Technology and Travel -iPod to iPad

So to me technology is more than a way to pass the time, increase efficiency, or simplify things, it is a total and complete obsession. Last year I bought an iPod Touch to bring with me on all my travels to stay connected, update my travel budget in real time, store maps and itinerary information, and keep myself entertained through video and music. I discovered a wide range of available utilities that allow to me to do all of those and more (i.e., blogging or remote connecting to my home PC via VNC). After discovering this miracle device I decided the rest of the family must also each have one. I bought one for both my wife and daughter and would have gotten one for the dog if she wasn't afraid of anything that makes noise. Just kidding, but I would buy a collar monitor that could link up and allow us to understand her (think Doug from Up).

Anyways, with all my preparation under way for our upcoming 14 day sojourn around the UK I had been really loading up my iPod with great apps and data. Then comes along the iPad (if by now you don't know what that is then maybe you should not be reading this blog). I thought the concept was interesting but figured it wouldn't be that much different from my iPod. Was I ever wrong!

On the iPad release day my wife and I decided to have lunch at our local mall, which has an Apple store. After we finished eating I suggested we stop by the store and demo the iPad to see what all the hype was about. There was a line of about 14 people out front but anyone was free to enter the store. We made our way to an open demo model. After picking it up and playing with Google maps and a few other preinstalled apps I knew I had to have one. Needless to say, I'm not going to review the device (see the plethora of reviews online), but I did buy one and expect to use it heavily on my upcoming trips. So while some people like to travel to get away, I prefer to retain my connection to technology and use it for my own not so nefarious purposes.

-- Post From My iPad