DVD player
It's sleek and slim, with a seven-inch display and is just over an inch thick. Slip this tablet-style DVD player, right, into your hand luggage and you can watch what you like on the plane, or use the in-car adaptor to keep fractious passengers busy on long car journeys. The quality is good and the battery lasts 2.5 hours, which will get you through most films. You can also listen to music or look at a CD of your holiday snaps. £339 with battery pack from www.iwantoneofthose.com.
Kensington adaptor
If you take your laptop on the plane to catch up on work, you'll know that sinking feeling as you notice that you have only 10 per cent of battery power left. The Kensington universal travel adaptor, above, taps into the plane's power supply (or your car's), meaning you can work the whole of a longhaul trip. Or watch your own DVDs instead of the inflight selection. Unlike some travel adaptors, it's small, easy to use and works across different airlines if their planes are fitted with sockets. From John Lewis (08456 049049), it costs £59.50.
ReliefBand
It looks like a wristwatch but the idea is it gets rid of travel sickness by stimulating the nerves with electrical signals. This was tested on a SeaCat, which has always been the worst incarnation of hell for me, a lifelong sufferer from travel sickness. As extra factors, it was early in the morning after too much wine and very little sleep, and the boat smelt strongly of diesel. Despite this potent mixture, with the ReliefBand set at the midway position, I wasn't sick and didn't feel those usual queasy stirrings. Maybe it would be good as a hangover cure too. It costs £99 from Magellan's (0870 600 1601).
MP3 player
You can fit a massive 5,000 tracks on the X-Clef MP3 player, which will give you about 350 hours of continuous music - although you'll have to recharge the battery after 12 hours to hear it. It comes at a reasonable price - £229.95 - and, while it's not as small as some players, it can still slip easily into your handbag. Spend £70 more and you get up to 10,000 track capacity. From www.firebox.com
Alarm clock
This cunning little clock is the one to pack for your travels. It automatically adjusts to suit time zones in Japan, the US, Britain or Germany, though if you visit other countries you'll need to change the hours manually. The only problem is that sometimes it takes a while for the clock to get the signal and switch zones. It will be available for £20 from the end of May from John Lewis (08456 049049).
Noise-reduction headphones
You don't realise how much background noise there is on aeroplanes until you take these headphones off. When they're on, you can still hear about half of the roar, though the cunning electronics in the ear cups cancel the rest of the background frequencies. On the down side, they are quite big and, if you wear them for more than a few hours, your ears tend to ache. Bose QuietComfort 2 noise reduction headphones cost £275. Contact 0800 0858572.
