By David Ponce

The best way to travel is light. No checked baggage means less time to get on your plane and less time leaving the airport at your destination. The only drawback is the TSA’s no fluids regulations that make it impossible to bring things like shampoo or shaving cream with you. You can always hope the hotel you’ll stay at has these, but you usually end up having to visit a convenience store and stock up. It’s stupid. But these travel sheets from Travelon might offer an alternative. They’re dry and packed with different kinds of products that become usable once you add water at your destination. And they’re clearly not subject to 3-1-1.

They’re not a new product, but it’s the first time I see them and will likely be placing an order. At $5 for 50 sheets of either body wash, conditioner, shampoo and a few others, it’s a steal.

[ Product Page ] VIA [ Digital Trends ]

By David Ponce

This roll-up travel charger comes with one wall plug and four different charging tips: iPhone®, Mini USB, Micro USB, Samsung. Samsung?… Anyway, yes you can recharge up to four gadgets at once and although it looks like brown leather, it’s actually pleather. This does take away a little from its rugged Indiana Jones-y vibe but we don’t care because we won’t be buying this. We’ve been trying to determine the odds of ever being in a situation where four different devices with four different connector types need to be recharged simultaneously and the numbers don’t look good. Then again, we failed math so don’t take our word for it.

It’s $50.

[ Product Page ] VIA [ Wired's Gadget Lab ]

By Andrew Liszewski

The promise of a paperless office where computers, phones and electronic devices completely replace our need for printed documents is certainly tantalizing. But it’s still no where in sight. I might have minimal need for a printer at home, but visit any busy office and you’ll still find copiers and laser printers running around the clock. So instead of trying to sell us on some paperless dream, a PR company called St. Joseph Communications, working with HP and PrinterOn, have developed a public pay kiosk allowing users to print off documents for a small fee.

Printing reports, presentations, maps or travel plans are all handled by a “best-in-class” HP color laser printer. While photos instead come from a Citizen dye-sublimation printer, which probably costs a little more. Documents can be wirelessly sent from a smartphone or tablet using HP’s ePrint app, securely emailed directly to the kiosk from your laptop, or even accessed from a flash drive or memory card. There’s no word on what the service costs, but since most users will probably be using them in a pseudo-emergency type situation, you can bet it’s probably not going to be dirt cheap. But you can find out for yourself if you happen to be passing through Toronto’s Pearson International Airport where the first eight kiosks have already been installed.

[ PR - Mobile Print is Taking Off! St. Joseph Communications debuts its patent-pending mobile print kiosks at Toronto’s Pearson International Airport ] VIA [ The Moodie Report ]

By Andrew Liszewski

There’s something about gigantic indoor ski resorts that bring out the best in architects. Then again, a structure large enough to house a mountain steep enough for skiing is never going to be inconspicuous. So I guess you need to make them presentable. Or at the least, striking. Which Denmark-based firm C. F. Møller Architects has certainly done with Sweden’s new Skipark 360. When completed in a few years (construction starts in late 2013) the $220+ million structure will be the largest indoor ski resort on the planet. And with an almost 2,300 foot run that drops over 500 feet, it will actually be large enough to stage World Cup caliber ski events.

But you don’t build a structure this massive for just one purpose. In addition to the downhill course, the SkiPark 360 will also feature 2.2 miles of cross-country skiing tunnels, dedicated slopes for those no-goodnik snowboarders, ice rinks, spas, and conference facilities. And because it’s being built in Bålsta, a small town located about 40 minutes outside of Stockholm, it’s also got a few hotel rooms because I’m suspecting most of the clientele won’t be local.

Besides tourism, the Skipark 360 is being built as a response to climate change which has been detrimental to the area’s ski industry. So not only will it provide the perfect ski conditions to visitors and professional athletes all year round, but it will do so in a manner that’s environmentally friendly. Ideally the resort will be completely self sufficient using renewable energy sources like solar, wind & hydro power, as well as geothermal for heating.

[ Skipark 360 ] VIA [ Gizmag ]

By Andrew Liszewski

You might be able to find a sweet deal for a flight online, but once you get to the airport and realize how much extra you’re going to have to pay to check just a single bag, it stops being so sweet. The only solution is to pack as light as possible, hopefully squeezing all your clothes into a carry-on, or suck-it-up and wear something like the Rufus Roo.

In short, it’s a light travel jacket with a collection of regular and super-sized pockets that lets you carry up to 22 lbs. worth of crap, including shoes, shirts, pants, books, and even laptops and wine bottles. You’re going to look like a complete tool while making your way through an airport with it on, and it can’t be the most comfortable thing to wear during your flight, but at least you’re saving a few bucks right? Available now for ~$47 (£29.95) for large and medium adult sizes and ~$39 (£24.95) if you want to turn your kids into vacation pack mules too.

[ Rufus Roo 'Big Pocket' Travel Jacket ]

By Andrew Liszewski

In-flight personal entertainment systems have made increasingly cramped air travel slightly more tolerable. You don’t have to strain your neck to see an inconveniently located overhead screen, nor do you have to watch what everyone else is. But they’re usually only found on newer planes flying long-haul routes, because it’s expensive to retrofit an older plane with the integrated systems, which basically require new seats. So SkyCast has created the TrayVu system. Instead of requiring brand new seats with LCD displays popping out the back, the TrayVu simply replaces an existing seat’s fold-down tray.

Thanks to a clever design, which basically amounts to a hole cut in the tray, the display is still viewable and accessible during takeoffs, landings and turbulence. Which is important, since besides providing calming, in-flight entertainment, the TrayVu system is also a great source of revenue for the airline. Displaying ads and running commercials obviously accounts for a good chunk of change, but each tray also has its own credit card reader. So passengers can shop via online stores, and make in-cabin food and drink purchases. They can even start a per-flight tab if they so choose. The cost of each TrayVu unit is about $2,000, compared to $4-8,000 for an entire IFE-equipped seat. And broken or damaged units are easily swapped out by just removing a couple of screws.

[ SkyCast TrayVu ] VIA [ designboom ]

By Andrew Liszewski

Do you know the one thing a techno savvy business traveler, who’d actually be inclined to scan a business card, probably already has? A smartphone! And do you know the one thing every smartphone has? A digital camera! So I’m not entirely sure who this fold-out business card scanner is actually targeted at. On the plus side it’s… um… compact when folded up. And the convenient card holder means it’s almost a hands-free operation. The downside? Where do I begin? It’s got a crappy 2MP CMOS sensor, uses USB so you have to have your laptop running to use it and doesn’t even come with OCR software. That’s left up to you to supply. Plus, it’s like $40. So you’re far better off just finding a card scanning app for your smartphone, or do what I do, never contact anybody.

[ 2MP Mini Business Card Scanner (Fold Out Design) ] VIA [ Random Good Stuff ]

By Andrew Liszewski

I’ll dock them a few points for the wholly unoriginal ‘iSurge’ name, but otherwise Energizer’s new travel charging station looks like an absolute must-have when you’re on the road. Particularly if you’re loaded down with Apple gear. Despite the company’s dubious ethics, in the past we’ve raved about Monster’s compact power bars for traveling, but Energizer may have one-upped them here.

In addition to turning a single outlet into three surge protected ones, the iSurge also sports a couple of 2.1 amp USB ports, allowing them to be used to charge devices like the iPad. On top you’ll even find a 30-pin dock for perching and charging your iPhone or iPod Touch. But if that’s not enough, the whole unit swivels 180 degrees so it can be used anywhere there’s a free outlet, and on the underside is an LED nightlight great for road warriors who get disoriented in strange places at night. Available in October for $60 it certainly isn’t cheap, but neither is having to buy a powerbar every time you travel and forget to bring one.

[ iLounge - Energizer intros iSurge Charging Station for iPod, iPhone ] VIA [ Ubergizmo ]

By Andrew Liszewski

Having an extra pair of shoes when traveling is a real asset, if you can find the room to pack them. Whether you need to switch to a dry pair, or a different pair altogether when battling blisters, it’s a worthwhile bit of extra weight. And Timberland has just made it a bit easier to toss an extra pair of shoes in your suitcase, or clip them to the outside of your pack, with their new Radler Trail Camp Shoes. They’re a low-cut pair of thick-soled, outdoor-friendly trail shoes that zip into themselves thanks to a compact and thin upper design.

Made from waterproof, ripstop fabric and durable soles composed of 42% recycled rubber, the Radlers might not be ideal for extreme hiking situations given the lack of ankle support, but for light trail walking and life around camp they look pretty rugged. And when zipped shut they can be clipped to the outside of your bag. Personally I think it would be far more ideal if the shoes zipped into themselves the other way, containing the dirty soles so they could be easily thrown in a bag of clothing, but I can still appreciate their space-saving design. And at $65 they’re not terribly expensive either.

[ Timberland Radler Trail Camp Shoes ] VIA [ Acquire ]