The Under $200 Home Office Item That Transformed My WFH Life

When the first #stayhome mandate was issued in New York City, our office enforced their own work from home policy. At the time, I was a bit unsure as to what this would mean. On my last day in the office on March 11 (I remember it vividly), I hastily packed up my things, bringing just my laptop, keyboard, and mouse. At the time, I thought that the accessories would alleviate a lot of the strain associated with working on a laptop at home.

Within my first week at home, I realized that—as silly as it would have felt at the time—I should have grabbed the computer monitor that adorned my office desk. With a role so heavily tied to visuals, curating products, and editing stories—I needed a bigger screen to properly multitask and organize my work.

The strain I’d feel each day, sitting with my back curved, looking down at my 13” screen, wasn’t ideal either. As soon as I found out our work-from-home order was extended through April, I knew I had to do something to change my home office situation immediately. I scoured the web to look for the best (yet affordable) computer monitor. I landed on a large 24” Samsung Curved monitor for just under $200. It felt like a steal, but still satisfied my wish for a high-quality purchase that would go beyond “good for now.” With built-in speakers and a curved screen, I felt certain I would be comfortable keeping it for a long time.

So I clicked and bought it. For the week after, I anxiously awaited its arrival. My excitement for it grew each day. In the past, I might feel this kind of anticipation after scoring a vintage Prada bag I’d been eyeing for weeks. But this was a monitor—who had I become to be excited about this? But there I was, tracking the shipment excessively until the day it finally arrived. I quickly ran downstairs to retrieve the package and opened the box as if it was the designer bag I had saved up for. I unwrapped its protective tissue and unveiled a glorious screen—it was nearly the size of my TV!

The next morning, I couldn’t wait to start the day with my new office setup. I positioned the monitor on the left, laptop on my right, a notebook and pen ready to go, and my Airpods within reach for my Zoom calls. I made my morning coffee and sat down for my first meeting.

Finally, I felt some semblance of my familiar work station at Vogue. Not only did my productivity increase, but early on, I noticed additional advantages have come from this uncharacteristic purchase. My eyes felt less strained (thanks to its curved screen), my back wasn’t hurting, and my posture improved, as I no longer had to lean downward while looking down at my laptop.

It’s been more than two months since I added this monitor to my cart, and although I miss everything about actually working in an office (my colleagues especially!), I now look forward to waking up and heading into my “home office” to start the day. Ask any of my friends, family, and colleagues, and they will tell you: I can’t stop raving about this monitor. I realize my glee around yet another screen might seem odd during this time when many are finding it hard to unplug, but at a time when my anxiety has never been higher, I have found this piece of technology to bring me a surprising amount of joy.

Samsung 24-inch Curved Monitor

$180 $149

AMAZON

$140

SAMSUNG