Skip to content
Influencer StackWhat the influencers actually use.
Gear$$$Mid: Roughly $50 to $500, or up to $50/month.Elgato

Elgato Stream Deck

A grid of programmable keys that fire scripts, scenes and app actions

Small buttons, six to thirty-two of them, each with its own screen, wired over USB and assigned to whatever you keep doing by hand. Muting a microphone, switching a recording scene, running a shortcut, opening a document. Streamers bought them first; podcasters and anyone with a repetitive computer job followed, because the buttons stay put while the software behind them changes.

Who backs it

Sorted by strength of stance

  • David SparksDoes it

    Apple productivity writer · MacSparky

    Went deep on the Stream Deck and bought the version with the most buttons, hung off a USB hub behind the monitor. He gave over an episode of Automators to what he does with it.

    Source: MacSparky: Studio
  • Stephen HackettDoes it

    Technology writer · 512 Pixels and Relay

    A Stream Deck XL sits under the display. Next to it are the powered Kanto speakers he thanks John Siracusa for suggesting.

    Source: 512 Pixels: My Gear

Aimed at the same thing

Other entries filed under productivity.

  • Gear$$$Expensive: Several hundred dollars and up.

    Home gym

    A private training space at home, from a garage rack to a fully equipped room

    Backed by 7 of 62 stacks: 5 do it, 2 recommend it, 0 have discussed it
  • Gear$$$Mid: Roughly $50 to $500, or up to $50/month.

    Kindle e-reader

    Amazon

    E-ink reader that makes a daily reading habit easy to keep

    Backed by 6 of 62 stacks: 6 do it, 0 recommend it, 0 have discussed it
  • Gear$$$Expensive: Several hundred dollars and up.

    MacBook Pro

    Apple

    Apple's laptop, used as the one machine that runs the talk and the studio

    Backed by 4 of 62 stacks: 4 do it, 0 recommend it, 0 have discussed it
  • Gear$$$Mid: Roughly $50 to $500, or up to $50/month.

    Standing desk

    A desk that raises, so part of the working day happens on your feet

    Backed by 4 of 62 stacks: 3 do it, 1 recommend it, 0 have discussed it
  • Gear$$$Mid: Roughly $50 to $500, or up to $50/month.

    iPad

    Apple

    Apple's tablet, used here as the device the reading app runs on

    Backed by 3 of 62 stacks: 3 do it, 0 recommend it, 0 have discussed it
  • Gear$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.

    Paper notebook

    A bound notebook for thinking on paper away from a screen

    Backed by 3 of 62 stacks: 3 do it, 0 recommend it, 0 have discussed it

Gear entry · notes paraphrased from cited sources, quoted excerpts copied from the transcript they link to. Not medical advice. Not affiliated with, endorsed by, or reviewed by anyone listed. How this works.