April 2005

Using Apple’s iChat software and an iSight camera, Apple product manager Kurt Knight describes how leveraging the Connexion Web access service on the Lufthansa flight to San Francisco from Munich enabled the world’s (first?) videoconference.

“The video quality was great and scaled well all the way up to full screen,” says Knight. “I think we made history as the first people to have an in-air video conference, not counting Air Force One or other ultra-expensive solutions. Very, very cool.”

The article continues "Although the wireless Internet connection involved sending data from an Airbus traveling at 500 mph through a satellite receiver in a 20,000-mile earth orbit, conferencing with Zelenka was as easy as clicking his video status button."

For those of us who are counting on the inflight ‘cuisine’ to provide some nourishment or sustenance might want to check out this site. AirlineMeals.net claims to be "the world’s first and leading site about nothing but airline food". It provides a forum for any traveler to send a picture and description of their meal.

As of today, they have been sent 11,691 images from 446 carriers. They also offer catering and inflight comfort/amenities news provided from travelers and news sources.

I’ll have to say, I found it helpful when I was recently planning a trip from SEA to Peking when I could not find any reliable information about the inflight meals provided onboard. The site might be especially helpful if you are traveling on a smaller airline, charter airlines (such as Martinair), one that has recently started service and especially foreign carriers.

I made the mistake of not asking at check in if my return flight from Frankfurt to Portland had Internet service.  I assumed it did based on Lufthansa’s site information , attempted to get on line, was able to get a weak connection and struggled with it for a while before asking the flight attendant for help.  The weak connection was the network within the plane and it turned out that the plane had not yet been configured for Internet connection.   This will be a mute point within a few months when all of Lufthansa’s fleet will be configured for internet. Before then it’s best to check before the flight in case you are planning on working online.

Additionally, the seats in business class that are described as ‘full flat’ onboard are not quite that.  The seat does convert to a horizontal position, but the foot position is much lower than the head position.  I understand the business class seats are much better than in the past, and had I checked online prior to the flight I would have found them them better represented on the Lufthansa site than the inflight brochure.

On this trip I had six flights on Lufthansa, including long haul and intra Europe.  I found the service from the flight attendants on every flight to be excellent, the flights were ontime and the baggage handling process efficient. 

The free version of this helpful website (reviewed here on 2/24/05), optimized for HTML capable handheld devices (such as the Blackberry 7000 series, TREO, HP iPAQ and some advanced mobile phones) has recently been launched.

The mobile version will include:
    * Coverage of 23 domestic and international airline carriers and 200 aircraft.
    * Seat map graphics with color-coding.
    * Seat Pitch and Width measurements.
    * In-flight entertainment and Power Port availability.
    * Location of Power Ports and adapter type.

To start receiving your in-flight services and seat information go here.

Mobile Planet, one of the largest mobile computing web-based retailers, has recently begun offering the Sony U71 handtop computer (previously reviewed by us on 2/23)–including most of the available accessories. While Mobile Planet is still describing it as a ‘Japanese-market’ product, I believe this is another positive sign towards the eventual full U.S. distribution of the U line of portable computers by Sony.

I was able to connect and am currently online on a Lufthansa flight from Portland to Frankfurt.  I was able to connect with little trouble.  Lufthansa offers a free portal with news and instructions when you first log on.  If you are having any connection problems you can refer to the printed instruction booklets in your seat pocket.  Inside is a step by step guide should you need to reconfigure your browser.  I didn’t need to ask the flight attendant for help, but he did check in on me to make sure I was connected and seemed prepared to point me in the right direction should I need help.  The business section is split, so I can’t see all 36 seats or the 8 in first class, but the section I am in has 24 seats, and just 2 of us are on the network right now. 

Here are speed results from a ping report:

Minimum = 651ms, Maximum = 732ms, Average = 694ms

Lufthansa just refitted the business and first cabins on our airbus 340-A with seats that fully recline.  Mine was not working when we boarded, but there is a  manual override and a circuit that can be reset - that did the trick.  I’m looking forward to sleeping horizontal for a few hours and will enjoy a movie, or try out the playstation-like games.. for research sake. 

The snow crab starter has arrived - signing off for now.

According to the CNN article: New heights for in-flight Internet,  "No executive wants to arrive at their hotel room after a long-haul flight and have 100 e-mails waiting for them — one of the reasons why German carrier Lufthansa took the lead and installed in-flight Internet access last May."

The momentum seems to be building. Since the Lufthansa installation of Boeing’s Connexion service, Japan Airlines, All Nippon Airlines and Scandinavian Airlines have installed in-flight Internet, while Singapore Airlines, China Airlines, Korean Air and Asiana Airlines have announced their intent to install the Connexion system on long-range aircraft.

This desire by the airlines to "differentiate themselves" will hopefully lead to business travelers "expecting" Internet access on major long-haul business routes. Claims the article.

In the article "Discounters Win the Legroom Wars" (subscription required) the Wall Street Journal presents the numbers proving  that "as formerly full-service airlines add coach seats to airplanes, discount carriers now offer the most legroom." Bottom line is Jet Blue rear seats are roomiest, and Northwest seats the most cramped.

This chart shows the pitch of regular economy-class seats as described in the article:

"It’s a real problem for the major airlines to expect travelers to pay them more than discount airlines charge, and yet deliver a weaker product." says the WSJ.

I consider my iPod to be one of my most valuable productivity tools (particularly when flying.) Thanks to programs that can convert text files into spoken audio (and automatically implant these audio files into iTunes), I can get through tons of reading during normal "dead times". Imagine "reading" the Wall Street Journal as you wait in line to check in, or listening to the Economist as you haul your luggage to the cab/bus/car. Long emails, Word docs, and blog entries can be consumed as you drive to the airport.

Other advantages include the ability to save the weight of all that paper in your carry-on (and save the forests!), and not to have to deal with newspaper page-folding navigation hassles in a cramped seat. My new ipod shuffle (about the size of a pack of gum) can hold hundreds of pages of written text as audio files.

A good audio conversion program for the Mac is iSpeakit. For Windows, ReadPlease.

You might also want to investigate the great business books available at the iTunes Music Store. Many of the better known books and authors are there…