JOIN USHow do journalists use technology in their jobs and in their personal lives? Jacqui Cheng, editor-in-chief of The Wirecutter, the product recommendations site owned by The New York Times, discussed the tech she’s using.
You test all sorts of hardware to recommend only the best products that people should buy. What are the absolute best pieces of tech that everyone should have today?
Let me say that Wirecutter has never been about promoting consumerism — we’re about buying the right things to fit your life and will last you a while, so you don’t have to think about them. That said, there are a few items that can easily make your life better if you have the funds and need for them.
Those include some kind of USB battery pack that can be plugged into smartphones, e-book devices or quite literally anything that can draw power from USB. If you have a USB-C-compatible MacBook, a USB-C battery is even better since it can plug into your laptop and other devices.
A battery can be so useful in unexpected scenarios ranging from getting stuck out at the bars until your phone is dead, to going camping for four days in the wilderness — that’s when you may need to keep the GPS alive on your phone.
There’s also a Bluetooth tracker for your keys, wallet or any other item that you can never find when you need it. This is probably a little bit of a luxury, but I’ve seen so many people’s lives improve by using one of these things.
What are the most important tech tools to do your job running The Wirecutter? What could be better about them?
I have an early 2015 MacBook Pro, which we actually still recommend for people who need “legacy” ports (which I often do).
As a longtime MacBook Air fan, I’ll always wish for any laptop computer to be lighter and thinner.
On the flip side, battery life seems to be something we can’t quite get comfortable with — Apple’s MacBook Pros enjoyed many years of great battery life, but the latest 2017 versions seem to have taken a major step backward.
An older MacBook Pro like mine can actually last a lot longer than a newer MacBook Pro, which is great for me — but, then again, those newer ones are thinner.
Another important tool is the Anker PowerCore 20100. It’s our recommendation for people who need more power. (It will fully charge your smartphone every day for a week before it needs recharging.)
The only downside is that this is not a small battery. If I’m working from home, my Uplift standing desk has been a lifesaver.
Over the last decade and a half, I’ve scraped by with mediocre home office furniture to the detriment of my body and possibly my soul.
I honestly regret not getting a standing desk sooner. It’s not really about being able to stand all the time (which research shows isn’t that great for you, either), but that the desk can be so easily adjusted to whatever height you need at a moment’s notice.
Smartphone prices are climbing. The new Samsung Galaxy Note 8 will cost nearly $1,000, and a premium version of Apple’s iPhone 8 is set to also cost that much. Do people really need to pay that much for a smartphone?
No. Don’t get me wrong — I’m a huge nerd, so I love this stuff, but those phones are really about being on the bleeding edge of some high-end consumer technology.
For a lot of people, what’s important is going to be ease of use (which includes whether all your purchased apps and media are already on one platform or another — Apple or Android), a screen size that is comfortable for your eyes and your hands, and whether it works where and when you need it.
Buy the thing that fits your real-world needs.