More Mobile: Black Friday (Premium)

Like many of you, I pay attention to the Black Friday deals on personal technology every year. But this time is a bit different: we’re no longer interested in larger items----smart speakers and the like---that will further tie us to our current home and make it harder to move. Instead, we’re thinking longer term to those more mobile devices that might prove valuable in the future. Why not save some money on things we’ll actually need?

Well. I guess there are reasons. We’re not sure when we’ll sell the house, and we’re not sure what things will look like in the coming year, let alone after that. But we did get a nice collection of Amazon gift certificates, and so we decided to use them pragmatically. Here are a few of the items I’ve purchased so far.

Note: Yes, there are affiliate links in this post. And, yes, I can understand why you’d think that’s why this article exists in the first place. But that’s not the case: it was only while writing it that it occurred to me to use affiliate links, but I figured, what the heck, every little bit helps. Any small amount I make from Amazon goes directly into new device purchases, which almost always helps the site too. Thanks! ---Paul
Microsoft Sculpt Ergonomic Wireless Desktop Set
I swear by the Microsoft Sculpt Ergonomic Keyboard and Mouse: aside from the proprietary USB-A dongle, which I assume offers a more reliable connection than Bluetooth, this set is nearly perfect. I toss out the external numeric keypad since I’ll never use it, but the keyboard itself, with its raised front, and the mouse, with its baseball-like shape, are both very ergonomic and this set has been my preferred option for years.

I purchased a new set because it’s half off---$65 instead of the normal $130---not because I need it now. Instead, I’ll use my current set until it's non-functional, and then I can switch to the new one. If I’m lucky, I’ll move it to wherever we go next in the box.
Laptop stand
I successfully switched from a desktop PC and display to a laptop on a portable laptop stand about two months ago. And if I’m being honest with myself, I’m surprised it worked out so well: I had temporarily made such a switch various times in years past, but it never stuck, and I found myself retreating to my traditional setup. After all, I’d been using a desktop PC since, well, my first PC in the early 1990s. Habits are hard to break.

But this time, for whatever reason, the switch went well. I started with the largest laptop I had, with a 15-inch display, to ease the process, and then over time I’ve tried 14- and 13.3.-inch laptops as well. One key to this configuration is getting the laptop display up at face level, ideally with the top of its display just above your eye line, and that will require a laptop stand or, if you’re feeling DIY-ish and don’t care about looks, maybe a stack of books. (I’ve certainly used my share of weird items to raise a laptop display whi...

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