Travelling with kids is not the easiest thing in the world.
Technology can make a big difference in easing our longer journeys.
However, more than entertaining children with iPads strapped to
headrests or even new fangled airplane sleeping arrangements, it's
often the simplest gadgets that make the difference.
With a family trip around the world planned for later this year
one of my biggest concerns is losing our luggage. Travelling alone,
or with other adults, lost luggage is a pain. Travelling with
children, essential items stowed away in their suitcases, lost
luggage is a potential nightmare.
Then there's the issue of keeping them occupied while waiting
for the luggage to appear on the carousel. It's become something of
a game for our kids to spot our luggage first, but even this
doesn't always work with long flights and tired toddlers.
With this in mind I was more than a little interested about the
Trakdot device just announced at the 2013 Consumer Electronics Show in Las
Vegas this week. The orange and black gadget contains a GSM chip to
enable you to track its location. It's intended to be packed in
your suitcase before you check it in -- don't worry it's Federal
Aviation Administration approved -- so that before and after the
flight you can see the location of your bags via the website of
app.
It's powered by a AA batteries and is designed to automatically
shut down when the aircraft hits takeoff speed. Once back on the
ground it powers up so you can watch as your bags head for
collection -- or potentially get forwarded to a mystery
destination. The service will even text message or email you when
the luggage is nearby.
Perhaps the only Achilles heel here is that knowing whether your
luggage has made it is all very well, but if it does go astray
there's not a huge comfort in being notified that it's just landed
in Frankfurt. Perhaps a future version could also sound an alarm if
it is heading towards an errant cargo hold.
The Trakdot will retail at $50 (£31) with a $9 (£5.59)
activation and $12.99 (£8) annual subscription fee and. It is made
by Los Angeles based GlobaTrac and should hit stores in the
spring.
Of course the device could also be used for tracking other
things. Maybe sure I'd get more piece of mind from knowing where my
children were at all times. Perhaps I'll sneak one into their
backpack on our upcoming trip.
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