Many years ago I would blog about the kit I was carrying and post each time the kit changed as the technology developed - It embarrassingly started with a MASSIVE bag containing everything, including the kitchen sink. I would always upload to "What's In Your Bag" on flickr and love seeing the changes ... Today a friend asked for suggestions of tech when travelling and PhotoBlogging … [Read more...] about Travel Tech for PhotoBlogging
Mobile
Tracking Android – Mobile Data
For the last few weeks I've been thinking about GPS tracking and the technology available to us to do this cheaper than it used to be. Amazon and Ebay are selling matchbox size devices that take a PAYGO SIM card and when you ring the device, it answers (silently) and you can listen in. When you hang up, the device will send you a text message with it's location. An SOS button on the device will … [Read more...] about Tracking Android – Mobile Data
WiFi Security Camera
If you want a little bit of security but don't want a load of holes and wires around the house, consider a WiFi Security Camera. For about £60 Foscam have a range of cameras that simply need a power source (could be a solar battery) and they connect to your home WiFi signal (or a MiFi if using in the field or a repeater if using at the bottom of the garden). This is a quick post showing the … [Read more...] about WiFi Security Camera
Photo editing with iPad
Here are a few photo's I took today with my SLR and imported onto the iPad for editing. I mainly used Snapseed and an app called Finishing Touch to remove the number plate. At the moment I'm not sure if the RAW file was used or the JPEG version. I think I need to find a decent RAW importer for the iPad. I have no idea how this is going to look on a large screen, but it is still the original … [Read more...] about Photo editing with iPad
The New Three MiFi (Huawei E586)
Well I didn't think they could improve on the older (second generation) Three MiFi, but I was wrong! This Huawei E586looks like sex on a stick! don't you think? ;) It now comes with a nice little cradle for docking the MiFi and is much faster as it uses HSPA+ Quoted speeds: Maximum Download Speed: Up to 21.6 Mbps Maximum Upload Speed: Up to 5.76 Mbps The PAY AS YOU GO price … [Read more...] about The New Three MiFi (Huawei E586)
INOV8 12v Battery Charger
In the quest to run everything from 12v I needed the ability to recharge my camera batteries as well as other general purpose AA batteries. I found this product called INOV8 Universal li-ion Battery Charger on play.com for £11.99 delivered. It comes with a 12v car adapter and can be used to charge any lithium-ion battery including 3.6V,3.7V,7.2V & 7.4V and also AA/AAA & NICD/NIMH. It's … [Read more...] about INOV8 12v Battery Charger
Twin USB and Twin 12v Adapter
This is a car twin 12v cigarette lighter power adapter supplied by Cables and Leads from Derby. When I'm away in the caravan I struggle with the limited 12v power sockets. This device will provide two USB sockets at 500mA and two further 12v cigarette lighter sockets which can be used with extra 12v to 5v USB converters such as the Powertraveller Motormonkey I'm considering hard-wiring this … [Read more...] about Twin USB and Twin 12v Adapter
Powermonkey eXtreme – Mobile Power Review
When I first saw the Powermonkey eXtreme listed in the 'coming soon' section of the Powertraveller website I got a little excited. I had previously seen they had a larger battery called the Startmonkey200 and thought this could be a backup power consideration for campers but I somehow thought they must be developing a dedicated mobile high power solution; they were. The Powermonkey eXtreme is a … [Read more...] about Powermonkey eXtreme – Mobile Power Review
On Tour with Social Hiking
Recently I've had a few conversations with Phil Sorrell (@DaylightGambler) about his geo-blogging site called Social Hiking (in alpha) and we've been discussing ways in which it could be used outside of hiking and for geo-event-blogging type of shizzle (see my post on The Social Media Portal). He's amazingly pro-active and has already added extra geo-tagging services like Gowalla. I think it's … [Read more...] about On Tour with Social Hiking
My Essential Travel Tech
My essential travel tech gets lighter each year, mainly because tech gets upgraded, gets smaller and some gadgets have enough multi-functions to replace other separate items. Power has always been the key and each time I've replaced an item I've tried to ensure that it can be charged from either USB or AA batteries to reduce what needs to be carried When traveling I once thought that I needed the … [Read more...] about My Essential Travel Tech
6.5W Folding Solar charger MMP4
This week I've been testing a portable folding solar panel. It's called the "6.5W Folding Solar charger MMP4" it costs £110 and was provided on loan from @Select_Solar I'm trying to find a lightweight panel that can easily be carried and would provide a decent enough current to charge the Kensington USB battery (http://j.mp/df3uGI)This panel actually outputs 12 volts and the operating current is … [Read more...] about 6.5W Folding Solar charger MMP4
iPhone 4 Glass Replacement (Rear)
I thought I'd post an update following my entry "Warning: Smashed iPhone 4" last week. I took a gamble and ordered a replacement glass panel from eBay at £8.99 delivered. The listing said that it did not contain the frame or lens, and I assumed I would be able to transfer these bits. Well you know what they say about assumptions ... As you can see in the pics above, the frame, camera … [Read more...] about iPhone 4 Glass Replacement (Rear)
Three MiFi Mobile WiFi
I've had my eye on a Three Mobile WiFi unit for a while, I managed to blag one of the original Three units from @Documentally which used my USB dongle but wasn't battery powered. @ThreeMobileBuzz contacted me via twitter and asked if I would like to trial the new unit - luckily I was destined for two weeks in the caravan, so a perfect opportunity presented itself.The unpacking in the pic above … [Read more...] about Three MiFi Mobile WiFi
Roaming into France
Bonsoir ... I'm in France and wanted to jot down a few of my experiences with roaming data and costs. As we sailed out on the ferry leaving Poole Harbour, the first thing I noticed was how far the O2 signal stretched. It seemed I could still twitpic at no extra cost (on the iPhone data bolt on) quite a long way away from land. The second thing worth noting was that when the signal did die, … [Read more...] about Roaming into France
Self powered WiFi webcam
(As this is an old post from 2009, please note that I now use £60 WiFi security cameras with solar batteries and a MiFi) I like the idea of IP based webcams that can exist without being connected to a PC, but they are still fairly expensive. I've always thought that it must be fairly simple to use an old mobile phone and create a remote webcam using it's inbuilt camera. Hopefully you would be … [Read more...] about Self powered WiFi webcam
Photoblog, Moblog, Microblog, Vlog …
I thought I would make a blog post about my experiences with the different types of blogging. So much has developed over 2008 for me and more and more great free online tools are available and getting better. It used to be that when I wanted to send a mobile pic or a message to my mates I'd use email with GSM data on my mobile phone. The ability to take a photo and send it to multiple … [Read more...] about Photoblog, Moblog, Microblog, Vlog …
Toshiba NB100 Netbook
OK, so this is my first blog post written on a Toshiba NB100 netbook Firstly the specs: Toshiba NB100 Netbook 1.6GHz Intel Atom N270 1GB RAM 8.9" WSVGA 1,024x600 screen 120GB 5,400RPM SATA hard drive Win XP Three USB ports SD card reader Front Headphone and microphone jacks Webcam VGA out (on rear) 10/100Mbit ethernet 802.11g WiFi Bluetooth Claimed battery life of just under … [Read more...] about Toshiba NB100 Netbook
Touring Caravan Kit
So at the start of 2009 I've been thinking about last year and the touring Caravan we bought in March 2008. We have been thinking about where we might go in 2009 and what extra kit we might need. When I first got 'the van' I was totally unprepared for the onslaught of kit required and also surprised at what kit does not come standard when shelling out for a van. For example you wouldn't dream … [Read more...] about Touring Caravan Kit
The Mobile Internet
There is a lot of noise at the moment about netbooks and netbooks with built in 3G. A lot of mobile phone providers are giving away netbooks with bundles of mobile phones or mobile internet USB dongles It's all looking good and things are moving ahead quite fast at the moment in the world of mobile internet. The problem I am finding is the misuse of advertising in terms of data speeds from the … [Read more...] about The Mobile Internet
Hillhead Holiday Park Caravan Club Site
We had Hillhead Caravan Site pre-booked for months and was really looking forward to spending two weeks there – I’m glad to say we were not disappointed! After the 250mile trip we arrived at the site and found the entry layout to be very clearly marked with two lanes for arrivals and one lane for site traffic, all with key code barriers. The reception was extremely helpful and we mentioned we … [Read more...] about Hillhead Holiday Park Caravan Club Site