Kit Focus: The Best Travel Mobiles
This week we take a look at some of the best solutions for keeping in touch whilst abroad, taking into account the typically extreme conditions a mobile phone is exposed to during an expedition in a tropical climate or a developing country.
Who knows what you'll be getting up to on your travels.
An essential element of travelling safely is ensuring that you are able to keep in contact with others and the idea of taking your pricey smartphone away to a hot and humid part of the world, for many, isn’t very appealing. In many developing countries the easiest and cheapest way to use a phone is to buy a cheap handset that will accept any SIM card and simply buy a ‘pay-as-you-go’ SIM card in the field. This approach will also avoid roaming and international call charges, also giving you piece of mind that there won’t be a mammoth bill to pay on your return home.
With price, durability and practicality in mind, today we take a look at some of the cheapest and most reliable handsets you can buy. It is also always worth looking at used or refurbished phones so that if it does break or get lost, it doesn’t burn a hole in your pocket.
From personal experience the uses of a phone whilst backpacking are very minimal compared to their uses at home, the only real necessities are that it has a good battery life and can make calls and send texts.
Most of the following products are not the cutting edge of modern technology. Therefore you won't be able to get hold of them new. But plenty of second-hand models are available for next to nothing, making them the ideal choice for overseas travel.
Bargain Basement Mobiles:
For those on a tight budget and maybe only going on a short-term project, have a look at one of the most popular mobile phones ever to be made. A bit of a blast from the past, this handset is hugely popular with the locals in countries such as Kenya. Many of you will probably have one of these in the deepest, darkest corner of your junk drawer.
- Predictive text messaging
- Clock, alarm clock, stopwatch
- Voice activated dialling
- Size: 113 x 48 x 22 mm
- Weight: 133g
- Battery standby: 55 - 260 hours
- Battery talktime: 2.5 - 4.5 hours
- Dual band
- 107.4 × 45.5 × 13.6mm, 64.5g
- Power LED Flash light
- Talk time: Up to 9 hr
- Standby time: Up to 560 h
- Dual-band
Tough and Robust Handsets:
Travel abroad will often involve activities and situations that you might not necessarily put your 'home-phone' through. So here are a few handsets that will stand up to some of the more extreme conditions which may arise.
- Dimensions:107 x 47 x 24 mm, 86 cc
- Weight: 101 g
- Talk time: up to 2 hours
- Standby time: up to 150 hours
- FM Radio
- Tri-band GSM
- Integrated VGA camera
- Flashlight
- Compass
- Thermometer
- Stopwatch
- Countdown timer
- Currency converter
- Calculator
- Shock, water and dust resistant
- 113 x 48.9 x 17.4 mm, 102.8g
- Waterproof up to 1 meter and 30 minutes
- Anti-shock materials
- Noise cancellation with dedicated microphone
- Flashlight with dedicated key
- MP3 player
- MP4 player
- Voice memo
- Talk time: up to 9 hours
- Standby time: up to 600 hours
Alternatives:
If however you are very attached to your mobile and don't fancy changing to a cheaper phone whilst away then there are alternatives that will keep your phone protected.
Liquipel
Liquipel is a revolutionary process that applies a waterproof coating to your electronic devices to protect them in the event of accidental exposure to liquids. It is not visible to the human eye, virtually undetectable and Liquipel will not compromise the look, feel, and performance of your electronics.
This means your smartphone won't get water damage but it doesn't provide any protection if it is dropped. With a price tag of at least around $60, it might not be the most cost effective way of staying connected.
Design-Go Dry Phone
This cheap and practical solution to keeping your mobile/camera dry is something that I used with my travel phone and is especially effective if you are planning on spending time on a boat because it will also float.
- 100% waterproof pouch for mobile phones.
- Visual access allows full use of phone when sealed.
- Safe usage for water and other sports.
- Size: approx 14cm x 8cm.
- £5.98
By Lucas Lowe
Thursday, February 16, 2012 at 12:44PM | Post a Comment | tagged Design-Go Dry Phone, Liquipel, Lucas Lowe, backpacking, frontier, gap year, gap year advice, phone, travel advice, travel phone, waterproof | in Frontier Style 
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