What’s on your desk, Stevie Bonifield?

Stevie Bonifield is simply a quality writer present astatine The Verge and, they say, “I screen a small spot of conscionable astir everything, from the FCC to AI buying tools to Linux.” Before joining our quality team, they wrote play quality for PC Gamer and did reviews, news, features, and guides for Laptop Mag, on with immoderate stories for Tom’s Guide, IGN, TechRadar, and XDA. “I’ve been speechmaking (and watching) The Verge since I was successful precocious school,“ they add, ”so it’s beauteous breathtaking to beryllium portion of the squad now.“ 

Outside of writing, Stevie says “I besides emotion gaming, reading, and TTRPGs (tabletop roleplaying games). As you’ll astir apt beryllium capable to archer from my workspace, I’m benignant of a full nerd.” 

Let’s statesman with the basics. Where is your enactment abstraction located?

My table and enactment abstraction are successful my bedroom. I stock my flat with a roommate, truthful we some enactment from our bedrooms truthful we don’t distract each different during the day. I don’t truly caput not having a abstracted bureau — it means I lone person to interest astir decorating and managing 1 abstraction alternatively of two. I precocious moved to New Jersey from Pittsburgh, PA, truthful I’m inactive getting everything acceptable up here. 

Could you archer america astir your table and your chair?

I’m utilizing a VIVO 3-stage adjustable desk with a VIVO 60-inch desktop and a Haworth Breck chair. I got some erstwhile I moved past month, truthful I haven’t been utilizing them for long, but I similar them truthful far. 

This is really a lasting desk, which I’ve ne'er utilized before. I got it truthful I could person my table tallness beauteous debased — I’m connected the shorter broadside and astir desks are excessively precocious for me. This 1 goes each the mode down to 24 inches, little than adjacent I need, which is truly nice. The enactment to usage it arsenic a lasting table is simply a chill perk, adjacent though that isn’t what I bought it for. My cablegram absorption nether the table inactive needs immoderate cleaning up, but I’m moving connected it! I person a VIVO clamp-on cablegram absorption net containing astir of it for now. 

I similar the Haworth Breck truthful far, but it’s a beauteous basal chair. Like my desk, a large portion of wherefore I got this 1 is its tallness range. It’s highly hard for maine to find decent table chairs that spell arsenic debased arsenic I request them to (without requiring a footrest). This 1 has a minimum spot tallness of astir 15 inches and has adjustable spot depth, some of which I’ve truly appreciated. That said, I privation it had a headrest. 

Tell america astir the assorted tech devices you’re using.

My setup is simply a small brainsick due to the fact that I person 3 antithetic computers moving to my 2 monitors. 

My gaming PC lives connected the level nether my desk. It’s presently temporarily retired of committee due to the fact that I’m having a hardware issue. Unfortunately, my RAM seems to beryllium connected the fritz, which is beauteous atrocious timing considering the existent RAM pricing nightmare. Most of it is inactive working, though! It has an AMD Ryzen 7 7700X CPU, an AMD Radeon RX 6600 GPU, an Asus ROG Strix B650-A motherboard, and a brace of 16GB Corsair Vengeance DDR5 RAM sticks (which seemingly request to beryllium replaced, aft little than a twelvemonth of use). 

That’s besides my Linux PC — it’s presently moving Fedora 41 with the Cinnamon desktop environment, but I’m updating to Fedora 43 soon and readying to power to the KDE Plasma desktop environment. 

Hanging disconnected the broadside of my table are my enactment and idiosyncratic laptops, some the M4 MacBook Air. My laptops are lone connected to my near monitor, which is simply a 27-inch 1440p Viewsonic Omni (VX2728J-2K). My gaming PC is connected to some monitors. I chiefly play games connected the close show since it has amended colour accuracy. It’s a 27-inch 1440p Asus ROG Strix gaming show (XG27ACS). 

Neither 1 of my monitors is thing fancy, but some are bully capable for my needs. Between the two, I would astir apt urge the ROG 1 more, though I’m not a immense instrumentality of the buttons being located connected the backmost since I request those to swap input modes truthful I tin power to my Mac. When I’m moving during the time I usually person my enactment laptop moving connected the near show and my Linux PC connected the close monitor. My keyboard and rodent I chose specifically due to the fact that they marque it casual to leap betwixt each my devices. 

I’ve reviewed rather a fewer keyboards, truthful it’s a small ironic that the 1 I’m utilizing present I really haven’t reviewed. It’s the Nuphy Halo75 V2 with Nuphy’s Mint switches. It sounds and feels great, works truly smoothly with macOS, and I tin leap betwixt my laptops and PC with a speedy keyboard shortcut. The artillery beingness could beryllium a spot better, but admittedly I permission the RGB on, truthful that’s astir apt not helping. Overall, though, I truly similar the plan and dependable prime connected the Halo75 — it’s 1 of the lone keyboards I’ve tried that I’m blessed with out-of-the-box without making immoderate DIY customizations. 

My rodent is really 1 of my favourite devices close now. I’ve tested immoderate large gaming mice, but this 1 is my idiosyncratic regular operator and not 1 I reviewed. It’s the Razer Orochi V2, and I got it connected merchantability for $35 connected Amazon earlier this year. It’s thing fancy, but the size and consciousness are cleanable for me. Most gaming mice consciousness benignant of tremendous successful my hand, but I curse Razer designed the Orochi for my thenar specifically. Like my keyboard, it’s besides capable to leap betwixt a Bluetooth transportation and a 2.4GHz dongle. Despite the budget-friendly price, it’s a large mouse. 

Underneath that I’m presently utilizing a Matrix Blizzard mousepad. I got it connected Amazon, but unfortunately, I deliberation it’s sold retired now. I wanted thing with a small spot of a plan going on, but not thing excessively elaborate oregon distracting. This plan conscionable astir perfectly acceptable what I was looking for. I privation it was a tad thicker, but it’s much absorbing than a plain achromatic mousepad, and that’s bully capable for me. 

I person 2 controllers connected my desk, a standard Xbox controller for my Mac and the wired Razer Wolverine V2 for my gaming PC. I don’t usually similar wired controllers, but I truly emotion the Wolverine. The clicky buttons connected Razer controllers are truthful satisfying to me, and they thin to connection consistently bully show successful my experience. My favourite mobile controller is besides from Razer, the Kishi Ultra. 

My preferred headphones are my AirPods Pro 3. The ANC and spatial audio is fantastic for watching shows and movies connected my laptop (and helps maine absorption erstwhile I’m working). I don’t similar wearing earbuds each the time, though, truthful I besides support a basal brace of on-ear Sony headphones around, the WH-CH250. The audio prime connected these isn’t peculiarly impressive, but they’re ace affordable. 

Last, but surely not least, I besides person a Razer Seiren V3 Chroma mic disconnected to the broadside of my table connected a clamp-on mic arm I got connected Amazon. I’ve been utilizing the Seiren for a mates years present for gaming and playing Dungeons & Dragons with my online group. The audio prime could beryllium a spot better, but it’s a important betterment implicit astir built-in headphone mics, and I’ve ne'er had immoderate bugs oregon issues with it. Notably, it works connected Linux for maine without needing immoderate tweaks oregon work-arounds.  

That is simply a large laptop holder you person astatine the broadside of your desk. What is it?

I conscionable got that erstwhile I moved past month, and it’s 1 of my favourite additions to my table setup. It’s a double-decker laptop mount I got for astir $30 connected Amazon and conscionable clamps onto the broadside of my table (no screws necessary!). 

I wanted to escaped up immoderate table space, and this lets maine support some of my laptops adjacent and retired of the mode astatine the aforesaid time. I besides utilized a bid portion to instrumentality a USB-C hub to the backmost of the laptop tray, truthful I tin rapidly hop betwixt my idiosyncratic and enactment laptops connected my outer show by conscionable moving implicit the USB-C cablegram and charging cable. 

Great partition decorations. Tell america a spot astir your Elmville representation and what surrounds it.

This is the partition crossed from my table that radical spot erstwhile I person my webcam on, truthful I enactment each my coolest worldly connected it. I’m a immense instrumentality of Dimension 20 connected Dropout, truthful I instantly picked up 1 of those Elmville maps erstwhile they released them. For those who haven’t checked retired Dimension 20 yet, Elmville is the main mounting for Fantasy High, 1 of the champion shows Dropout has to offer, successful my humble opinion. 

The smaller horizontal representation beneath the representation is really a leafage from Dropout’s 2025 Dimension 20 calendar that I got astatine their Madison Square Garden amusement past January. It’s a country from play 2 of Fantasy High, and I conscionable thought the creator did specified a large occupation with it that it deserved to beryllium framed. Off to the close supra that 1 is simply a people I got from an creation convention. It’s not from immoderate amusement oregon movie arsenic acold arsenic I know; the plan conscionable resonated with me. 

The 2 smaller prints supra the representation are besides from creation conventions and were made by the aforesaid artist, Natasha Tara Petrović. The purple 1 is immoderate chill Mothman creation — I person a brushed spot for cryptids and spooky stuff. The bluish 1 is simply a Dark Souls people that makes the crippled look way cozier than it is. 

And past but not least, I’ve got immoderate Nanoleaf Elements tiles lighting up that wall. These are the archetypal astute lights I’ve ever bought, and they’re beauteous cool, particularly with the much mellow wood look. I person them acceptable to displacement colors and brightness passim the day. 

You’re evidently into Star Wars and different subject fabrication / phantasy worlds, judging from the toys implicit your bookcase and the figures connected that small shelf. Are you a superior instrumentality oregon bash you conscionable similar the genre?

I americium a immense Star Wars fan. One of my earliest memories is watching The Phantom Menace connected VHS, and I’ve loved the franchise ever since. Obi-Wan is my favourite character, which I’m noticing is simply a spot evident successful my enactment space. 

The lightsaber supra my bookcase is Obi-Wan’s from The Phantom Menace. I’ve had it since astir apt kindergarten oregon archetypal grade, truthful it’s a small bushed up. And adjacent to that I’ve got a peculiar variation Obi-Wan Funko Pop. Then supra my table I person a Lego exemplary of Obi-Wan’s Jedi starfighter from Attack of the Clones. 

On the support beneath that I’ve managed to compression successful the Dungeons & Dragons bid minifigures I’ve collected (I’m a fewer shy of the afloat collection). These shelves ended up being mode smaller than expected, truthful I’m readying to adhd much truthful things aren’t rather truthful cramped. I thought Lego did a large occupation with these D&D minifigures, though, and would emotion to spot them bash much D&D sets. My idiosyncratic favourite from this bid is the dragonborn paladin. 

The different Funko Pop adjacent to Obi-Wan is Vi from Arcane, which is simply a genuinely phenomenal amusement and a idiosyncratic favourite of mine. I’m not overmuch of a Funko Pop person, but I’ll get them from clip to clip if it’s a quality I truly like. 

I conjecture I would accidental I’m a superior sci-fi and phantasy fan, though I thin to link with circumstantial bid oregon books and instrumentality with those. To spell backmost to the Star Wars example, connected 1 of the little shelves successful my bookcase, I person astir of the aged Jedi Apprentice books. They’ve gotten beauteous hard to find, but I loved them arsenic a kid, truthful I’m trying to cod them each again. 

On the phantasy broadside of things, I emotion epic phantasy similar Lord of the Rings, but besides similar immoderate YA books, particularly The Hunger Games and Percy Jackson. At the moment, I’m speechmaking The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss and Brigands & Breadknives by Travis Baldree, which is the 3rd publication successful his Legends & Lattes series. Both are great, though they person drastically antithetic tones. 

You besides person a stone collection!

I do! Much similar a goldfish, it has grown to capable the size of its container, and present it tin turn nary more. I’ve ever had an involvement successful geology and person had immoderate of the rocks and minerals successful that lawsuit since I was a kid. 

I person a clump of quartz, a geode, immoderate copper, chalcopyrite, amazonite, dravite, moissanite, a sliver of obsidian, a lump of basalt, immoderate feldspar and sedimentary rocks, and a clump of smaller tumbled stones. There’s besides a chunk of petrified wood successful the backmost that I recovered successful a streambed. My favorites are the chunk of amber successful the beforehand and the bismuth supra it — I emotion however bismuth crystals get that neat geometric shape. 

Anything other I missed that you’d similar to add?

While I don’t usage it for work, my Kobo Clara BW e-reader is astir ever connected my desk. My bookcases are beauteous overmuch afloat (and a spot tiny — I’m readying to regenerate them eventually), truthful I’ve been speechmaking much ebooks implicit the past twelvemonth oregon so. 

I switched from a Kindle to a Kobo respective months agone and person been loving the Kobo. The show and idiosyncratic acquisition connected the Clara are amended than their Kindle counterparts successful my experience, and you person much state to adhd books from extracurricular Kobo’s store and backmost up everything successful your room connected different devices. My Kobo is successful my mundane transportation now, though successful hindsight, I privation I’d gotten 1 with a colour display. 

Photography by Stevie Bonifield