Gadgets That Every Programmer Needs in their Daily Work

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Developers are often highly paid professionals, and as a result, many people wish to become programmers. But programming is not everyone’s cup of tea. Programmers need to manage a lot of stress and workload due to the nature of their job.

To become a competent programmer, a lot of hard work and patience is required. One reason is that you sometimes have to code during long night shifts to get your job done. Furthermore, programming can require a lot of concentration and diligence when going through long portions of complex code.

Coding is a hectic job, and drinking a lot of coffee will only help you to an extent. It helps to have one of the best programming laptops, but there’s more to it than that. With the right gadgets and tools, you can reduce coding fatigue and boost your productivity even more.

So, I’m here with a list of cool gadgets and devices to make your job easy and assist you in your daily work.

Let’s get started.

ErGear Electric Standing Desk

The ErGear desk has a 48-by-24-inch top, electric height adjustment, four memory presets, and a steel frame. It makes switching between sitting and standing straightforward.

Synology DS225+ 2-Bay NAS

The Synology DS225+ is a diskless two-bay network storage device for backing up, sharing, and streaming files. Add compatible drives based on the capacity and redundancy you need.

Fortigis Cybersecurity AI VPN Router

In 2019, data is one of the most important assets one can have. For this reason, data is called “the new oil.” For any professional—and particularly programmers working online—security of their data is a necessity.

Having your data falls into the wrong hands can damage you in unlimited ways, and cybercriminals can invade your devices and security. Most of the data breaches happen online, mainly through your internet connection.

To address this concern, Fortigis comes to the rescue. Fortigis Cybersecurity AI VPN Router is actually a wireless router that ensures your safety and protects you from cyber threats. It provides VPN and web security in different tiers for your home network or for a small business network.

You can use this gadget with your router, and you can manage it via a mobile app. Fortigis is basically an all-in-one package that comes with Firewall, Intrusion Prevention System (IPS), anti-virus, and VPN.

It provides a secure connection and end-to-end encryption in such a way that no one (including your internet provider) can see any of your online activity.

The device helps you monitor who uses your home network. It notifies you when someone tries to access or connect to your network, and it provides you a track record of all online activities of connected devices.

Noise-Isolating Headphones

We grew up listening to the saying “Knowledge is power.” But in 2019, as we are in the era of social media and the highly digitized world, focus is the new power.

Talk to any programming expert. They can affirm that getting into a flow state during coding is one of the biggest challenges for programmers due to outside distractions.

In a busy working space with talkative colleagues, you can overcome distractions by using a pair of headphones. There are many models available on the market, which can prove to be really useful for programmers.

Headphones are helpful for programmers in two ways:

• When you are wearing headphones, your chatty co-workers will get a signal that you are not ready for any chit chat or disturbance. This way, they will avoid unnecessary chatting. Keep in mind that the fewer the interruptions, the greater your productivity.
• Another major source of distraction is external conversations, particularly when you are working in an open office environment. Headphones are a great way to block out external noise, allowing you to focus on your work.

Mechanical Keyboard

For programmers, the keyboard is the most important tool in achieving maximum productivity, as it plays a crucial role in getting the job done. For this reason, every programmer must have a high-quality and reliable keyboard to have an amazing coding experience.

A good keyboard, besides providing the best experience, will enhance your performance. Likewise, a terrible and low-quality keyboard will make your work hard, uncomfortable, and frustrating while affecting performance quality badly.

Programmers type a lot, so you should consider a keyboard that is good for your performance, typing speed, and fingers. As you will be typing for long stretches of time, consider the ergonomics of the keyboard in order to avoid wrist injuries and strains. For this reason, most programmers prefer a mechanical keyboard.

Mechanical keyboards are wired, heavy, and reliable. They are easily available and work perfectly for programmers.

While mechanical keyboards are popular, choosing a mechanical or nonmechanical keyboard greatly depends on one’s preferences, and you should go for whichever you feel comfortable using. Keep in mind that a keyboard that is good for typing is also perfect for programming. At the end of the day, the job is done by typing out your logic.

Computer Glasses

As a programmer, you work while staring at the screen for many hours. So experiencing eyestrain, red eyes, blurred vision, and other symptoms related to computer vision syndrome (CVS) is common.

Even those who are under 40 can face the issues of blurred vision and eystrain due to the inability of their eyes to shift focus from the screen to the keyboard and back again for too long. These issues are often linked to CVS.

To avoid or overcome this issue, the solution is computer glasses. They are different from regular eyeglasses in many ways. They are designed for the optimization of your eyesight while you are staring at the computer screen.

Always get your computer eyeglasses on the recommendation of your eye doctor. Your doctor can add a light tint to your computer glasses to counter the glare caused by excessive lighting and enhanced brightness.

Most eye professionals recommend using glasses with photochromic lenses to save your eyes from harmful visible blue light emitting from the monitor and other digital gadgets. These glasses ensure the good health of your eyes and vision to stay more focused and productive during working hours.

Pomodoro Hourglass Timer Set

The most challenging task for me as a programmer is focusing on one task for a long time because of so many notifications popping on my mobile. I handle them just by turning off the Wi-Fi on my phone.

But all programmers are not the same, so they have different struggles. Some of you might get so involved in a task that after some time, your mind does not cooperate well, and you end up with low performance quality.

To handle both situations, the Pomodoro technique comes in handy. This technique has you breaking your working hours into focus sessions of 25 minutes, with each session followed by a five-minute break. Every fifth break is longer, about 15-20 minutes. This allows for better focus, since you are training your brain to work when it’s time to work and relax when it’s time to relax.

To apply this technique, you can use an hourglass timer set, with timers to measure each section of the pomodoro routine. The biggest benefit of this physical timer is that you cannot reset it once you have activated it, which means you have to get your job done in the specified time.

Light Therapy Lamp

Programming is not an easy job, as it involves extensive logical skills and brainstorming. We often have projects with tight deadlines and sometimes have to work day and night to complete the project. Many programmers work at night because they feel they are more productive then.

Due to an overburden of work or an irregular schedule, many programmers experience stress, anxiety, and sleep disorders. Light therapy lamps are a great way to manage your sleep issues and stress, as they mimic natural light to stimulate brain chemicals that affect mood and sleep .

You can use light therapy lamps specifically designed for offices. Such lamps are perfect for mild or moderate level of stress. Light therapy lamps for offices are lightweight, so you can easily use them in working space.  

OXO Brew 8-Cup Coffee Maker

The OXO Brew is an SCA-certified brewer with a thermal carafe and support for single servings or a full carafe. It is a credible desk-side upgrade for programmers who care about their coffee.

Yankee Candle Macintosh

This 22-ounce Macintosh-scented jar candle is made for an apple-fragrance workspace, with a listed burn time of up to 150 hours. Keep it clear of electronics, paper, and cables while burning.

Programmers Can Be Diverse, and so Can Gadgets

These are some of my favorite gadgets that can also make your programming life easier and boost your productivity.

Each gadget has its own benefits and can positively affect your professional life in different ways. But, understandably, every gadget is not for everyone.

Every programmer has different preferences for having a less tiring, more focused coding experience. So choose a gadget that is a perfect fit for you.

Which gadgets do you already use to make your life and coding easier? Which gadget did I miss? I would love to hear from my developer family!