[Zoom]

I'm heading to Australia for 16 days in March, and I'm strongly considering taking my iBook for two reasons:

(1) I need some place to dump my digital pics (Canon S400)
(2) I do my journaling on my iBook
(3) Possible email/web/iChat access

I've got the original dual USB iBook.

I found this thread from a while back that suggests that the iBook needs nothing special to charge in a foreign country, except maybe a physical plug adapter. Australia (apparently) is 240V, and the specs say the iBook can handle this. I've never been to Oz, so what sort of plug do I need? Can I just buy a little adapter nugget that will replace the little US prong nugget that came with it? If so, where and how much?

Also, will my international flight (American, I think) have any charging/power facilities in coach?

I'm considering bringing my iSight and trying some iChatAV if I can find some hotspots. Anyone try this?

Finally, what are the general travel hassles for laptops these days? I know long ago you had to have some sort of special customs paperwork for bringing it back into the states (proving that you had it before you left). What about security concerns at airports? I've been through local US airports with my iBook, but not international.

BTW, I looked into the Belkin media reader, but from what I've heard it sucks pretty bad. (I have a 30GB iPod that I will most likely bring, too.) If I could store the photos easily on my iPod, I might leave the iBook.

[james@FISH]

Zoom,

Good to hear you're visting the land of oz - we're not as backwards as some think... :-)

In terms of using your iBook over here, you're correct in that the adapter you get with the iBook is fully internationally compatible. We do use 240V over here and the iBook adapter handles this with no problems - I've used my TiBook adapter in the US in the reverse situation many times.

You will need a travel adapter to plug the iBook adapter into Australian power points. You can pick up a standard adapter plug quite easily from most travel shops / electrical stores / duty free outlets - they're just a plastic plug with US sockets and Australian pins, and should cost you less than $5.

You could also buy an iBook or iPod travel kit, which includes a wide variety of international plugs which attach directly to the newer iBook adapters (the solid white versions rather than the UFO versions), but these cost a bit more.

Depending on your airline you'll probably be out of luck with charging in Economy / coach. I think some United & American long-haul flights are getting these facilities, but I've only come across them in Business class. You'll also need to buy an adapter for your iBook to connect to the seat power outlets, but these are very expensive when I last checked. I ended up buying a second battery for my TiBook which was a cheaper option. Both batteries get me through a Sydney-LA flight with a couple of hours of work and one DVD if there's nothing good on the in-flight programme.

As far as travel hassles go, other than pulling apart your iBook at each security check and occasionally having to boot it up to prove it works, there are no issues. I've never needed to fill out any paperwork etc to travel with my laptop, but this may be required if you wish to avoid any tax-related hassles on your return if they try to prove you bought the laptop overseas and should pay tax on it as you re-enter the US.

As for hotspots in Australia - we're about 1 year behind the US on the wireless front, so that may be a bit hard to find. There are some around, but you'll need to look for dedicated internet cafes as Starbucks don't do wireless here like they do in the US. Some of the bigger McDonalds in Sydney & Melbourne have wireless access, as do most airline lounges at the international airports.

Good luck with your adventure, and I hope you enjoy our country!

James
(not a bad word count for a first post...)

[Zoom]

And an excellent reply at that! Welcome to the MacNN boards, my friend!

I'll be traveling up the East coast and I doubt I'll be finding any hotspots, from your description. If I could find a good, economical way to get the pix onto my iPod, that sounds like the best way to go.

Does anyone know - is the iPod charger also able to handle 240V?

I may just buy another CompactFlash card. I've got a 256MB in there now, plus the 16MB that came with it. If I were to buy a 512MB card or two 256MB cards, that would probably get me through the trip. 256MB will hold 221 pictures at the resolution I normally use. That's 15+ pictures per tour day right there, plus I can delete ones that didn't turn out right. Hmm. Maybe that's the best option.

[Ω]

Originally posted by Zoom:

Does anyone know - is the iPod charger also able to handle 240V?

I hope so, because I have been using mine for over a year on 240V

[rytc]

Originally posted by Zoom:

Does anyone know - is the iPod charger also able to handle 240V?

No probs here. I think you'll find wherever you travel in the world with any portable electronics you won't have any issues asides from finding the right adaptor to use. Well that's been my experience at least.

Cheers Ry

[molala]

you can try this site to find hotspots around oz -
http://www.wi-fihotspotlist.com/browse/au/

downtown brisbane had free wifi access as of last sept (though it would only work from your browser and not apps like mail so probably no iChat). i'm not sure if that's still the case.

[andretan]

When I visited Perth last year, I brought my iBook with me as well.

Had it kept in the hotel and service apartment when I went out.

Downloaded my photos to it, dialed back to a Singapore ISP to check my mail and some IM. But if you can find a internet cafe, I think it would be much cheaper.

Perth was fun
Would prefer to go to Sydney again though

[mkral]

If you don't want the hassle of lugging the laptop, the ipod/media reader might be the way to go. I've never used one, but have read several reviews & the ones that Iv'e read are mostly positive, except for the speed of the thing. If you're not planning on exceeding your 256 meg card every day, you could easily dump your photos onto the ipod at night (or whenever) you're "down"

If you dumped them daily, it shouldn't be too huge of a problem.

If you can live with the hassle of the laptop, there are some real advantages to bringing it. You can edit pictures while you're in australia, or on the plane on the way back, instead of coming home to hundreds of pics to be taken care of.

[Zoom]

I'm going to be on an "adventure" tour with some young single people. It's a group called Connections, which is apparently much like Contiki. I'm not likely to be near many hotspots. I'm not sure how safe the bus is for leaving my iBook, either. Plus, I was really hoping to have power on the plane, and even that doesn't sound likely.

Unless I hear some more positive reasons to bring it, I think I'll opt for extra CF cards. (That media reader is $100, and I can get another 512MB for that price.)

[hardcool]

Welcome to Australia ZOOM.

I dont see any problem in using your ibook here in Australia.

Hope that you will find your trip to australia enjoyable.! Post some pics on this forum of your trip.