Redditor franklinrockz makes no bones about the minimalist setup he bought with lockdown savings for online classes, calling it “pretty basic” and “nothing fancy.” But it gets the job done and looks good doing it.
A testament to that are the three dozen comments his post had by day two online. Lots of folks liked what franklinrockz did with the workstation and wanted to know about its components.
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A little savings goes a long way
The setup starts with a desk franklinherz found lying around the house. After a sand and a polish for the walnut finish, the old thing is turning heads on Reddit.
Then there’s thrifty choice of setup engines. It’s a 2017 MacBook Pro. If you don’t buy the latest laptop, you’re going to save a lot of dough.
The Logitech MX Master Mouse is not a bargain-basement item, but this one is a first-gen model. So that’s getting some mileage on it in lieu of an update. (And it was purchased on sale last year, franklinrockz hastened to point out in a comment.)
Outfitting a minimal workstation via Amazon and AliExpress
Franklinrockz opted for a modestly sized monitor that surely saved some cash, too — a 27-inch BenQ EW2780. It’s a 1920×1080 display with a refresh rate of 75 hertz. So it’s not going to blow everybody away, but it’s perfectly good.
Interestingly, the monitor light bar adding such atmosphere to the photo is not a BenQ, one of the more commonly seen brands for those products. They cost just over $100, usually. Instead, franklinrockz picked up a Baseus Monitor Light Bar on Amazon for less than half the price.
The light bar and many of the setup’s other pieces were purchased inexpensively on Amazon or AliExpress. That goes for the sturdy monitor stand/mount, the basic desk mat and the handsome wooden wrist rest, to name a few.
You, too, can save many hundreds of dollars putting together a snazzy setup with the money you didn’t spend while in pandemic lockdown. Maybe more.
Shop these items now:
- 13-inch MacBook Pro
- BenQ EW2780 27-inch monitor
- Keychron K2 Mechanical Keyboard with Gateron Brown switches
- Logitech MX Master mouse
- Baseus Monitor Light Bar
- AirPods
- Amazon Basics Single Computer Monitor Stand
- Amazon Basics Office Desk Pad
- Wooden Keyboard Wrist Rest
If you would like to see your setup featured on Cult of Mac, send some high-res pictures to info+setups@cultofmac.com. Please provide a detailed list of your equipment. Tell us what you like or dislike about your setup, and fill us in on any special touches or challenges.
