Gift Guide: 8 Great gifts for anyone working from home
The TechCrunch 2021 Holiday Gift Guide! Are you in need of ideas for gifts? We've got plenty. We're just getting started to publish our annual gift guides, so come for updates from now until December 31 to see more!
At one point, I was a TechCrunch writer who wrote the gifts for travelers. It was fun and everyone loved it. People love travel gadgets! Of course the events of the last year's year kept many of us stranded for a long time which is why we switched to a remote-based work gift guide -- hoping that, in 2021, we'd get back to travel.
For those of us who hold offices, remote work will become the norm in the near future, for good or bad. It's actually an absolute certainty that the pandemic is likely to fundamentally alter how organizations are thinking about working. Because it's not just an occasional trend, when's the better time to create a workplace at home more cozy for those who work remotely who is in your life?
This article provides affiliate links when they are available. If you purchase through these hyperlinks, TechCrunch may earn an affiliate commission.
Apple iMac 2021
I also included the Intel iMac model in last year's roundup. So I'm planning to include the M1 model, which was released earlier than this year. There are some downsides to the model first: 1. It's smaller and currently only available in 24-inches. 2. It requires more ports. I would love to have to see an SD card reader to come back (been eyeing this one from Satechi). 3. Not all applications can be supported by the new M1 chip.
However, the latest Apple iMacs are incredibly powerful, slim, and stunning. If you're looking to splash out on someone who's struggled to make the transition from home, this would be the perfect addition to your home office.
Twelve South Curve Laptop Stand
If an all-in-one laptop isn't for them, a good laptop stand can make a huge difference. There are tons of choices available (and you can buy one for a very low price). It's a basic product on the surface of it, and you'll have to choose between aesthetics. Twelve South's product is always reliable, and this is a good spot to begin.
HuaNUO Adjustable Laptop Stand to be used as a Desk
In terms of stands This is a smart (not to mention extremely inexpensive) standing desk convertor. A standing desk in its entirety may be beyond your budget, in addition to the expense and inconvenience of shipping an item of this size as a present. It sits on top of the desk and can be an additional 16.5 inches of the height of laptops that are up to 15 inches.
It's a good method to break after a few minutes of sitting. Have you heard? Sitting is now the new smoking.
Sony WH-1000XM4
If you're a follower on Twitter, you'll know that the last 12 months have been...a effort to get work done at home. My problem of having five simultaneous construction projects in one ear may be a very New York one, but we all have to deal every now and then with annoying noise, especially those living located in cities with a lot of noise. A pair of good noise-canceling headphones is an essential life- or at a minimum, sanitysaving device. Seriously.
There are plenty of high-quality Earbuds available at an affordable price, however, should you would like to muffle the noise, you should consider models that are over-ear. The sound-muffling cups are made of natural materials and work perfectly with the built-in active noise cancellation. It's even more so in the event that you're planning to use them for a longer duration -- they're more comfortable, and the battery lasts for a long time. The majority of models will get you through a whole day of usage on a single charge, with teleconferencing include.
There are plenty of excellent choices. Bose has just launched new Quietcomforts in the form of. However, while the Sony WH-1000XM4 are a little too old for their times, they're still the top model for at the very least, until M5 comes out. They sound fantastic, feature excellent noise cancellation and are very comfortable. If you've watched me on any of the virtual interviews I've done for TechCrunch I've been wearing my M4s over my head.
Larq Pitcher
Did you notice that I've quit drinking? I'm totally into water right now. The last time I wrote, I sang about this Aarke Carbonater. This time I'm back with a review all about Larq Pitcher. It's a Kickstarter success story by the same people who created the wildly well-known UV water bottles The pitcher is built on the same premise.
Alongside a carbon-based filtering method that is typically found in pitchers Larq is able to blast the water by using UV-C to provide an additional degree of purification. The product has been used for several weeks at the time of post, and love it. We're fortunate to have good water from the tap here in NYC (ask the folks making the bagels) But security is never good.
Similar to the Larq bottle that preceded the one, I'm awestruck by the style and design here. I've never really given any thought about how pitchers function (it generally lives in my fridge) however this is a nice-looking pitcher. I've also not considered the necessity of an app connected to inform me of the health of my filter, but it's this isn't a bad thing be able to have as well.
Hyken Mesh Task Chair
A good office chair at home is something that I'm sure many people were unaware of prior to the outbreak. Nowadays it's an absolute lifesaver. In all honesty, it's my top purchase that I've made since the pandemic regarding my performance and posture.
Produced by Staples It looks fantastic and is well-constructed (requiring the assembly of some parts, obviously). It gives plenty of support and comfortable (including an adjustable headrest) at a fair cost. It's not difficult to shell out more than three times for a good chair, but remember to us, we're not in the business of cash in this case.
Elgato Facecam
The issue with webcams that are built-in is that they're usually terrible. This isn't something that most manufacturers are thinking about even though smartphones have been getting more and better. This has changed slightly since the pandemic however, unless you've got the latest model that you're not in luck.
Today, anyone who has working from home has been working for longer hours than they like to admit in front of the camera, so they should present themselves as attractive as they can. In the majority of cases it's not necessary to spend the money on for instance, the DSLR to hold virtual conferences. Elgato's latest offering is a good plug and play device that is extremely customizable via the camera hub application.
The system may be more powerful than what most users require, capturing 1080p videos at 60 FPS however, if you're going to spend a lot of time on camera and you're going to want to be stylish.
Audio-Technica ATR2100-USB Cardioid Dynamic
Many people ask me what microphone I use to record my podcast. Since the transition to virtual to recording, I've used the Audio-Technica Cardioid Dynamic ATR2100-USB. It's also my microphone for meetings. It's a fantastic audio-quality unidirectional microphone that is shaped like a stick microphone. The back features the regular XLR and USB-C input The latter can be easily connected to a desktop.
It's as easy as microphones for desktop use can be with only a handful of settings to alter. These settings tend to cause the majority of people to be in trouble. Make sure to turn the power off (a error I've committed multiple times).
Comments
Post a Comment