Gear

Since students, colleagues, partners, friends of mine frequently ask what I gear I use on a daily (or weekly) basis, I’ve compiled a list with everything I rely on at work, at home, while working from a coffee shop or traveling.

Computer

  • Lenovo T470p — as a long-time Linux user, I’ve been using Lenovo T-series laptops for about a decade now, after experimenting with HP and Dell
  • Logitech G602 — my colleagues bought this as a birthday gifs in 2017 and I love it. Initially, I used it for weekend gaming on top of work, but the layout of the buttons is handy for mapping to different common snippets. The battery life is awesome and DPI is configurable with a small switch.
  • Adjustable Aluminum Laptop Desk/Table — suitable for a standard or a stand-up desk (or even a taller table that isn’t tall enough for regular work). You can chat in the bed, on the living room table, on the couch, overall a versatile and affordable choice.
  • Sony WH-CH700N — affordable and great all-around wireless headphones with an integrated mic and Google Assistant support. Battery life lasts for 30+ hours, even while reading phone notifications out loud.
  • A bunch of USB-C cables and chargers

Mobile

  • Samsung Galaxy Note 9 (512GB) — the Android beast comes with 8GB of RAM which is handy when you run a bunch of messengers or live chat services as daemons, along with a browser, Google Drive, Dropbox, and a multitude of other heavy apps.
  • ZeroLemon 10000mAh Case — my 4th ZeroLemon case with an integrated power bank. Extremely solid and durable, even though the Note 9 version is flawed near the original curved display to allow for a better touch control near the edges. Not a fabric issue, more of a design compromise with this phone.
  • Samsung Galaxy Watch — while I’m not a Samsung fanboy, this is the best smartwatch I’ve ever seen on the market. Coming from Android Wear, the lack of native Google Apps support is the only limiting concern. Incredible battery life, no lagging, solid notifications control.
  • Rode smartLav+ lavalier mic — super handy for recording videos on the go. Bundled with a windshield protector and convertors for devices I may need (such as 3.5mm to USB-C that I had to use with my Pixel 2 previously, though Samsung has the long-forgotten stereo jack.)
  • Hama Mini Tripod — whenever I record videos in the wilderness where I can’t simply stick my phone in the grass without distorting the video. There are other tripod variations but Note 9 is pretty heavy, and the ZeroLemon case easily crushes the standard smartphone stands (been there 3 times).
  • Samsung DeX Station — powered near my office desk in case I decide to go mobile-only (or leave my laptop at home). Plugging my phone in and connecting a monitor turns it into a fully-fledged workstation, with a desktop environment using Android exclusively, with separate mobile screens for apps you otherwise won’t have on desktop (Asana, Gmail, Twitter, and other portable “widgets” that require a browser tab in real life.)

Camera

I use a separate camera for most videos with a couple of caveats. I also shoot photos regularly AND I may record a video with both my camera and the smartphone to get a couple of different angles while editing the videos.

  • Canon EOS M6 — an affordable mirrorless camera with a 15-45mm lens included in the price. A good starting kit I bought for several reasons: price, rotating screen for self-filming, stereo jack support, video (though it doesn’t film in 4K). Great battery life, too. It needs an SD card (separately) and all filters, cleaning kits, and other goodies you would otherwise get.
  • EF-M 11-22mm lens — wide lens for photography and filming. Wider lenses allow for more digital real estate whenever recording during a workshop or a lecture.
  • EF-M 55-200mm lens — while not suitable for a YouTube video, it’s probably my favorite camera lens. The zoom capabilities will compare to 88-320mm on a full-frame camera due to the 1.6x crop factor of EOS M6. Aside from standard photography, I use these images for featured images on the blog, social covers, quote backgrounds, and other media that you’d usually need a stock photo for.
  • G-raphy camera bag — the bag I use over the weekends while traveling outside with a laptop. Fits my camera and gear (plus the small tripod), my wallet, and a power bank.
  • Velbon EX-430 Tripod — the usual tripod I would go for unless I decide to record unprepared. Sits in my truck for outdoors work.
  • Rode VideoMic Pro — the better mic I use for recording. Being a shotgun mic, it helps with reducing echo in the room and intercepting only sound coming straight from me. Works well with the camera, though there’s a tiny background noise that could be configured with manual audio settings from the camera and boosting the volume from the mic’s toggle.

Home

  • Amazon Echo Dot — my smart speaker at home that helps with the morning news, weather announcements, shopping lists, general questions, and weekend family trivia.
  • Google Chromecast — turns your ordinary TV into a smart device playing video from your smartphone (or a laptop). Handy for video streaming OR using your TV as an external wireless monitor (you can even cast a Chrome tab in your browser).

Misc

  • KALIDI Waterproof Laptop Bag — the best bag I’ve ever found that gathers all of my stuff, fitting a 17-inch laptop as needed, and a lot more luggage. Comfy pockets pretty much everywhere, plenty of room, plugs for headphones and a power bank.