A Technophile’s Camping Survival Guide - Part One -

Jul 29 2008

A Technophile’s Camping Survival Guide - Part One -

This is the 21st century, and most of us are constantly “plugged in” and possibly helpless without our gadgets and wireless trinkets… Anyway, I’ve compiled a guide which shows you how you can enjoy a holiday in the wilderness, while retaining the electrickery which gets you through your day to day life.

Part One: What You’ll Need

This initial part of the guide outlines selection of things to bring with you on your venture into the heart of your deepest enemy… Nature

1. MP3 Player

This is one thing most of you are probably going to already have so make sure you’ve got a lot of listenable music you won’t get sick of… or if you’re not really into music then pack it full of podcasts (preferably GameOnYou podcasts) so you can get your fix of news and generally the

world of technology which you have temporarily left behind. Depending on your mp3 player’s memory, it may be recommended to ration these podcasts. If you can, bring an extra memory card packed full of entertainment.

2. Swiss Army Knife

Unlike the majority of people who buy these, if you get one before going camping you may actually have a use for it, be it fighting bears, midgets or the Swiss (fight fire with fire) the swiss army knife will prevail. Fortunately you don’t have to spend a lot of money such as the one pictured (I got a knockoff multitool for £7). For extra nerd points, you can pick up one of these (equally as) impractical bastards.

3. Mobile Phone

This may sound pretty obvious and, like the mp3 player, you’re already likely to have one. Bringing a mobile phone isn’t just for the technophiles… it’ll be likely to come in very handy. It could even save your life, but more importantly you can call your mates and ask them about the latest gaming ne

ws you’ve been missing. There’s no need to bring a gadgety phone as it’s battery probably wouldn’t last long - and you can bring individual gadgets which will do the same thing… better.

4. Plugless Electrickery Chargers

What I mean by “plugless” chargers is electrical chargers which rely on natural resources in order to produce power for your devices. There are two great gizmos on the market at the moment which harness natural power. One, is the HY Mini Wind Turbine (pictured) which will ensure that, provided you’re in a windy environment - your gadgets and gizmos won’t run out of electricity. Similarly there is also the FreeLoader Solar Charger which uses the power of the mighty Ra to bring your depleted batteries back to life.

5. Sony PSP

This is something which will really make the evenings pass by fast. Bringing the Sony PSP will allow you to bring games and video to your camping experience and I guarantee that they make any otherwise boring evenings in a tent much more fun. If you’re going to do this than it would probably be easier with the aid of custom firmware (though GameOnYou doesn’t condone piracy of any form… Honest) as bringing stacks of UMD games is just impractical. It’s recommended that you put things easily rewatchable onto your memory stick (a good example would be cartoons such as Family Guy) and put pick-up-and play games onto the PSP.

Remember: Video files for PSP need to be in Mpeg4 format. Check out future editions of this feature for a guide on how to easily get video onto your PSP.

6. Extra Batteries

Even with your plugless charger, you’re still going to need backup for those calm-winded, cloudy days. We recommend that you stock up on batteries for your various devices (and don’t forget to charge them up before you go). It may be extra expense, but you won’t regret it… especially with the PSPs 5 hour battery life.

That’s it for part one of our survival guide. Watch this space for part two in the not to distant future!