Tag: TSA

Posted on

A Belt for Air Travel

I’m loving the fairly new TSA PreCheck program that lets frequent travelers go through security without having to take off their shoes, belts, and they can leave their gear in their bags. However, even with TSA PreCheck it’s random and every now and then I have to go through the regular security line. I’ve been traveling for a living for years and I can get through as fast as possible, but the one thing that I dislike the most is having to take off my belt. Well actually taking off my belt is no big deal, it’s the time it takes to put it back on that bugs me. We’re talking a few extra minutes here and while that might sound trivial, it seems like an eternity when you’re trying to get to your gate.

Do you really have to take off your belt?

TSA will absolutely make you take your belt off if they see it! Sometimes I’ve actually forgotten to take it off and my shirt was on the outside and long enough to go over it and as you would guess it was no problem. Even going through the body/back scatter scanner it was no issue. I thought, “cool I’ll just always wear my shirt on the outside and not take it off.” The only problem is that doesn’t work so well on walk through metal detectors that have the sensitivity turned up. My regular dress belts have metal buckles and they will set off metal detectors at various airports.

Get rid of the metal

Problem solved! I searched for a belt that contains no metal and I found a nice one! I used it going to and coming back from Photoshop World last week with no problem. The belt I found is nice because it looks like a regular dress belt and not some nylon sport belt. It’s also reversible with black on one side and brown on the other. However, I wouldn’t use it as my primary every day belt. I don’t think it would be strong enough for daily use. However, it’s definitely my new airport travel belt. I wear this one to the airport and just pack my regular belt in my carryon luggage.

This belt is also very useful for visiting other facilities where you have to pass through a metal detector. Our County building, which also houses the courts makes you go through a metal detector and so do most Federal buildings.

Check it out here.

Posted on

Downsizing My Carry On Laptop Bag

I do a fair amount of Travel for work. I hit Delta's Diamond Elite status by the end of June this year. I typically travel with two carry ons. One is  standard Swiss Gear 20" rollerbag (that happens to have a laptop compartment) and the other is my favorite laptop bag of all time. It's the Skooba TSA Friendly Check-through rollerbag.

While this combination has worked great for me and my travels all over the world, it looks like I'm going to have to give up my Skooba rollerbag for now. The bag is great. The problem is having less space under the seat in front of me these days. Delta Airlines (I live in a hub city) has given us a mixed blessing. On the one hand I applaud them and THANK Delta for the swift move to outfitting the vast majority of their domestic fleet with Gogo inflight Wi-Fi. I use it all the time when I fly domestically and now I pretty much expect to see it when I board my flight. While this is great, Delta has also been busy upgrading their fleet with an in-flight entertainment system. This upgrade hasn't been getting much press and even Delta seems to be pretty quiet about it. 

The new system gives each passenger an LCD on the seatback in front of them and access to movies, TV shows, satellite TV, music, games, etc. AWESOME! Great, what's the downside? The downside to this upgrade is that the electronics for this system at each seat is being housed under the seat itself, significantly reducing the storage space under the seat for carryons. With my last few flights I've had to resort to putting both of my bags in the overhead bin because my laptop bag simply just won't fit under the seat anymore. So far I haven't been yelled at. However, I want to be fair to my fellow passengers and put my second bag under the seat as everyone should. Unfortunately for me this means going with a smaller bag. 

 

 

Time for a NEW Skooba TSA Friendly Bag!

Luckily Skooba does make a smaller TSA Friendly Laptop case. I swore I would never carry a shoulder bag again. I still don't want to and the good news is this bag is designed to slip over the handle of your rollerbag. You can still carry it with the supplied shoulder strap or the built-in handle. Although this bag is about half as thick as the Skooba rollerbag, I should still be able to carry my usual amount of gear give or take a DSLR body/lens. 

The beauty of these bags is NOT having to take your laptop out when going through a TSA checkpoint. I could never go back now after zipping right through for a year!

You can get the Skooba Checkthrough Executive Brief Small (for 15/16" or smaller laptops) here on sale for under $100 or

You can get the Skooba Checkthrough Executive Brief Large (for 17" laptops) here on sale for for about $105.

You should also check out the ThinkTank 50 Cable Management Bag for all that little stuff that causes you to get a "bag check" by TSA.

Posted on

Traveling with Tech: Yeah, it’s stupid but don’t argue!

Traveling with the amount of gadgets that I do (cameras, video gear, computers, tablets, etc.), it's always a challenge going through airport security. Now keep in mind that I'm pretty security minded, but I also consider myself to be a somewhat logical person too. So what really cranks me is the inconsistency that is the TSA Airport Security Lane. For the TSA and Airport workers reading this, nothing personal. I know you're just doing your job. I also can't imagine the tremendous amount of pressure you're under to not let a security breach happen on your watch. With that said, I don't really have an issue with the rules as much as I do the inconsistency in which they are enforced. 

 

Take your laptop out of your bag

This one is pretty easy to understand. Your laptop has a lot of electronic components in it that need to be x-rayed. The reason they have you take it out is to make sure that nothing else is in the way of seeing through it. No problem. Luckily TSA approves bags like my new favorite laptop bag that allows you to keep your laptop in your bag (most of the time). I've had great success zipping through security with my laptop in this bag! I would say that I only have had to physically take it out once or twice in the US. Don't ask me why?

 

You can "probably" leave your iPad in your bag

I'll never forget reading an article like this one that stated that TSA says you can "probably" leave your iPad in your carryon luggage. I just laughed a little because I knew "probably" is how this whole thing works. The minute you leave it in, you'll be subject to a "bag check" (additional screening). So unless you have plenty of time to burn, don't gamble, don't argue, don't try to show them the article, just take it out and put it in a bin. 

 

What's a video camera these days?

Continue reading “Traveling with Tech: Yeah, it’s stupid but don’t argue!”