Sometimes you see a pristine computer setup flaunted on social media and you think, how is that even real? Is it staged? Is it a render? At the very least, it looks like they left out all the cables for the photograph. But that’s not necessarily the case.
A lot of us live with messy setups, in part due to cable clutter. But neatening things up doesn’t have to be next-to impossible, as today’s featured Mac mini setup demonstrates.
This post contains affiliate links. Cult of Mac may earn a commission when you use our links to buy items.
Cable management doesn’t have to be a horrible chore
Redditor junger128 showed off the neat-as-a-pin setup in a post entitled, “Cable management… how’d I do.” Assuming that’s a question, the answer is surely “you did great.”
Here’s how one commenter put it:
“I could only dream of cable management this clean. Mine are managed, mind you. It just doesn’t look this nice. Hell, my desk doesn’t look this nice. I have so much shit on there.”
Many of us could say the same.
But Junger didn’t exactly have to work magic to make his setup look tight.
So what did he do, in addition to cleaning up the desktop for the photo? He mounted two Ikea Signum cable-management trays and a Belkin surge protector under the desk.
So the cables from the hidden Mac mini, two 24-inch Dell 1080p monitors, dock and other gear go straight down behind the desk into the trays. Then just one cable snakes down from the Belkin unit to the wall outlet.
And the Magic Keyboard and Magic Trackpad 2 on the desk are wireless except when they’re being charged. That helps make things look extra clean most of the time.
It’s hard to see much in the photo above, which is the point, really. You can see more in the photo below showing what’s going on under the desk.
If you want to learn more about advanced cable management — use of zip ties, sleeves, cable raceways and more — have a look at this remarkable setup.
May upgrade the dual Dell displays to 4K
Junger’s gear list mentioned wanting to upgrade the two 24-inch Dell 1920 x 1080p monitors. Another Mac mini owner asked what the coveted monitor(s) might be.
“I’d like to switch to a single ultra-wide curved monitor but I’ve heard that two monitors are still preferable,” Junger replied. “At minimum I want to upgrade to 4k but I may wait until one of these monitors have an issue. I haven’t looked in to any specific models yet.”
But he added he uses his workstation mostly juggle documents working at home for an office job. That makes him wonder if one monitor is the best choice.
“I use my desktop 99% of the time when working from home for my office job … lots of Microsoft Office,” he said. “So having multiple spreadsheets, PDFs, etc., makes me hesitant to make the switch to a single monitor when I’m used to having a document open in each monitor.”
Photo: junger128@Reddit.com
Shop these items now:
Computer:
Display:
Input devices:
Cable management
Furniture and accessories:
- Home Depot acacia butcher block countertop
- A-tube table legs
- Bungee office chair
- HomePod minis (paired)
- eero Pro 6 Wi-Fi router
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.
