This week I got to try out the TravelSafe, the fromPacsafe by locking my PC to a chair at the New York Times Travel show.
Max and Kent and Julia, rocked the Travel Writing segment as always. (And if you are really good, maybe they will give you a place on their site like this one 
It doesn’t look like much at first, it’s a thin, bag that doesn’t at first look like a traditional notion of a safe.
But when you load it with valuables, you start to see how much it will hold, and you feel the layer of stainless STEEL mesh hiding under the slashproof outer layer.
I stuffed the TravelSafe with two medium-sized PC’s, a travel wallet with money and documents, an ipod, and camera, it fit fine with room to spare.
Consulting the manual I worked out how to close the safe by pulling the stainless steel cord tight.
I locked the locking bead into the ‘locating recess’ and locked it to a chair leg and clipped the padlock into place.
Pretty simple, really – the bead can’t move because of the padlock, which means the mouth of the pouch can’t be opened. The outer material is slash-safe and the cord and mesh are made from high tensile stainless steel: basically you’d need some serious hardware and a whole lot of undisturbed time to get through to the treasures inside.
When you’re done guarding your goods, you just unlock, unclip and flatten it out again. It’s light and lies flat so packing space won’t be an issue.
Best used for:
- On an overnight train and you want to get some sleep
- Outdoor activities that prevent carrying your documents with you, swimming for example
- when you’re travelling with people you don’t know too well, and you really want to go for a swim, or take a bath – basically anything that involves having to part from your valuables (you can secure the Travelsafe to a thick tree branch, a pole, a door hinge – whatever’s secure).
Whatever you do, though, don’t lose those keys, and definitely make sure you leave one with a trusted person who can rapidly post it to you should that happen. Otherwise, it’s going to be one long exercise in finding out just how safe these things really are.
The TravelSafe is available online here at a recommended retail price of US$39.95.
I can’t deny the fact that Mophie knows how to make stylish accessories for the iPhone, but after a lackluster experience with the original Juice Pack for the iPhone 3G I’m wondering if the air will fair any better.
Quick Version: The Juice Pack air has an added bonus of being not only a reserve battery pack, but also a hard cover for your iPhone 3G. It doesn’t add too much extra girth to the svelte device and comes with an on/off switch (located at the base for the reserve battery.
Extended Version: If you’re looking for gobs of extra battery life then you needn’t look here. When my iPhone 3G’s battery dipped under 10 percent I placed it into the air and got enough juice to hit the 85 to 90 percent mark. As I recall, the original Juice Pack managed to give me close to two full charges when battery life was under 20 percent. But that had an 1800 mAh battery while the air only has a 1200 mAh battery.
On the flipside, the air is a pretty nice case that more or less doubles the thickness of the iP3G, which might not be acceptable to most, but with the added value of extra power, I’m inclined to accept its portliness.
The top piece can be removed if you don’t feel like encasing your iP3G altogether and the overall size of the air was drastically reduced thanks to the microUSB port and smaller battery. Yes, it still connects to iTunes just like the original. And it still comes fully charged out of the box.
But at $80 you have other options that offer more battery life and functionality. For example, the iV from Fastmac offers at least two full charges, an LED flash and the added bonus of USB slot to charge other gadgets. Sure, it’s ginormous and doesn’t fit in your pocket, but it’s perfect for your gear bag and offers more power.
If you don’t care about such things and just want something that looks pretty, fits in your pocket, adds a bit of protection and offers emergency power then the air is should do you just fine. It comes in black, white and purple and starts shipping tomorrow.
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Avoid Catalina Island if you are looking to complete the 100 things you must do before you die. No Starbucks or McDonalds on this place. A good thing you might say. Not after you realize that the whole place and I mean the WHOLE place is owned lock, stock and barrel by one old mean chewing gum magnate named Wrigley, of the chewing gum company.
This “company’” owns over 90% of all land on the island and all the residents pay rent to this one capitalist person. The definition of a one-horse town.
No character is how I see it. All the same little junk shops and a couple of pedestrian excusrions make up all the activity available on this little chunk of rock.
Now getting there, I highly recommend a Joey Tote at: http://www.joeytotes.com/
The good thing about these products is that you can keep all your junk in one secure place as you go through the new 100% naked (almost) strip search when flying. I use mine to put my wallet, shoes and pocket stuff in one bag. This also helps keep it more secure so it can’t be stolen as you are hung up going through the metal detector six times.
Joey Totes are the all-purpose, reusable bags that stow easily in one pouch so even a set of 3 can fit in a small purse. Use them as a travel bag, at the beach, as a gym bag, at the mall and, yes, even at the grocery store. The 2 sizes let you carry one over your shoulder and the other in your hand. You can carry 40 lbs. in each bag (wow!) and can even put them in your washing machine. Best of all, your Joey Totes will help replace thousands of disposable bags each year.
Where’s your Joey? … always with you.
If I ran the world, there would be no iPhone Styluses (spelling?). Or rather WHEN I rule the world, there will be no iPhone Stylus-ees. Unless of course I think of something other than MY personal needs.
AGAIN, I get a box of free travel-gadget stuff to review, sounds great huh? NO. First, I am busy LIVING my life and creating the things that make me happy and travelling aroud the world. Mexico, January 9-16 2010 for the markteterscruise.com on Carnival Cruise Lines, then to Vegas til the 23rd, for the Affiliate Summit West, then ANOTHER cruise on my high-school-buddy’s 40-foot sail boat to Catalina Island, then San Fran., then back to my Vemont ski house.
So all this stuff piles up, then Christmas, New Years, etc. etc.
My sister-in-law, for some reason got an iPod Touch for Christmas with the obnoxious and grating COWBELL application pre-installed. Why one would get an iPod Touch and not an iPhone is beyond me as you can get FREE phone calls and texting like I do on my iPhone by getting a free Google voice invite and a FREE TEXTING app and adding your Google voice number to your FRIENDS and FAMILY plan unlimited-calling-service and forwarding all of your calls out through the Goolge voice number and have your friends CALL the Google voice number and forward it to your iPhone for FREE UNLIMITED MINUTES.
I know, I didn’t believe it at first either….
So I get this BIG box of free stuff to review and take ONE item to Virginia with me to review and it is the Pogo Stylus and Pogo Sketch. http://tenonedesign.com/products.php I actually laugh when I open them up. They are simply a metal tube with a piece of sponge on the end. Maybe I can use it to put on my stage make-up the next time I perform my One Man Play ” Clinton and Me” at the Off -Broadway Theater, the Mint, where I did a six week run last June.
I try to be open when I review this stuff.
So the FIRST thing my sister-in-law says when she opens her iPod Touch, and I am NOT making this up is: “Does this come with a stylus?”
Hmmm… maybe some greater force is at work here?
SHE LOVED IT, loved them both. So there, maybe I am NOT the center and focal point of the universe. All things are not for all people. Although I would NEVER use a stylus and could never see the need for it for ME, seems there are a lot of people out there who need and want them.
We went to the Apple store there and they were doing a semi-brisk job of selling them as well–to women, the sales guy told me…
If you read the other LAME reviews of this product, you will notice they are ALL from a bunch of self centered MEN who only think of THEIR needs
For navigating your iPhone Ten One Design has created the Pogo Stylus.
The stylus is made from an ultra-light aluminum alloy and sports a soft tip
for gliding over the surface of the iPhone’s display. It also comes with a travel
clip that secures around the iPhone, creating a holder for the stylus.
For drawing or navigating your MacBook, the company is offering the Pogo
Sketch. The Sketch is made from the same light-weight aluminum alloy as
the Stylus and also includes the same soft tip. It’s a bit longer than the
Stylus since it’s designed to be held for longer periods of time.
The stylus is made from an ultra-light aluminum alloy and has a soft tip
for going over the surface of the iPhone’s display. It also comes with a travel
clip that secures around the iPhone, creating a holder for the stylus.
For drawing , the company also offers the Pogo
Sketch. The Sketch is made from the same light-weight aluminum alloy as
the Stylus and also includes the same soft tip. It’s a bit longer than the
Stylus and it’s designed to be held for longer periods.
If you have long nails or like styluses in general, this one of the best in the business.
