My husband has an Apple iBook G4 lap top, which is quite small . We were wondering if it is OK to bring along (leave Sunday !!!)....it would be great to be able to e-mail our family daily.... **? high speed internet vs dial up in Ireland & Northern Ireland ** ? wireless "access" **? regular converter to recharge **? more trouble than it is worth to bring
Does anyone have experience bringing a lap top ?
Thanks in advance for taking the time to respond!!!
My advice would be to leave the laptop at home. Internet shops are all over Ireland and many B&Bs and hotels have free access, which would make contact with home easy.
The airports have wireless, but I found it difficult to pull into a town and find wireless. I tried using AOL's international access two years ago and was able to get through to the username and password part, then it kept disconnecting...this happened several times over a one-month period...they're tech support told me they couldn't guarantee the connection.
Eirecom has a free dialup in Ireland, but it's very slow and you might need to find a different # for each region you are visiting (not sure about NI).
An basic plug adapter will get the job done for recharging.
Ireland is changing quickly and many hotels, guesthouses and even B&Bs are now offering wireless internet connections. Many are free but some do charge by the hour or day. Some B&Bs and guesthouses I know of have free computers and/or WiFi access for guests.
Whether you take yours will depend on how much you will be on the computer each day, whether you like the convenience of being able to connect from the lobby of a hotel or your room (if staying in hotels), or if you don't mind going to an internet cafe or library every few days. You won't need a converter but will need a 3-prong plug.
Leaving it home can lighten the load but taking it with you is a convenience you might like. Only you can tell which suits your needs.