Photo courtesy of tomsun

Travel gear and technology continue to evolve exponentially with vamped-up smartphones, faster digital cameras, enhanced fabric engineering for adventure wear, and netbooks bordering on microscopic in size. While the variety of tools to pack can seem daunting, one overarching fact remains – aim for multipurpose gadgets.

Utility tools that have several uses will not only save bag space but will also provide a ton of services you’ll most likely need while on the road.

Open Travel recently rounded up Ten Smart Gadgets For Smooth Traveling, and the tools range from Swiss army knives to medical kits and the solid Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS3 compact point-and-shoot camera.

A staple for travelers, traditional Swiss army knives come with base utensils and toolbox items like a pair of scissors, corkscrews for wine, nail files, bottle openers, and screwdrivers.

However, the SwissArmyFlash 2 GB kicks the kit up several notches by including a 2 GB USB Flash drive and an LED flashlight.

With 10.1 megapixels, a 12x optical zoom lens, and high resolution video recording, the Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS3 does double-duty as a quality compact camera churning out pin sharp images, and a camcorder with high definition (HD) video recording capabilities.

Other multi-purpose items on their list include the Tumi Slim Universal Power Adaptor Kit which comes with a ton of adapters and stores enough energy to power your notebook while away from constant supply of electricity, and the ultralight MacBook AIR laptop which is essentially a mobile office.

Traveling with kids? Open Travel also mentions the Bag-buggy, a travel suitcase that transforms into a kid’s stroller.

Anyone who has traveled with kids knows that pushing a stroller and pulling a trolley bag at the same time is quite challenging and exhausting.

Thank God, the Castiglione Morelli team has designed a suitcase and a buggy in one.

When closed, it looks like a traditional bag.

When pulled out, it stretches over the metallic frame and turns into a comfortable and safe stroller.

Now both you and your kid can enjoy the journey.

Clearly missing from Open Travel’s list is the quintessential multi-use gadget; a smartphone such as Apple’s iPhone or a Blackberry.

From making calls, playing music, shooting video, snapping pictures, surfing the web, finding directions, storing data, and fiddling around with thousands of apps, pocket-sized smartphones practically take up no luggage space while providing most of the tools you’ll be needing on your travels; neatly rolled up into one device.

Now, all we need is a mutant Smartphone-Swiss Army knife device and we’ll be set.

Community Connection

For more multipurpose tools, check out 10 Multi-Use Items You Should Consider Packing and Matador Team’s Favorite Travel Gadgets.

Know of any other multi-purpose gadgets worth adding? Please share below.