Google I/O Developer Conference Tickets Giveaway!

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I've used many platforms over the years, starting with the Newton to Palm to Blackberry and finally the Android G1.

While this has changed the way I work everyday. Like my phone directory being replaced by Facebook and Google. My Zagat guide, by Yelp. And despite it's cost, it's paid for itself for all the times a salesman was trying to overcharge by 10x...

It's when Traveling it's become my can't live without accessory, besting anything else features per pound.

It can easily charge anywhere, USB is the same worldwide, and in a crunch can leech from my laptop.

When in LA, the traffic map becomes my most used feature. However in NYC, the Subway map app, which awesomely doesn't require a signal.

When in China, I photograph the street signs, to replay to the cabbies so I can always get back home. And on another trip, when the cabby was heading off to the wrong place, I could Google Image search the landmark and clear up and further miscommunication.

Then there's the times when stuck at an airport, and Orbitz could get me a new flight faster than the airline staff. Or booking a car while waiting in line at the counter for less than they quote me in person.

My favorite moment though, is when I go to one of those cities where the streets were never digitized, and Gmaps would seemingly be useless. But before leaving my hotel, I could pull up the satellite photos for the area, and use this for navigation while out, recognizing streets, rivers, knowing where to find the parks and central districts. And the GPS still works perfectly. Bonus as I walk around town, the phone tells me when it's found WiFi, which leaves me in the situation of why is there a white person standing in front my house too often.

But my most special moments come from keeping in touch with my friends. With Gtalk, my friends are with me no matter where I am as part of the experience. The memory card slot lets me start sharing SLR photos, immediately. And with Latitude they stop asking me where I am, finally.