Hi there,
I was thinking of buying an i Phone before I go off travelling and wanted your opinion please. I see that i Phones have loads of applications that would be really useful when travelling - compass, maps, Lonely Planet guides (applications that you can get and put on the i Phone with LP guides) internet and i'm sure a lot more. The internet could be used to call phones free or for little cost around the world if you downloaded Skype, the LP application guides would cut down on travel weight, the internet would be super useful for not having to find internet cafes, you'd be able to get translation websites, translation dictionaries on the phone too, you could book hostel rooms, read reviews, read travel blog and plan your itenary while you're on the move, e-mail, facebook, take pics instead of carrying a camera, listen to music instead of taking an i pod, read travel guides, maps, translation services all on the phone rather than carrying them. Seems like it'd save a lot of weight and a lot of hassle.
The only issues I can see from getting an i Phone and using it would be the cost and availability of international roaming, would it be more than internet cafes? Would it be accessible? Would you have to buy the i Phone on the cheapest contract, cancel the contract, get the phone unlocked and then use pay as you go sim cards in each country you visit, does it still work with pay as you go sim cards? It would obvioulsy be a target to thieves too. The biggest question I have is that would it ruin the travel experience? I'm sure travelling is the actual excitement of travel, unplanned or semi planned and the difficulties you overcome and encounters you have. Would having an i Phone make this all too easy.
Be interested to hear your views.
Thanks!
Reply to this If you are looking to buy things, or book hostels on the internet then it is best to not use internet cafes. Things like i phones can be useful for the increased security they give.
I however wouldnt bother with it, because I can just send my boyfriend an email asking him to book hostels, pay for things... from home. And there is internet in most places so easy to keep in touch, and on the rare occasions I want to make a phone call I can figure out the local phone system, hopefully. And a Lonely Planet book wont make your bags that much heavier.
I dont think it would ruin your travel experience, unless you get too attached to playing with it all the time so you dont pay attention to the travel experience you are having. If you use it only when you need it, I dont see why it would ruin the travel experience.
It would however give you one more valuable which needs to be carefully looked after. I personally try to avoid travelling with any valuables at all. The most upsetting thing that I could lose while travelling is my sun cream.
Mel
Reply to this Would having an i Phone make this all too easy.
Well, yeah you could take off without access to information at all and that will certainly make it less easy. But, will it make it a better experience? I dont think so. I would benefit from the experience of those who provide the information, while experiencing things from my own prespective at the same time. When you travel you will have unexpected experiences and feelings even if you have lots of information at hand.
Reply to this Just reading a book called 'Vagabonding - An uncommon guide to the art of long-term world travel' by Rolf Potts. I like his take on the travel experience - not overplanning, not over relying on technology, books too much, enjoying the experience of the unknown and how they turn out to be the best experiences, obviously with a little planning beforehand and a general awareness. I like his thinking and agree with him.
Reply to this I use my I phone a lot while traveling, to look at maps. Far more discret that unfolding a whacking great map on a street corner.
Reply to this hey cookie - how do you find the costs of using your i phone in other countries, are the roaming charges high? do you have an unlocked pay as you go i phone or contract? just trying to work out if i do get one what would be best, as i do think they have some great features that would be really useful.
thanks
Reply to this It was £6 per meg as far as I recall. So yes, data was fairly expensive. But I didn't want to travel with guide books or maps, so it was worth it to me. It is a contract phone, the contract I have is around £40 a month. I can't remember the roaming charges, but it didn't break the bank. This is the first year I have traveled with an I phone, and it made a real difference to me. It was just great to have music, films, books, maps etc all in one place.
Reply to this yeah i can imagine it would be, i think like you say you'd pay for the convenience. ok great thanks for the help.
Reply to this Forgot to say, I didn't use it for internet if I could use my netbook, so that kept costs down a little.
Reply to this Well if your traveling off the beaten track I'm almost positive the iphone will leave you stranded. I'm pretty sure the compass tools and maps work based on where the cellphone towers are located. So, if your outside the range of the towers those tools are going to be limited.
Reply to this Hi, I usually carry my iPhone with me when traveling. There are some pros and cons with it.
PROs:
- nicest Skype tool (if you find a free WiFi connection it's THE cheapest way to call)
- weather channel app - great for checking the weather
- notes app - taking quick notes (pen and paper is of course easier though)
- tools for quick blogging (either twitter or full wordpress)
- carry some music / books
- it's instant-on (compared to a laptop for example)
CONs:
- it is an expensive gadget, so having it stolen is going to be painful
- camera (for my 3G at least) is bad, even compared to a compact digicam
- internet connection on data roaming is expensive, BUT WiFi can be free (in a lot of hostels for ex)
- the browser is excelent, but it is still awkward to use some websites. This will hopefully change in time. I am hoping for a dedicated profile for hostelworld.com for example.
- it does not replace a laptop
- it's yet another gadget requiring constant recharging...
For what it's worth - I DO carry it with me (then again, I also carry my laptop and DSLR camera).
Hope it helps.
Reply to this Well.. probably my comment is a bit too late 😊... but still
There is a service - iPhoneTrip.com - you can rent an iPhone or a SIM card if you've already got an iPhone and this gives you free data roaming worldwide (or almost worldwide).
Maybe for your next trip 😊
Reply to this I want to know how much it will cost to use overseas. I've heard of travellers going overseas with their iPhones, then coming back to realise that they have a $5000 bill.
How can I avoid this? I'm on an Australian iPhone.
Reply to this Hi - I'm just going through some of the old iPhone related posts.
We made a huge effort to make sure that the latest version of travelblog.org looked and worked as well as possible on smaller screened technologies - meaning iPods, iPhones etc etc
Everything works well - with sadly one exception.
For a reason I cannot understand Apple have disabled file uploads from iPhones via the safari browser, call me a sceptic - but the only explanation I can think of is to force us to develop an application, and for the users to purchase it, and they can take a cut... money makes Apple go round - but I do love my iPhone 😉
Hope that helps explain the current situation.
Reply to this @Saki: > I want to know how much it will cost to use overseas. I've heard of travellers going overseas with their iPhones, then coming back to realise that they have a $5000 bill.
You have to turn off data - it's expensive even for me on a prepaid plan....
On your iPhone go to: (iOS4)
Settings -> General -> Network
Here to be safe - turn off all data (3G, Mobile Data, Data Roaming) when you are abroad (or on prepaid like me!) - you can turn it on again in an emergency if you need...
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