For the first time, I'm bringing my laptop on a trip. I've always thought about bringing one, but until now I've never had one small enough that seemed to be worth the burden.
Aside from the obvious suggestions about theft prevention, does anyone have any good tips about how to travel smart with a laptop? I'll be bringing mine to Costa Rica, so suggestions / products regarding weather-proofing are of particular interest!
I'm also curious about how many people do travel with their computers -- or if you rely solely on internet cafes or new-found friends during your travels -- and why / why not.
Reply to this Since getting a netbook I'm firmly in the 'travel with' camp 😊
Mostly for convenience and security reasons, and so many places now have free wireless access.
Reply to this We are traveling now for 8 months with our laptop. We never had problems protecting it from rain, as we normally leave it in the hostel while walking outside..
There is wireless almost everywhere, so it is easy to connect. We found it nice to have our laptop, especially as it enables us also to communicate in Hebrew... (not available on the computers in the hostels).
It is also easy for us to store photos this way - not all computersin internet cafes or hostels allow you to connect external devices such as cameras or disk on keys - this way we are not dependent on them at all.
Enjoy your travels in Costa Rica it is beautiful - we have just been there a month ago.
Caribbean Twist!
Tortuguero!!! Canals, Animals and One Birthday
Lilach
Reply to this we've been traveling with our laptop for 2 months now, now problems so far (knock on wood). we ususally leave it in our room when we're out and about, only bringing it out to a cafe when needed, and when we do we just pop it in our small waterproof bag which works just fine!!
We like the convenience of having our laptop with us, allows us to easily update our blogs. I write them all out in word and then when we have internect connections we update. it's also easy for photo editing and storage of pictures as well as contacting home when need be!! 😊
Reply to this It would be interesting to know what kind of Laptop you use and how heavy it is ?
cheers from Germany
walter
Reply to this I travelled for couple of years with laptop but left it behind recently and I haven't missed it at all
Reply to this Traveling with a amini notebook... it weighs about 1.2 kg.
Reply to this to Scott and Kristy
whow 2.9Kg !
This is for me too heavy.
I am travelling already with a big canon OES 450 camera.
I find it hard to add to this 2kg just for a laptop.
But on the other hand, many computers you find in a Hotel or in an Internet shop have all kind of viruses and you should actually not use them.
Reply to this you should bring a laptop with you.. it is necessary while your on travel. you can use it to communicate.. it's not hard to connect, every places has its free wireless access.
Reply to this Travelled with a notebook for a while - 1.8kg, 4 hours of battery life, 13.3 inch screen. Now travel with a netbook - 1.3kg, 10 hours of battery life, 10.4 inch screen. The difference between them is huge and I would never travel anywhere without my netbook - err on the smaller size if you are able.
I am able to upload and sort through my photos while on the road in the comfort of my room. Being able to write my blogs in my room instead of an Internet cafe is also a lovely luxury. Then once I get a connection, everything is ready to upload to this site - just wonderful! Plus if someone sends me a file, or if I have received a hotel confirmation - I just download the form to my computer and it is easily accessible - something that is not quite as convenient if using a public computer in an Internet cafe.
As a bit of a bonus, I've downloaded some free shareware games onto my netbook - and they do help pass the time on long flights or in airports.
Reply to this that's the other bonus of having our laptop, if we have anything confirmed via email it's super easy to pop it up and you have it right there, also we have skype minutes so in the event of an emergency it's easy for us to place a call (unlimited to north america for $3, we've been using it like crazy, and has come in handy more then once when trying to contact parents, insurance, banks, etc back home)
Reply to this Even calling mobile phones is really cheap on skype, and you only need to make a call every six months to keep the credit active.
The only time I have clocked up six months of non-use I called my mobile phone, without answering it, to get rid of the reminder flag.
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