With remote and hybrid work opportunities becoming both more common and sought after, a great home office set-up is a necessity for an increasing number of workers. And while remote jobs provide for a smoother and less mobile day-to-day experience, they do not come without their own collection of hiccups. From struggling with video conference calls to tuning out rambunctious pets or children, a quality home office can help alleviate a number of stresses afflicting the remote worker. That’s why we have put together a collection of products designed for a streamlined and distraction-free home workspace.
Poly Studio P21 Display Monitor
The award-winning Poly Studio P21 is a 21.5-in. display monitor entirely designed with video calls in mind. It packs several features in one streamlined package: a high- definition camera, hi-fidelity speakers, a microphone and even adjustable ambient lighting that allows for a personalized touch to a home office’s appearance. The P21 connects via USB to any PC or Mac product, functioning as a pro-grade video conference system or simply as a high-end second display. Its camera records at 1080p, is capable of four times the electronic zoom and comes with a privacy shutter. The microphone included in the display is uni-directional, intended for a focused pickup pattern with outside noise rejection. On top of all of the P21’s features, consumers have the option to add on Poly+, the company’s support plan that includes unlimited 24/7 tech and cloud support, advance hardware replacement and upgraded access to premium software. The Poly Studio P21 is available for $599.
Blue Tiger Solare Headset
The Solare headset’s selling point is that you’ll never have to charge it — it’s entirely solar-powered. It constantly charges while in either indoor or outdoor sunlight, providing for an interruption-free and eco-friendly listening experience. Designed for both home office workers and drivers — as well as commuters — the Solare is a one-ear headset, so the user can have a quality sound set-up in one ear and be open to the outside world with the other. The great part about the Solare is the fact that its speaker is 97 percent noise-cancelling, making for a distinct split between headset and non-headset on each side of the user’s head. It has an IPX4 rating of water resistance, meets military grade specifications for extreme environments, and its charging can be monitored in real time with Blue Tiger’s app. The Solare is available for $219.99.
Logitech’s Logi Dock
The Logi Dock is Logitech’s docking station designed for home workers who want to reduce clutter. It connects everything a remote worker could need all into one small cube-shaped unit: Bluetooth-enabled speakers for video conferences and music, noise-reducing microphones, charging capabilities for laptops and connection to display monitors. Using a combination of USB-A, USB-C and HDMI inputs and outputs, the Logi Dock makes it easy to connect whatever necessary. The dock can also work in conjunction with the Logi Tune app, where they can sync their calendar to be able to join a meeting with the tap of a button. Logitech’s Logi Dock comes in at $399.99.
Jabra Evolve2 75 Headset
The Jabra Evolve2 75 headset has an ergonomic earcup design with a leatherette cushion pattern for improved ventilation. It has a hard foam exterior and soft foam interior to allow for lasting comfort. Clearly, comfort was at the forefront of Jabra’s interests when creating this new design, but the Evolve2 75 also has access to adjustable Active Noise Cancellation technology, making for a high- quality listening experience all around. Using the Sound+ app, the user can select the desired amount of noise cancellation depending on the circumstances they are currently working in. The headset has access to eight microphones with beamforming technology and a triple digital chipset which Jabra says differentiates voice and background noise. That’s on top of the Evolve2 75’s boom arm, which can be lowered for video calls or hidden away in the headset’s “Discreet Mode.” All that tech comes together for a flexible listening and calling experience, with the Evolve2 75 starting at $384.
ViewSonic’s VX2418C Monitor
The VX2418C monitor from ViewSonic was built for work and play alike. It has a 24-in. curved screen that runs in 1080p. Features include a 165Hz refresh rate, a one millisecond response time and AMD FreeSync Premium technology, which all combine to make for a great gaming or home office display. ViewSonic also included exclusive ViewMode presets with the monitor, making for optimized screen settings depending on the task at hand. The VX2418C comes with two HDMI (2.0) inputs and one DisplayPort (1.2) input for flexible connectivity, as well as a vesa-compatible mount and dual integrated stereo speakers. All in all, the VX2418C is a lot of quality tech packed into an affordable $159.99 package.
