The Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul Minnesota is fortunate to have a vibrant and active tech community. One such group is the Mini’app’les User Group. It’s a group of of Apple users interested in sharing knowledge and experience with other Apple users and owners. Members vary from beginners, to consultants and developers of any age. The common bond is an interest and a desire to learn more about the Apple experience, regardless of focus. You can get notifications of meetings conveniently held once a month at the LuminFire offices in Minneapolis via Meetup.
At our most recent meetings we discussed many accessories that can be added to your travel bag to make it easier to use your iPhone and MacBook when on the road. We also looked at many iPhone apps that can assist. Below you’ll find some gems.
iPhone Travel Apps
- GoodReader – Super-robust PDF reader app
- PDF Expert – Fast, robust, and beautiful PDF editor
- Infuse – A beautiful way to watch almost any video format on your iPhone, iPad, and Apple TV.
- Currency Converter HD – Exchange Rate Calculator
- Mobile Passport – Speeds you through U.S. Customs and Border Protection at over 20 major U.S. airports.
- TripIt: Travel Organizer – Instantly organizes all your travel plans in one place.
- Google Translate – Assistance with language translation
- Flightradar24 – Show flight information in real time wherever you are
- SeatGuru – Help with selecting the best airplane seating
Hardware for Travel
- SanDisk iXpand Flash Drive – An easy way to free up space on your iPhone, automatically backs up your camera roll, and even lets you watch popular-format videos straight from the drive.
- PowerCube Rewireable Electric Outlet Wall Adapter – Compact power outlet
- Bluetooth Easy-Switch Keyboard K811 – Great portable keyboard
- Lamicall iPhone Stand – Folds down to be very portable
- Anker PowerCore Slim 5000mAh Portable Charger – Easy to carry extended battery power for iPhone
- Anker PowerCore+ 13400mAh Portable Charger with Quick Charge 3.0 – Extended battery power
- iPhone 7 Finn Wallet – RF ID protection for Passport
- BAGSMART Electronics Travel Organizer Case Bag – Nice bag for storing accessories on the go
- BAGSMART Travel Universal Cable Organizer – Neat storage for cables and other items
- Cable Matters USB-C Multiport Adapter with 4K HDMI or VGA Video, USB 3.0 and Gigabit Ethernet
- USB C Adapter, Rankie 2-Pack Hi-speed USB-C to USB-A 3.0 Adapter for USB Type-C Devices
- AUKEY USB Wall Charger, ULTRA COMPACT Dual Port 2.4A Output & Foldable Plug for iPhone iPad
Photography Travel Accessories
- Pedco UltraPod II Lightweight Camera Tripod – Super portable tripod with strap to mount nearly anywhere
- XShot Selfie Stick – Very compact but long extension
- JOBY Micro Hybrid – For Mirrorless and Compact DSLR Cameras – Another small tripod option
- Glif tripod mount for iPhone – Clever and useful tripod mount that is compact and secure for mounting in portrait or landscape mode
The book 12 Ways Your Phone Is Changing You was also mentioned at the meeting as an interesting read.
It’s great to actually see these products in use at the meeting and get reviews from actual users on how well they hold up in the field.
Thanks to Tim Drenk (Mini’app’les President) and Peter Bockenhauer (Mini’app’les Secretary & Webmaster) for compiling and sharing this information.
If you have other ideas for useful accessories feel free to add to the comments below.
Tim Cimbura – CEO, CFO and Software Engineer
Tim is an expert in creating custom business solutions that make businesses more effective, productive, and profitable. He specializes in rapid application development with the Claris platform including FileMaker, Laravel, and WordPress. He also knows Apple macOS technology inside and out.