What I Use: January 2023 (Premium)

It’s been a while since my last look at the hardware, software, and services that I use at home and on the go. But it’s interesting how many things have changed since the “end” of the pandemic.

Note: there are sponsored links throughout where possible. This is something I’ve not done in a while. –Paul

Computers

When I first started writing What I Use at the SuperSite for Windows many moons ago, my computer setup was the big attraction to these posts, I’d imagine. But these days, things are a bit more fluid. I adopted a More Mobile computing setup in September 2021 and then replicated it in Mexico City in mid-2022 when we bought an apartment there. But in both cases, the actual computers I use change from time to time because I’m using review units for the most part.

Computer setup: Home

My home office setup consists of a laptop of some kind—typically a 14- or 16-inch model—with an Anker PowerExpand 8-in-1 USB-C Hub, UGREEN USB C Extension Cable, and Anker PowerPort III 65W Pod Lite USB-C charger connected to an HP E27m G4 QHD USB-C Conferencing Monitor, a Microsoft Sculpt Ergonomic Keyboard and Mouse set, a Dell UltraSharp 4K Webcam, and a Focusrite Scarlett Solo (Gen 2) USB audio interface. That latter device connects to a Heil PR 40 microphone with PL2T Boom Mount that I use for podcasting.

Computer setup: Mexico City

My setup in Mexico City consists of a laptop of some kind—again, it’s usually a 14- or 16-inch model—on a Nexstand Portable Laptop Stand and connected to an HP Thunderbolt Dock G4. That dock is used to connect whatever other peripherals, including the dongle for a Microsoft Sculpt Ergonomic Keyboard and Mouse, Ethernet, an external webcam (if needed), and an Audio-Technica ATR2500x-USB Cardioid Condenser Microphone for podcasting.

PC software

I configure every PC I use nearly identically, and I think of all of the software I use as fitting into one of the three categories.

The apps I pin to my Windows 11 Taskbar and thus use the most often are File Explorer, Brave (web browser), Microsoft Word, MarkdownPad 2, Notepad, Notion, Adobe Photoshop Elements 2020, Paint, Microsoft Teams (for work), and Skype.

The apps I use regularly that aren’t on the Taskbar include ImageGlass (image viewing and conversion), Greenshot (screenshots), OneDrive (file sync), and Git (version control for the book).

And then the apps I use less frequently and sometimes only on certain PCs includes Adobe Premiere Elements 2021 (video editing), Visual Studio 2022 (software development), and Visual Studio Code (software development).

I also recently switched to Bitwarden for password management. I use this in Brave, my web browser, and as the autofill service on my iPhone and Pixel phones.

Online services

My Microsoft and Google accounts are my important online identities, and my Apple account is important for purchased content, my Apple devices, and my kids’ iPhone backups.

I subscribe to Microsoft 365 Family and Microsoft 365 Business Premium. I get 1 TB of OneDrive storage per account with each (6 accounts on Family) and I pay Google extra each year for 1 TB of storage for Google Photos.

NAS

My WD My Cloud EX2 NAS (network-attached storage) device with 4 TB of total storage in a RAID 1 configuration is no longer supported, but it still works fine so I disconnected remote access and still use it in the house. As always, it serves as a local, secondary backup for work and personal documents and photos, plus my old ripped DVD collection that we still never watch. Some day!

Phone and wireless service

I have two smartphones, an iPhone 13 Pro which is my primary phone, and a Google Pixel 7 Pro. Both have 128 GB of storage.

Both phones are configured similarly, with Brave, Phone, Messages, and Camera in the dock, and my audio apps (Sonos, YouTube Music, Audible, Pocket Casts, and Spotify), my reading apps (The New York Times, The Washington Post, Google News, Google, Medium, Pocket, Kindle, and Brave), Gmail, Skype, Teams, Google Maps, Notion, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and other apps on the one home page.

I use Notion at the gym to track the weights I lift at the gym. I use Uber and Lyft out in the world for rides. I use WhatsApp to connect with a few friends and the people with know in Mexico.

I switched to T-Mobile in late 2022 and have been very happy with the service (and the spam protection, which is a big part of why I switched).

Wearable

I use an Apple Watch Series 8 (Starlight, Aluminum, 45 mm) for fitness and health tracking. I’m mostly happy with it, but I do prefer a smaller device.

Tablet

I use an Apple iPad Air (64 GB) to read every day, especially in the morning and before I go to bed, and, when I travel, to watch videos sometimes on the plane. My app selection in minimalist, with my key reading apps—The New York Times, The Washington Post, Google News, Google (for the Discovery feed), Pocket, Medium, and Kindle (plus Brave, which also has a good news feed)—in the dock and various media apps on the one home screen.

Xbox

I game with an Xbox Series S, a standard Xbox Wireless Controller, and a BenQ EL2870U 28-inch 4K Gaming Monitor. This setup is in my home office next to my computing setup. I have been playing Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II exclusively since it arrived in late October 2022.

Headphones

After going back and forth on using different headphones for traveling, the gym, and walking, I’ve consolidated down to a single set, the first-gen Bose QuietComfort Noise Cancelling Earbuds. They work great and sound great, and they have good noise cancelation for traveling and the gym and a transparency mode for when I walk.

Internet and TV

We have 400/40 Mbps Internet access through RCN/Astound and it’s always been rock steady. I recently upgraded our mesh Wi-Fi system to a three-node Eero Pro 6E mesh system based on Wi-Fi 6E, and it has dramatically improved our connectivity strength and reliability everywhere in the house.

We’re still using the same 2016-era Samsung 4K Smart TV we’ve had since we lived in Dedham, but the picture is great, and the sound has been enhanced with a Sonos Beam soundbar. We don’t have cable TV or any live TV solution, but we use an Apple TV 4K (previous-gen) with Netflix, Hulu, HBO Max, YouTube Premium, Apple TV+, and Disney+ and watch TV probably five nights a week.

Smart home

After experimenting with various smart home products over the past five years, we’ve scaled back a bit and only use the few that we like regularly. Key among them is a Google-based Lenovo 10-inch smart display in the kitchen and Philips Hue lights in the living room, sunroom, kitchen, and outside on the garage and front porch.

Home audio/music

We have several Sonos speakers throughout the house: a pair of Sonos Play:5 speakers and a Sonos Sub in the sunroom, two IKEA Symfonisk Wi-Fi bookshelf speakers in the kitchen, a Sonos Move in the main bathroom (which we bring outside when it’s nice out), two Sonos One speakers in the finished basement, a Sonos Roam portable speaker, and that Sonos Beam in the living room.

I try to avoid the Sonos app when possible, but it’s on my phones and iPad if I need it, along with YouTube Music, which I use for music, Spotify (which my wife and kids use for music), Pocket Casts for podcasts, and Audible for audiobooks.

Home office

We’re going to try to sell our house soon, so I’m about to take down my home office, which is in what would normally be the dining room, and then move it elsewhere in the house. But for the past five and a half years, I’ve worked out of this small room next to the kitchen and it’s a minimalist setup with a small and white IKEA desk, a Herman Miller Aeron chair I’ve had for over 20 years, the two IKEA shelving units you see behind me in podcasts, an IKEA file cabinet, and a lamp. Oh, and a Neewer 14-inch Outer Dimmable LED Ring Light.

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And I think that’s most of it. I feel like I’m not remembering some services, in particular. But I’ll try to stay on top of this and provide an update in the future if/when things change again. As they will.