Susan Michelle's Compass
Hot Travel Electronics for 2008
By travel lifestylist Susan Michelle
Feb 10, 2008 - 4:03:38 AM

When it comes to mobile gadgets to aid your traveling lifestyle, the categories are generally pretty few: computers, gps devices, mobile phones, cameras, camcorders, and everything else.  What’s new in ’08 amongst these sort-of electronics?  Here’s some of the year’s hottest new tech gadgets for the road:

COMPUTERS:
MacBook Air: An “ultrathin, ultraportable” laptop from Apple, made for the wireless world of the future. Cost: $1799+ Available: February 2008

Modbook: A keyboard-free, GPS-enabled, Mac “laptop” where the screen’s a sketchpad--perfect for the traveling artist or designer.  Cost: $2290 Available: Now

Flexible Keyboard with Skype: This external keyboard rolls up, wipes off easily, and has a built-in Skype keypad so you can phone home less expensively from the road. Cost: $59.99 Available: Now

GPS:
Garmin nüvi 880: Voice-controlled GPS, rather than touch-screen. Cost: $1178 + $50/year for MSN Direct (current traffic, weather, etc.) Available: Spring 2008  

Cobra Nav One 5000: GPS that warns you of red light camera intersections ahead. Cost: $410 Available: Now

Deluo GPS: Add GPS to your laptop or smart phone/PDA via hardware such as a Bluetooth receiver or USB mouse. Cost: $59.99-89.95 Available: Now

Pharos Trips & Pics: A geo-logging system that automatically records the location of your photos as you take them. Cost: $89.95 Available: Now

Pocketfinder: A tiny, waterproof device that you can attach to your dog, child, or suitcase to locate them via GPS should they go missing. Cost: $129 + apx. $10/month for service.  Available: March 2008

PHONES:
Sony Ericsson W760: An official “Walkman,” GPS world phone that supports wireless broadband networks around the globe. Cost: Apx. $99 (after rebates) Available: Spring 2008

BlueAnt V1: The world’s first voice-controlled BlueTooth wireless headset.  Cost: $119 Available: April 2008

CAMCORDERS:
DXG-566V HD: A High-Def (quality questionable?) camcorder costing just… Cost: $149 Available: Mid-March 2008

Panasonic SDR-SW20: “Rugged” camcorder in a stylish red color. Cost: $399 Available: March 2008

CAMERAS:
Casio Exilim EX-F1: Shoots 60 full-resolution stills in one second. Cost: $999.99 Available: March 2008

Samsung’s i8: This camera has a touch-sensitive screen and “World Tour Guide” with instant travel info on 30 countries.  Cost: $249.99 Available: March 2008

Liquid Image’s Digital Camera Mask: A snorkeling mask with underwater camera built-in. Cost: $99/5.0 megapixels, $79/3.1 megapixels Available: May 2008

EVERYTHING ELSE:
IOGEAR Gear Juice:  A portable pocket recharger for your cell/PDA.  Cost: $34.95 Available: Now

Remote Pet Feeding & Viewing Camera Kit: Allows you to watch and feed Fido from the road if you leave him home alone. Cost: $298.99 Available: Now

Portable Purelight MD: A small ultraviolet sterilizer that kills germs on trays, seats, or just about anything.  Cost: $80 Available: March 2008

Polaroid Digital Instant Mobile Photo Printer: This tiny, portable printer prints instant 2x3” photo-stickers from an sd card or Bluetooth beam, via crystals instead of ink. Cost: $100-200, + $.40/sheet of photo paper Available: Now

Canon DW-100 DVD burner: A dual-coded external DVD burner for all the video footage from your tape-free HDD or flash camcorder.  Cost: $270 Available: April 2008