price is also very nice, $1400, which is most likely due to the 3D capability. It is an interesting new gadget and would be great to see it in more versions.

We do not go anywhere without our smartphone. Even on vacations. We take them along at least for the beginning and end of the trip to check in with friends, relative, airports, and others. When traveling outside of US, though, need to be mindful of using the phone in anyway. The charges for any type of use abroad add up really quickly and exponentially. Hear are some great tips on Traveling overseas with your smartphone.

How do you travel?

When traveling it is important to keep yourself and your travel companions healthy. It is even more so than when at home. You are traveling to see places have fun and relax and enjoy. Last thing you would want is to succumb to anything en route. Number one tip is to stay hydrated. While strolling around and doing excursions you might forget about hydrogen dioxide. And in some places it is hard to find water or at least water that is drinkable. It is a great idea to have a Reusable Water Bottle with you or a SteriPEN that would turn just about any water into something you can drink. For more tips see Healthy Travel Tips for the Entire Family


Not all of the travel will be by car, though a large portion of it within our borders. When on the road these days, you are packing quite a few tech gadgets. I know, that is how this blog came about. All these gadgets need power even in the middle of the trail. This is a great opportunity to make use of your car's (cigarette) lighter. Griffin Powerjolt USB plug is great for just this purpose. We bought one earlier in the year and have been using it on just about every trip, short or long. It stays in the car the entire time in our second outlet and it fits snugly into it as though it is built-in. Quite a few of the gadgets come with USB chargers and/or adapters and this little gadget makes it easy to charge them. How to make good use of your car's unused plug


If you do happen to find yourself in the wild, either on your own or as a couple, you most likely would want to capture the moment. While you can try the extension contortionist move of self-pic and the tilted zoomed-in photos. Or you can take along a small little gadget the Gorillapod. It can be placed just about anywhere with its flexible legs that wrap around objects. Set one up, set the timer, and you have great memories to take back home and make people wonder who is the third person.
Look Ma No Hands - Photos with Gorillapod


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6 Gadgets to Keep You Cool This Summer

6 Summer Gadgets to Keep You Cool:

1. SummerSeat Self-Cooling Seat Cushion



This little gadget is for those summer days when getting into a car feels like stepping into an oven. And last thing you want is to sit on something that is already hot before your body heat even gets there. This self-cooling seat is constructed microfiber and circulates air throughout the seat, cooling it down. It plugs into your car's cigarette lighter and runs off of 1.5 volts. It comes with an auto shut-off that shuts off after an hour. It can be used with or without your car's air conditioner, depending on the level of cooling power that you need.
Available through Amazon, affiliate partner.

1.2 Meeno Baby Cool Me Seat Liner Infant Bucket
Just like the seat cushion for the driver, this one is for the tiny passengers. They too can find comfort in the heat of the summer. This seat liner regulates temperatures to keep your child cool and comfortable when traveling or out and about.

2. Handy Cooler  www.myhandycooler.com

This personal cooling device works by blowing moist air in a small workspace or outdoors. Super convenient, quiet, and small. It can be packed along for a trip. This cooling device operates off of four "AA" batteries or can be attached to a USB. With this useful gadget you can create air conditioning anywhere you are. It is able to cool the air up to 30 degrees Fahrenheit. You can also add water to it to take advantage of even more refreshment.

3. USB Eco Wear Shirt
This invention just might be one of the coolest gadgets. Of course it helps that it keeps you cool during sweltering summer months. This air-conditioned shirt plugs into your USB port on your computer or uses your cars cigarette lighter for power. It also can operate from batteries if away from home or your car. This cool cotton shirt could be a great gadget for business traveler that has to put on a suit in scorching heat. That is If you don't mind looking like the Michelin man while the shirt is on.

4. Case to keep your smartphone cool
We all put our phones in our pockets, I know I do. While it might be convenient, in the heat, the sweat and moisture in your pocket are really bad for your phone. A tip to keep it safe is to put the phone in a silicone case, if not already in some kind of casing. At the very least, keep the case-side of the phone toward your skin. Less attractive though still effective solution is to put it in a Ziploc bag to keep the moisture out.

5.1 iPhone Fan
An ingenious idea. It is one thing to have an app on an inside that tells you that is hot outside. This one is an external gadget that is applied to the phone. iPhone Fan attaches to the phone’s charging dock and works off the phone's charge though uses minimal power. It is compatible with iPod Touch and all 5+ iPhones.


5.1 O2COOL Deluxe Water Misting Fan




6. Ice Bandanna (TM) -
It is an ice pack built into the bandanna. Just the thought cools you down. No need to hold an ice pack in your hand or dump cold water on yourself. Plus, I think this gadget can come in very handy during travel as part of a first aid kit to ice bumps and bruises.

Did You Know?:
Heat and batteries do not work well together. Keep your phones and computers out of direct sunlight when it's hot. Don't leave your laptops running on the couch or a cushion – it can't expel the hot air.




Sound-off: What are some of your favorite ways to cool down? Let us know below

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12 travel gadgets to bring on your summer vacation

Gadgets to take when traveling this summer:


A digital camera -
Something to snap photos with during your trip is a necessity. A phone camera is great when it is a spur of the moment, have to capture it this minute or it will be gone Kodak moment. However, for great travel scenery shots you would need a decent point-and-shoot. Or if you would like to bring home even better pictures and do not mind a bit bulkier camera, a DSLR is a great idea.
Going digital means you can check out your photos and videos as soon as you take them. So if you are still dragging around your favorite film camera, it is time for an upgrade. Even waterproof cameras now come in digital versions that take great pictures and, some, videos.

A good book or magazine -
These days you can take along a collection of books at a fraction of the weight, as there are quite a few gadgets that can store multiple books and magazines in one hand-held device. There is a variety of these on the market enough to suit just about every reader. There is Kindle by Amazon, which itself comes in several different versions. Also Nook by B&N, Sony e-reader, iPad, and so on. With these, there does not have to be only one great summer read.

Music player
It helps me relax which makes it a perfect activity on vacation. Sometimes all you want is a little peace and quiet, or just tune out all the things going on around you. And that is when noise canceling headphones are life enhancers, if not life saver in some situations. Travel-friendly music gadgets

Storage/backup gadgets -
USB thumb drives are small and can be easily slipped into your travel case. You never know when you might want to share or transfer some of those vacation snapshots or important documents.

Power up!
Once you have prepared and packed all the gadgets for the trip, don't forget that they need to be plugged in somewhere to juice up while away. Speaking of which, also do not leave behind the chargers and adapters for each gadget. Hotel rooms do have outlets, but generally not enough of them, and they're often not located in useful spots. An easy way to get around this is to pack a power strip that gives you additional outlets and some also act as a surge protector to keep your devices safe. We now have two of these: Belkin Surge Protector travel charger and a smaller surge protector with 2 USB charging ports and removable phone shelf.

Games
These could be the classic board or card games or electronic versions. These could be handy to pass the time while waiting at air port or on long road trip. Games are also great to bond over or even meet new people. They are especially useful when traveling with kids. Since you know their attention span will not last through 2 hour car ride nor waiting in any lines.


Swiss Army Knife -
its a classic multi-tool. Everything you need and more within one device. Now it also comes with tech gadgets such as USB, flashlight, digital clock and thermometer. I think it is one of the most useful non-electronic gadgets and great to have everywhere. Swiss Army knife reinvented. Though make sure that when flying you pack it into your checked luggage.
TSA regulations on what can and cannot be brought on board

Backpack -
A great bag goes a long way. We like the Lowepro Passport Sling Camera Bag.
This bag fits the DSLR perfectly in it. It also fits cables, water bottle, snacks, keys, wallet, and a light shirt. It is versatile enough to use as a day bag when it’s not packed with camera and other travel gear. My wife loves it. It looks like a regular over the shoulder bag. Which is great as it does not announce to all that there is a camera in there. Without opening it up and looking inside you would not even know its a camera bag. We also put in it while on the trip a collection of travel gadgets: point-and-shoot camera, watch, chargers, batteries, and flash memory cards. The outside of the bag has pockets and dividers that will keep your cell phone, pens, sunglasses, and other useful travel accessories organized and easily accessible. And just in case you over stuff the bag with all this, there is a zipped up expansion to make the bag larger to accommodate.

Make your luggage stand out with these cool fun travel accessories:


Batteries -
While device-specific battery packs are one of the first things you should bring, usual spare batteries should be left behind. Be more green and more efficient with rechargeable batteries. We love and always have along on trips our Enveloop recharge pack that includes 4 batters and charging pack. Here more about it: Rechargeable batteries charger - saves money saves planet

Traveling somewhere sunny?
Bring sunscreen and a pair of good quality sunglasses. The sunscreen should be SPF 15 or higher and sunglasses should be able to block at least 95 percent of UVA rays and 99 percent of UVB rays to keep your eyes safe.

Hand sanitizer and wipes -
You never know where you going to end up and what you going to pet

Did You Know?:
Make a checklist for everything you need, so you don't forget anything. There are some great apps that will help you do that:
SPF - Sun protection factor (indicating the effectiveness of protective skin preparations)

What else do you pack when going on your vacation? Let us know below 

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This will keep you clean and green

 This post is, uncharacteristically, not about travel and travel gadgets but it is about a do-it-yourself project. As it was very helpful to me, I thought I would share what I have learned last week.

About a week ago our bath tub clogged up. I heard quite a few stories and side effects of using Drano and other such commercial products in these situations. So I looked online for alternative methods of cleaning out the clog. I found several sources. As I usually look for more than one wise source of information, I went through several of Do-It-Yourself sites and blogs to find the most useful, detailed, as well as easy to do, processes. I found an article that described one just like that. It gave a step-by-step directions on how you can make that clog go away. The concoction consisted out of household items that I already had at home. Most folks would also have these things lying around. The de-clogging mixture includes baking soda, vinegar, and hot water. Baking soda and vinegar are safe to use and are much friendlier to the coating of the bathroom and the pipes, as well as the environment. These are also safe to keep around the house with kids and pets.

At first, I was skeptical if it would work as separately, I could not see these materials being able to declogg the drain. And at first it didn't work too well. However, following the directions and keeping my hopes up I tried the second time. This time I fully covered the whole with a stopper once baking soda and vinegar were inside, so that it mixture does not spill back out. It worked like a magic. It fizzled and bubbled and cleared up the clog. There was not much of a residue left and it was easy to rinse it off with water.

Drain De-Clogger Recipe:

1/2 cup baking soda

1 cup vinegar

1 gallon boiling water

Directions:

Carefully siphon all the baking soda down the drain. Pour in 1/2 of the vinegar, covering the hole so the fizz is forced down, not up (omit this for toilets, please!). Add the second half of the vinegar, following the same procedure. Allow to sit for 15 minutes or so, and then flush with an entire gallon of boiling water.

Natural Homemade ‘drain-o’

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