I%26#39;ve searched the forum for some info on internet cafe usage, but can%26#39;t seem to find what I am looking for, so I%26#39;d appreciate any advice or information anyone may have regarding internet cafes for the beginner.
We%26#39;ll be in France for two weeks, and are debating whether or not to bring our laptop. It%26#39;s a bit unreliable, and very heavy. We%26#39;d use it for email, downloading our photos, for charging our MP3 players, and possibly watching DVD%26#39;s. We have small portable DVD player, so we could bring that instead, and use internet cafes for email usage.
Here are my questions:
Do these cafes typically have stations you can use to log on to your home email? Or is it becoming a place where one brings their laptop to access the internet?
What are the typical usage fees?
Can I charge my MP3 player while using the internet? This is probably the biggest thing, since I could live without the email for two weeks, but the batteries on our MP3 players won%26#39;t last that long! Is there another small, portable device that we could use in our aparment for this instead?
We%26#39;re considering purchasing a new, lighter and updated laptop, but it might not be in the budget before the trip - unless anyone has advice on that too?!
Any info would be appreciated! Thank you!
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There are 2 schools of thought... those who would never take along a laptop and those who wouldn%26#39;t think of NOT having a laptop! I%26#39;m one of the latter.
Internet cafes do still have computers there for you to use. Several hotels we staying at in France last summer had a computer or 2 in the lobby for guests. But you wouldn%26#39;t have time to charge an MP3 player at either. That can sometimes take quite a while.
There are other solutions for charging MP3 players... my daughter has an adapter that plus into a wall outlet to charge her iPod. It works in Europe as well.
Personally, I wouldn%26#39;t spend any time sitting on an internet cafe. If your current laptop is big and unreliable just stop by your nearest Staples... I just got home from our local outlet and they had several %26quot;Netbooks%26quot; on display. These are very small laptops with screens from 8 to 10 inches, hardrives ranging from 8 gigs to 160+ gigs and prices starting around $250 ish... I%26#39;d grab one that suits your budget.
I have an older Dell 12 inch that I travel with. I also have one of the first generation netbooks, an Asus EEE with a 7.9 inch screen. My daughter had it on our trip to France last summer and it worked perfectly. It could pick up WiFi signals where my Dell couldn%26#39;t...
Brands of netbooks include Dell, Asus, MSI, HP, Acer and others. Check them out and see what works for you.
Rob
BTW... you can leave the DVD player at home... none of the netbooks have built in DVD drives but if you save movies to the harddrive or a USB stick you can vastly extend battery life.
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I would advise you against bringing an unreliable heavy laptop on a trip. You will get tired of lugging it around, especially when it doesn%26#39;t always work. Whether you elect to buy a netbook or a new laptop (but the very light ones don%26#39;t have a DVD player) is a personal choice.
In Europe, there are many internet cafes and the prices are very cheap. If you elect to bring your own computer, many hotels now offer WiFi connection at a charge via a service provider such as Orange. The price is generally not any cheaper than internet cafes though.
For MP3 charging, I am assuming it came with a portable charger? That charger is most likely compatible with European voltages too except for the plug so you%26#39;d just need an adapter, not a voltage converter. If you look on your charger and see 100V to 240V, then it can be used just about anywhere in the world with the plug adapter.
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Sammyfloyd - unfortunately the MP3 players do not come with an adapter for the wall, only cords to connect to a computer to charge. That is my dilemma.
I have seen those small netbooks, but like I said, not sure if will fit into the budget before the trip. I will check into them though, just as a comparison.
Does anyone know of reliable chargers for MP3 players that we could bring with us? Am I crazy, or have I seen ones that are also solar, that could maybe be used later during camping trips?
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Google is your friend ;^)
%26quot;mp3 chargers%26quot;... here%26#39;s 1 result:
astore.amazon.ca/buy.mp3.accessories-20…
Here%26#39;s a solar one... might be rather slow though...
store.solio.com/Solio-Magnesium-Edition
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