What’s your technology wearing?
December 31, 2007 by maggiefox
If you travel a lot and like technology a lot, chances are you have put some serious thought into how to house all the gadgets you end up carrying around to ensure both your productivity and entertainment.
What’s your laptop wearing?
Item of importance #1 is a quality bag for your laptop. There’s been some talk in the past about the merits of Crumpler carry-alls, but for the girls among us, carrying a bag that big just isn’t practical. I never check my luggage, which means the most I can have is a purse and a roller case. My secret trick is to go with laptop cases that are flat and can fit inside the roller, keeping me (technically) well within the 2-item limit for carry ons.
Earlier this year, I was working with this Crumpler 13″ School Hymn for the Macbook:
I liked it because it was bright green, padded, and with enough use one side was squeezed small enough for me to be able to wield the case one-handed. Downside? No storage for the necessary Macbook accoutrements. Stuff like, uh, the powercord. It also got smudged easily, which bugged me.
A short time later, I was minding my own business in New York, when I passed by a store called Highway in Nolita. Through the plate glass, I locked eyes with this bag:
It was love at first sight. Note the pockets on the front - one for business cards, the other a little deeper and perfect for the powercord for my Crackberry and/or an iPod. What you don’t see in this shot is perhaps the best feature of all; on the other side is a 2″ deep padded rectangular pocket that offers a glove-like fit for my Mac powercord. Inside the bag itself are pockets and dividers for magazines and other stuff. The ultimate cool thing? The over-the-shoulder strap looks like a seatbelt. Basically, this bag is perfect. Needless to say, my mono-functional Crumpler and I broke up a short time later.
Is your iPod as well dressed as it could be?
Okay, so we’ve covered meta carrying devices - what about the stuff you use to carry the technology inside the bag you use to carry your technology? My iPod is starting to look like a nesting doll. I fixate on this particular gadget because it is such a good friend.
A while back I recognized the ass-ness of the standard issue iPod earbuds, especially when deployed against the deafening white noise of the average airplane in flight. So I invested in a pair of Harmon-Kardon EP 710 earphones.
I opted against the various noise-canceling versions available, figuring it was not beyond the realm of possibility that someone, someday, would issue a press release saying, “Whoops! They do make you deaf. Our bad!” (aspartame, anyone?) So I got this kind, which basically act like earplugs. However, I did discover a downside: on the street, where there are usually no jet engines, these “natural noise isolating earphones” work a little too well. Basically, I almost stepped in front of a car. So now I have two sets of earbuds - the regular ass kind and the really good kind. Which means that I am actually using the rather lame black nylon case that came with the Harmon-Kardons to hold it all.
Inside that case, my iPod is further enrobed in something called a Gelaskin:
I discovered the existence of these magical, paper-thin protective coatings in an email from a gallery/store in Toronto called Magic Pony, which is filled with a plethora of wonderful and bizarre items, not least of which is Fancy Action Now: The Art of Team Macho. But I digress. Gelaskins are an absolutely perfect blend of form and function. Incredibly amazing designs on a material that protects your iPod from scratches and all manner of trouble - without adding a bit of bulk.
More awesome news? They’re now available for your laptop.
So I leave you with this question: what’s your technology wearing?
I’m with you on the Gelaskin - being on old hippy, mine’s the Vintage Dr. Gonz. My MacBook Pro is adorned with stickers - but on the underside so it doesn’t look too naff. I carry my kit in a Targus that sounds like it has similar features to your Highway thingy but not as cool looking. I’ve got some Sony earbuds that are OK but I really should shell out for the new Shure CL5s.
My Sony TZ wears a Tucano notebook second skin when it’s out on the town (it’s for a Macbook really) and my Zune 8gb wears an iPod sock. OMG….my kit has Apple clothes envy!
The headphones in your pic look like the Shure 310s (I have a pair). I was told that it’s better to get noise isolating earbuds as opposed to noise canceling, as you lose a lot of base with noise canceling. Regardless of the noise cancelling/noise isolating version, you’re right though: you need two pair… the craptastic standard issue iPod earbuds so you can hear oncoming traffic, and the noise repressing/canceling higher end versions when your laying back in the lazy boy at home.
I like that bag. The external pocket for cords makes all the difference in the world. Is there a man one?
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@Dennis - Gelaskins are AMAZING. Especially since, if you get tired of the one you’ve got, you can replace it and there’s no goo or anything left behind. Absolute awesomeness.
@Steve - as I said on your blog, this could be a whole new niche for accessories if you do it right. Free idea.
@Ben - I am wondering if I should have gotten a pair of Shures instead? All the cool kids have ‘em!
@Collin - I think it IS a man bag (well, unisex, anyway). What, men don’t wear orange now? Maybe if you’re lucky you’ll get one for your birthday. In pink.
Thanks to Maggie my ipod has a gelaskin, and my better half now thinks my ipod is almost non-geeky enough for her to have one.
I have some sticker on both sides of my company issue thinkpad, mainly for airport security recognition. There are too many thinkpads out there…