Traveler 2.0

Air Travel for Techies: American's Wi-Fi, Virgin America's Power Ports

Just returned from a business/pleasure trip to New York.

From San Francisco to JFK, I flew American Airlines in coach, specifically to try its new wireless network service (available on 767-200 aircraft flying between JFK and SF, LA, and Miami). The service, Aircell's Gogo, cost $13 for the entire flight. Aircell employees were stationed at the departure gate, handing out coupons for 25% off the service. (See picture below.)

The connection speed was not quite as fast as my DSL-based wireless network at home. But it was speedy enough to watch YouTube videos with only occasional lags and skips. A bonus: I had a DC power port at my seat, so with an adapter, I kept my MacBook Air powered throughout the flight.

For my return flight, I traveled on Virgin America. I was a Virgin virgin and was curious what the buzz was all about.

The A319 aircraft I was on didn't have wireless or wired networking (Virgin's working on adding that). The entertainment system was fun and easy to use, however. And my coach cabin seat had an AC power outlet.

But here's the curious thing. When my MacBook Air was plugged into the outlet, its cursor/pointer became virtually unusable. I would drag my finger across the trackpad to move the cursor to select, say, an icon in the Mac OS dock. But the cursor wouldn't respond at all. Or it would have a delayed response of as much as half a minute.

I thought my MacBook Air was having a meltdown. Then, out of curiosity, I unplugged the laptop from the power port at my seat. The cursor movement immediately returned to normal. When I plugged the computer back in to the power port, the cursor went back into lag mode. 

I was watching Mad Men episodes on my MacBook Air, so the cursor lag wasn't a significant problem. When I needed to use the cursor, I'd just unplug the computer, move the pointer, then plug the computer back in. If I had needed to work, however, the cursor delay would have been intolerable.

High tech amenities in flight are finally arriving, after years of stops and starts. The ability to surf the Web in the sky is a big step forward. But my experience using Virgin America's power port is a reminder that quirky, mysterious technical glitches still follow us, no matter where we go. 

The Future of Frequent Flier Miles

In today's Wall Street Journal, columnist Scott McCartney offers his forecasts for 2008 travel. Among his predictions, McCartney says the airlines--still trying to fly above the financial turbulence of the past few years--will likely sell off some assets, including their frequent flier programs.

What does this mean for travelers? According to McCartney:

* New owners of an airline's reward program could seek to develop more partnerships. In turn, that could result in more ways to earn and spend your accrued miles.

* The downside: Having spun off their rewards programs, airlines might make you spend even more miles for free travel--a trend that is already happening.

What can you do about this? Lower your expectations, for one thing. The days of getting a free coach ticket for 20,000 miles are disappearing quickly, if not already gone forever. Booking business class tickets to international destinations is even harder. Recently, the best deal I could find for a business class trip to Buenos Aires from San Francisco was 250,000 miles.

Also, it helps to become savvier about how you earn miles.

Example: I had nearly 19,000 United Airlines miles set to expire Dec. 31, 2007. I'd paid little attention to my United rewards program, as I don't often fly United. But I didn't want to lose the miles, and all I had to do to save them was to generate some activity on my account before year's end.

So I signed up to earn miles from Safeway whenever I shop there (which is often). And I joined United's dining rewards program, in which you earn miles by spending dough in participating restaurants. Just by doing things I always do--grocery shopping and dining out--I'm now earning United miles. Plus, I charge those expenditures on Amex, where I earn additional miles.

If nothing else, I saved my 19,000 miles from vanishing. That won't get me to Buenos Aires, but it's a start.

Most Expensive U.S. City for Fliers

If you're a frequent flier, you don't want to live in Cincinnati. Apparently that city has the "highest average domestic fares among the nation's 100 largest airports," The Wall Street Journal reports.

The Journal's 'Middle Seat' columnist Scott McCartney attributes Cincinnati's high prices to a lack of competition from discount carriers. Delta has more than 80% of the city's airline passenger traffic, the Journal says.

The airports offering the lowest per-mile average cost to fly, such as Dallas' Love Field, Chicago Midway, Houston Hobby, and Oakland, were all served by low-cost carrier Southwest.

I suspect this isn't Earth-shattering news to most travelers. Still, it serves as a reminder: We should all try to patronize the low-cost carriers whenever possible. Unfortunately, Southwest and other low-cost airlines aren't always tops in amenities for business travelers. But without them, we'd all be paying far more for our tickets.

Airline Food: The Best and Worst

Of domestic U.S. carriers, United Airlines offers the most nutritious in-flight snack box, USA Today reports. The airline's Smartpack box ($5) includes granola, organic peach applesauce, and cheddar cheese. It's vegetarian-friendly and free of trans fats. However, the contents of the snack box add up to 810 calories.

Which airlines serve the least nutritious meals or snack boxes? Southwest and Northwest. Example: Southwest's Snack Pack includes "cookies, cheese sandwich crackers and dried fruit and nuts," according to USA Today.

Of course, airline food has never been confused with haute cuisine. I remember a hot breakfast I received on US Airlines years ago that included an omelet, plus bacon and sausage. Come to think of it, that meal was free, and I was traveling in coach. Oh, for the good old days of air travel.

P.S. Airlinemeals.net is a fun Web site in which travelers share photos and stories of the in-flight foods placed before their disbelieving eyes. Below is a photo from the site, of a meal served on TWA circa 1958-59. Can you identify the food? Or, more to the point, do you even want to?

Alaska Airlines to Test Wi-Fi

Alaska Airlines announced yesterday it will test onboard Wi-Fi next spring on one of its Boeing 737 aircraft. Alaska's test will last about one month. If the test is successful, the airline says it will roll out the service to the rest of its fleet by year's end 2009.

Alaska is partnering with wireless start-up Row 44. Along with fast Web browsing and e-mail, the wireless networks could also beam entertainment content to passengers' portable devices, the Wall Street Journal reports (subscription required to read the entire article).

Meanwhile, American Airlines, Virgin America, and Southwest Airlines in the U.S. are testing and/or beginning to install Wi-Fi systems aboard aircraft. In Europe,  Ryanair and Air France are among those dipping a cautious toe in the onboard Wi-Fi waters.

Will these Wi-Fi networks lead to passengers making Skype or other Internet phone calls? I hope not. At the moment, that doesn't seem likely. U.S. carriers know all too well that the FAA and FCC continue to support a ban on cell phones in flight, and many passengers aren't thrilled with the idea of sitting next to Chatty Cathy. Presumably, those airlines offering inflight Wi-Fi can disable telephony services such as Skype. Or--more likely--they may ultimately charge a premium for enabling Wi-Fi or cell phone services at 35,000 feet. Money talks, as the saying goes.

Airline Lounges: Worth the Money?

Last week, my partner Nick and I were faced with a nearly three-hour layover at LAX (Los Angeles International Airport). I had business calls to make and e-mail to check, and the throngs of travelers in the terminal were jangling my nerves. And so, for a total of $75, we bought a 24-hour pass for the two of us to the American Airlines Admirals Club lounge (we were flying American).

Once inside the lounge, I ensconced myself at a desk cubicle to get some work done. Cell phone reception (using Sprint) was a bit spotty, unfortunately, though given the fact the cubicles are far away from the windows, I wasn't surprised. I could have used the landline phone at the desk, but that would have required using a credit card, and I didn't want to bother with that. Also, the wireless Internet access is supplied by T-Mobile and requires a fee. I left my laptop off and checked e-mail on my Treo instead.

These gripes aside, the lounge made the layover far more tolerable than it would have been otherwise. So if you find yourself facing a long layover, and you aren't a member of an airline club, ask if you can buy a day pass (most will sell you a pass for about $50). And keep in mind some premium credit cards will get you free access to airline lounges. For example, American Express recently announced that Platinum and Centurion cardholders can hang out at American, Delta, Continental, and Northwest lounges for free.

Today's Wall Street Journal Cranky Consumer column reviews American, Delta, United, and Continental airport clubs. Of the four airlines, only Continental lounges offer free wireless Internet access, according to the Journal.

Laptop Etiquette in the Skies

When you're on a plane (or in another public place), do you take a peek at what's on your neighbor's laptop screen? Tuesday's USA Today story on laptop etiquette quotes a survey that says 45% of respondents admitted to glancing at someone else's laptop screen while in public places. Worth noting, however: the survey was sponsored by 3M, which makes screen filters that prevent others from seeing what's on your screen.

At any rate, the point is we like to peek. Meanwhile, a growing number of laptop screens use high-contrast, high-gloss technology, which makes the screen easier to view from either side. Add the fact many of us watch DVDs with at least some adult content--a brief nude scene, for example--on planes or trains. What've you got? The growing likelihood that you'll look up from your organic fruit snack, only to see two people on a nearby laptop screen doing what comes naturally.

Bottom line: Be prepared to lower your laptop screen when you're viewing adult or personal content in public, to prevent others (such as nearby kids) from seeing it. Or invest in a 3M laptop screen filter. I've used them; they work as advertised. The clip below is an amusing ad for the filters.

New TSA Security Rules for Electronics

We all know the drill. As you approach an airport security checkpoint, take your laptop out of its bag, put it in a bucket, run it through the X-ray machine--and hope no one absconds with it on the other side. New TSA rules enacted last weekend require the same security procedure for large electronic devices such as full-sized DVD players and video game consoles.

Worth noting: The TSA rules affect living-room-style game consoles and DVD players, not portable ones. In other words, if you're carrying on board a full-size PlayStation, be prepared to run it separately through the airport X-ray machine. If you're toting a PlayStation Portable, you're good to go. My guess is most people don't travel with a full-size game console or DVD player, so the new rules shouldn't noticeably slow down security checkpoint lines--unless travelers confused by the new rules take time to remove their portable game players and DVD players.

In other news, TSA also lifted its ban on carrying lighters on board aircraft. Now, don't you feel a whole lot safer?

Why You Shouldn't Use a Portable Hard Drive In Flight

On a recent trip, I was perusing Delta's list of electronic devices prohibited at any time during a flight. The list contained all the usual suspects: No radios, satellite radios, or portable TVs. But I was surprised to find external hard drives on the list, too. (Click on the image below to see the list.)

I've often used a portable USB hard drive in flight to back up work done on my laptop. I'd never give this a second thought. However, a Delta PR spokesperson said external hard drives have the potential to cause electromagnetic interference with cockpit navigations or communications.

Does this mean backing up an Excel spreadsheet in flight will immediately throw a plane into an tail spin? Obviously not, or I wouldn't be around to write these words. Nonetheless, from now on, I'll back up my files in flight using my laptop's built-in Secure Digital card reader, just in case.

Airline Travel Web Sites: Three More for the Road

In my Mobile Computing column last week for PC World, I wrote about the Web sites I frequently use when planning airline travel. Since that column appeared, I received e-mail from readers about air travel planning sites I didn't mention. Among them:

> SideStep.com. One advantage to this site is its downloadable toolbar. When you research a trip on a travel booking site such as Expedia and Travelocity, SideStep's toolbar automatically pops up to show you the itineraries it recommends so you can easily comparison shop. Simon Blackstein of San Francisco says he uses SideStep often because the interface "makes it easy to change times, airports, etc."

> Mobissimo.com. The CEO of this site, Beatrice Tarka, wrote to tell me that unlike some travel search sites, Mobissimo.com lets you search for international travel as well as domestic U.S. trips.

> Airfarewatchdog.com. V.J. Villanueva of Airfarewatchdog.com wrote to say that "We're the only airfare listing/comparison/alert site that lists Southwest Airlines' fares...and also fares on other airlines that don't share their best fares with Travelocity, Orbitz, Farecompare, Farealert, and the rest. These include SkyBus, USA3000, Spirit, Allegiant, Alaska, Frontier, and many international airlines."

I've used and can recommend SideStep.com. But I haven't explored the other two enough to render an opinion. If you can recommend any of these or other travel planning sites, please share your opinions with others by clicking the Comments link below this post.