To bring or not bring my laptop?

I've been planning a 6 moth trip to India and up till now I was planning on bringing my computer. I am a photographer, and I shoot raw files witch cannot be easily uploaded to a usb at an internet cafe. I was pretty set on brining it but am having second thoughts now. I am trying to pack very light, and having to worry about my computers safety might become a real hassle, especially because I will traveling on a budget, (Sleeper class trains, and small guest houses). Has anyone had experience traveling with a computer? I keep going back and forth in my mind thinking it would be and would not be a good idea. Also I think I am more likely to keep up with a blog if I can journal digitally. Any thoughts?

There's a bit about the subject here. Netbook in northern India

a small laptop is a good option.

I can't see it surviving a 6mth trip unless you are doing everything 1st class.
If you are staying in budget accommo then how will you recharge it? Some of the wiring & sockets in cheap G/H's can be lethal.
I think it will just be an hassle to you,leave it & make do with Cybercafes & you will have much more enjoyable stress free trip. KK

Good words above, but for me (a photographer/videographer) I found bringing mine invaluable. I never imagined using it as a communication device, just a place to store images. If images/storages are your main concerns, there are plenty of small, portable portable hard drives with loads of space. The caveat for all this is that I wasn't moving much at all - stayed in Varanasi for six months and bought the appropriate surge control apparatus. My guest house was very safe and secure (we're talkin' Rs150/night, so nothing grand and glorious)(definitely no stars

There is a lot of FUD going around here Any good laptop will survive travel. Heck, road warriors who are on the road 40 weeks a year lug their laptop more miles than they drag their spouses

My macbook, athena has logged about 600,000 miles which is close to a million kilometers. A laptop in a nice jacket, or backpack can survive shock and vibrations of open jeep, innova, a chicken bus. So what are the gotchas ?

1. Cheap laptops/ notebooks come built with cheap components, of which two are very susceptible to failure - storage and screen. Though some have complained about CD/DVD reader.

2. Instead of buying new el-cheapo netbook/notebook, buy a used/refurbished standard notebook and some dealers will replace for extra USD, a decent storage device.

3. Portable storage devices tend to fail faster than a netbook/laptop. Their MTF(Mean Time to Failure) is about half of their rated 5 years.

Finally there are some unconventional storage solutions. An ipod classic is about 160GB. I have a device that will read straight off a Canon or Sony directly into an ipod. There are also other hand held storage solutions.

This topic has been discussed often in many forums devoted to photography. And in flesh and blood I have faith in the advice given by the folks at Adorama and two news/war fotog veterans I know.

Your biggest problem traveling with the laptop in India is going to be theft. If you can deal with that (and the weight), it's the best solution for storage and staying connected.

Sorry KK, but can't agree with anything you said in this post. (p.s. love your other work!)

I've travelled all over india, staying in the cheapest (and sometimes dirtiest) places.

I've NEVER used a surge adaptor. I have never met anyone who has had a problem with electricity surges. All modern quality laptops come with surge protection etc built into the power adaptor.

I currently (and for last 3 years) have travelled with the same Asus eeepc netbook. It has been all over the himalaya strapped to the back of my enfield. I always carry it in a neopreme sleeve to help with potential vibration issues, but they don't really seem to be a problem with the new generation of hard disks.

OK, maybe it could have got stolen - but that also it not something to be overly worried about, you just take the same precautions you would at home - i.e. not leaving it unattended in public, pack it in a daypack instead of a laptop bag, leave only in a locked room etc.


bottom line is this - if you think you might want your laptop - bring it! back it up before you come, and if it's an expensive one, ok, get it insured....

the freedom it will give you to do what you want with your photos etc will be priceless