The Gear You Need While Working Remotely
Several home office essentials became nearly impossible to buy online at the beginning of everyone’s work-from-home journey. But now that more time has passed, our favorite gear is available for purchase again without long delays. Having solid and reliable equipment can make or break your home office setup. The reality is that technology is what makes working remotely even possible, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy to sort through the best options for your business. Even though many of us have now had time to adjust to a remote work environment, converting our largely comfort-centric homes into efficient workspaces still poses a challenge. To help, we’ve compiled a list of gear that will not only make working from home enjoyable but will crucially help alleviate burnout.
Quality Laptop or PC
Our top picks for the best business laptops will provide you with diverse options. With an immense saturation of laptop brands and models, numerous choices are currently present in the market, making buying a laptop quite overwhelming. Technology has continued to advance over time, making for some impressive laptops available. The best business laptops balance memory storage, processing power, and long battery life. Our team has written a blog post about the four best business laptops and their respective features.
The list of our favorite laptops is composed of:
- Apple MacBook Pro 13-inch (M1, 2020)
- Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 (15-inch)
- Dell Latitude 7490
- Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon (Gen 8)
To learn more about these four quality laptops, check out the breakdown of their features.
Sturdy and Reliable Desk
Every good workstation starts with a reliable desk, which sometimes means one that can convert into a standing desk so that you aren’t sitting all day. These are some of our favorites: Fully Jarvis Standing Desk: This desk offers adjustable height via the motor, an eco-friendly bamboo top, and numerous ways to customize it to your liking. FlexiSpot EN1 Standing Desk: This desk does take a bit more time to put together, but it offers everything you’ll want and need in a motorized standing desk. The single motor has a height range of 28 to 48 inches, and its surface is made from environmentally-friendly chipboard. VertDesk V3 Standing Desk: This desk can move up and down, holds up to 275 pounds, and is highly customizable. You can add a keyboard tray, monitor arm, casters, power strips, and more.
Relaxing Office Chair
Your workstation isn’t complete without a comfortable office chair; here are a few we favor: Staples Hyken Mesh Task Chair: This chair is pretty standard, providing neck support, an opportunity to recline, and sturdy mesh material. Poppin Max Task Chair: The mesh backrest on this chair is soft and provides good airflow. The casters aren’t noisy when the chair rolls, and it’s pretty compact and durable. X-Chair: This chair is quite a bit more pricey, but there’s a reason for that. Good chairs are worth the investment, especially if you’re spending eight-plus hours on them daily. The mesh structure enables a ton of airflow, and it’s comfortable and helps keep your posture straight.
High-Grade Monitor
A monitor is something that will considerably improve your work-from-home experience. They are selling out across retailers now, so you may have difficulty snagging one. Here are some excellent options to look for: Acer SB220Q Bi 22-Inch Full HD Monitor: This simple 1080p monitor gets the job done for most people and remains highly affordable. It provides slim bezels, a seamless stand, and one HDMI and VGA port. Vissles-M Portable Monitor: This portable monitor makes it extremely easy to work while traveling/on the go. You can take it from room to room or even from home to office. All you need is a cable to get it up and running. The touchscreen is excellent, and the built-in speakers are incredibly high quality. LG 34UM69G-B 34-Inch Ultrawide Monitor: If you’re frequently in front of a monitor and need more screen space, consider getting an ultrawide monitor. This model from LG offers 2,560 x 1,080 resolutions, DisplayPort and HDMI inputs, and a speedy response time.
Good Pair of Headphones
Quality headphones help you tune out the world, and there are quite a few options to choose from: Apple AirPods Pro Wirefree Earbuds: If you’re interested in wireless earbuds, you may want to invest in Apple’s AirPods. Although they’re a bit pricier, they have excellent noise canceling, a comfortable fit, and superior microphone quality. Sennheiser HD 6XX: When purchasing headphones, you may be interested in investing in some that don’t completely block everything out. Whether you have kids running around or you’re waiting on a package to come, these comfortable corded headphones are the ones to buy. Sony WH-1000XM4 Wireless Noise-Cancelling: These are the newest and best noise-canceling headphones from Sony. They have excellent audio quality and indeed do block out any background noise.
Well Made Keyboard
You’re most likely typing for most of your day, meaning you’ll need a sturdy keyboard. Everyone’s preferences are different, so we’ve provided various options: Logitech K380 Wireless Keyboard: This simple and mini Bluetooth keyboard is affordable and high quality. You will need two AAA batteries to power it on, though. Logitech G513 Carbon: This relatively quiet keyboard provides some RGB colorful lighting, making for a fun and interactive piece of gear. Ducky One 2 Mini Mechanical Keyboard: This small mechanical keyboard is growing in popularity, most likely because there are numerous glowing raves about it all across the web.
Comfy Mouse and Mouse Pad
Working directly on a laptop can feel quite cramped, so utilizing a mouse is optimal, primarily if you deal with wrist pain. SteelSeries “Sensei Ten” Corded Mouse: This mouse is lightweight, ergonomic, and works well with left- and right-handed people. Logitech G305 Wireless Mouse: This wireless mouse is a perfect size, has a smooth scroll wheel, and only takes one AA battery to work. Nomad Leather Mouse Pad: This mouse pad looks and feels great. The rubber bottom keeps it in place, and your mouse will slide seamlessly across it. Grovemade Leather and Walnut Mouse Pad: This is quite an expensive mouse pad, but it delivers on style and substance. The cork underside keeps it in place, and the leather is both supple and spacious.
A Few Final Tips
It’s crucial that you set clear boundaries when you start and stop working. Start your day off right by taking the time to get dressed before work, make sure the TV is off, and be sure you turn off your computer when you’re done for the day. If your eyes feel tired from looking at a computer screen all day, consider investing in some quality blue light glasses. Also, get up every 30 minutes to move around and stretch since sitting down all day is unsuitable for your health.
Make sure to check out other free IT resources that can help you out during these times. Even if the quarantine doesn’t affect every person equally, we provide universal guides that every business could benefit from reading.