blair_taylor32•10d agoMost Upvoted

That $250 "portable" office setup I left in a hostel in Bangkok

Last year I got really into the whole minimalist digital nomad thing and bought all this fancy foldable gear. I spent like $250 on a compact monitor, a rollable keyboard, and this weird stand thing that turned my laptop into a triple screen setup. Carried it through three countries and only actually used it twice because it was such a pain to set up in cafes and coworking spaces. Ended up ditching the whole thing in a hostel in Bangkok because the zipper on the bag broke and I was just done with it. Now I just use my laptop and a cheap bluetooth mouse and honestly I get just as much work done. Anyone else fall for the "buy less but buy better" hype and then end up throwing money away?

2 comments

2 Comments

cora51810d ago

Respectfully, I think the gear wasn't the problem, the expectations were. A portable triple screen setup works best when you actually have a dedicated desk and time to set it up, not in a chaotic cafe or coworking space where people are watching you struggle. Maybe the real lesson is that portable office gear is for hotel rooms and airbnbs, not for bouncing around public spots.

grantp1410d ago

Three countries in and you used it twice? That tracks with what I’ve seen from guys on my shift who try those folding monitor setups. The thing people don’t realize is that even the best portable monitor still needs a flat surface and decent lighting to be worth a damn. That rollable keyboard you mentioned is probably the worst part - I’ve tried one at a buddy’s place and it felt like typing on a wet towel. A decent Bluetooth mouse is where it’s at, you made the right call there. The real issue is that $250 buys you a lot of compromises in the portable gear world, not a real workstation. Sometimes the cheapest solution is just the thing that already works.