Most of you know that I’ve been pretty interested in technology for a while (and for those of you who didn’t, well now you do!). As you might imagine, Stef and I had a few conversations about what we would an would not bring on our trip. We were also interested to see my reaction to not having always-on wireless broadband and to spending more than 8 hours a day away from a computer screen. Our trip isn’t over, but I am adjusting to LWBB – life without broadband. I thought I would highlight the three digital gadgets we did bring on our trip, and what we’re using them for:
- Digital Camera. I’ve been really lucky to be in such great places with a camera – we’ve seen some amazing sights and been able to capture our adventures in a way we wouldn’t have without the camera (see our page of photos from our Latin America trip for examples). Like most of what we’re carrying, the camera serves at least three purposes:
- Digital Still Camera
- Digital Camcorder
- Spare Flashlight (and yes, I have used it as such – on the beach in Costa Rica and at the volunteer station in the Galapagos)
This was a Ricoh GX-200 first; now it’s a casio ZX-100V. The model doesn’t matter as much as what it produces, an that’s been great so far!
- iPhone. Yes, we brought our iPhones – but we use them primarily as mini-netbooks. They really help us out with:
- Making stateside calls (for insurance and other administrative things)
- Managing our finances (ensuring that we can keep traveling!)
- Keeping up with friends and family (through Facebook and our blog)
Oh, and for each of these and more, you guessed it – there’s an app for that!
- GSM Cellphone. Stef and I debated about this one for a few weeks. We had heard that they can be useful, but they are expensive. We ended up getting one, and it has saved us a few times as a:
- Local Cellphone. this has been surprisingly helpful! After our first experience reserving a hotel over email, we switched to the cellphone. Reservations now take 5 minutes, instead of an hour, and we don’t have to plan three days ahead (since the call is real-time – all web reservations we’ve seen so far actually happen over email, and response times are an issue). Plus, if we know people in the area, we have an easy way to stay in touch if we’d like to meet up, change plans, or anything else. Thankfully, we haven’t needed to use it in an emergency yet!
- Substitute Digital Camera. Our cellphone has a 2MP digital camera on it which came in handy – I used it as a primary camera after my Ricoh died. Also, if we go out without the camera, I can use the phone to capture quick shots of interesting or funny moments.
- Backup Internet Connection.We are trying balance our Internet usage. But sometimes, we are waiting for an important email, or it’s just much simpler and a much smaller hassle to check on the phone. (Its more expensive than wifi or an Internet cafe, because with our pay-as-you-go card, data is expensive, but it’s occasionally worth it.)
We have a Sony-Ericsson Walkman phone – it’s a slider model (the W580i if you need to know).
Next week, more on what we didn’t bring with us…
