GOING PLACES

SuRvIVAL TIPS FOR THE HI-TECH TRAVELLER
Combining work and travel is likely to get easier as airlines, hotels and airports expand accessibility to electronic and online tools.

During a recent trip to New Orleans, I found the coffee shop I hoped to work in didn’t offer Internet access. I sat down, resigned to work as best I could, only to find that my laptop was interested in a free hookup to a wireless network—courtesy of the gentlemen’s club next door.
Accessibility to the Internet was again an issue when I was traveling a few months later and needed to send an urgent e-mail while waiting for my flight out of the Mexico City airport. I was able to do it, but I had to pay 50 cents per minute.
Technology and travel can produce an unpredictable mix of experiences. A connection might appear where least expected, while roadblocks to getting online sprout up at the worst possible time.
Those who regularly work while on the road might find that air travel is often quite predictable in terms of connectivity. Unfortunately, that’s because flying is reliably low-tech. But if a number of companies manage to deliver on their promises in the coming year, change is on the way.
Right now, high-speed Internet is simply not an option for fliers. The service was available for a short time under the name “Connexion by Boeing,” and it operated using a satellite link, but it was shut down in 2006 because it was reportedly too costly both for airlines and passengers.
Now several companies are attempting to bring back in-flight Internet access. One of them is California-based Row 44, which is working on a satellite-based system similar to Connexion by Boeing, but presumably more affordable. With this system, passengers would be able to use their own portable devices to connect to the Internet. Alaska Airlines is set to be the first U.S. airline to try Row 44’s product next year.
An alternative to satellite-based links is air-to-ground technology, which uses cell towers instead of satellites for communications.
Remember Airfone, the seat-back phone introduced by several airlines in the 1980s? That service used air-to-ground technology, but it was discontinued in 2006 because, again, it was too costly and by most accounts not very popular.
You might wonder what happened to the frequencies that became available after Airfone left the scene. Colorado-based Aircell LLC snatched them up during a 2006 FCC auction and now plans to use them to offer in-flight high-speed Internet. The company is developing a broadband service that uses air-to-ground technology. It promises to offer a product for both commercial and business aviation that is less costly to operate and use than Connexion by Boeing. Although the exact cost to users has not been announced, passengers will be able to use their own Wi-Fi enabled portable devices to surf the Web during flights in the continental U.S. American Airlines and Virgin America have signed on to become the first to try the service, which, according to Aircell, will be available in 2008.
You might have noticed some airlines still have seat-back phones. The ones available now are satellite phones, and they remain the only option for travelers wanting to make calls during a flight. While some European airlines, most notably the Irish low-cost Ryanair, are planning to allow the use of cell phones on board airplanes soon (possibly next year), their American counterparts are focused on high-speed Internet connections. This is, at least in part, a regulatory issue.
In March, the FCC reiterated its refusal to lift the ban on the use of cell phones on airplanes citing the possibility of interference with wireless communications on the ground. Beyond assuaging FCC concerns, a number of safety hurdles would have to be addressed with the FAA before the use of cell phones could be allowed during flights in the U.S.

2008: Change is in the Air

Next year promises to be groundbreaking in terms of in-flight communications, but already there are a few services and features that can help a high-tech traveler remain productive while on the road. Here are some tips:

Airports
Internet users have come to expect a wireless connection almost anywhere they go, probably because enough public spaces offer the service. But at airports, passengers with time to kill and work to do are often forced to pay for Wi-Fi, with only a few exceptions. Among major airports, those in Las Vegas, Orlando, and Phoenix offer free Wi-Fi everywhere, and the Philadelphia airport offers it in the food court area. JetBlue deserves special mention for offering free wireless Internet access at its gates in the Long Beach Airport and at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport’s Terminal 6.
For a full guide on Wi-Fi services at national and international airports, go to the Airport Wireless Internet Access Guide at www.travelpost.com.

Airlines
The most in-flight connectivity passengers can hope for today is power to charge up electronic devices and seat-back phones for emergency calls.
In terms of power, Virgin America, based in Burlingame, California, offers the most options to keep gadgets going. Every seat in every aircraft features a standard 110-volt plug, USB plugs to charge PDAs and cell phones, and an Ethernet plug through which the airline plans to offer broadband Internet access in 2008.
An additional feature at every seat is a 9-inch touch screen, which, among other things, allows passengers to chat with fellow passengers on the airline’s “social network” (by using the full QWERTY keyboard provided, or by plugging in their own keyboards).
Houston-based Continental Airlines offers relatively low rates on calls from its seat-back satellite phones in comparison with several other airlines ($2.99 access fee; $6 per minute), but the service is only available on some aircraft. A little-known feature on these phones: Passengers on the same flight can call each other free of charge.
Airlines to watch next year for Internet service in the U.S. are Alaska Airlines, which plans to test Row 44’s service and eventually equip its entire fleet with high-speed Internet access, and American Airlines and Virgin America, which have announced plans to give Aircell’s broadband system a try.

Gadgets
Even though most airlines offer some sort of power outlet for electronic devices (though not at every seat), more often than not you might encounter cigarette lighter-style outlets or outlets that fit some devices but not others. To find out exactly what type of outlet you might encounter on any airline, go to www.seatguru.com (they have details down to the individual seat on each type of aircraft). Once you know the type of outlet you might have, the website can help you figure out the adapter you need.

Hotels
Hotels are catching on to the fact that today, Internet access is far more of a basic necessity than the ubiquitous sewing kit. Even though most hotels now offer some form of Internet access, the types of connections, prices and connection spots vary from one property to another, sometimes even within the same hotel chain. Some hotels allow free access to the Internet in the lobby area, while others restrict access to guest rooms. Some charge for the service, while some require membership in certain loyalty programs.
Omni Hotels, for instance, offers members of the Select Guest program free wireless Internet access in guest rooms and select public areas. Membership in the program is free. In general, it’s a good idea to check with the hotel ahead of time to learn about its services.