Accessories for an iPad in Australia

The iPad eco-system is going to support a very profitable business in luxury cases. You very quickly realise that you definitely need a case. On a trip to Melbourne yesterday I slipped the iPad into a netbook case, which worked pretty well but was larger than it needed to be.

This morning, I took some vinyl and made a rough slip case that will protect the device until I see something nicer.



I'm not keen on having multiple wireless broadband accounts so I've been on the lookout for the equivalent of the US MiFi, it turns out that local maker Netcomm has just the thing:



It's a capable little travel router with the ability to use most of the wireless USB data modems on the Australian market as the internet connection that it shares over Wifi. The Netcomm 3G Travel Router t1 - 3GT1WN (clumsy name) supports all 3G/Next G TM/UMTS/ HSPA/ EV-DO/ USB modems from leading vendors. I have a pre-paid Telstra modem which, while it takes several minutes to get started, works fine in the end.

The router can also share internet from an ethernet port and has many more features than you really need for just creating a Wifi cloud from a USB broadband dongle. Here it is in use at Melbourne airport.



The rechargeable battery is said to last up to five hours. My only complaint is that I can't see a way to talk to the SMS service that is how you determine your balance on the pre-paid model (I just top mine up when I travel and let it go off in between). More features than I need but the perfect iPad accessory for Australian road warriors.