How to stay connected even if you're touring the 2014 World Cup
Lets face it, we live in a highly connected world and being away from the office is becoming a greater challenge as our need to interact at a moments notice becomes the norm. So if you're a road warrior, busy executive, or a journalist traveling to report the latest of the 2014 FIFA World Cup, I'll help guide you to getting the 5 essentials into your Go Bag. Lets go...
- ---TABLET/Smartphone---
Even with tablets and smartphones becoming faster and flexible (ie Samsung Galaxy Tab), you could leave the laptop in the office provided you have a bluetooth keyboard to go along with you. If you use an Android or Windows tablet, you'll be able to connect wireless (or USB wired) mouse as well which can make things easier. For those of us that travel internationally, having a removable SIM card is a HUGE win as you'll see below how it helps. - ---Longer USB Cables---
While battery life is very important, the cable that came with your device is far too short to be practical. You'd want a 6-10ft USB cable or at least an extension cable so that you aren't hovering near an outlet. A major point to keep an eye on is the thickness of the wire in the cable. Also called the gauge of the wire, listed as AWG on the white print on the wire itself. Having a wire that is too thin (cheapo generic cables on e-bay for example) may be a bargain, but the wire itself wont be able to reliably carry the electricity to your device, especially on longer cable runs. A tell-tale sign of the wire being too thin is erratic behavior from your device while charging, charging stops after a short period of being plugged in, or not charging at all. The lower the AWG rating, the more power it can carry. A good rating for your kit would be 22 AWG. The data pins can be 28 AWG since they dont need to support heavy power loads.
Example: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16812189234
Notice how thick the cable is going into the USB connectors, you should be able to clearly notice the thicker wire inside. - ---Universal USB Charger---
Thirsty devices like high end smartphones and tablets need 1-2 amps [respectively] of power from the charger to fill the battery in a reasonable time. Make sure you bring a charger that can supply more Amps than your device would need. A good travel charger should have a minimum of 2 USB ports that can supply at least 2.1 amps collectively. If you are charging a tablet AND a smartphone at the same time, you'll need at least 3.1 or a 4.2 amp charger to charge both devices at the same time. Don't forget international power compatibility.
Example: http://www.ianker.com/product/71AN7105-W5A
A USB charger like the one above helps cut down on wire clutter and having to drag around wall chargers especially if you are traveling with other people. - ---Microsoft Lync with IP Phone Integration---
Microsoft Lync much more than just a messaging platform when it teams up with an IP Phone System. You can have your desk phone travel with you abroad without using international calling minutes on your cell. Launch conferences, live chat (voice, video and text) with team members and collaborate in real-time all from your tablet or phone. Hosted PBX systems like CallTower give you all the features without having to foot the bill for all the technology on the back-end to make it work. It works wonders with your desk phone which I'll post Hosted PBX reviews in a later blog. When traveling international, Lync and hosted IP phone can cut your need for international roaming minutes which is a major money saver for those long conference calls. If your phone or tablet has a removable SIM card, it is highly recommended that you purchase a local SIM card for the area that you are traveling in. Data rates for local SIM cards are many many times cheaper than using your USA issued card. Combine Lync, Hosted IP softphone app and your new local SIM card and you have the winning trifecta! Send e-mail to your heart's content, facebook and twitter updates, Voice-over-IP calls till you're blue in the face! All at a fraction of the cost if you used the SIM card from back home. - ---Portable Power Pack---
Most of the time, you can go a full day on a single charge, but if you need more juice a portable power pack can give you a battery boost just when you need it most. These devices are measured in mAh, or milliamp hours. mAh is defined as the total amount of energy a battery can store at one time [phonescoop.com]. So a power hungry device (tablet) will draw more power in a shorter time than charging your phone will from the same power pack. Remember, just like the USB Charging Kit if there is more than 1 USB port, you need to check out the TOTAL use from all the devices charging at 1 time to see how fast you will drain the portable battery pack. Phonescoop.com gives an easy breakdown of the math here
Notice on the battery pack, it has 2 specific USB output ports, a 1 Amp and a 2 Amp for your phone and tablet respectively. To the right is a dual port USB car charger that also has a dedicated charging port for phone and tablet (1 amp, 2 amp). You can charge a phone in either port, but tablets must use the higher output port to charger properly.
Whether you're on the road, on a plane back home or waiting to board your flight to catch the next Wimbledon match, the 5 devices above should help keep you connected even when everyone else is scrambling for a charger.
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-Will Kutzler
F1 Networx Inc.
631-764-2600
