In the cold, electronic gadgets may fail.

Some of us have our whole lives (e.g. phone numbers, contact lists, e-mail addresses, appointments, music, photos, documents, personal data, et al) stored in our PDA’s, laptops, cellular phones, Ipods etc. We take them with us everywhere we go. Admit it – some of you have on your person the aforementioned gear, right now, not to mention the accessory items (such as extra batteries, storage media, travel chargers, and headphones or wireless microphones). When will the madness ever end?!

Mind you, I too love the gadgets. Case in point, I have a microscopic Sony MP3 player that’s the size of a cigarette lighter that can go anywhere, anytime. I love it because it’s small and compact and can hold over 150 songs. Technology = Freedom. Freedom to move, freedom to take with you that which makes you feel free – like your favorite tunes, whether it be the complete collection of iconoclastic Muddy Waters, or the live jazz piano recordings of the legendary Art Tatum, or perhaps you just want to rock out to some Hendrix -- hey, you pick your musical medicine. Technological freedom is good. But it does have its weaknesses, especially with respect to the weather.

Plunging temperatures that could only make a polar bear feel comfy at home can easily turn your cutting-edge-MP3-playing-PDA-digital-video-camera-cell-phone into an expensive non-functioning gizmo without the mojo.

Read your manuals. It’s in the black and white on paper; the electronic manufacturers across the board have done their rigorous testing on their products. They don’t have a choice, actually. They know the optimal conditions of performance for the latest flip phone you happen to have purchased recently. How cold can you go?

Well, with the bitterly cold temperatures and wind chill values in much of the Midwest, Great Lakes, Ohio Valley and the New England regions of the country, gadget users on-the-go will likely experience trouble manipulating their precious toys. At the freezing mark, battery performance wanes and some LCD screens (displays) do not function properly. In the minuses, for some gizmos – good luck. You might just wreck them for good. By the way, trying to punch in digits or type a text message on those tiny keyboards with your bare hands isn’t a pleasant exercise and arduous under ideal climate circumstances.

So, what to do? Well, if you can – just stay indoors, otherwise limit the usage while exposed to the elements and shield your techno goodies in their appropriate cases, wallets, pockets, and bags. Carry extra batteries too.