Uses
Hardware, software, and gear I use on a daily basis
A comprehensive list of my favorite hardware, software, and gear, from the perspective of a Laravel/PHP and Vue/Svelte/JavaScript full stack developer, updated for 2020.
Work hardware
I prefer coding on Macs, exclusively. While I've coded successfully on PCs, I find that I'm a lot more productive, have a lot less frustrations, and my dev tools just work on a Mac.
- Day job laptop: 2019 MacBook Pro 16" 2.4 GHz 8-core Intel Core i9, 32GB RAM, 1TB SSD
- Personal laptop: 2020 MacBook Air M1 8-core GPU, 16GB RAM, 512 GB SSD
Mac peripherals/accessories
- Wireless keyboard: Apple Magic Keyboard 2 - best coding keyboard I've ever used
- Wireless trackpad: Apple Magic Trackpad 2 - Apple has the best trackpad implementation of any manufacturer, and the wireless one is an absolute must for trackpad fans
- USB-C dongle (for 16" Mac): VAVA USB-C Hub 8-in-1 4K HDMI, 1Gbps RJ45 ethernet port, USB 3.0, SD/TF card reader, 100W charging port
- 2020 M1 MacBook Air case: IBENZER New 2020 MacBook Air 13 inch Case M1 A2337 A2179 A1932 - excellent transparent case that shows off the Mac chassis. Comes with a screen protector that is fairly easy to install, as well as a silicone keyboard skin thin enough to make typing feel natural
- 16" MacBook Pro case: MOSISO MacBook Pro 16 inch Case, Crystal Clear - while the laptop was purchased by the company I work for, I wanted to protect it with a case as well as being able to put whatever stickers I want on it. I'm very happy with this case - it also comes with a screen protector and a keyboard cover if you're into that sort of thing.
Mac/development software
- šµ IDE: PHPStorm - best IDE I've ever used, period. Has a ton of conveniences built in for great productivity. It's not free (nor expensive) but the price of entry is more than justified.
- Code editor: VSCode - seems like everyone is using VSCode these days, for everything. It may be the best text editor in the world but it is not an IDE and it doesn't hold a candle to PHPStorm for PHP work, even with a bajillion extensions. I use it for non-PHP work, such as 100% JavaScript projects, Markdown, etc.
- Terminal: iTerm2 - the old faithful. It's fast and has everything I need: tabs, panes, themes, etc.
- Shell: zsh with oh my zsh and the Powerlevel9k theme
- Coding fonts: JetBrains Mono, Fira Code
- Favorite browser: Firefox
- Design/vector: Figma, GravitDesigner
- Presentation: Apple Keynote
- Project management: Trello - I use it to manage my side-projects. I love the simplicity and the slickness of the UI. Too bad it got acquired by Atlassian (I hate all their products), but I hope it stays the way it is.
- šµ Tinkerwell - probably the best tool to come out of the Laravel/PHP ecosystem. An offline REPL tool that you can use for rapid prototyping, and testing/validating PHP code snippets. At $15 it's dirt cheap for how much it has boosted my Laravel productivity.
- šµ Pixelmator Pro - I was lucky to buy the Pro version on sale and it's the best $20 I ever spent on software. It has most of Photoshop's features in an offline, truly affordable package, with a simple UI and familiar key mappings.
- Dash - offline documentation for the developer technology of your choice. Invaluable when traveling or when you don't have internet access.
- Window manager: Spectacle - apparently there are better window managers but I got used to this one and it works fine for me.
- Keyboard rebinding: Karabiner Elements - if there's one thing I miss on the Mac is middle-button click to open links in a new tab or to close a tab. I use Karabiner to remap the Caps Lock key to act as a middle-click. So if I hover over a link and tap Caps, it will open the link in a new tab. Likewise, Caps over a tab will close it.
- Vanilla - hides the menu bar icons that you don't need to see all the time.
- Kap - a tiny screen capture utility. I use it a lot for capturing animated portions of my screen, as explained here.
X-platform software
- šµ Spotify
- šµ 1Password
- Google Docs
- Google Keep
Gaming/entertainment hardware
I am a PC gamer thru & thru. I've never owned a console of any kind, and likely never will. I hand-build all my PCs, every 5 years or so.
- Motherboard: ASUS Prime Z390-A LGA1151
- CPU: Intel i5 9600K 6-core 4.6GHz
- Fan/heatsink: Noctua NH-D15
- RAM: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2x8GB) DDR4 3000MHz (PC4-24000)
- GPU: EVGA nVidia GTX 1080Ti FTW3 Gaming 11GB GDDR5
- PSU: Corsair AX760 760W 80 PLUS PLATINUM
- Primary drive: Samsung 500GB 970 EVO NVMe M.2 SSD
- Gaming drive: SamsungĀ 500GB 850 Evo SSD - I keep my games on a separate SSD from my main/boot drive
- Data drives: 3x internal HDDs of various sizes
- Blu-Ray burner: Pioneer 15x Blu-ray Burner SATA internal
- Case: Corsair Carbide 400R Mid-Tower
- OS: Windows 10
PC peripherals
- Monitor: Asus ROG Swift PG349Q 34ā Curved G-Sync Gaming Monitor 120Hz 3440 X 1440 IPS - my monitor is actually a slightly older version of this, that only goes to 100Hz but it doesn't matter because I'm one of those who can't tell the difference. I use it for both gaming and work and it has been amazing for over 3 years now. On Mac, for example, I can easily split it into 3 columns using Spectacle. Combined with my laptop's screen, it's like having 4 monitors.
- Keyboard: Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum RGB mechanical - can't really recommend this keyboard, even if it were still produced. It was overpriced and it doesn't use Cherry switches, rather Logitech's own implementation. I find it bad for typing but OK for gaming.
- Mouse: Logitech G305 Lightspeed Wireless Gaming Mouse - I'm one of those gamers who prefers a minimum amount of buttons. The G305 is light and lag free.
- Mouse pad: Yicaihong Metal Aluminum Medium 9.45X7.87 Inch - great, inexpensive, solid, compact, dual-surface pad. I use the synthetic leather side which has really good traction, whether for gaming or otherwise.
- Wireless headphones: Sennheiser RS 180 digital wireless headphones - I've had these for over 5 years and, while initially pricy, they've paid for themselves many times over. I use them daily on my PC for everything that produces sound - movies, music, youtube, games, etc. The closest modern equivalents are Sennheiser RS 185 or Sennheiser RS 175.
PC software
- šµ Backblaze - cloud backup. Very inexpensive for the peace of mind it offers. I use it to backup my PC where I keep lots of "important" data such as photos, documents, and other digital junk. It has literally saved my š„ a few years back when my main data HDD died and I was able to restore everything from the cloud. I do keep offline backups as well but cloud backup is just one facet of a comprehensive strategy.
- šµ Cyberghost VPN - dare I call this the best VPN ever? I've been using it for years and it has delivered in spades: inexpensive (if you buy a multi-year plan it ends up being < $3 / month), fast (I get almost the same speeds as I would without it), vast choice of country IPs, and incorporated outside the US for extra peace of mind.
Phone
- Samsung Galaxy Note 8 - Despite my love for Macs, I've never been a huge fan of iPhones/iOS. The Note 8 is the best phone for me at the moment. It may be several generations behind modern phones but I love the stylus and how well Samsung integrated it with the software. The battery and speed are still good, it has a headphone jack, and it takes decent photos. I'm planning to hang on to it for as long as possible, especially considering the initial price. After that it gets tricky. I would very much like to continue having a stylus, but I don't like the direction Samsung is following with their phones, and the prices are becoming ridiculous. There's a chance I may switch to an iPhone in the future.
Other gear & accessories
- Standing desk: ApexDesk Elite Series 71" wide, electrically adjustable. Fun fact: I've never once used it in the standing position.
- Soundbar: TaoTronics Gaming Computer Speaker - I bought this sound bar to use it with my Mac but it's the first TaoTronics device that disappoints. I suppose the sound is somewhat better and louder than the MacBook speakers but it has too many issues to recommend.
- Headphones: TaoTronics Active Noise Cancelling Headphones - pretty happy with these. I use them almost daily and they do a passable job for what I paid. The noise cancelling is decent for a moderately noisy environment and so is the sound quality. The battery lasts all day too.
- Lamp: TaoTronics LED Desk Lamp - really good LED lamp. It's light, compact, versatile, and uses touch controls that work really well. Speaking of controls, it has 5 settings each for color temperature (cool -> warm) and brightness.
- Time machine HDD: WD Elements 1TB - I only need 1TB for my 2015 MacBook Pro backups.
- Backup HDDs: WD Elements 4TB - I use 2 of these for my PC backups.
- Watch: Garmin Fenix 5X Sapphire - I wear my watch almost 24/7. It's not a true smart watch, but it's the best option for someone who's into a variety of outdoor activities (cycling, hiking, skiing, occasional swimming and paddle boarding). It displays my phone notifications, has built-in maps and GPS, tracks steps and sleep patterns, the battery lasts almost 2 weeks, and it's super tough to boot.
- Electric duster: CompuCleaner 2.0 - may sound like an odd one, but it's definitely computer-related and an awesome tool for any computer geek's arsenal. Say goodbye to those asthmatic air cans. This baby blows air like a jet engine, and that's just on the low setting! I use it to clean my keyboards, internal components such as the GPU or CPU radiator/fan, the inside of my Macs (you'll be surprised how much dust can build up over time), and so on.