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When I started Six Colors more than a decade ago, I maintained continuity with my corporate job in a bunch of ways. I had been using a MacBook Air as my primary computer, taking it back and forth on the bus to San Francisco in my backpack, and had set up a work-from-home space in my garage<\/a>, with an external monitor that replicated my setup at work, so I just kept using that.<\/p>\n But that fall, Apple introduced the 5K iMac, and I was so smitten with the Retina display<\/a> that I decided to become an iMac user full-time, leaving behind the laptop-only lifestyle. (Later on I went from iMac to iMac Pro to M1 Max Mac Studio with Studio Display.)<\/p>\n But things have changed<\/a>.<\/p>\n A little background: Even though I live in California and our weather is mild, my garage workspace has a garage door that leaks cold air efficiently, and my sturdy electric oil heater can only do so much. As a result, in the winter, my garage is always cold, and I often find myself shivering uncontrollably in the late morning until I stand under the shower for half an hour.<\/p>\n Also, my daughter is now an actual adult with her own job and life a state away, and her bedroom is well-heated and sitting right there<\/em>, largely unused. Last winter, I created an outpost in that room, moving in my first work-from-home desk and attaching my MacBook Air to a Studio Display. I was a lot warmer, but it meant using different computers in different rooms.<\/p>\n While cloud-based syncing makes everything much easier than it ever used to be\u2014I can access most of the files I\u2019m working on from anywhere\u2014there are a lot of Mac features and functions that don\u2019t sync, or don\u2019t sync easily. When I switch between the two rooms, all context is lost.<\/p>\n This fall\u2019s release of the new M4 Mac Mini made me consider whether I wanted to replace my M1 Mac Studio with a Mac Mini. While I decided against it<\/a>, I had broken the seal on reconsidering my entire computing life. And I realized that maybe going back to the way I used to work, back when I commuted between Mill Valley and San Francisco, might work when going from the garage to my daughter\u2019s old bedroom.<\/p>\n With a laptop, whether I\u2019m just carrying it down the hallway or putting it in a backpack and riding a bus across the Golden Gate Bridge, I\u2019m always maintaining context<\/a>. All my documents are in one place, all my settings remain the same at all times, and I don\u2019t need to update apps that were already updated elsewhere before I can get back to work. That sounds pretty good.<\/p>\n And then there\u2019s the performance of the M4 Max chip on the MacBook Pro<\/a>, which is a big boost from the M1 Max Mac Studio. The only real downside is that this decision required me to give up my beloved M2 MacBook Air<\/a>, which doesn\u2019t have enough horsepower to satisfy everything I need to do across video, podcasts, and more. When I do travel, I\u2019ll be carrying almost a full pound (0.38 kg) more than I was before. But at the same time, when I do travel, I will now be traveling with the same computer I use all day at my desk(s), not one that\u2019s sporadically used (especially in the warmer months).<\/p>\n So, after a few weeks of living with a laptop as my main computer\u2014with nearly all of that time spent in lid-closed mode attached to a Studio Display\u2014how has it gone?<\/p>\n Generally, it\u2019s been amazing. When I update an app, it stays updated. If I download obscure command-line apps or update Homebrew or Python, I don\u2019t have to worry about a mismatch on another device. All the right software is installed. Wherever I go, there\u2019s just a single Mac, and it\u2019s mine. And when I do pull the laptop out and use it somewhere else, I get to stare at that spectacularly good 14-inch MacBook Pro display.<\/p>\n What\u2019s not so great is the extra pound, obviously, when traveling. I\u2019ve had to deal with the fact that my two different docking locations have different inputs and peripherals<\/a>, which can lead to some confusion with settings that don\u2019t switch automatically.<\/p>\n Since setting up the laptop, I\u2019ve noticed that how I use my computer has changed. Having my \u201creal\u201d computer available in the main part of my house, just a keypress away from waking up has meant that I will sometimes pop in on an evening or over a weekend and do something quick when I previously would\u2019ve deferred it until the next workday. I\u2019ll need to watch this\u2014I don\u2019t want to get sucked into work when I don\u2019t want to be.<\/p>\n I\u2019ve also, on a few occasions, pulled my laptop out of the dock and brought it into the living room. Again, I\u2019m trying to keep up some barriers\u2014this is why I mostly limit my in-home device use to my iPad\u2014but these were unusual occasions where I probably would\u2019ve been running back and forth between two rooms, and instead, I could just bring my MacBook Pro into the living room and make it all happen in one place.<\/p>\n A surprising side effect, at least thus far, is that I haven\u2019t written on my iPad at the bar in my kitchen<\/a>, a favorite winter change of pace. Maybe part of the reason I liked to sometimes work inside is because I was feeling cold out in the garage? I wouldn\u2019t be surprised if I still do this from time to time, but it\u2019s worth pondering if having the ability to take my main computer literally anywhere will reduce the amount of time I use my iPad Pro with the Magic Keyboard attached.<\/p>\n Even in the winter, I generally spend Mondays and Tuesdays out in the garage because that\u2019s where I prefer to record Upgrade and MacBreak Weekly. (It\u2019s a more photogenic space, and both podcasts offer video versions.) In the past, I\u2019d spend the rest of the day working out there, but since switching to the MacBook Pro I\u2019m only staying out there for the recording. I started writing this article in the back bedroom, transferred to the garage to record MacBreak Weekly, and then returned to the bedroom.<\/p>\n Now, many long-time laptop users will read my descriptions of my behavior and find themselves utterly boggled. \u201cYes,\u201d they\u2019ll say, \u201cthat is what happens when you use a laptop. You get to move the computer around.\u201d And I know that, but for me, the big difference is that I\u2019m really shuttling between two separate desktop setups. It\u2019s something I haven\u2019t experienced in more than a decade.<\/p>\n With that all said, let me detail my two new setups, since I\u2019ve had to buy some new hardware to make it all work the way I wanted. A key to this entire approach is that I wanted to be able to plug into either desk with a single<\/em> Thunderbolt cable to supply all data connectivity and power. One cable, one plug, and I\u2019m in or out.<\/p>\n The big addition was the CalDigit TS4 Thunderbolt Dock<\/a> in the garage. The Mac Studio had an awful lot of external ports that a MacBook Pro lacks, and of course I also wanted to reduce down to that single cable! While the CalDigit dock is not cheap, it\u2019s loaded with ports. Even better, I was able to set my power-saving auto-switching power strip<\/a> to use the CalDigit dock as the device that signifies whether or not to switch the rest of the strip on or off. By itself the dock doesn\u2019t draw a lot of power, but when I attach the MacBook Pro, it has to supply power to the laptop\u2014and power use surges, which crosses the outlet\u2019s threshold and sends power to the Studio Display. I\u2019ve got a few devices plugged into the back of the Studio Display, so when my laptop isn\u2019t present, none of those devices are powered. That\u2019s how I want it.<\/p>\n Garage:<\/p>\n Apple Studio Display<\/a> on a Right Angle Hover Series 2<\/a> arm, Keychron Q1<\/a> keyboard (Kiwi switches<\/a>, MT3 Dasher<\/a> keycaps), CalDigit TS4 Thunderbolt Dock<\/a>, Magic Trackpad, fully deconstructed Touch ID button<\/a>, Twelve South BookArc<\/a>, Elgato Stream Deck<\/a>, Elgato Key Light<\/a>, Elgato Wave Mic Harm LP<\/a>, Shure SM7B<\/a> microphone, Sound Devices USBPre2<\/a> audio interface, Uplift Standing Desk<\/a>, Herman Miller Aeron<\/a> chair, Smart Strip<\/a> switching outlet.<\/p>\n Back bedroom:<\/p>\n Apple Studio Display<\/a>, Vortex Race 3<\/a> keyboard (brown switches, MT3 Camillo<\/a> keycaps), Magic Trackpad, Magic Keyboard with Touch ID, Twelve South Curve Riser<\/a>, Anker 555 USB-C Hub<\/a> (attached to Studio Display), Elgato Stream Deck<\/a>, Heil PL2T boom arm<\/a>, Shure MV7<\/a> microphone, HON Ignition 2.0<\/a> office chair, Beyond the Office Door VertDesk<\/a>.<\/p>\n That\u2019s it! Two rooms, one appreciably warmer than the other\u2014at least, for now. The next question is, what happens when the temperature in the garage returns to normal. I\u2019m assuming I\u2019ll stay out there all the time, but you never know. (Also, what happens if my daughter decides to move home? She\u2019s welcome to, but\u2026 let\u2019s cross that bridge if we ever get to it.)<\/p>\nIt\u2019s cold out there<\/h2>\n
One thing leads to another<\/h2>\n
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The desktop\/laptop lifestyle<\/h2>\n
What\u2019s on my desks<\/h2>\n
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