Uses
My constant twitch to optimize and try out new gear has led me to experiment a lot over the years. This uses page documents my current choices.
Hardware
- MacBook Pro 14” M4 Pro: Main computing station. I’ve been using MBPs for years now, and these recent M1 and up machines are gorgeous.
- Meletrix Zoom75: Definitely not an everyday carry item, and yet it is such a joy to type on this thing. It’s silly, but I feel like each word coming out of this 3kg beast has more substance.
- Logitech G305: I played a lot Q3, UT, and Counter Strike in the past. Even though I don’t need such precision today, a good mouse is a light, quick, and precise mouse. I swapped AA with AAA battery to make it even lighter.
- iPhone 15 Pro: Flagship phones have plateaued. Most recent generations are excellent phones. Still waiting for that battery breakthrough and sub-150g iPhone.
- Dual LG 4K displays: I use two 4K60Hz displays, scaled up 2x (retina) to ensure crisp fonts. I stare at text most of the time, so I want it to look as nice as possible. I’d love to upgrade to 2x5K120Hz once it’s viable.
- Jarvis Desk: Rock-solid frame—zero issues in years of daily use. I paired it with a vintage wooden desktop that has served plenty of people already, and now it’s proudly mine.
- Fujifilm X100VI: A most forgiving and enjoyable camera to start my photography journey with. The shooting experience is amazing—I’m hoping to grow into this camera with time.
- Apple AirPods Pro: The default choice. But compared to old wired Apple earbuds, it’s hard not to praise how much great engineering has been put into this product.
- Pen & Paper: It’s still the best way for me to do a quick brain dump, brainstorm, and connect the dots. My favourite products here are: Pentel EnerGel, Sharpie, Leuchtturm1917 B5, Rhodia Square Wirebound.
- Apple AirPods Max: Not recommended. Fine wireless quality, convenient in the Apple ecosystem. But mine broke exactly 2 years after purchase, and turned out to be unrepairable (replacement parts cost as much as a new pair).
Coding
- Ghostty (+ Supacode): Fast, feature-rich, terminal. Ghostty was the first terminal that dethroned iTerm2 for me. And with libghostty, it’s revolutionizing the space even more. I’m experimenting with Supacode for managing AI agents.
- Zed: After years of being a VIM user, I finally let go a while back, migrating to VS Code. Later, I found myself praising Zed even more – it starts almost instantly, and still has everything I would need in an IDE (+VIM mode is on point).
- Terminal setup:
- mise: A great way to manage system or project packages
- tmux: Can’t imagine working in the CLI without splits, windows, or sessions
- fish shell + starship prompt: It’s faster than ZSH
- lazygit: Best git TUI, probably my favourite way to use git
- k9s: Managing Kubernetes clusters is a breeze with this TUI
- justfile: I like to document projects’ actions; replaced unwieldy Makefiles
Software
- Obsidian: It’s embarrassing how many notes app I went through. Though I’m happy to report, that there have been no changes in the last 2 years, sticking to simple Markdown text. I also use IA Writer for focused writing sessions.
- Things: It’s probably the one app I use the longest, well over 10 years. I love that it almost hasn’t changed in this time, still simple and well designed. Sometimes I wish for a feature or two, but mostly, it’s a great example of enduring, quality software.
- Apple Notes & Reminders: Although far from perfect, these are accessible and reliable. I especially like the Siri integration. Though I secretly hope that one day Siri will be smart enough to operate any app directly and conveniently (Things, Obsidian).
- Timing.app: It’s great to remain in the flow, but sometimes, it’s also nice to know where the time went. I use Timing to do occasional time audits.
- Raindrop: Robust link collection service, with generous free usage terms. It’s great for saving links to read later, references, or inspiration.
- NoFusion and Blackmagic Cam (iOS): Recent iPhones became capable of producing stunning photos and videos. NoFusion allows bypassing the default iPhone camera app over-sharpening, creating a more natural look. Blackmagic Cam app lets me record in top quality and color space (LOG) without eating all storage by going full ProRes 4K.