The working from home thread: tips and advice

Thanks all!

Making a better WFH setup for my OH who uses a Lenovo X1 laptop.

We've got a desk, a chair and I've set up an old screen.

What do I do about a webcam and speakers and mic?

The monitor is set up via an hdmi to DVI monitor.

I guess that logitech webcam everyone suggests can plug in via a USB to the side of the laptop?

But then we'd need speakers right? I have some spare which I guess plug into the audio of the laptop - although they are quite big on a very small desk. But what about a mic?

There are 2 spare usbc / thunderbolt ports, but because of the keyboard /mouse only one usb left.

This is where you start to get why laptops are now the default.

Any pointers or ideas?

Would one of those Jabra speak things solve part of the problem?

The monitor doesn't have usb c or hdmi. But it does have spare USB ports, I assume for charging.

Cheers

If you can get her a thunderbolt dock I would, then she only has to use a single cable to connect the laptop to the external screen / accessories.
If not use the built in USB hub in the external screen. Remember the other cable i mentioned in the thread? You need a Type A to B, you plug that into the screen (by the VGA port) and then then you can plug things into the USB ports on the screen to act as a hub.

Either way, I would plug the USB for the keyboard/mouse and webcam into the screen hub / thudnerbolt dock.

Recomendations

Webcam - if you can afford it, a Logitech C920 is excellent. If not I bought several of these for family members they're good for the price
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B08D39BC1T/
My parents have one which they sit on the opposite side of the room from, we can see and hear them very clearly.

Mic - use the one built into the webcam

Speakers - personally I wouldn't bother with big desktop speakers if you are low on desk space, id use the built in ones to the laptop and then get her a comforable set of headphone for more intensive listening.
I think you mentioned it was a dell screen, they often were designed to work with a specifc sound bar, which attached to the bottom of the screen

Laptop riser - not only does one of these free up space on the desk, it will also raise the screen up higher to be more inline with the external screen. An added benefit is that the laptop will have better airflow for cooling.

Backlight for screen - even if its just a small desklamp poining at the wall, it will reduce the contrast between a bright screen and dark wall, reducing eye strain. I have done this for years and years on all my screens inc my TV.

Cheers! That's really helpful.

I did wonder about a dock/hub. It's just I know my OH will balk at spending whatever on the camera and then another £x on a hub.

I should probably have posted a pic of the setup. I've got a couple of laptop Risers as well as a big adjustable one that goes high.

Probably shouldn't be researching this today as I'm not feeling great, so not 100% what I'm writing even makes sense.

Does the laptop not have a built in webcam? The very easiest thing to do is use that if there is, and then get one of these to use the screens built in USB hub.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/AmazonBasics-Male-B-Male-Cable-Feet/dp/B00NH13DV2/
Most people have one kicking about in their house somewhere I find, they are commonly used with printers / scanners

Yeh, I go Anker 4 port USB hub with Logitech C920, Jabra 510, Anker shark fin mouse (I use the wired version but they have a Bluetooth one) and keyboard, so 4 peripherals taking up a single USB port
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00Y25XFGK

Jabra was only £35 from Cex and is indistinguishable from new apart from not having original box and is a nice step up over built in mic and speakers and avoid being the person causing the echo and told to go on mute

if you can afford it, a Logitech C920 is excellent.

Seconded. I really like mine. The built in mic seems to work well too.

Webcams normally have a built in mic. The cheap Logitech one does and I've not had any complaints using it.

Personally I would try and use something better than laptop speakers, if you've any bluetooth ones lying around they often have a line in as well. If it's just for occasional calls then headphones are also a decent option.

Well that's the worst weekend I've had for a while. Now I'm not throwing up anymore:

Thanks for all the comments.

This is the current set up.

Once webcam and speakers are sorted I assume the laptop will be closed or put on a little Nulaxy stand instead of the big adjustable one.

It feels like the right solution is a 2nd hand lenovo hub/dock so it's just one thunderbolt cable to the laptop and everything else can be left plugged in. But that adds >£80 on top of everything else.

I like the idea of 2nd hand Jarbra to keep the space clear, but I should at least see if I can cable manage and hide the sub from my old cube PC speakers.

@spotter thanks for all the input. Pretty sure I've got one of those cables spare so I can check if the screens usb ports do more than charge. Can you get hdmi ones that will display the screen too?

Guess the next step is webcam, funny square cable and see where we land.

Got to say it's nice being able to see our dinning room table again.

Can you get hdmi ones that will display the screen too?

I assume you mean can you just plug in the USB cable and then that carries the display and USB like thunderbolt? If so no, the screen will be USB 2.0 only most likely, all it will offer is extra USB ports just like a USB hub.

I wouldnt close the laptop because:
1.) having a second screen is easily one of the best way to increase productivity
2.) having it open will probably help with laptop cooling

Why do you have the laptop on the stand? Can you not just drop it down below the screen? Does it not have a webcam or something?

Here's how I have mine for meetings (excuse all the crap on my desk). I close the laptop most of the rest of the time.

1 Attachment

You do get a bit of nostril action with the low camera angle but I don't really care personally

You can get an Anker USB-C hub for a fair bit cheaper depending exactly what you need it for.

If you are running a separate laptop power supply then you can get a cheaper hub. Similarly, if your monitor is 1080p then you can get away with cheaper. Something like this at the basic end https://smile.amazon.co.uk/Anker-Premium-Adapter-MacBook-Chromebook/dp/B07H4VQ4BZ

Why do you have the laptop on the stand? Can you not just drop it down below the screen? Does it not have a webcam or something?

Well first, it's not me. But mainly because it has a webcam and it' how it travelled up from the dining room.

It'll probably go back onto a little stand once we've got a webcam.

cheers @spotter and @aggi

Hmm, guess my question wasn't very clear - if the laptop has a webcam why/how does a separate webcam improve the setup? If a new webcam requires buying a dock it seems like quite a bit of money for not a huge gain

I've got that stand, can recommend.

Aside from better quality microphone and picture, I want to be looking at the main monitor during a call. To be able to do that and also look like I'm looking at the other people on the call I want the camera on top of that monitor.

A separate webcam can improve the setup if having the laptop closed and off the desk improves the setup.

I much prefer having a separate monitor/monitor/mouse, and no laptop on my desk. This means I need a separate webcam.

I could either have bought:

• a USB hub for ~£20 and had a load of cables hanging out of the laptop (power, monitor, USB hub, etc), or
  
• a £20 USB hub and a £140 dock (Lenovo USB-C Mini Dock) that means I have a single cable connected to the laptop (the dock) and then everything else connects to the dock (power, monitor, network, USB stuff via a hub, etc)
  
  

This means when I need to take my laptop away from my desk it's just one thing to unplug, rather than faffing with a load of different cables. (The dock also came with a separate power brick so I can leave one attached to my desk and have one portable.)

So, it's not strictly necessary, but it makes it cleaner and a lot less of a faff. In my previous job my old laptop rarely ever left my home office desk. In my new job I'm on call a bit more often, and will be traveling a bit more, so the ease of unplug/replug is going to be useful.

I have a huge (43") monitor but I try and make sure that the video conf window is centered just underneath the webcam that perches on top of the monitor so that I'm mostly looking at the people I'm talking to.

Yeah. They're great aren't they.

I picked up two off brand ones. One from Alix with customs that took forever and one from amazon.

The only issue my OH found (hence the big adjustable one) was it wasn't high enough with a 13" laptop. Mine is 15.something" and it works for me as a stand alone.

Another thing I really like is that it can be disassembled and packed relatively neatly in a drawer if you save the polystyrene insert.

Oh right.

Yeah what thingy said and also you want the camera facing you rather than under your chin.

I also have a 15inch laptop, and am quite tall, so have a pack of printing paper underneath.

This means when I need to take my laptop away from my desk it's just one thing to unplug, rather than faffing with a load of different cables.

This is my current goal. Both me and the girlfriend van also use the USB c connection so it makes working at the desk easier for us.

So far I'm leaning towards a usb c doc and a permanently fixed keyboard and mouse at the desk, probably webcam too.

I just need to find a dock that is:
Not too pricey
Can drive 2 monitors (hdmi so nothing too fancy)
Has enough usb ports to take webcam, keyboard, mouse, sometimes headset and scanner.

Then I was planning on using some sort of velcro set up to attach the dock to the back of one of the monitors and there's one usb c cable to drive power.

Instead of a dock I bought a monitor that works as a dock (ThinkVision P24h-20). Daisy chained the second monitor to that from its DisplayPort out. It's 1440p and does power delivery, USB ports, ethernet and the second (1440p) monitor all through one USB-c cable. Mouse and keyboard are both Bluetooth.

A monitor's not as useful as a dock obviously as you can't take it with you but it was cheaper for me as I needed a monitor anyway. I think it was £200

You have to pay attention to DisplayPort versions if you want to do this as older DP standards don't have the bandwidth for high resolution monitors