DESK TECH

If your work is desk-based, regardless of whether you’re at home or in an office, there are loads of little tweaks you can make to transform your working environment for better productivity, wellbeing and general happiness. For me, happiness equals shopping for gadgets. Here’s some workplace essentials that will definitely make your working life better…

Evapolar evaCHILL

Remember those heatwaves last summer? Ugh, no way I’m getting caught out next time. I’m planning ahead and ordering one of these. It’s a portable air conditioner that not only cools the air in your immediate vicinity but also purifies and humidifies. It’s eco-friendly, consuming only 7.5W, and unobtrusive in daily use with one-touch operation and whisper-quiet operation. £88, evapolar.com

Ticktime Pomodoro Timer

This tactile, addictive and attractively designed productivity timer is touted as the thing that’ll make you fall in love with time management. Yikes, that’s some claim, but it’s sure got my attention. The hexagonal prism displays different preset timer intervals on each of its six sides, you simply flip it to the time period you want to count down. It’s USB-C rechargeable, compact and durable, and can be configured beyond the presets if you want to customise your countdown needs.

£39, amazon.co.uk

Logitech Litra Glow

OK, you might associate a ring light with Twitch streamers, YouTubers or influencers and wannabes, but there’s a strong business case for them too. When you’re doing online meetings and properly illuminated, you immediately give the impression to clients, colleagues and prospects that you’re awake, energised and engaged. Lurking in the shadows in meetings, virtual or real, isn’t the path to success. This piece of kit does it all – perching unobtrusively above your webcam and emitting an adjustable, wide and soft glow.

£59, logitech.com

reMarkable 2

This smart notebook or ‘paper tablet’ has seemingly taken the business world by storm in the past year – ask anyone that’s started using one and they tend to extol its benefits quite passionately! You can scribble on it just like paper, plus type and read just like a tablet. It converts your scrawlings into typed text, which you can view, sync and edit on the go, then organise all your notes in one place. From £279, remarkable.com

By Oliver Chesher