Should we take the Laptop????? Are we mad??

Siena · May 23rd, 2005, 17:32

Rajastan 3 weeks, 2 adults and a child. We normally take the laptop computer with us when we travel to the US and Europe etc. We are able to download photos from the digital camera when the card is full and our daughter can watch DVD's whilst travelling and to give her some downtime.
Are we mad? Is the power supply just too erratic? I think leave it at home - too easy to have stolen but my husband thinks it will be useful.
Comments appreciated

Paagla Dashu · May 23rd, 2005, 17:46

If only to download photos from digital camera, you can always get a X-drive

No issues with the laptop either - there is electricity in India, besides a few endangered snake-charmers.

cyberhippie · May 23rd, 2005, 17:51

If your used to traveling with a lap top then there's no reason you shouldn't take it to India with you!!
Just get protection aganst power surges that though rare do happen in India and you wouldn't want to fry your Laptop!
Music, storing photos, Trains At A Glance in PDF format..........
If your willing to carry it then a computer has a lot of uses in a trip around India!!
By the way in cities it's quite easy to buy many western DVD's or indeed try some bollywood with the sub titles to help you you might enjoy them!

For some more info on travel with laptops try here!

Laptops and Travel

Indojingai · May 23rd, 2005, 18:50

Should we take the laptop????

Laptop .... you mean .. L A P T O P..??
a cow will eat it before you reach your hotel!!

Laptops generally add to weight (considering you have a child i assume small-ish) you might want to travel light. (You havent been to India ever before right..? in June/July ...)

Photos - buy a 1 GB memory card or a couple or a dozen or ....
DVD - Buy a cheap (less than 100$ type perhaps made in that big land in Asia) and hook it to a PSP. (If you have one.)

I say these because even when stolen, broken, eaten by a cow (rare but that does happen...

... ) you'll loose less than a laptop. Will be carrying less weight and meeting all the purposes.

Enough about the laptop... 'Are we mad??'.. you decide..

(j/k)

crvlvr · May 23rd, 2005, 22:55

Your laptop will function effectively in India. IMHO, the best benefit it will provide is playing DVDs for your kids.

josh · May 23rd, 2005, 23:04

I think taking a laptop is a bad idea because you will be constantly paranoid about getting it stolen. There are plenty of cybercafe's in Rajasthan, why not just use them? You will be able to trasfer your pictures to a CD in no time at all... Not to mention u have to slug around a laptop, worry about it getting damaged, stolen, the headaches.. OY VEY!

cyberhippie · May 24th, 2005, 10:47

The OP stated they are used to travelling with a laptop, so why not? India isn't known for theft so why do people think you would have to be paranoid about carrying a laptop in India???

camelgirl · May 26th, 2005, 04:58

I agree with Josh--oy vey-- for sure! I love my laptop and drag it around here in the US but would never bring it to India.Not because you can't use it there.

There are plenty of cyber cafes, to keep in touch and there are TVs most everywhere in hotels. India is full of distractions for adults and kids. 3 weeks isn't that long to be without it. Kids get a lot of attention in India and the experience should be positive for the whole family. I agree, get a large capacity memory card. Besides, if a cow doesn't eat it, a camel might in Rajasthan!

bijapuri · May 26th, 2005, 05:31

Mad no, but . . .
Addicted?
go without it and find out

iyou · May 26th, 2005, 06:30

leave it at home. it's a target for thieves. if you use those 512 MB cards it's a convient size for burning to CDR (bring the blank CDs with you if you want; it'll save you from having to buy them every time you want one). Also, let the kid go a while without watching TV. She'll thank you for it when she's older (well, maybe).

emjoi · May 26th, 2005, 06:38

As far as theft is concerned, you're just as likely to get robbed in Barcelona or Paris as anywhere in India.

Power? Charge it up when you are able, and run on batteries when you must.

From my personal point of view of being the Dad of a travelling family, and so being the one carrying the heaviest backpack and wheeling along the largest suitcase.... I'm a strong believer in "Small is Beautiful".

Callous · May 26th, 2005, 09:12

I agree with leaving it at home.When we travelled with our brood in India/SLanka 05 it was so lovely to have pure family time and escape the technological world we all live in.It was always a treat to find an internet cafe to check our hotmail.Our kids talked,played cards,became artists and fought with each other on the odd occasion,yes the long hours travelling between towns passed pretty quickly.Have a wonderful time.We are heading back in 2 weeks and our kids are soooooo excited.India truly is a wonderful destination with a family.

Vadim Chiline · May 26th, 2005, 09:49

Well, I'll go against most of the grain of this thread... I brought my laptop for my 1 month in india, and really, I took 27 GB of photos while there. Processing some and seeing what was good, or less good was fun. I also wrote my travel log on it from the comforts of my sometimes prison cell like living area.

My friend got her laptop stolen, but only because she left it unattended on a train (well, her bag that is... ). I wasn't very paranoid if ever to be honest. I have a DVD burner as well on it.

I mean I stayed in bottom-of-the-line places, are you? Also, I agree, one can get robbed anywhere... Rome, Paris, etc.. thieves are everywhere... just keep a watchful eye if you're carrying a few pieces of luggage..

Again, I was doing some heavy shooting, but if you plan on taking souvenirs, then maybe a few compact flash cards (Which are extremely cheap nowadays) might do.

My 2 Canadian cents (sadly, not worth all that much),

Vadim

TimMakins · May 30th, 2005, 19:27

Quote:

Originally Posted by Siena

Rajastan 3 weeks, 2 adults and a child. We normally take the laptop computer with us when we travel to the US and Europe etc. We are able to download photos from the digital camera when the card is full and our daughter can watch DVD's whilst travelling and to give her some downtime.
Are we mad? Is the power supply just too erratic? I think leave it at home - too easy to have stolen but my husband thinks it will be useful.
Comments appreciated

If you are used to travelling with your laptop, then take it with you. I have a laptop with me, and the only negative point I have to say about it is the extra weight and volume in my bag. But there are many positive points - some already mentioned, such as pdf timetables, photo editing, webpage writing, reading eBooks, pre-preparing long emails, playing FreeCell, browsing photo albumns of friends and family back home, writing a book, doing financial work, etc etc etc.

I still find that I need a floppy drive with me, though. Although some people on IM seem to be using USB drives to transfer email to and from Cyber Cafes, I have found that away from the big cities and tourist hot-spots, a floppy disc is the only way to interface with a Cyber Cafe computer.

Tim Makins
See my diary pages: impossible to do without a laptop...

Dr Funkenstein · May 30th, 2005, 20:01

This is an interesting thread as I've been wondering whether to take a laptop along on my next trip.

I want to keep a blog where I can upload digital photos so a laptop would be ideal for sorting this out at my own pace in the guesthouse then uploading it all at an Internet cafe. Also, I've got approx 40 gigs of mp3's I'd like to bring along with me, too.

My main concern is how heavy it's gonna be in my backpack and whether it's going to get battered to death on long, bumpy bus journeys in the Himalayas.

Can anyone recommend a laptop to buy that's light (most important), has a CD-rewriter and a decent amount of memory?

I always feel like a total sucker waiting to get ripped off whenever I go into a PC shop and ask about things like this, so any advice would be really helpful.

Thanks.

May 23rd, 2005, 17:32	#1
Siena Member Join Date: May 2005 Location: Australia Posts: 40	Should we take the Laptop????? Are we mad?? Rajastan 3 weeks, 2 adults and a child. We normally take the laptop computer with us when we travel to the US and Europe etc. We are able to download photos from the digital camera when the card is full and our daughter can watch DVD's whilst travelling and to give her some downtime. Are we mad? Is the power supply just too erratic? I think leave it at home - too easy to have stolen but my husband thinks it will be useful. Comments appreciated

May 23rd, 2005, 17:51	#3
cyberhippie Account Closed by User's Request Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: the Netherlands Posts: 6,012	If your used to traveling with a lap top then there's no reason you shouldn't take it to India with you!! Just get protection aganst power surges that though rare do happen in India and you wouldn't want to fry your Laptop! Music, storing photos, Trains At A Glance in PDF format.......... If your willing to carry it then a computer has a lot of uses in a trip around India!! By the way in cities it's quite easy to buy many western DVD's or indeed try some bollywood with the sub titles to help you you might enjoy them! For some more info on travel with laptops try here! Laptops and Travel Last edited by cyberhippie : May 24th, 2005 at 10:53.

May 23rd, 2005, 18:50	#4
Indojingai One in a billion member. Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Amsterdam Posts: 987	Should we take the laptop???? Laptop .... you mean .. L A P T O P..?? a cow will eat it before you reach your hotel!! Laptops generally add to weight (considering you have a child i assume small-ish) you might want to travel light. (You havent been to India ever before right..? in June/July ...) Photos - buy a 1 GB memory card or a couple or a dozen or .... DVD - Buy a cheap (less than 100$ type perhaps made in that big land in Asia) and hook it to a PSP. (If you have one.) I say these because even when stolen, broken, eaten by a cow (rare but that does happen... ... ) you'll loose less than a laptop. Will be carrying less weight and meeting all the purposes. Enough about the laptop... 'Are we mad??'.. you decide.. (j/k) __________________ I need your clothes, your boots and your motorcycle.

May 23rd, 2005, 23:04	#6
josh Member Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Miami, FL Posts: 35	No way, I say I think taking a laptop is a bad idea because you will be constantly paranoid about getting it stolen. There are plenty of cybercafe's in Rajasthan, why not just use them? You will be able to trasfer your pictures to a CD in no time at all... Not to mention u have to slug around a laptop, worry about it getting damaged, stolen, the headaches.. OY VEY!

May 26th, 2005, 05:31	#9
bijapuri laid traps for troubadours Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Priustan Posts: 2,598	Mad no, but . . . Addicted? go without it and find out __________________ Focusing your life solely on making a buck shows a certain poverty of ambition. It asks too little of yourself. Because it's only when you hitch your wagon to something larger than yourself that you realize your true potential. Barack Obama lookit me!!!: http://www.flickr.com/photos/bijapuri/ Utube fuzzy logic: http://youtube.com/profile_videos?user=bijapuri&p =r

May 23rd, 2005, 17:46	#2
Paagla Dashu Unreasonably Unreasonable Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Where They Wear Clogs Posts: 1,223	If only to download photos from digital camera, you can always get a X-drive No issues with the laptop either - there is electricity in India, besides a few endangered snake-charmers.

May 23rd, 2005, 22:55	#5
crvlvr Guru Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Hollywood Posts: 4,474	Your laptop will function effectively in India. IMHO, the best benefit it will provide is playing DVDs for your kids.

May 24th, 2005, 10:47	#7
cyberhippie Account Closed by User's Request Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: the Netherlands Posts: 6,012	The OP stated they are used to travelling with a laptop, so why not? India isn't known for theft so why do people think you would have to be paranoid about carrying a laptop in India???

May 26th, 2005, 04:58	#8
camelgirl 10 year Visa okee dokee Join Date: May 2005 Location: Swannanoa NC usa Posts: 1,021	I agree with Josh--oy vey-- for sure! I love my laptop and drag it around here in the US but would never bring it to India.Not because you can't use it there. There are plenty of cyber cafes, to keep in touch and there are TVs most everywhere in hotels. India is full of distractions for adults and kids. 3 weeks isn't that long to be without it. Kids get a lot of attention in India and the experience should be positive for the whole family. I agree, get a large capacity memory card. Besides, if a cow doesn't eat it, a camel might in Rajasthan!

May 26th, 2005, 06:30	#10
iyou Maha Guru Member Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Portland, Oregon USA Posts: 502	leave it at home. it's a target for thieves. if you use those 512 MB cards it's a convient size for burning to CDR (bring the blank CDs with you if you want; it'll save you from having to buy them every time you want one). Also, let the kid go a while without watching TV. She'll thank you for it when she's older (well, maybe). __________________ . . . --May a moody baby doom a yam.

May 26th, 2005, 06:38	#11
emjoi Some dude Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Melbourne Australia Posts: 134	As far as theft is concerned, you're just as likely to get robbed in Barcelona or Paris as anywhere in India. Power? Charge it up when you are able, and run on batteries when you must. From my personal point of view of being the Dad of a travelling family, and so being the one carrying the heaviest backpack and wheeling along the largest suitcase.... I'm a strong believer in "Small is Beautiful".

May 26th, 2005, 09:12	#12
Callous Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Australia Posts: 113	I agree with leaving it at home.When we travelled with our brood in India/SLanka 05 it was so lovely to have pure family time and escape the technological world we all live in.It was always a treat to find an internet cafe to check our hotmail.Our kids talked,played cards,became artists and fought with each other on the odd occasion,yes the long hours travelling between towns passed pretty quickly.Have a wonderful time.We are heading back in 2 weeks and our kids are soooooo excited.India truly is a wonderful destination with a family.

May 26th, 2005, 09:49	#13
Vadim Chiline Member Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Montreal, Canada Posts: 59	Well, I'll go against most of the grain of this thread... I brought my laptop for my 1 month in india, and really, I took 27 GB of photos while there. Processing some and seeing what was good, or less good was fun. I also wrote my travel log on it from the comforts of my sometimes prison cell like living area. My friend got her laptop stolen, but only because she left it unattended on a train (well, her bag that is... ). I wasn't very paranoid if ever to be honest. I have a DVD burner as well on it. I mean I stayed in bottom-of-the-line places, are you? Also, I agree, one can get robbed anywhere... Rome, Paris, etc.. thieves are everywhere... just keep a watchful eye if you're carrying a few pieces of luggage.. Again, I was doing some heavy shooting, but if you plan on taking souvenirs, then maybe a few compact flash cards (Which are extremely cheap nowadays) might do. My 2 Canadian cents (sadly, not worth all that much), Vadim __________________ www.vadimchiline.com

May 30th, 2005, 20:01	#15
Dr Funkenstein Joolay !!! Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Manali, Himachal Pradesh Posts: 854	This is an interesting thread as I've been wondering whether to take a laptop along on my next trip. I want to keep a blog where I can upload digital photos so a laptop would be ideal for sorting this out at my own pace in the guesthouse then uploading it all at an Internet cafe. Also, I've got approx 40 gigs of mp3's I'd like to bring along with me, too. My main concern is how heavy it's gonna be in my backpack and whether it's going to get battered to death on long, bumpy bus journeys in the Himalayas. Can anyone recommend a laptop to buy that's light (most important), has a CD-rewriter and a decent amount of memory? I always feel like a total sucker waiting to get ripped off whenever I go into a PC shop and ask about things like this, so any advice would be really helpful. Thanks. __________________ Out There Somewhere : My Travel Blog.

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