I recently bought a Macbook Air M1. My eight-year old laptop has given up on me during some of the most important occasions and that affects my side hustles and chances to other money-making opportunities. It still works, though. Enough to be an extra screen for movie or music streaming in the background or some basic web browsing. I just can’t rely to it anymore for important video calls, audio recording or any activity that requires it to multi-task heavily.
Since I am a newbie Macbook user, there are a lot of things that I need to be familiar with and probably need to spend extra money on to make my Mac experience complete, well-equipped and ehhhm, optimized?
I listed down below the accessories that I want to get for my Macbook to make my use of it seamless and more convenient. These are just some of my options (and based on research are the best and popular buys), but I hope whoever gets to read this blog post comments down below if they have better and “more” affordable recommendations.
1. USB-C Multi-port Hub
Since the Macbook Air M1 comes with 3 ports only (2 USB-C and 1 headphone jack port), I would need to have an adapter where I can plug in cables for other devices that I want to connect to it.
A popular suggestion I found on Macbook Facebook Groups is the UGREEN USB-C Hub 10-in-1 while I found the ADAM ELEMENTS Casa X USB C 10-in-1 Hub on the Power Mac Center online store.
2. Wireless mouse
While the trackpad is amazing, some tasks are better off done with a mouse, better yet a wireless/bluetooth one. I have the Logitech M220 Silent mouse but it requires an adapter for the unifying receiver to make it work on a Macbook (hence, I need #1). Should I go for an ergonomic one or an aesthetic one? Or should I get an all-Mac accessory and buy the Magic Mouse?
Logitech MS Master 2s
3. External keyboard
At first, I thought, why would you need another keyboard when your laptop has its own?!? Well, a separate keyboard is better at times as it is more efficient (numeric pad for me is a must!) and will require less force when tapping (is it just me who feels like not being able tapping keys because you feel like you did not press the key strong enough?) not to mention external keyboards may be easier to clean off of dirt and food bits than to have your entire laptop undergo deep cleaning (I always get scared with my devices being opened for whatever reasons).
Mechanical keyboards are trendy nowadays, although I am not very picky about keyboards I can get even the most ordinary type as long as the basic functions can be done using it. Do you have any recommendations aside from the listed below?
Magic Keyboard with Numeric Pad from Power Mac Center
Keychron C2 Mechanical Keyboard (Full Size Layout, Wired, RGB, Gateron)
Keychron K3 Mechanical Keyboard (75% Layout, Wired/Bluetooth, White LED, Keychron Optical, Hot-Swap)
Keychron K2 Mechanical Keyboard (75% Layout, Wired/Bluetooth, RGB, Gateron, Hot-Swap)
4. Laptop Sleeve
Gotta protect this baby from scratches! I have been looking for Macbook laptop sleeves online and recommendations always fall under the no-zipper or tight fit categories. Here are some of my options:
Crafty Manila Ph| Macbook Leather Sleeve with Free Pouch
WIWU Leather Ultra Slim Sleeve
Tomtoc Versatile 360 Protective Laptop Sleeve
Are there any other accessories that I may need? My comment section is open for recommendations.
