We’ve all been there, sitting in the airport waiting for a delayed flight, with nothing to do. I used to wander around the stores, and try to read a book, but having 3 hours to kill can be really painful.

There are ways to kill the time in a fun way:

1. Are you a Netflix subscriber? Netflix offers free streaming downloads of a large library of titles to all of their subscribers. This is how I personally got caught up with the series Lost. By watching a TV series, you are also able to watch bits and pieces as you wish, without having to commit to a full 2 hour movie. Also, I enjoy watching Netflix movies when in my hotel room. It’s a great way to kill time, in bed curled up under the covers and catching up on your tv shows!! You can even watch netflix on your iPhone over 3G now!

Upside: Instant gratification
Make it work: You need a laptop or iphone, a Netflix subscription and an internet connection
Downside: US Only

2. Hand Held devices: iPod or a PSP

These small hand held devices can play movies on them, and also provide musical entertainment. I personally love the iPod for blocking out the surrounding noises. That way I can curl into my own world and ignore the conversations going on around me. The PSP is fantastic for playing video games, watching movies, and it has a shoddy music player. I don’t really like traveling with the PSP anymore because it’s a little bit bulky with the case and the games. the games are fantastic though, so if you have a love for gaming, or if you have children with you – this device is fantastic!

Upside: Works anywhere, the plane or airport
Make it work: Downloaded content, games can be played while en route
Downside: Downloading content is expensive and time consuming to prepare for a trip

3. eReaders: Kindle, Nook or an iPad

The Kindle has become my favorite time wasting device lately. If you have read my previous posts about my review on which ereader I decided to buy, you’ll know why I love it so much. Now the Kindle has games for it. You can play Sodoku, word games and even mine sweeper. These time killers are a lot of fun, and I can switch back to my book when I get bored.

Upside: Instant gratification, downloaded content is available off line.
Make it work: 3G access is available internationally for Kindle; locally for iPad and Nook.
Downside: yet another device to carry with you!

4. The iPhone
As stated under the Netflix review, you can watch movies and tv series instantly on your phone! You can also watch Hulu, update your facebook page, play games and check email. If only the battery lasted longer!!! The iPhone is really a very tiny computer. Think of it as a communication device rather than a phone, because it can handle so many tasks so easily.

Upside: Instant gratification
Make it work: You need an iPhone, a data plan, and 3G or wifi access
Downside: Battery life is limiting, and this only works on the ground (unless you can get wifi in your plane!)

there are so many ways to keep yourself entertained, even as simple as people watching! Who doesn’t love to watch people? But there may be other ways. Feel free to share with me how you kill time when stuck on a layover!

Staying entertained when traveling is a post from: One Bag Girl - Traveling Light for Women

After months of deliberation I have finally pressed “confirm” on the checkout on Amazon.com for the Kindle 2.0.

What drove this decision you might ask? Well, I have done months of research, and playing with various devices to make my mind up. Here are the deciding factors that really swayed me toward the Kindle. Note: I did not consider any of the touch screen counterparts for the e-ink technology. I was immediately not impressed with the glare for any touch screen e-ink readers.

#1. The Amazon Kindle 2.0

The pitch: The Amazon Kindle uses e-ink technology, and has a free 3G service for downloading new content around the world.

Pros: E-Ink Technology for long time reading; 2 week long battery life (!!!); 3G worldwide service; free wikipedia and wikitravel access; no contracts required; lightweight; Price only $189!

Cons: No color content. Poor for comic book reading; no backlight; The Kindle 2 does not have a removable battery. Proprietary reader format. No more USB stick access for quick loading of books.

#2. Sony Digital Reader Pocket Edition

The pitch: e-ink technology, light weight, open format e-reader

Pros: E-Ink Technology for long time reading; 2 week long battery life (!!!); open format for PDFs, free books, etc. Cheapest e-Reader on the market! $150

Cons: The book store for the sony content is more expensive. The price difference is not negligible. Each book on Sony’s store is at least 2-3 dollars more on average than it’s counterpart on Amazon.com. Also, no 3G access for instant downloads. No wifi access. You need a computer connection to get your books onto the reader.

#3. Barnes and Noble Nook

The Pitch: The nook is a 2 screen ereader with the top being e-ink, and the bottom being color. The top part is where you read, and the bottom part is your library. 3G access to download the book content. In store access to read and preview books. The ability to Lend a book.

Pros: Lending of a book (once) to a friend; 3G access (USA ONLY); Open format content; long battery life; a color screen; Android software; Price is only $200

Cons: Touch screen causes a glare; 3G access doesn’t work internationally!!; sluggish performance;

#4: the Apple iPad

The iPad is pretty.

I didn’t consider the iPad past the thought of : “That would be cool”. With only a 10 hour long battery life, and the backlit text, I was not sold on this toy as a viable option for long travel. The iPad is heavy and would hurt my arms to hold up. The system requires a wifi or 3G paid access. For international travel this is already too much of a burden, especially if I am going to carry around a laptop so that I can do some work. The laptop and an ipad in my bag = TOO HEAVY!

Final thoughts:

I believe that I made the right choice. The Kindle vs. the Nook was a close run, because I am a huge fan of the Android software. That being said, Barnes and Noble does not have an international option. This is very limiting for someone who travels every year overseas. 17 hours in the air to get somewhere, I needed a device with long battery life. I also wanted to be able to load PDFs of my travels so that I can access travel information while on the go. This was possible on all three devices, however the Kindle had the ability to download new content via WikiTravel for free. This was a huge plus for me. Overall, I have read countless reviews on all four options above. The Kindle users are die hard dedicated users who keep purchasing the next generation of their devices. That message goes a long way for me. The Kindle is the right device for a one-bag travel girl

*UPDATE*

iPad’s no fun in the sun : http://news.yahoo.com/s/ytech_gadg/20100728/tc_ytech_gadg/ytech_gadg_tc3264

Reading on the road is a post from: One Bag Girl - Traveling Light for Women

Something wonderful has happened to the ereader world.. Amazon has opened up their platform to Blackberries!

This newly released application allows you to search real time, and download at will through your data plan, any Amazon Kindle book. I have experimented with this application over the last week since the application has been released. I am 75% through one of their free books called “Daring Chloe”. While the book itself is juvenile and nothing left to the imagination, the ease of reading on the Blackberry is nicer than I would have imagined. I have since found myself reading via bberry while at home drinking coffee, and in the mall while waiting on my husband when he had to return an item in a store. The blackberry is no kindle of course. The tiny screen can only show a maximum of 16 lines when the text is shrunk at its smallest font. The screen is backlit. This makes for easier reading in the dark, on the plane and for weaker eyes. The backlit screen also means that your eyes will tire more quickly than if you were using an ereader with e-ink technology. There is a refresh rate with a blackberry. This means that the screen is constantly flashing at a rate that your eyes cannot detect, but your brain definitely has to process in order for you to read a screen. On ereaders, this technology works like a newspaper with real ink on paper feel. There is no refresh rate, so you can read for the same amount of eye strain as it takes to read a normal piece of paper.

There is a bookmarking feature that lets you save a page where you want to come back to. And you can store a bookshelf with the multiple books that you have purchased.

I like that I have this option to read a book at will, whenever I want to, without having to carry around a second device. Don’t get me wrong, I have been wanting an e-reader for quite some time now, but for easy, light traveling I cannot justify the cost (easily 300+ dollars!) of one of these gadgets just yet.

Some cons of the system: Images do not display well, so things like embedded images in books, or downloadable comic books will never display right on the blackberry. The zoom on the amazon reader isn’t exactly user friendly enough, but this may change as they upgrade over time.

That being said, I really do like this blackberry ereader. I tried it out, and I think I’m ready to purchase a real book that has more substance!!

Download The Amazon Kindle application for your blackberry here.

Kindle for the Blackberry is a post from: One Bag Girl - Traveling Light for Women

I know that a lot of people are very excited to have iphones. iPhone users are very dedicated, fanatical people who will defend their phones to the death. Each and every person who I talk to has the same complaints though:

1. The iPhone power is not sufficient for travel use.

2. The touch screen keyboard takes some getting used to, as well as becomes a pain when you have long nails.

These two above issues became blockers for me in purchasing an iPhone. Instead, I chose to become a Blackberry user.

Why is the blackberry better?

The blackberry is different in that it does not poll the server looking for new mail. Rather, the RIM technology “pushes” out the email to your phone. This means that your phone uses a lot less power, and thus your battery will last a lot longer.

The keyboard is a physical thing that you can type faster on, type with nails, and type when not looking at the keyboard all of the time. These are huge wins for me!

Now, those of you who need your itunes, by all means, keep your ipod/phone… but the blackberry can play pandora as well as preloaded mp3s too! With a SD micro Memory card slot, I can store GIGS of songs. This is a huge plus.

Overall, I must say I have never had a better phone in my life. This phone blows away the competition on every front.

Blackberry Bold 2 is a great phone is a post from: One Bag Girl - Traveling Light for Women

My smart phone (an HTC touch Pro: aka the ATT Fuze) has Apps. Okay so it’s no iphone, but I can still download and install applications on it that the iphone can too! For instance, there is a smartphone version of skype that you can install: http://www.skype.com/download/skype/windowsmobile/

communicating with the world is a post from: One Bag Girl - Traveling Light for Women