Gadling Gear Review: Phiaton Noise Canceling Earbuds

by Pam Mandel on

I had a moment of anxiety when I boarded a recent flight from Amsterdam to Seattle. The middle cabin, where I was seated, was full of very small children. Now, before you hit send on that hate mail, let me tell you that I am always sympathetic with the yowling little ones; they’re expressing exactly how I feel when I park myself in coach for a ten hour flight. But the noise, oh, lord, the noise, does not make the flight any easier. You know this as well as I do.

When I first started testing noise canceling gear, I had hoped these miracle devices would make everything go away, that I would be in a bubble of beautiful silence, serenaded only by the voices of Ira Glass (“This American Life”) or Jad Abumrad (“RadioLab”) from podcasts I’d downloaded to while away the tedium of flight. Not so, not so. I’ve tried several different brands and configurations; they do not make the noise of the plane go away.

They do, however, make for less noise, and that’s a good thing. But headphones are bulky and take up space in your bag. Phiaton makes active noise canceling earbuds that do a good job of eliminating airplane noise – as good as the other over-the-ear headphones I’ve tested. They take up a fraction of the space; I can stuff them in my pocket and they’re feature packed.The buds have Bluetooth so you can use them while your phone is stuffed in your pocket or in your bag on the back seat in your car. Bluetooth doesn’t work when your phone is in airplane mode (that was news to me) but there’s a connector cable so you can wire the headset to your device. The controller – the earbuds are wired to this – clips on to your shirt (or whatever) so it’s easy to find and easy to use once you get the hang of it. The device charges via a mini-USB cable and the battery life is impressive; it easily lasts the life of a ten hour flight with juice to spare. They’re comfortable, too.

With regard to that noise reduction feature, the marketing language ensures, “background noise is virtually eliminated.” I’m not going to go that far. There is a significant reduction in that grinding engine noise; frequent fliers know exactly what I’m talking about. You will notice the difference; I absolutely did, but “virtually eliminated” is a bit of stretch.

Noise canceling headphones or earbuds do make a big difference in the quality of a flight experience. I pack mine whenever I fly and I am very pleased that now, they’re small enough to pack with barely a nod towards consideration of space. The Phiaton noise canceling earbuds are easily as good as my traditional, low- mid-range noise canceling headphones. That’s a terrific improvement. And anything that eases long haul travel – oh, I’m for it.

Phiaton’s earbuds are listed for $159 MSRP, shop around, though. I’ve seen them listed for $129 on the big online shopping sites.

Gadling Gear Review: Solar Chargers For Travel

by Kraig Becker on

Keeping all of our electronic gadgets charged while traveling can be a real challenge, particularly if you’re visiting a remote part of the world where electricity is at a premium. But just as the gizmos we carry with us have gotten more sophisticated so have the options for keeping them powered. One of those options is taking a solar charger with us when we hit the road. A solar cell provides clean, efficient and, in theory, limitless power for our tech toys.

Here are two distinctly different solar chargers aimed at very different types of travelers. Both are excellent for what they do, and while they each use light from the sun to create electricity, their similarity pretty much ends there.

Solio Classic2
The Classic2 is Solio’s second-generation, travel solar charger, replacing their older Classic model, which was one of the earliest compact chargers on the market. The Classic2 improves on its predecessor in some key areas making it a much more efficient option to have in your pack when you travel. Those improvements include doubling the battery capacity and adding a full-size USB port integrated into the device. The previous version came with a number of special adapters, which were incredibly inconvenient to carry along on a trip. Since most devices, including smartphones and cameras, now charge via USB, this was an evolutionary, but very welcome, change.

The Classic2 features three small solar cells, each embedded in its own arm. When collapsed the device is small, lightweight and compact. It weighs just 10.1 ounces and easily slips into a backpack, carry-on bag or luggage. When ready to collect energy from the sun, it opens up like a flower, exposing all three cells for maximum efficiency. The energy is then stored in a 3200-mAh internal battery, which in turn is used to charge our devices via the built-in USB port.Solio says that it should take 8-10 hours to charge the Classic2’s internal battery from the sun, but in my testing it was definitely closer to the high side of that estimate, if not longer. Cloudy days and the amount of exposure to direct sunlight can impact that charging time dramatically. Fortunately, the internal battery can also be topped off from a wall socket or from a USB port on a computer. In both cases, it takes roughly six hours to charge the battery.

The built-in USB port on this charger provides up to 1 Amp of power, which puts it on par with a typical wall charger. That means it can charge a smartphone or MP3 player in fairly short order. Solio claims charging an iPhone takes about 90 minutes, although again I found it took a bit longer. It was closer to 2 hours in my testing, although the internal battery did provide nearly three full recharges on an iPhone 4S. It should be noted that the Classic2 is also capable of charging an iPad, although it is a slow process and it will drain the entire charge.

The Solio Classic2 is perfect for travelers who enjoy traveling light and may need to juice up their gadgets a few times while on the road. It’s compact, easy to pack and works as advertised. I’d recommend using it for cellphones, GPS units, MP3 players and point-and-shoot cameras. Anything more than that is likely to provide results that are a bit more frustrating.

Goal Zero Guide 10 Plus Adventure Kit
Larger and more powerful than Solio’s offering, the Guide 10 Plus Adventure Kit from Goal Zero is designed for the adventure traveler that intends to be in the backcountry for an extended period of time. It features twin 9-inch solar panels that are capable of generating up to 7 Watts of power, charging up the included battery pack in as little as 3-4 hours. Like the Solio Classic2, this kit features a built-in USB port capable of putting out a 1 Amp charge but it also includes 4 AA batteries, a rechargeable flashlight and cables that help round out the package, providing everything you need to keep your gadgets charged while living off the grid.

Putting Goal Zero’s solar charger to the test, I found that it wasn’t necessarily faster at charging up my devices than Solio’s much smaller device. That’s in part because they both share that same 1 Amp USB charging port, which made charging times on smartphones and cameras roughly the same. Where the Guide 10 Plus shines is that it can charge its battery pack much more quickly and consistently than the Solio Classic2. Collecting power from the sun is a more viable option with the Guide 10 Plus kit, and while with Solio’s offering it, it was a more uneven experience.

The Guide 10 is considerably larger than the Classic2, although it does fold up into a rather compact form for transport. The solar cells are designed to connect to a backpack so that they can collect the suns rays while hiking throughout the day. That means by the time you make camp in the evening, you’ll have gathered plenty of power to charge your gadgets overnight.

It should be noted that like the Solio Classic2, the Guide 10 kit is more than capable of charging your iPad using nothing but solar power. No matter which device you use, it can be a slow process, particularly with the higher capacity batteries of the iPad 3. The larger solar cells make this a more efficient process on Goal Zero’s offering, however, and that is the option I’d recommend if you absolutely need to keep your tablet powered while in the field.

Both the Classic2 and Guide 10 are viable options for using solar power and I think they are both good at what they do, provided you understand their strengths and limitations ahead of time. The Classic2 is small, compact and easy to carry everywhere. Its battery pack is good for 3-4 recharges of various devices, although it is slow to refill using the sun. On the other hand, the Guide 10 can charge much more quickly and reliably, but it is larger and bulkier to carry with you.

Most travelers will find the $99 Solio Classic2 will fit their needs quite nicely, while backpackers, mountaineers and long distance trekkers will appreciate what Goal Zero’s Guide 10 Adventure Kit delivers. That $159 solution has everything they need to stay powered up for extended journeys and its more rugged construction is designed to stand up to punishment on those kinds of excursions.

It’s great that we’re finally to the point where solar power is a true option for gathering power while traveling.

Paraglider And Hang Glider Collide Midair In Italy

by Kent Wien on

It’s probably every paragliding pilot’s biggest nightmare – flying within a gaggle of other pilots in search of lift and, even though you’ve kept your head on a swivel carefully watching for traffic, you notice something out of the corner of your eye behind your risers. A hang glider is coming at you.

One pilot, flying in the Trentino-Alto Adige region of Italy, had exactly this experience a few days ago and caught it on his camera.

Fortunately, even though the hang glider pilot’s parachute failed to open, the flat spin was enough to let him down slow enough that he was able to survive the impact with the trees.

With the advent of GoPro cameras, many hang glider and paraglider pilots record their moments in the air. That has led to an abundance of scary, ‘there I was – I nearly died’ YouTube videos involving the sports.

While paragliding in Utah last week, building up my experience for a future “Cockpit Chronicles” article on the sport, I was initially surprised at how stressful it was to fly in a confined area scratching for lift with 20 other pilots. Occasionally, I had to give up the search and try for another flight later in the day when the traffic died down.

Paragliding enjoys a remarkably good safety record (a point that’s subject to debate as you’ll see in the comments below), so hopefully these videos won’t discourage you from trying this purest form of flying.

Gadling Gear Review: Pelican 1065 HardBack iPad Case

by Kraig Becker on

The iPad is a perfect travel companion, providing hours of entertainment and keeping us in communication while on the go. But Apple’s device can be fragile and it’s not always easy to safely carry it with us when we hit the road. Fortunately, there are a variety of good cases to help protect the tablet, although few provide the same level of security as the new 1065 HardBack Case from Pelican.

For years military personnel, explorers and travelers have depended on Pelican cases to keep their gear safe and secure under the most demanding of conditions. The company has built a reputation for providing products that are tough, dependable and impenetrable and their line of cases, designed for everything from laptops to firearms, are amongst the best in the business. They’re so good in fact that the company stands by all of their products with a lifetime guarantee, something that has become increasingly rare these days.

The 1065 HardBack Case puts all of Pelican’s years of experience into a compact shell specifically designed to protect an iPad or other 10-inch tablet device. Built from ruggedized, impact resistant plastic, this case is unlike any other. Not only is it crush proof, but it is also waterproof up to a depth of three feet and protects against a drop onto a hard surface from the same distance. The case’s airtight seal also prevents dust from getting into the electronics, while a built-in purge valve maintains internal air pressure making it easy to open at any altitude. To further protect our tablets, Pelican has lined the interior of the case with a foam liner that is designed to absorb impact without scratching the delicate screen.While testing this case I was continually impressed not only with its overall build quality but also its ability to stay tightly sealed even while absorbing a major impact. Pelican uses a durable latch that is easy to open when you want to gain access to the interior but still stays firmly shut while protecting its contents. This helps to prevent unintentional openings that can further lead to accidental damage to the iPad.

As you can no doubt tell, I am impressed with Pelican’s fantastic tablet case, but the HardBack does come with a few compromises. For starters, its rugged construction makes this case heavier than most as it tips the scales at 1.25 pounds. That’s more than the iPad itself and adds considerable bulk to a device that is specifically designed to help us travel lighter. Additionally, the 1065 is relatively small and thin with just enough room for a tablet inside. That means there is no space to conveniently carry an AC adapter, although most power supplies don’t require the same level of protection as the actual devices they power. Still, it would be nice to be able to carry both the iPad and its power supply in a single case.

Those few nit picks aside, the HardBack Case is one of the best options for travelers looking to safely carry their tablet to even the most remote and rugged places on Earth. Whether trekking through the Alps, sailing the Caribbean or simply trying to survive the perils of the modern airport, this is the case to have along on your next adventure. True, it does add a bit of weight to your pack, but if your travels frequently take you to demanding environments, the protection this case provides is worth the extra ounces. With a list price of $49.99 the HardBack won’t break the bank either, and considering the level of protection it provides, that seems like a real bargain compared to lesser cases that are on the market.

How To Replace Anything (Anything) Lost On A Business Trip

by Grant Martin on

What’s the independent business traveler’s worst enemy? It’s not hotel Wi-Fi. It’s Radio Shack. Have you seen how much they charge for a micro-usb cable? Twenty bucks. Same cable at monoprice? About a dollar.

Forgetting simple things like power bricks and phone adapters is one of the most frustrating side effects about business travel. Often the frustration doesn’t even come from the inconvenience – it’s always nice to have a backup phone charger – the problem comes when the charger is four times the cost that it should be. Case in point? That combo meal at the Burger King in LAX isn’t supposed to be $12. Captive audiences breed captive prices.

It’s happened to all of us, but there are a few ways around the frustrations of shopping on the road.

If you’re staying at a hotel, it’s always handy to check the lost and found. Travelers leave all sorts of things behind, and according to the Sheraton staff in Philadelphia, what’s not picked up at lost and found gets donated or distributed among the workers. It’s not just electrical widgets either. Lost contact lens case? Forgot your tennis shoes? Check downstairs. And in case you have any issues with stealing something that might eventually be claimed, you can always bring it back.Airport and airline lost and found is also a great place to find lost trinkets, just bear in mind that most repositories are outside of security, so arrive early and with plenty of patience.

If you’re hell bent on buying your replacement though, make sure to stay away from chain stores like Radio Shack or even Best Buy. Discount box stores like Marshalls and TJ Max are a great alternative source of small electronics. The headphones that I picked up in the San Juan Marshalls last Saturday for $5.99 were $14 cheaper than the ones at the airport – and the quality was just the same.

It’s also a decent idea to keep an eye out for a local Salvation Army or Goodwill, similar in concept to the discount box store but with a more random, used assortment of goods.

Not interested in making the capital investment? It’s easier than you think to rent a wide range of electronics while in transit. Cameras are a great example. Here in Chicago you can walk into a Calumet Photo and walk out with either lenses or a full rig for shooting all weekend. In New York there’s Adorama. Online, you can even use lensrentals. And the costs are fairly modest. For a five-day rental of a $1600 16-35mm Canon Lens over Labor Day, I only had to shell out $100. Shipping was included.

But what if you’re stuck in meetings all day? There are actually a few neat services that will outsource your shopping. Zaarly is a great example. Need a new power supply? Post a note in Zaarly asking for someone to pick up your electronics at the local best buy, shell out the cash and offer an extra ten bucks to have it delivered. There’s a decent chance that some poor college student is willing to help out for the beer money. Barring the new fancy Zaarly, Craigslist is always a backup.

[Flickr image via Magic Madzik]