11 Surprising Ways Technology Can Refresh Your Winter Getaway
The best way to beat the winter blues is by getting out of town. And whether you’re more excited for the adrenaline rush you get on the slopes or the roaring fire back at the lodge, there’s technology to help make the most of your winter getaway. Here are 11 ways tech can help raise the temperature on your cold weather vacation.
1. It Keeps Your Body Temperature Just Right
The FuelWear smart-heated base layer will keep you feeling toasty even if the weather outside is frightful. Select your target temperature and integrated heating units will warm you up whenever your body heat dips too low. It’s worn inside your jackets and outer layers so you can make use of this sleek and washable personal heating system for all your cold weather outdoor activities.
Find it: FuelWear: Flame
2. It Keeps Your Hands Warm, Too
A warm torso is great, but it’s your fingers and other extremities that generally start to freeze first. Lucent heated gloves are probably overkill for your daily commute, but if you’re planning on spending all day out in a winter wonderland, this battery-powered heating system should come in handy.
Find it: Lucent Heated Gloves
3. It Puts Music in Your Earmuffs
Keep your ears warm and still stay connected to your tunes with the Bluetooth Gen 2 earmuff speakers. They’re adjustable, comfortable, and fit under a ski helmet, making them perfect for adding a soundtrack to your time on the slopes.
Find it: Bluetooth Gen 2
4. It Makes Your Phone Work Extra Hard
The sturdy phone case from Mophie doesn’t just prolong your iPhone’s battery life—it doubles how long you can go between charges—it also provides extra storage, adding 16, 32, or 64 gigs of memory. Both should come in handy if you’re planning a particularly scenic excursion and want to snap plenty of pictures without having to worry about your phone’s battery life.
Find it: Mophie Space Pack
5. It Lets You Capture Your Best Moves
Selfie-sticks might get a bad rap if you only use them to document your duckface, but this GoPro-compatible extender will help you get up-close and personal footage of your exploits on the slopes.
Find it: XShot Pro Ultimate Camera Extender Pole
6. And Measure Your Massive Air
Just how high did you catapult off that jump? How much air did you get during that double axel? With Intel® RealSense™ snapshot, you can capture your impressive athletic feats on your tablet, and then use the photo to measure your achievement. Intel RealSense 3D cameras use three lenses to take photos in layers; this makes it possible to both measure objects in the photo and adjust the photo’s focus after you’ve snapped the pic.
Find it: Intel
7. It Gets you Ready To Get Back Out There
Don’t let your plans for an action-packed getaway get derailed on day two when you wake up to find that your boots are still cold and wet from day one. The DryGuy™ portable heater gently dries two pairs of boots in less than 60 minutes so you can get back out there without risking frostbite.
Find it: DryGuy™
8. It Brings The Music Wherever You Go
The battery-operated Buckshot-Rugged Bluetooth Speaker works for getaways in all seasons, but its water-resistance makes it perfect for snowy excursions. Stash it in your pocket—it’ll fit—and you’ve got 16 hours of playing time with you wherever you go.
Find it: Buckshot – Rugged Bluetooth Speaker
9. It Keeps You Cozy While You Sleep
If your idea of an ideal winter getaway is more tent than luxury cabin, you’re going to need a top-of-the-line sleeping bag. It may look a little silly, but it doesn’t get cozier than Selk'bag Patagon sleeping bags for cold weather camping. They’ll keep you comfortable in temperatures as low as 9 degrees Fahrenheit.
Find it: Selk'bag Patagon
10. It Helps You Find Your Urban Oasis
Not every winter vacation needs to be all about the great outdoors. If bundling up just long enough to get from the museum to the restaurant sounds more your speed, consider checking out a new city near you. Browse airbinb.com’s thousands of listings for a house-swap or room to rent while traveling.
Find it: Airbnb.com
11. It Finds You Great Deals
When you’re out of ideas but you know you want to go somewhere, hit up deal-of-the-day website Groupon, which features tons of great getaways. You’ll not only get a discount on travel and lodging, but the deals also include bonus activities to beef up your itinerary.
Find it: Groupon.com
Let innovations—like Intel® RealSense™ snapshot, which lets you measure the height of your epic ski jump and refocus your stunning winter photos after you shoot them—help you take your winter from ho-hum to unforgettable. Learn more here.