[Stuncle Eve]

We're heading down to New Zealand for a few weeks in February, & I'm planning on taking along my trusty iBook G4. I've got a converter for the AC power supply; is there anything else I should think about taking along - spare battery perhaps?

All recommendations appreciated, although not necessarily taken!

[bookofjames]

Suggestions off the top of my head:

1. Spare battery (if you have one)
2. A portable surge protector (for those days in thunderstorms)
3. A good sleeve/case. Best if waterproof.
4. Some silica gel to keep your stuff dry (if the place is wet/humid)
5. iPod? (with dock conneector)
6. Cleaning kit for your iBook (or just a lint free cloth for your screen)
7. One of those USB keyboard lights (for typing on ur iBook while inflight + at night)
8. A Bluetooth mobile mouse? (I prefer em over the trackpad)
9. USB connector for digital camera (if any)
10. Speedballs
11. Blank CDRs/DVD-Rs or portable external HDD (if you're planning to take tons of pictures)
12. A spare Ethernet cable + telephone cable for wired internet access (broadband/dialup)



Call me a packrat.

[Stuncle Eve]

Thanks for the list. In an effort to keep stuff to a minimum, I probably won't bother with a surge protector or a mouse, but:

1. spare battery - get
2. good case - got
3. silica gel - get
4. iPod - no got, won't get
5. screen cloth - got
6. keyboard light - got
7. camera cable - got
8. speedballs - huh?
9. blank CDRs - got
10. spare cables - got

I like the idea of traveling light, so I may have to ditch some non-essentials (socks, underwear...) to keep the weight down, but it's all about priorities, right?

[druber]

I'm on the opposite end. Unless you need to use the machine all day for work and won't be around your hotel/house/whatever, I wouldn't take an extra battery or many extra items unless they have multiple uses. I'd also be pretty interested in not drawing attention to the fact that you're carrying a laptop around. My iBook has a padded sleeve that sits very inconspicuously in a regular backpack. Don't take might-needs that you don't ordinarily use. I'd rather buy a few extra CDRs on the road than add another thing to my pack.

[Newslive]

Originally Posted by Stuncle Eve

We're heading down to New Zealand for a few weeks in February, & I'm planning on taking along my trusty iBook G4. I've got a converter for the AC power supply; is there anything else I should think about taking along - spare battery perhaps?

All recommendations appreciated, although not necessarily taken!

Welcome,

Hope you have a good time when you arrive, you maybe able to do with out the cables i travel alot around the country (New Zealand) and we have quite good wifi coverage the two main providers are www.cafenet.co.nz and www.telecom.co.nz,manage to connect no probs at all when im in coverage area's and in Wellington and Auckland and at any StarBucks you will find some good wifi hotspots i manage to connect with my Ibook G4 with out hastle.

let me know if you want any info before you arrive

[Stuncle Eve]

Thanks for the tip, Newslive. I'll check out those providers.

Part of the time down there we'll be staying with my sister (North Island, West Coast) who has broadband but no wireless setup, so I'll probably just park a cable at her house & look for wifi when we're on the road.

I'll even put up with bad coffee for a connection.

[B Gallagher]

20-year-old Kiwi here - I'm sorry to dissapoint you Stuncle Eve, but outside the main centers (Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch?) WiFi will be pretty hard to fine. Not impossible, but difficult. The vast majority of Kiwis are still on dial-up. Broadband is becoming more popular, but certainly not enough yet to warrant any decent number of WiFi spots.

I can't believe CaféNet has coverage in Nelson, and not Christchurch or Dunedin. They don't seem to have anything on the West Coast of the North Island either.


Telecom's coverage seems to be a lot better (but they're the monopoly, what would you expect).
http://www.telecom.co.nz/content/0,3900,204173-201104,00.html

Also of interest: http://www.telecom.co.nz/content/0,3...203133,00.html

I'd say go with with Telecom - their site is just a list of where you can access WiFi for free, with no subscription - CaféNet's services seem to require you to join up, pay, etc. Unless of course where you're going has some WiFi access provided only by CaféNet, not by Telecom.

Although, funnily enough, like Newslive mentioned, go to any Starbucks and you can connect to WiFi no problem.

Which city are you staying in? Also, where do you plan in going while you're there?
I hope you have a great trip!

[Stuncle Eve]

B - It does look like Telecom has a lock on locations. It looks like you still need to pay though, unless you already have an account with them, and then some things are free (except if you're already paying for an account, then the other things aren't really free, are they?) We'll see when we get there.

Our base while we're there will be my sister's place in Bethell's Beach, but we'll be doing a couple of road trips as well, probably up to the Coromandel for a few days, & then who knows?

It's our fourth trip down there - beautiful place, especially when leaving the Northern hemisphere at this time of year.