Business travellers - what do you want?

We will shortly be expanding our country and city guides aimed at the business traveller but we'd like to know what kind of information you want.

Would you like to know more about travel options from the airport or train station? Would you like to know where the best business traveller-friendly hotels are and what facilities they have to offer? Do you need to know where the nearest Starbucks is?! Whatever your priorities, please let us know and we'll try to meet your needs.

The Nokia E51 is here...damn it

The Nokia E51 is sleek, stylish, business like and packed to the gills with all the features anyone could ask for (see Nokia's web site for the full spec.) That's gotta be good news, right?

WRONG! The problem is it just looks too good and the E65 I bought just a few months ago is starting to look decidedly...second rate. Don't get me wrong, it's a good phone (actually, I'd even go so far as to say it's a great phone - I'm still blown away by the built in web browser) but the inescapable fact is, it's Mocca. Yeah, Mocca, or to those of us who don't watch interior design shows, brown. I mean, brown? For a phone? What kind of latte were they sipping?

Ho hum, just another couple of years to wait before I upgrade again. Hopefully brown won't be the new black by then or I really will be confused...

We're back from London!

The Business Mobile team is back from London and a very jolly time we had there. The City is pretty much the same as always although we did notice that every third shop is now a Starbucks (about which we have no complaints - the Gingerbread latte is very nice). We also managed a trip on the London Eye which was...very high indeed. Fortunately there's a seat you can sit on as you cover your eyes and concentrate on your breathing.

Thinking about the business travel aspects of our journey, everything went smoothly. There was a slight delay at the gate in Amsterdam but nothing too irksome. Our trusty stead was the Fokker 50, a twin prop 50 seater which feels very snug (i.e. somewhat cramped) inside. It also makes a noise like a World War 2 bomber when it takes off which is great for fans of the Dambusters. The journey was uneventful and the service from KLM polite and efficient. Transit through London City airport was equally uneventful (both on the way out and on our return) so for once, at least, we've got nothing to complain about. If only we could say the same for all business trips...

Health tips for business travelers abroad

Most business travelers face few serious health risks in their daily lives. For those traveling overseas to more exotic locations, however, the health risks may be more significant. Here are a few tips to keep in mind when traveling abroad.

It is important to investigate the standard and type of healthcare available in your chosen destination, especially if you suffer from a medical condition which requires ongoing treatment or medication. Most countries have at least adequate basic healthcare facilities, but more advanced treatments and procedures might not be available in some less-developed locations. In many countries you will have to pay for medical care, although emergency treatment in public hospitals may be free of charge (for short-term trips within the EU/EEA, there are reciprocal arrangements for free or low-cost healthcare on presentation of a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC)).

When taking out health insurance, be sure to check factors such as the annual and lifetime policy limits, whether there are any exclusions which are likely to affect you, whether you are limited to treatment from specific types of healthcare providers, and whether the policy covers emergency evacuation for medical treatment.

Before travelling to your destination, make sure you find out which inoculations or health certificates are needed for entry.

Enquire about any specific health risks in the country you are planning to move to. Diseases such as malaria, dengue fever, tuberculosis, Hepatitis A and B, various forms of encephalitis, typhoid and cholera are common in many countries, but the risk of being infected may vary considerably between different areas of the country, and between urban and rural areas.

Although it is important to be aware of the risks and take sensible precautions, try not to let exaggerated concerns about health risks worry you unnecessarily.

Do you have a useful business travel or mobile technology tip?

Do you have a useful tip for other business travellers? Would you like to review your latest mobile or wireless purchase? How about adding something to our travel and technology guides? Whatever it is, if it's of use or interest to other mobile professionals we want to hear about it!

Help make Business Mobile the most useful travel and tech site on the web and send us your tips, reviews or other information today. We'll be more than happy to link back to you when your submission is published at the site or in the newsletter so remember to include your full details if you wish.

We look forward to hearing from you!

Panasonic Toughbooks CF-W7 and CF-Y7

Is it just me or does Panasonic release a new Toughbook every few weeks? The latest models due to hit the shelves (in this case from mid-December in Asia) are the CF-W7 and CF-Y7, both promising the near legendary durability of Panasonic's most recognisable line of laptops.



I love the fact that each time a new model is announced the specs state that you can drop it from an even higher height than the previous version and still expect it to survive a fall. That reminds me of an incident which happened a few years ago when I was speaking to a colleague on the fourth floor of a building with a structure which let us look down onto the lobby below. He had placed his laptop (in a fully loaded travel bag) down by his feet while we chatted and enjoyed a coffee but when he moved his feet he knocked the bag over and it slipped through the railings of the balcony. Both of us stood frozen in horror as it plummeted four floors towards the packed lobby below...

We were lucky - it missed someone by no more than a few inches (I think it actually brushed the arm of his suit) but almost seemed to explode when it hit the ground. I don't know how a Toughbook would have fared but I suspect even Panasonic's beast would have suffered a scratch or two!

Flying to London City

Yep, the Business Mobile team are off to London later next week and will be keeping an eye out for anything of interest to business travellers, whether it's related to transportation (we're flying to London City airport) or mobile technology. The approach into London City is usually at a fairly steep angle which doesn't go down too well with some members of the team but rest assured we're not backing out now!

And one more thing, I'll tell you later about who we were sitting next to the last time we were waiting for a flight at London City...

UMPCs getting better, slowly

One area of mobile computing which has promised much but delivered little so far is that of UMPCs (Ultra Mobile PCs). Characterised by a small form factor - around 5 to 7 inches wide - yet offering the benefits of full PC funtionality the UMPC should be a dream come true for business users but most models to date have failed to impress.

The OQO Model e2 is the latest attempt to address the compromises all too evident in earlier UMPCs and it does a pretty good job. With a VIA Esther 1.5GHz CPU and 1GB of RAM its performance won't dazzle but it does just about enough of everything well to make it a viable purchase.

What are your thoughts on UMPCs? Let us know!

Saved by a 3G card

When I was on holiday in Italy last year I booked my hotel room safe in the knowledge that the hotel offered WiFi (albeit, as a paid option). They even gave me the room right above the wireless router so I'd get the best connection possible.

To begin with everything was OK, internet browsing and email downloading accomplished without a problem. However, it soon became clear that sending email wasn't working and I just couldn't work out why. Initially I thought it might be a connection problem, perhaps it was dropping out during an extended handshake with the SMTP server. Then I thought it might be the SMTP server itself so I downloaded a number of free versions to run directly on my laptop. Nothing worked. Eventually, after a lot of testing, it became clear that the problem was probably a firewall configuration setting somewhere (either at the hotel or their ISP), probably intended as an anti-spam measure. Chances of getting it fixed by the hotel receptionist in a reasonable time period? Pretty slim.

Fortunately one of my travelling companions had a Vodafone Mobile Connect 3G data card with them. After installing the software and logging on to their account I could send mail to my heart's content. In the end it was a valuable lesson, WiFi is popular and usually works well but you never know if the provider is set up properly or securely for your needs. When I got back I bought a 3G card of my own and have been enjoying peace of mind and freedom of movement ever since.

10 tips for business travel

1. Don't expect to get anywhere on time. Accept delays as the rule rather than the exception - you'll live longer.
2. Always print out and keep the confirmation of your seat booking just in case a computer goes down.
3. Whatever else you forget, don't forget your passport, cash/cards and medicine.
4. Always take your laptop as hand luggage, never check it into the hold.
5. If you're carrying or planning to buy anything which might break or leak, use a sealable bag. Take one with you anyway even if you have no plans to use it, you might make an unexpected purchase.
6. Take dark clothes, they'll look cleaner longer.
7. Tie something colourful around your bag or bag handle so it's easier to spot on the carousel.
8. Use Skype, and make sure your account has sufficient funds before you leave.
9. Take a network (Ethernet) cable with you, don't rely on the hotel having one.
10. If you have the opportunity to recharge your phone or laptop while waiting somewhere, do so.
    

iPhone in the UK

Yes, it's finally made it to the other side of the pond. The Times says it's "expensive but exceptional" and there were queues around the block for the first sales. Most of the media coverage to date, though, has concentrated on the fact that Apple's new offering is locked (initially, at least) to the O2 network which is a bit of a shame as there are a lot of things to talk about when it comes to the iPhone. It's certainly something of a fashion statement but in a sleek, minimalist way which will probably appeal to the suits. Whether the speed or the functionality of the phone (and the Edge network) will suit the most demanding business apps is another matter...

Using your iPod as a productivity tool

I was checking out inFlightHQ.com recently and happened to come across the following:

I consider my iPod to be one of my most valuable productivity tools (particularly when flying.) Thanks to programs that can convert text files into spoken audio (and automatically implant these audio files into iTunes), I can get through tons of reading during normal "dead times".

Now, I use my iPod to listen to a lot of podcasts while I'm on the move but the above was something I haven't tried. If you've given this a go we'd love to hear from you...drop us a line in the forums.

Nokia E65 impresses

A while back I blogged about how inadequate most mobile devices actually are and how little progress there's been in terms of functionality over the past few years. Well, judging by my new Nokia E65, I think we might actually be turning the corner. Web browsing is finally feasible in a full-on, grown up way rather than some cheap imitation, email support is adequate (although it's a pity nothing these days ever syncs with Pegasus) and Office file support out of the box is good enough to at least view spreadsheets and documents. All in all, a very handy little device in an attractive form factor. Did I mention you can also make phone calls with it?