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The only thing we can say about the future of work with any certainty is this: it’s uncertain. Whatever happens, though, it seems likely that working from home is going to become an integral part of many people’s working lives, so it makes sense to invest a few pounds to make it a pleasant – and productive – place to be. Our ethos in this feature is to work out where to invest to make the maximum possible impact. After all, there are numerous ways to spend money, and not all of them are immediately obvious. There may also be a way to extract some fresh usage out of a piece of equipment, including turning a digital SLR into a top-quality webcam ( see p33).
We’ve split our advice into three main categories: the workspace, broadband and meetings. By “workspace”, we mean the core area where you’re going to be working. Whilst we feel that recommending a desk and chair is beyond the remit and expertise of a computer magazine, we have a few pointers that may prove useful, before settling into our comfort zone: laptops, PCs, monitors, printers and peripherals. Out of those, as we explain, the monitor is arguably the most important.
We’ll then examine your broadband connection, which is vital because there’s no way you’ll make the impression you want without a solid connection. We also explain why some redundancy is an excellent idea that won’t cost a fortune.
Finally, we come to meetings, with our emphasis being on how to come across professionally. Some of our tips won’t cost a penny, while others may require an investment. However much you intend to spend, our advice could make a big impact.
If you have any homeworking tips that you would like to share with fellow PC Pro readers – or perhaps a must-buy item – please email letters@pcpro.co.uk.
Desktop or laptop?
Unless you’re going to be working on the move, the arguments for laptops over desktop PCs aren’t as persuasive as you might think.
Our advice? Don’t rush this decision. Desktop PCs offer many advantages over laptops for people working from home, including this:
by clamping your work computer to one place, you’re stopping yourself from carrying your work around the house with you. Do you really want to be tapping away on a report in your living room with the TV blaring in the background? Wouldn’t it be much better to focus on the task in your dedicated mini-office and then walk away at the end of the day?
If you don’t need a laptop, this also opens up interesting possibilities, including a mini PC that can slot into a monitor, such as the Dell OptiPlex 7090 Ultra we review on p48. Or one that takes up a minimal amount of space, like the PC Specialist Aurora Mini ( see issue 317, p83). Both are more than fast enough for typical work activities.
However, if your work is more demanding, you can plough your budget into faster processors and graphics cards that you’ll be able to upgrade as time goes along. Couple a desktop PC with a tablet (especially one that works well with keyboards, such as any new iPad) and there’s a strong argument that you have the best of both worlds.
Docking monitor
One thing’s for sure: if you’ve been using a laptop until now but haven’t yet bought a monitor, you’re missing out. The good news is that excellent, affordable monitors are now on the scene that have been built with home office users in mind.
The key phrase to look for is “docking monitor” as this indicates the manufacturer has designed the screen to act as a hub for all your connections – often including an Ethernet port but always with USB-C (ideal for charging a laptop, as well as acting as a video input) and plenty of USB-A ports. Over the past year we’ve repeatedly recommended Dell, HP and Philips docking monitors because all three firms have embraced the concept with gusto.
Your next question is
“how big?”, and right now the sweet spot is between 27in and 34in. Few peop le need 4K resolutions to work prod uctively, but for a 27in screen we recommend a minimum of 1440p (2,560 x 1,440). This ensures the screen will look sharp from normal viewing distances, but also gives a good amount of space for working on documents side by side.
Here at PC Pro, we’re fans of true widescreen displays that effectively
THE ARGUMENTS FOR LAPTOPS OVER DESKTOP PCs AREN’T AS PERSUASIVE AS YOU MIGHT THINK