Useful Travel Products for Travelers in Summer 2012

Summer of 2012 offers Useful Products for Travelers

By Malea Ritz

New for 2012: This rubber megaphone amplifies your iPhone and will never break!
This rubber megaphone amplifies your iPhone and will never break!

For the traveler who values their gadgets, these new tools are sure to satisfy. Small, sleek and extremely portable, these travel companions are designed to simplify any task.

iSimple iPhone megaPhone

In our experience with electronic iPhone music player accessories, they never seem to work correctly after just a little bit of use. iSimple solutions has taken this into mind when creating this new product to amplify music or phone calls and created a device that is sure to work every time. And the best part– no batteries or charging is required!

This small, black rubber device fits into the palm of your hand and is easy to use. Simply slip your iPhone into the slot with the speaker side down and listen to the music’s volume increase to the level of that of an iHome speaker.

The megaPhone works for the iPhone 4S, iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS and iPhone 3G. It sells for $14.95 on isimplesolutions.com.

Rick Steves’ Luggage

Created by the travel expert himself, these two types of luggage are useful, light and easy to carry or roll.

His rolling backpack allows travelers the versatility of switching their luggage between a rolling suitcase and a backpack with ease.

As a suitcase, the bag wheels effortlessly with its wide-tracking wheels and telescoping handle. As a backpack, this bag has comfortable contour-curved straps and air mesh padding designed with the traveler in mind.

Rick Steve's rolling backpack comes in bright colors and is pretty darn useful.
Rick Steve’s rolling backpack comes in bright colors and is pretty darn useful.

This 100% recycled polyester-made bag is carry-on friendly and meets TSA requirements. The rolling backpack comes in six great colors: black, graphite, blue spruce, red, plum and camel and sells for $159.99 on ricksteves.com. You’re sure not confuse your luggage with anyone else’s with these unusual colors, and just in case, it’s got Rick’s signature on the handle.

The Velocé Guide Bag for iPad is a smaller, more portable bag for light travel. This bag is the perfect size for an iPad, camera or a few guidebooks and can be slung right over your shoulder.

Veloce guide bag, perfect for carrying an iPad or a camera with changeable lenses.
Veloce guide bag, perfect for carrying an iPad or a camera with changeable lenses.

The outside fabric is made from 100% recycled polyester and comes in five cool colors: black, graphite, copper, red and blue spruce. The bag sells for $39.99 on ricksteves.com.

GoNOMAD editor Max Hartshorne just upgraded to the Olympus PEN camera with a detachable lens, and needed a bigger bag. This one is just the right size!

Satechi SCH-22 Camera Holder and Mount

Satechi Camera mount. If your low-light photos are blurry, you need to use a device like this.
Satechi Camera mount. If your low-light photos are blurry, you need to use a device like this.

When you need to hold your camera or video camera steady, this great product is small, hand-held and easy to use. So many photos are blurry in low light due to trying to shoot without the aid of a tripod. Yet carrying a tripod on a trip can be cumbersome. One GoNOMAD adventure in Greenland was almost ruined when the editor was handed a photographer’s huge tripod to carry and he twisted his ankle on a boat ramp.

This Satechi mount is perfect for DSL cameras, point-and-shoot cameras, Flip cameras and any other video camera.

An adhesive Smart Pad is attached to the rubber suction on the bottom of the device for a hold that doesn’t quit. Two 180° swivel hinges and a 360° rotating connector allow you to move the camera any way you choose. When finished shooting, simply loosen the knobs to release the suction.

This device sells for $27.99 on satechi.net.

Clever Travel Companion Pick-Pocket Proof Travel Gear

This clever underwear has discreet zippered pockets and in combination with the tee shirt, is a great way to travel safely with cash.
This clever underwear has discreet zippered pockets and in combination with the tee shirt, is a great way to travel safely with cash.

When traveling to a place where security and pick-pocketing may be a problem, bring these nifty clothes along. These lightweight underwear and t-shirts for both men and women have hidden pockets for storage of important travel documents, money and credit cards.

This travel gear makes it almost impossible to be robbed, as all of your valuables are kept hidden and secure. This beats a fanny pack, style wise, any day, and the zippered pockets are discreet and well hidden. Only the TSA will know you are stashing something if they decide to pat you down.

The clothing is made with a cotton and polyester blend and ranges in price from $24.90 to $35.90 on clevertravelcompanion.com.

CordCruncher Headphones

The cord cruncher puts the cords for your earbuds in a protective sleeve, assuring that it will never get tangled.
The cord cruncher puts the cords for your earbuds in a protective sleeve, assuring that it will never get tangled.

This is a problem that’s gotta be pretty common for most people who travel with earbuds. The wires interlace and get tangled. It takes a lot of time to untangle them, and it’s frustrating.

But with the new CordCruncher technology, this is a way of the past. The CordCruncher has an ‘elasto-sleeve’ that allows you to choose your cord length, adjusting it anywhere from 16 inches to 3.5 feet. You pull the cord out and use, then put the wires back in after you’re done.

When the headphones are not in use, the CordCruncher keeps the headphone cord protected and tangle-free awaiting the next use.

This is currently a product of kickstarter.com and will be on the market soon.


ITwin Plug’n’Play Remote File Access USB Device

Itwin USB x 2
Itwin USB x 2

Have you ever wanted to copy files from your computer and give them to two people? If that has ever happened, this next gadget, while pricey, does solve this unique problem. It’s called the iTwin, and consists of two USB memory sticks back to back. Here is how the company describes this new product.

“iTwin reinvents the traditional USB drive by providing simple and secure on-the-go access to all

Think of this as two ends of a cable without the cable.one’s files. Unlike USB drives and other portable storage, which have space limitations and privacy risks, iTwin’s award-winning product comprises two identical halves that need only be plugged into two computers for them to be instantly connected over the Internet and secured by hardware-based, AES-256 encryption. If you lose one half of iTwin, you can remotely disable that half, thus keeping your data secure. Your data resides safely on your computer.”

Find out more at iTwin.com

If you have a product you’d like GoNOMAD’s writers to test out, send us a sample and send literature, and we will give it a test run. Our mailing address is:

GoNOMAD Travel Product Test Lab
P.O. Box 4, 9 Mountain Rd.
South Deerfield, MA 01373

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