TOM KELLYwith the travel technology round-up
Quiksilver Heat Vest
A heated vest that you can wear under your wetsuit to take the chill off those long sessions in the water: it seems so obvious. Suddenly that Christmas morning dip in the Forty Foot doesn’t seem as daft a turn as before. (Pitching up in a wetsuit could trigger sniggers, of course.)
Quiksilver competitor, Rip Curl, has had a heated wetsuit on the market for a couple of years, the ominously named H Bomb. However, it could set you back the best part of a grand. That’s a chilly thought for these recessionary times. Perhaps for your next Arctic swimming trip . . .
Meanwhile, Quiksilver has kept theirs to vest size, with a pair of flexible, heated carbon pads powered by a chargeable battery. These are the sorts of FAR infrared pads you might find in a therapeutic personal heater.
They distribute the heat evenly on your back.
There’s a high (54ºC) and low (41ºC) setting and you’re said to get two hours on high from a full charge. The vest is wickably lightweight and fits easily under any wetsuit. The controls indicate the power and heat level by different vibrations. Not to be confused with one’s own shivering it must be said.
It’s not just for watersports, though it could render Irish waters a lot more sporting, the colder skier might just fancy it too, for those breezier chairlift runs.
CostQuiksilver Cypher PS+ Heated Vest $199 (€155) from quiksilver.com
My Scratch Map
My kids thought up a great gift for their well-travelled grandparents a couple of years ago: a big world map, glued onto a softboard, with a pack of flag pins – so they could mark out everywhere they’d been and plan out where to visit next. It worked a treat.
My Scratch Map does the same job, but with an extra level of interaction. It’s a world map with the countries marked out in gold foil. But then, like a scratch card, you can scrape away the foil to reveal the country coloured below, and a bit more cartographic detail too. So it’s an interesting reminder of trips had and a way of modestly (or not) showcasing the exotic notches on your passport.
Burkina Faso? Been there. Micronesia here I come.
There’s always the chance that someone may engage in a bit of unsubstantiated scratching to bolster a limited travelogue: just as long as you don’t fake somewhere boring.
CostMy Scratch Map, €18, iwantoneofthose.com
BoostApak Booster Seat
Last week we had the playpen in a bag; this Saturday, it’s the booster seat in a bag. Next week, the pocket fridge.
In fact, this really is a smart bit of thinking as anyone travelling with young kids will testify. Getting a booster seat for your hire car can be like trying to book the proverbial Holy Grail for a couple of weeks. However, this isn’t a baby seat: it’s a booster seat for four to 12-year-olds. The BoostApak neatly folds a booster seat up into a hand-luggage approved backpack that your kids could actually carry themselves. So there’s a win-win and another possible use, in-flight.
It’s got removable covers, adjustable padded straps and there’s even bag-room in the bag too, so it can tote the must-bring toys. Or that last minute duty free.
The BoostApak is ECE-certified and has its own patented seat belt system to clunck-click securely. Many parents will know BoostApak’s own parent: it’s Trunki, who make those popular ride-on animal suitcases for kids. Looks like they’ve another winner in the bag. Oh, uncalled for...
CostBoostApak Booster Seat in a Bag, €50, from firebox.com or halfords.ie
betweenideas@gmail.com or betweenideas.blogspot.com