Trusty mobile tools and tips for the road warrior

Traveling is always interesting but not always fun. You hear complaints about going through security, bad flights, and bad hotel rooms — the list goes on and on. It gets more interesting when you carry multiple devices with you. You start worrying about things like whether your battery will last, whether you left your device in the seatback pocket (sometimes they get returned), whether there are enough outlets, and simple things like how you can get around more easily.

As a frequent traveler never short of a mobile device, here’s how I prep for a trip.

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What I carry with me My goal is always to take as few devices as possible, but because I need to test new devices and new ways of working with them, it’s not always easy to keep the number low. My current kit of devices that goes with me everywhere includes a fourth-generation iPad with Logitech Ultrathin keyboard, my iPhone 5, and my 11-inch MacBook Air. I can get through a week without my MacBook Air — and have done so many times — but I find that some work tasks are more easily done on a laptop than a tablet. For example, most of the VDI screens my company works with are painful when used on a tablet.

I then pack my second smartphone; it varies, but on my last trip it was an unlocked Nexus 4 Android smartphone. One of my most important devices is my Belkin three-outlet surge suppressor that also includes two USB ports. It’s awesome, and when in an airport, people will love you when you expand one outlet at the terminal to three (or even five with the USB ports). I often carry my iPad Mini too.

Of course, I carry all the charging cables and connectors. I recommend that you have either a mesh bag or a Grid It case; I use both. The mesh bag takes any long cables, plus the spare batteries for my phones, while the Grid It neatly organizes my adapters. One benefit of using a fourth-gen iPad, iPad Mini, and iPhone 5 is they all work with the Lightning connector, so I never worry about having the wrong cable with me — one cable works on them all. If you have an iPad, I recommend you get a 12W charger; it charges an iPad about 45 minutes faster than the common 10W versions — it charges your iPhone faster, too.

I also carry two types of battery chargers for my smartphones; when traveling, you never know when you’ll be near an outlet. I have a battery pack that attaches to my iPhone and doubles the battery life. I also carry a 10,000-mAh battery that can charge any of my smartphones at least five times or almost fully double the battery of the iPad. I usually end up loaning it to someone who didn’t think about power when he or she was packing.

When I travel internationally I also need adapters for the plugs. When you carry the Belkin 3 plug outlet you need only one adapter for all your devices. The other way to go is to look at your phone adapter and buy the different plugs. I ordered some European plugs from a reseller for about $3; they fit on all of my Apple adapters and make it easy to plug in anywhere. These same plugs are usually available from many other handset makers, but see if your adapter has an interchange.

Though I can type fine on an a touchscreen, I use the Logitech Ultrathin Bluetooth keyboard when I know I’ll be taking a lot of notes or perhaps live-tweeting a session; when you type a lot, there’s nothing like having a real keyboard. Plus, the Ultrathin detaches easily from the iPad, so when I want just the iPad, I can have just the iPad — that’s not the case with keyboards embedded in iPad folio covers. For example, I use the iPad by itself at the gym while traveling to catch up on tweets, news stories, and articles.

Tips for your hotel stay When I am in the hotel, I usually set up my Belkin plug to have all my devices connected to one outlet and charged by morning. The smartphones go on the USB plugs, and everything else plugs into the Belkin’s power outlets. If you happen to leave your power adapter at home by mistake, ask to borrow one at the hotel front desk — hotels find so many left behind that they can usually lend you one for your stay. Remember: Your smartphone or tablet isn’t much use if it isn’t charged.

Always look for a safe in your hotel room. If you travel with as much stuff as I do, you don’t want to carry it around at night. If you decide to use the safe, make sure you test locking it and unlocking it before you put your stuff in it the first time: It can be awfully embarrassing if you can’t get your stuff out of the safe later. If your hotel doesn’t have an in-room safe, it likely has safe boxes at the front desk where it will keep your stuff. Be aware that most hotels don’t hold themselves responsible if you use the safe in your room for valuables.

Services, techniques, and apps for when on the road When I’m on the road, I also change my habits. If I am driving, I always bring a car charger because my smartphone becomes my GPS. It hasn’t led me wrong yet (though I had a bad experience a year ago with an Android device that rebooted in the middle of the highway before a turn).

I also use specific services based on where I’m traveling. If I travel outside the United States, I use an app called Onavo Extend that works as a proxy service and compresses all my data as I send and receive it from my device. It has reduced my data consumption on the road by more than 50 percent; when you travel internationally and pay high roaming rates, that’s an invaluable app. I also subscribe to a service by Boingo (iPass has a similar offering) that allows me to log onto Wi-Fi sites for a low monthly fee. This helps reduce my reliance on hotels and other pay-as-you go hotspots.

Traveling through airport security checkpoints is always fun. When you do it enough, you know not to bring liquids, but when you carry as many devices as I do, you learn other tricks. I carry my tablets in a small lined bag that fits in my backpack. When I get to security, I take out the laptop, the bag of tablets (leaving them in the bag), and the mesh bag of cables. This technique has kept me from being pulled out of line for a secondary check numerous times. Apparently, it’s hard for the scanner operators to tell apart overlapping wires and electronics. My latest TSA secondary-check preventer is my Yeti microphone (for my podcast) that I take out of the bag as well, just to avoid being stopped and having it swabbed.

If you’re flying, you should have your airline’s app if it’s available. I usually check in for my flight from the app, and if I am using the iPhone, I add the boarding pass to the Apple Passbook app — it really does make getting on a flight easier. An airline app can also help you rebook a flight if there is a delay, and it usually has the contact information for the airline.

I also use an app called TripIt to manage my travel information, although WorldMate works very well, and Concur has a great app if your company uses its booking service for business travel. These apps help you keep track of confirmation numbers, times, and weather. I have found them invaluable when looking for the address of a hotel, finding a confirmation number, or just figuring out how to get around (many of them provide local maps in the app).

When I land at my destination airport, I find that one of my most valuable apps is Uber. Using it, I can call for a car to the hotel or wherever I need to go in a lot of cities. If Uber doesn’t serve your destinations, check out apps like Hailo that allow you to call a taxi. I also download a local transit app, so I can get around on the subway or buses if the city I am in has public transportation. I, of course, have the Waze app in case I rent a car, and I use either Google Maps or Apple Maps, depending on what type of smartphone I have on me, for walking directions. Recently, I walked more 10 miles in downtown Amsterdam and didn’t get lost once. I also didn’t have to fumble with a map like many other people did.

Navigation and map apps are also great for finding nearby stores, such as Starbucks or the Apple Store. It’s great to know where the local Starbucks are (they do exist in foreign countries) because the free Wi-Fi can be worth its weight in gold. The Apple Store also provides free Wi-Fi; I used it in Amsterdam one Sunday for about 10 minutes to make a free FaceTime call with my wife. It was easy and nothing went on the phone bill!

If you don’t use a loyalty app like CardStar, you are missing out. I store all of my hotel, supermarket, drug store, and rental car numbers in it. No matter where I am, it becomes much easier to find the numbers from the app (which will display the barcode if there is one to be scanned) than to have a keychain or wallet filled with all the cards. Who wants to be bothered carrying all that around?

Use social media before you go somewhere to get tips on the location, weather, and everything else. I use Twitter extensively and have met many friends in real life in many places through the use of Twitter. Social media apps can also help amplify the message when you’re having a problem, which may get you help more quickly.

In the end, using your mobile devices effectively invariably eases the pain of going somewhere new.

A version of this article, “Trusty mobile tools and tips for the road warrior,” originally appeared at A Screw’s Loose and is republished at InfoWorld.com with permission (© Brian Katz). Read more of Brian Katz’s The Squeaky Wheel blog at InfoWorld.com or at A Screw’s Loose. For the latest business technology news, follow InfoWorld.com on Twitter.