geekhack
geekhack Community => Other Geeky Stuff => Topic started by: southearn on Thu, 24 August 2023, 05:20:12
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Hi! I'm currently wondering this, because I've had my system for a while now, but haven't really bought much for it outside of the system itself (apart from a monitor, keyboard, mouse and speakers but thats pretty obvious stuff!)
Is there any accessories you guys think really help improve the user experience of a pc or just are helpful to have?
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Not just mouse, keyboard, monitor, speakers.... you want nice ones, people underestimate how much cheap peripherals matter and will often use whatever they got for cheap but these are the parts your senses interact with and therefore have a big impact on how much you enjoy using your computer.
Magnetic USB cables for keyboard and mouse (only if the mouse is wireless), tie or attach the mouse cord so it can't flop all over and it makes it almost like a dock when you need to charge, just get close and it does the rest. These lower the stress on cables and ports, some look pretty nice, and they make swapping out easy and fast. I also keep a spare on the desk for charging because one cord (instead of 3) can charge Type-C, Lightening and micro B devices.
A desk hub, my current one has usb ports and a power switch/light but previous ones had power, reset, light, drive light, usb, sd card reader, esata and at one point a resource monitor. It allows you to put the system out of the way and still access these functions/features. Companies make them but mine were made on a 3d printer.
A good desk chair.. Get rid of that crappy gaming chair or whatever you're using. Check Craiglist, Offer Up, Facebook, etc... The best deals are often on Leap v2 but sometimes you can find Herman Miller for cheap. You may scoff at a $200 or $300 used chair but that chair will last years and your back will thank you. Warning though, if you use crap chairs your back will hurt until you adjust to a proper seating position.
If you have lots of power dips (lights dip), get an uninterruptible power supply (UPS), it will lower the burden on your power supply and make your system last longer. If you overclock it will also make your overclock more stable.
A monitor shelf is also pretty nice.
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A good desk chair.. Get rid of that crappy gaming chair or whatever you're using. Check Craiglist, Offer Up, Facebook, etc... The best deals are often on Leap v2 but sometimes you can find Herman Miller for cheap. You may scoff at a $200 or $300 used chair but that chair will last years and your back will thank you. Warning though, if you use crap chairs your back will hurt until you adjust to a proper seating position.
Yeah getting a good chair is insanely important for a setup. I currently use a wooden chair and it's not really helping my back and posture. Need to get like a Leap V2 soon.
also get some cable straps and try and hide the cables if you want your setup to look nicer.
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Before thinking about what to buy,
having a purpose could be a good way.
such as,
You don't want look down to your monitor, since you want to stay up and sober in front of the PC.
then the gadgets to make the monitor positioned on your eye level.
What you do with the computer can decide what you have to get.
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Not just mouse, keyboard, monitor, speakers.... you want nice ones, people underestimate how much cheap peripherals matter and will often use whatever they got for cheap but these are the parts your senses interact with and therefore have a big impact on how much you enjoy using your computer.
Magnetic USB cables for keyboard and mouse (only if the mouse is wireless), tie or attach the mouse cord so it can't flop all over and it makes it almost like a dock when you need to charge, just get close and it does the rest. These lower the stress on cables and ports, some look pretty nice, and they make swapping out easy and fast. I also keep a spare on the desk for charging because one cord (instead of 3) can charge Type-C, Lightening and micro B devices.
A desk hub, my current one has usb ports and a power switch/light but previous ones had power, reset, light, drive light, usb, sd card reader, esata and at one point a resource monitor. It allows you to put the system out of the way and still access these functions/features. Companies make them but mine were made on a 3d printer.
A good desk chair.. Get rid of that crappy gaming chair or whatever you're using. Check Craiglist, Offer Up, Facebook, etc... The best deals are often on Leap v2 but sometimes you can find Herman Miller for cheap. You may scoff at a $200 or $300 used chair but that chair will last years and your back will thank you. Warning though, if you use crap chairs your back will hurt until you adjust to a proper seating position.
If you have lots of power dips (lights dip), get an uninterruptible power supply (UPS), it will lower the burden on your power supply and make your system last longer. If you overclock it will also make your overclock more stable.
A monitor shelf is also pretty nice.
yeah, desk cable management - I have multiple cables (USB, sound) hooked in a cable management holder on the back edge of my desk, so all cables go down and only plugs are visible at the edge of my desk, right?
If I need to plug my wireless mouse, I pull the cable and plug it in for charging. Then once done, I unplug it and then what? What can I do to make the cable go back by itself instead of pushing it down by hand through that small hole in a holder? You know what I mean? :)
Its terrible solution and I'm trying to find a fix for it. Some kind of weights on each cable under the desk, so they will pull them down and stop plugs on the holder? But then when I charge my mouse weight will pull the cable and same way my mouse, which will be terrible to use :)
What a dilemma :D
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yeah, desk cable management - I have multiple cables (USB, sound) hooked in a cable management holder on the back edge of my desk, so all cables go down and only plugs are visible at the edge of my desk, right?
If I need to plug my wireless mouse, I pull the cable and plug it in for charging. Then once done, I unplug it and then what? What can I do to make the cable go back by itself instead of pushing it down by hand through that small hole in a holder? You know what I mean? :)
Be careful, if you have a sharp corner on your desk that they go over, the constant pulling of the cords over it will destroy them in a surprisingly short time.
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yeah, desk cable management - I have multiple cables (USB, sound) hooked in a cable management holder on the back edge of my desk, so all cables go down and only plugs are visible at the edge of my desk, right?
If I need to plug my wireless mouse, I pull the cable and plug it in for charging. Then once done, I unplug it and then what? What can I do to make the cable go back by itself instead of pushing it down by hand through that small hole in a holder? You know what I mean? :)
Be careful, if you have a sharp corner on your desk that they go over, the constant pulling of the cords over it will destroy them in a surprisingly short time.
the actual holder is rubber, so cables rub against its edge. I'm aware of that problem, dont really care, once damaged I would just get a new one.
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You can find 100 more comments to this post in the original Reddit thread (https://www.reddit.com/r/buildapc/comments/p79yqv/what_are_the_best_accessories_to_buy_for_a_pc/) ...