Many travelers would argue that we should detach ourselves temporarily from the addicting realms of technology and pack light to truly savor our experiences on the road.
That said, some travel gadgets have forever changed the way we experience the world. These gadgets not only solve some of the most annoying problems while traveling, like keeping our stuff organized on the go, but they’re also life-savers for today’s travelers.
This week on Global News Morning and AM770 I shared these gadgets deserve to be in your suitcase—or deserve to be your suitcase!
Away Carry On Luggage with built in charging
We all have smartphones, and the batteries never last long enough. The thoughtfully designed Away Suitcase looks stylish and simple and can be bought in many shades and colors and has built in charging. The exterior is a hard polycarbonate shell that can be wiped clean and won’t show scuffs anytime soon when checked or tossed onto a baggage carousel or kicked around while moving.
With a 10,000-mAh battery, 2 USB outputs, and one micro USB this bag is truly handy. The battery charges incredibly fast—taking only a little over 2 hours to fully charge. There are four LED lights to indicate the remaining battery life, and a charging cord is included as well. Fortunately, the battery pack is removable.
Away bags come in a variety of convenient sizes. We looked at the Carry On and the Daily Carry On with Pocket, both of which fit easily in the overhead bin of most planes. The telescoping handles feature three different height levels with two locking heights.
The four Hinomoto spinner wheels roll perfectly and smoothly, and the bags themselves are light.
Let’s talk about what’s inside. The Away Carry On Suitcase interior is divided into left and right with a webbed zipped compartment, and a compression pad for easy packing.
The Daily Carry On with Pocket has room for all your business files and folders, and plenty of room for a laptop in the cushioned outer pocket, plus lots of spaces to stash phones, passports and tablets. For full details of my real life travel with Away, click here.
Jabra Elite 85h Headphones
Jabra products have always been considered the gold standard when it comes to audio gear, like headsets, headphones, and microphones—thanks to their clear, great sounding audio. The Jabra Elite 85h over-ear Bluetooth headphones are no exception (full review here). The Jabra Elite 85h features huge ear cups with a generous amount of padding for improved noise isolation properties. These headphones also have noise-canceling, which Jabra calls “Smart Active Noise Cancellation.” There’s a multifunction button that doubles as a play/pause button and which can be used to summon Google Assistant and more.
Jabra also allows users to tune the headphones through the Jabra Sound+ App, where they adjust various features of the headphones, including noise cancellation, adjusting music presets, Jabra HearThrough, On-ear detection, sound levels, equalization, and many more. One of the major features of the Jabra Elite 85h is the ability to connect these headphones with more than one device at a time.
However, none of these features matter if the sound quality is subpar, which it’s not. The sound quality of the Jabra Elite 85h is excellent! The subtlties are apparent, and small details drumsticks on the rim, claps, or breaths are easy to hear. The podcasts and videos on YouTube sounded crystal clear with no lags. Phone calls were also similarly clear and noise-free. Overall the overall sound is seemingly well balanced. If money isn’t a big issue, we recommend you check out the Jabra Elite 85h if you’re looking for a great pair of premium headphones.
Skyroam Solis X Wi-Fi Hotspot Device
Skyroam Solis X is a wireless, portable Wi-Fi hotspot for travelers. The device is shaped like a small hockey puck, and turning it on will connect connect it to networks in 120 countries. Anywhere you can get a cell signal, you can create your own private Wi-Fi network, meaning no roaming charges. You pay a small daily or monthly fee and you can connect up to 5 devices to the Solis X.
The Skyroam Solis also doubles as a power bank to charge your smartphone and other devices—perfect for travel. (Read more about how it works and what it can do in my review—and get a discount code if you want to buy one for yourself.
The battery life on Skyroam Solis is tremendous and will easily last you around 12 hours with a single charge. The device takes 3-5 hours to charge fully. As Skyroam Solis uses mobile data for internet connectivity, its global Wi-Fi service won’t work on airplanes and cruise ships. Overall, the device seems pretty robust and reliable, and we highly recommend you get this nifty Wi-Fi hotspot device for your next trip abroad.
Apple iPad
Are you the type who always packs a huge stack of magazines and several books in your carry-on? Don’t do that to yourself next time you travel. Get all of that stuff digitally, by packing it onto an Apple iPad 7th generation. It’s got a great looking screen making it easy to read, it’s very lightweight, and you can sync it with your phone in case you need to switch devices. Very convenient for traveling! 
Tile Trackers
Tile trackers are flat, small Bluetooth tracking devices that communicate with your smartphone through a companion app and help you locate each tracker. When Tile trackers are “found,” the devices emit an audible alert to help you find them. Once a Bluetooth connection is established between a Tile and mobile device, the Tile utilizes the GPS feature of your smartphone to display up-to-date location information to the app.
Tile Tracker is incredibly useful to keep track of things that are easy to lose or misplace every day at home or the office like wallets, your sunglass cases, bathroom or car keys, the remote control, etc.
If you’re someone who forgets things now and then and needs help tracking your luggage, backpacks, purses, and wallets, you may consider investing on some Tile trackers. For more details, read the full review of Tile Trackers.
Renogy Phoenix 100 Power Bank
Need a Power bank that’s long lasting and can handle more heavy duty needs? This soda can sized power bank is eengineered with lithium-ion batteries, housed in an ultra-compact design, and the massive 27000mAh capacity provides enough juice for essential gadgets no matter where you are. Multiple charging options meet the needs of both mobile devices and home appliances up to 100W thanks to the built-in AC output and USB ports. Read more about Renogy, who also makes Solar Panels for travel in my review.
There’s plenty more advice on the best gadgets for travel.
