If you had a gigantic 49-inch curved ultra-wide display, would you dream of adding more external monitors to it? If so, would you stack them, or add one or two displays in portrait mode (vertical) on either side of the big screen?
A MacBook Pro user with a giant Samsung display is pondering those very questions.
Developer David Heinemeier Hansson, known for creating the Ruby on Rails web development framework, showcased his rather stunning Mac mini computer setup this week on X (formerly Twitter).
The extraordinary 6K graphics of his Studio Display XDR and the articulate sound of his highly recommended KEF speakers complement the ocean views through the glass walls of his California office.
A big upgrade to a computer setup is a major boost to any user. And today’s featured rig, though it may look unassuming, got a doozy of a makeover. A Mac mini dating all the way back to 2012 finally retired after a long career. And a powerful new M2 Max Mac Studio took over, with a late-model MacBook Air riding shotgun.
But that’s not all. Read more about other bonuses in the rejuvenated setup besides the laptop, and check out the full gear list below.
This time of year folks are getting in the holiday spirit and setting up Christmas trees, Hanukkah menorahs or Kwanzaa kinaras. But don’t forget to light up your Mac, iPad and iPhone screens with festive holiday wallpapers, too.
Today’s featured setup iMac and MacBook Air setup is so festive they could maybe skip all the other decorations!
Curved ultra-wide gaming displays have been making their way into Mac setups for quite some time now. But some people want to experiment, maybe push the envelope a bit, so they mount them on top of other displays or sometimes in portrait mode (vertical). But today’s Mac Pro setup takes the cake in that regard.
The user nixed a Studio Display with a high-quality external webam in favor of a truly massive, 55-inch curved ultra-wide Samsung gaming display — mounted vertically. It towers over everything with a pronounced stoop.
A software engineer drives a Studio Display with an M2 Pro MacBook Pro in their enviable computer setup. And while some folks questioned the use of Apple’s pricey 5K display because of its relatively low refresh rate, the setup’s user praised the monitor highly.
Check out the advice the engineer got about setup improvements and see all their gear in the list below.
As we ring in the first day of December, let us toast winter. More specifically, let us toast what a user calls their “winter edition” computer setup in Berlin, Germany, featuring a powerful MacBook Pro, a gorgeous 5K display, a cool mechanical keyboard and the best tool of all for toasting — a bottle of extremely good, peat-forward scotch from Islay, Scotland.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: If you’re not elevating your laptop, iPad and displays on mounts and arms, you’re limiting your computer setup. Today’s feature MacBook Pro and iPad setup illustrates the point well by putting those devices and dual displays on four separate mounts, some with moveable arms.
That makes all of those devices more flexible, and much easier to move around than they would be on stationary stands. It also frees up space on the desk.
Some home computer setups go extra-large on visuals, others pump up quality sound — and some go nuts with both in equal measure.
Today’s featured Mac Studio and MacBook Pro setup features not only six exceptional displays — including Apple’s vaunted, $5,000 Pro Display XDR — it also adds a bonus sound system to its complete Sonos home-theater audio array.
Today’s featured setup packs two powerful MacBooks Pro — an M1 Max for work and an M3 Pro for play. To give them hassle-free equal time with peripherals, including a big, beautiful OLED smart TV serving as a display, the user employs a Thunderbolt 4 dock bristling with ports for maximum connectivity options.
Mac mini, Apple’s small-but-mighty desktop machine, does a lot of things well — especially the M1 and newer models. They make bigger desktop computers unnecessary for people who don’t need truly massive computing power.
And today’s featured M2 Mac mini user found a way to greatly expand his computer’s capabilities with a vertical stand that also saves space on the desk.
One thing we love about Apple is the staying power of its beautiful displays. We see the Studio Display maker’s much older Cinema Displays and Thunderbolt Displays used in modern computer setups pretty regularly.
Today’s MacBook Pro setup recently added a docking station to charge the laptop while connecting it to a classic LED Cinema Display.
Whether you call them monitor risers, desk shelves or display stands, finding the right one for your desk’s size can be a huge boon to your computer setup. Today’s featured Mac mini workstation benefits from a compact Balolo stand sitting toward the back of a small desk.
You can see that choice desk shelf and several other options below, along with all the setup’s gear, including a Studio Display and marvelous high-end headphones.
A New York City-based magazine editor showed off a beautiful computer setup that serves up twice the fun because it boasts two of everything. Well, not everything.
But it doubles up on a lot of the main gear — two M3 MacBooks Pro, two Studio Displays, two sets of Philips Hue smart lights, a pair of Yamaha speakers on stands and, believe it or not, two Magic Trackpads and a Magic Mouse.
Read more about the setup’s whys and wherefores below, and check out that gear list of links at the bottom of the article.
If you use an M1 Max MacBook Pro bristling with 64GB of unified memory to drive two of Apple’s top Pro Displays XDR as well as off-the-charts audio gear in a Mission Control-looking workstation, can your computer setup accurately be described as “cozy?” That’s what today’s featured setup user said, improbably.
And while the user’s MacBook is still formidable despite Apple moving on to M3 chips, it’s not necessarily the workstation’s star. It almost pales in comparison to the AV components, including two of Apple’s $5,000-plus displays, incredible headphones and mounted KEF speakers that bring massive audio.
It might seem unlikely that a computer setup could take 2 years to build and idealize — until you see just how loaded and beautiful it is. Today’s M2 Pro Mac mini went through many iterations in the past couple of years, its user said, and now they’re finally happy with it.
And they should be. The setup rips through gaming and streaming tasks using an awesome lineup of gear. Read more below and check out that gear list.
If you’ve got an old or damaged iMac lying around, why not make use of it? You can find plenty of guidance online to help you turn that dead weight into a version of Apple’s classic Cinema Display and use it with other Macs.
The owner of today’s setup talked about doing just that, plus using open-source software to make his old Macs run recent macOS versions.
With computer setups we often talk about placing gear properly for healthy, ergonomically correct usage to avoid problems like neck pain. But some folks viewing today’s featured MacBook Pro workstation said they suffered neck pain just looking at the photo.
That’s because the setup’s dual Studio Displays sit on a mount that spreads them out, leaving a big gap in the middle unless the displays are pulled far forward toward the user.
Today’s M2 MacBook Pro user sports a great-looking setup and poses a question. They prefer to use their laptop in clamshell mode, or closed, so what do they do to ensure decent sound and video for work calls?
We love it when unfamiliar gear in a computer setup cropping up on social media makes us go, “what the hell is that thing?”
It happened with today’s featured setup, which is bit unusual because it centers on an iPad Pro rather than a desktop computer or laptop. But the unfamiliar item turned out to be a desk mat with a cool trick using metal pieces to tame cable clutter.
A good external monitor like Apple’s Studio Display is an important part of a computer setup. But what about the monitor light bar that sits on top of it? They’re not all the same and they can hugely impact your workspace.
Today’s MacBook Pro setup boasts a Studio Display, and on top sits a fairly pricey BenQ monitor light. Read on the find out why the user says it’s worth every penny.
Deliberate lighting choices, especially those featuring vibrant colors, can do a lot for a computer setup. They can improve mood and vision, and they can even give humdrum gear in a boring room a dazzling look and feel.
Today’s featured MacBook Pro setup belongs to a coder in Panama who used some basic, cheap LED strip lights to transform his workstation into a light show — to the delight of viewers on social media.
Perhaps you’ve heard an expression often used in sports commentary — “so-and-so is running a clinic on this,” meaning showing anyone and everyone how it’s done.
Today’s featured computer setup comes from an Apple administrator who clearly knows how it’s done, if “it” is setting up a rock-solid and highly functional workstation.
Who says an 8-year-old MacBook Pro is too old? Today’s featured setup relies on a new M2 MacBook Pro for most of the real work, but a 2015 Retina model still contributes regularly.
“Used it for school but recently graduated in May, only use for it now is YouTube/visuals until it dies,” graphic designer and Redditor izzyontheweb said. “Could you believe it’s a 2015 model and still works amazing?”
A problem users face with home computer setups is how to separate work from personal use. Today’s setup brings work and personal laptops to the mix — both M1 Max MacBook Pros, coincidentally — along with three displays, including a massive OLED smart TV.
And as is often the case on social media, solid advice sounded loud and clear above the noise.
