Travelling with Technology

For the past three summers, I have taken trips to Europe for anywhere from 1.5-3 months. More importantly, I am addicted to the internet and having electronics. So, there are a few things I wanted to review/ mention about what you should look out for and what I recommend to bring with you on a long trip (abroad perhaps).

1. Amazon's Kindle (third edition). If you are planning on reading more than 2 small paperback books on the beach, I STRONGLY RECOMMEND THE KINDLE. This is the first year I had one, and I reduced my luggage weight by about 5-10 kg (a big deal when you are only allowed 20 kg on some flights). You can load as many books as you want, and its easy to carry around. The screen is great, and yadda yadda. This is all advertised on Amazon's page. However, something I didn't know is that you have *free* 3G in other countries. That is, you can use the browser to access the internet anywhere, for free. The only thing you pay for is 6 dollars per week if you want to continue downloading your subscriptions. The browser is limited, and it can be annoying to type on the kindle, but I have found that I could check my email (you have to put gmail in the nonstandard mode), google voice, Wikipedia, and other news webpages easily. Facebook is a bit trickier, and sometimes will cause my Kindle to freeze. However, I repeat, FREE.GLOBAL.3G. (compare with mobile companies data plans).
2. iPhone. iPhones for travelling are great. Inside the US you can use the Maps function to always be around, and the camera isn't half bad either. For international travel, there are some things you should know. I have AT&T so comments on pricing are for AT&T but the last I checked Verizon has the exact same plans and prices. If you want to have international data plan, you REALLY need to sign up for one. They start at 20mb for $25 dollars and go up to 200 mb for an obscene amount. Its pretty expensive but if you are going to be staying somewhere that has no wifi connection and you NEED to have internet, then its not too bad. Note that the data plan is prorated (i.e. when you sign up determines how many MB you get and the price) , and you must keep your American data plan as well. Keep in mind that 20MB is pretty much nothing though, and the next highest, 50MB is about 60 dollars/ month; with overages that are 6 dollars per MB. Finally, if you are in a country that does not support this plan (for instance Serbia), it is 20 dollars per MB. Ideally, stay at a hotel that has wifi AND SHUT OFF YOUR CELLULAR DATA. If you need texting, you can pay 10 dollars per month for 50 outgoing texts (extortion again). However, if you have an unlimited texting plan in the US, you can receive unlimited texts abroad for no extra charge. I use this, but opt to use Google Voice for my heavy texting (see below). Finally, there are international phone plans, but your best bet is just to find a payphone if you need to make local calls. Finally, if you have an iPhone definitely download Skype. With a wifi connection you pretty much can make unlimited calls if you follow steps I write about below.
3. Google Voice. I'm not going to go too into detail about what Google Voice is (they do a good job of explaining it), but know it will save you tons on texting if you have a wifi connection. The kick is you need to sign up for it in America as its not available once you have a foreign IP address. You can read this page on your mobile device easily (from my experience with an iPod touch, an iPhone, a Kindle and a crappy mobile).
4. Skype. Skype is awesome. You can call people who are also on skype (with their username) for free, and for a minimal fee you can make unlimited calls to the US (like 2 or 3 dollars a month). However, note that you MUST BUY THIS IN THE US. You cannot buy the cheap plan to make calls to the US with a foreign IP address. You can also get plans to make cheap phone calls to a list of countries. Skype works incredibly well on the iPhone as well, you can just dial or text any number like you would if you were making a call on your phone.
5. Laptops. I'm going to just make a quick note here about laptops, since I think those are a bit more touchy. Since I am gone for so long, and I stay at two very specific houses with family during the summer (both having wi-fi), it is in my interest to bring my laptop. I personally can't do a netbook because I continue my research/ studies abroad and netbooks don't work so well for me, but I have seen it work well for other people. If you are going to a new place for a week as a tourist, I'd recommend leaving your laptop at home. Go out, enjoy the place you are visiting and make yourself so busy you are too tired for the internet.

Good luck space cadets.