Everything I learned Trying to Make a Clean Laptop Desk Setup

your workspace is something personal think about it it's where you spend the majority of your time and so to me it can be the biggest eyesore that I dread looking at or something I enjoy going to every single day to get done a few months ago I shared my vision of my ideal multi-purpose desk setup and while it's been good it hasn't been the best work from home that's set up for me so I'll be trying to make it even better and at the same time share some of the things that I learned in the pursuit of the perfect desk setup so that you don't have to make the same mistakes that I did let's get started in my own digital life I use multiple laptops some are for work and some are for personal stuff or YouTube and sometimes I use an iPad so ideally I wanted a desk setup that I can just sit down at regardless of what computer I have with me plus I'm sure a lot of you can relate more and more often people are going back on site or in a hybrid work environment so a desk setup at home gets used a little less and less every single month but that doesn't mean you or the people who live with you no longer work from home or try to get budgets in the household tasks done on a desk so to me I thought it made perfect sense to turn an existing desk setup into a desk setup that's flexible and can adapt to the person or device that's using it of course because it's also part of a home you'll want it to match the Aesthetics of where it's being placed it would be straight up awkward to have the NASA Mission Control Center in the middle of your living room so we'll be trying to make sure the setup is as clean looking as possible too so minimal cables wires and clutter and also no random junk or trash so how would we go about building a desk setup that would sort all of those things out luckily I already had a solid foundation with the desk that I have right here if you want to learn more about how this all came to be feel free to check out my video on this from a few months back this setup won't change much aesthetically but by the end of this video hopefully the capabilities and functionality will be even better but lately I've actually been taking a page an inspiration from Corporate America I know right the strangest place and no I don't mean I'll have ads everywhere a nickel and dime you for watching this channel it'll be a dollar please but I want to implement hot desking at home hot desking at least in an office environment is when you don't have an actual assigned space for yourself but you check out a desk office or meeting space on the days that you actually need them it's like when the cool teacher lets you pick your seats in class so you could pick the best seats right next to your friends but with hot desking it varies day to day and the seat you use every day could be different so I kind of want to implement something similar to that for each of my spaces I want to give them a primary purpose for existing I'm playing God here with desk setups if you and another person who lives with you brother or sister spouse whatever needs to occasionally use a desk at home having just a single desk that can be used by everyone instead of just one person could save you space and costs in your home so for the desk that I'm working on today its job is to be a minimal desk that allows the person using it to narrow their focus to just one task and it should also double as a nice looking aesthetic looking desk that ends up in all my YouTube video shots so let's start with trying to make this desk flexible so we want to use this desk with basically any computer that we want so for that situation I thought of a few ways to handle this you could start off with a monitor that has built-in KVM switching capabilities this lets you switch what devices are connected to what computer by having a different cable plugged into two different computers and controlling it through the monitor this is great for a mixed use setup between a desktop and laptop because you can use the plugged in devices like speakers and microphones on either device but since this setup is slowly laptop focused that type of feature isn't necessarily needed instead I want to focus on the magical connector we all know as USBC since USBC can hold power data and display from a single cable it simplifies the process by being a one cable solution so with that you can handle it in two different ways the first solution is to just buy a monitor that supports USBC for power ports and display directly in your monitor this is more expensive up front because you're basically paying for a monitor and a USBC Hub combined if you no longer plan to use that monitor it means you lose the built-in Hub too another option is to use these USBC or Thunderbolt docking stations these provide all the ports that you could ever possibly need but they cost as much as budget monitors and can be messy if you don't cable manage at all and you have to be sure it matches all the different specs that you specifically want for example I use 4K monitors for video editing and photo editing for YouTube thumbnails and a lot of these hubs cap out at 4K 30 Hertz unless I was aiming for the highest resolution PowerPoint slides these hubs aren't going to meet my needs so I went with this Dell 4k monitor because it's very minimal looking with barely any labels and bezels and is actually a really good color accurate display with built-in USBC for display power and as a USBC Hub any modern laptop can just take the USBC cable connected to this Monitor and plug it into the laptop and use this entire setup with all the peripherals attached so far our hot desking idea is 100 good and because this monitor has built-in USB ports that are powered I can actually power my BenQ light bar my Loop deck and the insta 360 link directly from the Monitor and this was actually provided by today's sponsor the insta360 link webcam this is a 4K webcam with great image quality that blows my laptop's webcam out of the water the half inch camera sensor on the link makes 4K footage look fantastic and has a lot of really cool features that you don't often see in other webcams but add a ton of value like a privacy mode that faces the camera downward after 10 seconds of it no longer being used so that the camera isn't watching you pick out on several Burgers from your local fast food restaurant I hate when that happens it has built-in AI features like ones that keep you at the center of the screen you can literally do this with a wave of your hand by raising your hand the link then follows your face around the room keeping you centered you can also make an L with your hand to adjust the zoom on your camera to get closer or further away from you and if you don't want the webcam to track you anymore you can just raise your hand again and when the link blinks at you the webcam will stop tracking your movement the link also has a streamer and portrait mode that's perfect for Content creators to make Tick Tock Instagram or streaming content in uncropped 9x16 aspect ratio video captures and there's so many other features I haven't even gotten to talk about yet if you're interested in the insta 360 link webcam I'll leave a link to it in the video description below and because I added a webcam I actually find that I prefer to keep this desk near the window natural light works best for lighting your face on video calls regardless of what webcam you have since it's supposed to be a laptop focused setup I normally like to use the laptop's display speakers and keyboards to supplement the Monitor and minimize all the Clutter but sometimes it's nice to have good peripherals I can rely on when I don't want to rely on the laptop alone some laptops don't have great keyboards I keep this kikron q1 Pro around the desk it's a wireless mechanical keyboard that can switch between both Mac OS and windows layouts switch between three different devices and I like how it feels sounds and there's a cool little knob for volume control I really like it this is a customizable keyboard but I currently have it in its stock configuration but give it some time I've kind of fallen into the keyboard rabbit hole and uh I'm still trying to figure out what to do with this one for mice I'm using the trusty Logitech MX master 3s which just like the keyboard is wireless and can connect to three different devices for flexibility I'm still using the BenQ screen bar Halo it adds a nice Moody Aura around the desk especially at night when all the other lights are off it makes the desk look really really cool and makes a good clutter-free dust clamp and is powered by the USB port on the monitor so I can just use it even if no computer is connected to it last time I recommended this Belkin Three in One charging station to declutter the mess of cables that sit at your desk when you're charging your devices but I found it so useful that it actually ended up on my nightstand but I found a cheaper alternative for you too the three in one charging station for Apple 22 watt faster magsafe charger stand for iPhone magnetic Wireless Charger station for iPhone 14 1312 Pro Max Plus Pro Mini iWatch Ultra 87se65432 airpods it's less than half the cost of the Belkin feels it looks premium for a no-name brand off Amazon and the magsafe pup can actually be stood up so you can choose to lay your phone flat or have it sitting up in standby while it charges it's much better than what I expected for the price but I will say that the Apple watch charger isn't fast charging and got me around one percent every two minutes on my Apple watch Ultra but at half the cost I can't complain too much I just personally would not recommend wireless charging If You're Expecting fast speeds but a wireless charger like this one cleans up the desk significantly and it's cheap and I don't plan to do the bulk of my charging at my desk I'm still using the loop deck for hotkeys controlling music and macros but honestly while on paper the loop deck has more features than a stream deck I think I'm going to end up replacing the loop Deck with a stream Deck The Stream deck has more third-party support and a cable configuration that's more suited to sit on top of your desk as a mini display the loop deck has this cable sticking out top and it's more suited to lay flat on the desk surface the stand is also a bit flimsy it's not bad but I just think that the stream deck has a more thriving community and support behind for example I can actually control all my home automations straight from the stream deck I can't do that on the loop deck so here's something I feel strongly about standing desks they're fantastic at enabling you to control the perfect desk height for sitting or standing I've tried a bunch of them from some of the more popular brands and some unknown ones on a single standing desk in my home is from the same place I'm not loyal this top Sky one has been one of the more budget-friendly ones I've tried and after spending more time with it I'm not sure if it's my favorite modifying the height preset buttons get a little annoying on this particular model if you're budget conscious you might get better results from a Vivo or flexi spot standing desk instead I've had much better experiences with those for Budget standing desk legs most standing desks will let you install casters on the bottom enabling you to move the desk around on Wheels I like adding them but keep in mind that they do increase the minimum height of your desk and introduce even more wobble to it even when the casters are locked but these casters have enabled me to move the desk between two different spots in my office space depending on how I'm personally feeling I can have it in one part of the room if I want a bit of privacy and on the other side if I'm I want to be able to be by the window stare at my neighbors or see the grass I can't touch because I'm too busy being cooped inside something I've stressed so many times especially for people with standing desks and when that really changes how clean you can make your standing desk is to get the right power strip when you have a standing desk there are two options you can go with for a power strip you could plug everything to a power strip that's just sitting on the floor and if that's the case all your cables will be like Vines stretching to the bottom of the desk cluttering it and making it look like a wall in an abandoned house also if they're not long enough and you elevate your standing desk to standing height your devices could be ripped off your desk that's not good the solution to this is to get a power strip with a long enough power cable that you can mount the power strip with command strips or velcro to the bottom of the desk but I wouldn't stop there either the devices you use at your desk might have plugs that are massive like this this or even USB that's where dual sided power strip with USB ports like this one from one beat would be a great option the Dual sides make it easier to plug in your devices at the correct angle so that these power bricks are aren't dangling so low beneath your desk and with the power outlets being so close to the desk surface your devices now have a ton of cable slack from there I use these cable straps with adhesive to tie down the cables to the underside of the desk and cleaning up the cabled mess one thing no one really talks about when it comes to Cable Management though is that you really have to be sure this is how you want your desk to look and be laid out because with how many cables are running across these desks for all the junk that you have on top it's a huge pain to get any item on the desk removed so be sure you like where everything is placed on top of your desk surface first before you start cable managing everything underneath on the desk behind me I have a growth made desk shelf these are great for adding storage hiding cables storing laptops underneath when it's not in use and elevating displays that don't have height adjustments like an iMac they come in various sizes and colors and I really do like them they're really really nice but they're also really really pricey too I've also recently tried a dupe of them called the aortia they have the same type of look are much more affordable but the craftsmanship ship and quality of the materials do feel cheaper and you'll notice it right away compared to the Grove mate you get what you pay for here but at the end of the day it's a desk shelf and you might not touch it enough to justify paying the premium prices that Grove made demands but at the same time the Grove made one is really nice and that's the one that I have at this desk my favorite audio device to use at this desk while I'm not using the laptop speakers are the wf-1000xm4s from Sony these have noise canceling built in but my favorite part about them is that they have the speak to chat function this function turns off noise canceling when you start talking so that you can actually hear the people around you when they respond it is my favorite feature about these Sony wf-1000xm4s I thought about adding a dedicated mic on an arm to this desk setup but this adds additional clutter and most people after being wowed by your voice quality on slack Discord teams Zoom whatever don't really pay attention to that anymore and are more focused on getting the meeting and work done rather than how clear your voice sounds as long as you don't sound like how unregistered hypercam 2 looks then you're good so a lot of the time I just used a built-in mics on my laptop the Sony wf-1000xm4s or airpods it's good enough and if you have too much background noise using the noise suppression features in teams Zoom meet or whatever you use is more than enough to get rid of that excessive noise no need to go out and get a sure sm7b unless you plan to start a podcast soon for the desk chair I use a Herman Miller embody chair it's actually a chair that I'm sitting on right now I rotate this around all the different desks that I use it's an expensive chair but I got it all Facebook Marketplace for like half the retail price and trust me when I say this even at the discounted price you don't need to fall for the hype I see the embody in a lot of desk tour videos and it's a great desk chair but the Herman Miller Aeron chair is just as well suited and costs like three to four hundred dollars USD on Marketplace that's a fantastic value the embody is really nice and I really enjoy sitting in it as fabric on the back and on the seat and a ton of different adjustment knobs but the fabric can get snagged and it isn't as durable as the mesh on the air on the aerons are super durable and lighter on your wallet and in my opinion it's a much better value desk chair than the embody lastly if this desk didn't have any personal items on it I'd feel like it looked too minimal and stale not the aesthetic kind of minimal but Barren dull boring so I always keep little items at this desk whether it be fake plants I don't know what these are called these little guys who pose my camera whatever the idea here is just to make the desk look more lived in and alive instead of a Sims or HGTV CG generated looking space and if you don't want to raise real plants Ikea and Target have a good selection of fake plants if you easily make living things unalive so that's been my journey with this desk it's clean minimal aesthetically pleasing and functional for whoever just wants to sit down and start focusing on the task at hand you can just sit down plug in the cable and everything starts working all together with no additional effort there's been some snags along the way but it does accomplish the things that I want to do but at the same time I feel like I say that at the end of well every desk video until I find flaws I'm trying to fix and I feel like I say that phrase a lot too don't quote me here but there's no such thing as a perfect desk and you'll always be looking to optimize further this desk is definitely not the most robust desk setup that I've ever put together but it definitely suits the tasks that I had in mind I really enjoy just sitting down with no distractions around and getting what I need done done and this desk alone has also contributed a ton of fantastic YouTube shots for this channel I mean I'm still in the process of hot desk defying a lot of my other desk setups in this house and this has just been the first one because it's not anyone's primary desk in my home so expect to see more sometime in the near future anyway what do you personally think did this give you any desk ideas for yourself my own mistakes inspire you in any particular way what would you do differently than the desk setup that I just showed you and then you'd like to hear more about let me know your thoughts in the comment section below and if you enjoyed this video give it a thumbs up and well don't forget to subscribe I'll see you all next time bye

Channel: Jimmy Tries World

Views: 205,558

Keywords: Desk Setup Tour, Setup tour, desk tour, desk setup tour 2023, Work from home desk setup tour, WFH desk setup tour, work from home desk tour, wfh desk tour, wfh desk setup, minimal wfh desk setup, simple wfh desk setup, modern wfh desk setup, modern minimalistic wfh desk setup tour, desk setup, work from home desk setup, clean and minimal desk setup, laptop desk setup, wfh laptop desk setup tour, wfh laptop desk setup, laptop focused desk setup, laptop desk setup tour

Id: hHHu7wxD8yM

Length: 15min 55sec (955 seconds)

Published: Sun Jul 02 2023