CES 2015 is here! Find out what our own Marco Hanna brings to the show this year! Check out all the gear, smartphones, wearables, and other hardware that help keep PhoneDog running at this year's Consumer Electronics Show!
For someone who has attended CES four or five times, many people have started to ask what to bring and what not to bring to the event. With the upcoming CES 2015, here’s an inside look at what’s inside my bag:
Bag
First of all, the bag that will be used for CES is a normal Case Logic camera bag. This bag came with the pre-owned camera purchased a couple of years ago and may still be sold for $40-$50 on Amazon. It is a versatile bag with tons of compartments that can be used for SD cards, batteries, gum, a laptop, camera and audio gear. It even has foam pads on the bottom, which adds protection against accidentally dropping the bag.
Laptop
I’ll be bringing my 15-inch Retina Display MacBook Pro, a 2012 model that comes with dedicated graphics, 8 GB or 16 GB of RAM, and 512 GB Flash Memory. This laptop will be useful for editing 4K content on Final Cut Pro as well as posting things on PhoneDog.com and the social media networks. It has good battery life and high resolution display, perfect for editing videos. It is a decent laptop for CES with its size, display and hardware.
iPad Air 2
While traveling or on dead time, the iPad Air 2 is perfect for listening music or watching TV or Netflix. It is a lightweight, thin device that comes with a beautiful 10-inch display. It generally is the best product to use on a daily basis. With the number of emails expected during CES 2015, this will help me get through them easily.
Cellphone
I will be using cellphones 24/7 for consuming lots of media, texting, calling and emailing. This is why the ones I will be bringing are those that come with a good battery life, size, and how well it can consume media. The cellphones are:
Nexus 6
As part of the 30-day challenge, the Nexus 6 will be my daily driver. Its battery life is getting better and it comes with a big, beautiful display and great hardware running Android 5.0 Lollipop; the best version.
iPhone 6
While it doesn’t have the greatest battery life, it still is a good phone for browsing through emails and consuming media.
Galaxy Note 4
As my battery champ, it will be most useful as my media consuming device for its display.
These devices will all be either in my bag or pocket during the event. I may also take a few other devices for comparison but they will be my daily drivers.
Moto 360
The Moto 360 is my favorite wearable of 2014 and to date. I can use it with my Nexus 6 and Note 4 to browse through notifications in a discrete manner. Plus, it can be annoying to pull out my phone every couple of minutes. With the Moto 360, I am able to read what needs to be read and do what needs to be done. Using this watch has also helped my battery last over two days.
Panasonic GH4
For recording videos, I will be using the Panasonic GH4 for its 4K camera and 4K internal. It is the perfect camera of the year as it does so many things really well—record 4K resolution videos, takes 16MP stills, it is compact, and can be used with any Micro Four Thirds lens. It is a badass camera.
U3 SD Cards
For recording 4K quality videos, storage should be on a reliable memory card. I have a ton of 64 GB Kingston cards that can do the job I need. They are the best in the business for transferring files.
Jaybird Bluebuds X
My favorite earphones for editing videos is the Jaybird Bluebuds X—it’s not bulky and it easily sticks well when running or editing videos. It provides a tremendous sound quality and battery life. Plus, its small size does not mess up hair.
HTC RE
My last gadget is the HTC RE, a tiny gyroscopic camera announced by HTC a couple of months back. It will be used for BTS (Behind-the-Scenes) videos to give a glimpse of what CES truly is.
I’ll also be bringing some monopods and tripods along with me for this year’s CES. See you there!