Essential Computer Peripherals

[Xarpho's Return]

In my line of work, I find that there are a staggering amount of people who do not own a printer of any sort, and "scanning" is replacing "taking a picture with a phone". The former is bad, the latter is very bad.

But I consider myself above these people technologically and have both a scanner and printer (as separate items, not combined). The question is, if I had a little more money and space, what could I get that would lessen the need to spend money at third party establishments? What, besides a printer and scanner, are really necessary to have some level of self-sufficiency?

(Also, by "essential computer peripherals" I mean stuff that's not standard, in case you wanted to be funny by suggesting a mouse and keyboard).

 

[CallmeCicada]

(Also, by "essential computer peripherals" I mean stuff that's not standard, in case you wanted to be funny by suggesting a mouse and keyboard).

A monitor, haha!

 

[Autistic Gunspergings]

keeping some USB sticks/SD cards/physical data storage around is never a bad thing to do, having somewhere you can store data without using the cloud is always useful.
if "essential computer peripherals" includes maintenance, a basic screwdriver kit, and some cleaning supplies are also good to have. some spare parts for common wear items (like a spare KB&M, hehehe) are also good to have around.
An SD card reader is also a good thing to have, even if you don't really use SD cards, IMO. just having something like that incase you need to take photos off a camera or something is pretty useful. I'd say a portable DVD drive, too, if you really want to cover your bases, but I don't think it's all that needed, or really "essential".

 

[Penis Drager 2.0]

keeping some USB sticks/SD cards/physical data storage around is never a bad thing to do, having somewhere you can store data without using the cloud is always useful.
if "essential computer peripherals" includes maintenance, a basic screwdriver kit, and some cleaning supplies are also good to have. some spare parts for common wear items (like a spare KB&M, hehehe) are also good to have around.
An SD card reader is also a good thing to have, even if you don't really use SD cards, IMO. just having something like that incase you need to take photos off a camera or something is pretty useful. I'd say a portable DVD drive, too, if you really want to cover your bases, but I don't think it's all that needed, or really "essential".

On the topic of storage, the concept of setting up your own personal cloud using a Raspberry Pi and an external hard drive has become so mainstream that there's a million tutorials any retard can follow like this one:

https://thepi.io/how-to-set-up-a-raspberry-pi-owncloud-server/

Probably worth if you want to divest yourself from any major cloud services.

 

[Judge Dredd]

USB hard drive dock or exturnal USB storage. Having an external format to save important files too occasionally is something so many people are reluctant to do.

 

[An Account]

A good surge protector and, if you can afford it, a good uninterruptible power-supply. I live somewhere that gets hit hard with blizzards in the winter and severe thunderstorms in the summer so being able to save everything and turn my devices off safely when a blackout hits can be a livesaver.

 

[WelperHelper99]

DVD reader. I personally have one built into my rig, it's from 2010, but something like a USB one you get at Walmart for 20 bucks is also fine. I've found it useful. Not just from data storage, but sometimes it's fun to have a movie going on the second monitor. Just pop the DVD in and you're gtg. Also if you have any old software discs, boom, no need for emulation or going to some sketchy site for something you already own, just plug and chug.

 

[11apocalyptic11]

a USB SD card reader + a few small capacity SDs are a must. Even if you don't actively use them there will be a time when you wish you had one on hand.

 

[VIPPER?]

USB to SATA cable. Great for getting use out of old drives, recovery, whatever. You can get cheaper USB hard drives and crack them apart for one if you feel lucky; often it's just one of those cables and a cheap drive slotted into it in an enclosure. (it's how I got mine)

USB SD reader. You can get keychain versions. Handy to keep always loaded with a card full of recovery crap, and handy if you need to quickly pull stuff off a phone/camera/etc without plugging it in directly for whatever reason. (Lots of crummy DSLRs don't mount as mass storage, someone might have a phone or something but not the correct cable on them, etc.) Inverse can be handy too, you can have phone stuff on your SD card hidden in your keychain and copy it over to a phone without fucking around with online hosting or whatever.

USB micro/c/mini/etc converters. Handier than just having 9001 different cables. Cheapo gas station ones these days often come with a few just clipped right on.

USB drives, like CD/floppy/etc. Not every computer even comes with drive bays at all, let alone an optical drive. Floppy is out of the question. Even if you do have one, what if you just want to pull shit off of 2 CDs at once?

Discrete webcam and mic. Built-in laptop cameras and mics are just crap and if you have a bunch they can be ghetto security cameras with some finangling and long cables.

USB wifi dongle. Handy if your built-in NIC dies or you just want to larp as a hackerman. USB to Ethernet can be handy to have if your port breaks but I've seen that happen exactly once; it's usually the cable and ports are sorta repairable.

Various video converters. Actual ones that do real processing of their own. Handy when you get a new graphics card and it doesn't have the type of ports you need, or you take a laptop to do a presentation and it only pushes HDMI but the projector you're using is only VGA or DP or some shit.

Cable management stuff. You can get double-sided velcro straps from the dollar store. If you spend a little more money, you can get like 100ft of double-sided velcro that has holes pre-punched in it to cinch them down from office supply outlets. Don't use zap straps, it's cancer when you want to move/change anything. If you're really hard up for dough, save the little twist ties that come with garbage bags and use those. Cable raceways and such are a meme for individual workstations.

If you have a real IT job and do any infra stuff, a cable tester is incredibly handy. You don't need a 1000$ Link Runner, just something that tests continuity of each pin. A crimper and a load of cable is nice to have too. At home you can also just get some basic soldering stuff and cut/splice cables. If you start getting into fabrication/repair then a set of helping hands with a magnifier and maybe even a light is a must.

Honestly a printer and scanner aren't so necessary anymore. Anything that's a typed letter could have been an e-mail. I print maybe one thing a year for myself. You're better off with a Cricut or something since at least then you can also print stickers and fancy cards and stuff. But just for routine forms and letters, fuck that, e-mail that shit. If it HAS to be hard copy, whoever gave you the form should have some pre-printed, or if it's a love letter or some shit hand-writing that feels better.

 

[Xarpho's Return]

Honestly a printer and scanner aren't so necessary anymore. Anything that's a typed letter could have been an e-mail. I print maybe one thing a year for myself. You're better off with a Cricut or something since at least then you can also print stickers and fancy cards and stuff. But just for routine forms and letters, fuck that, e-mail that shit. If it HAS to be hard copy, whoever gave you the form should have some pre-printed, or if it's a love letter or some shit hand-writing that feels better.

There's all sorts of things that need to be printed, even in black and white. If you do any shipping (including Amazon returns) a printer is essential. Unless you literally never print anything or have access to a printer at work that they don't mind you using, you really don't want to be at the mercy of a print shop.

 

[VIPPER?]

There's all sorts of things that need to be printed, even in black and white. If you do any shipping

Not everyone is a dropshipper.
For returns, I've gotten enough chink crap that just uses a page protector stuck shut with packing tape that I do not feel bad in the slightest responding in kind, and printing one sheet at a library is less than the stamp that will go with it.

 

[SCV]

Get a RJ45 crimper, a couple hundred feet of CAT5e cable, and a bag of 100 RJ45 connectors. Then you can make your own ethernet cables to the lengths you want for way cheaper than you could buy them. @VIPPER? already mentioned this but a cable tester for this is also cheap and good to have. I've had multiple times where I was only getting a 100mbps link instead of 1gbps and the issue was one of the wires had disconnected in the plug. I am able to diagnose this and crimp a new plug on in minutes.

 

[Cat Hyde Boots]

a basic screwdriver kit

If your #1 reason for owning a screwdriver kit is computer maintenance, then you're ngmi.

 

[Autistic Gunspergings]

If your #1 reason for owning a screwdriver kit is computer maintenance, then you're ngmi.

I agree, I'd figure most people already have one, but if we're talking essentials here...

 

[Free4Ever]

4:3 display. Ideally CRT, but an LCD is okay if it has a nice stand. Min. 17" and 1280x1024; more is better.

Premium trackball @ 16k DPI.

Optical sensor analog keyboard. 1024 pressure levels per key and sub-2ms response times, at worst.

An LTO-6(+) drive, and a moving box worth of tapes.

​

This is what a minimalistic "serious" home computing setup looks like, anno 2025.

 

[TooManyKittens]

Most of it's been mentioned. A scanner is not so useful anymore but I'd you need it keep yours. Printing is useful to have at home imo still, but maybe not absolutely necessary. But I like printing things sometimes assuming I'm like prepping for a storm and the subsequent power outages etc and for craft reasons.

That said, really a good headset with microphone is just useful and worth some investment into. I didn't have one for years and it really is nicer to group chat or call someone with a headset or sometimes just game with one for the directional sound.

I always keep if I can a compatible with my desktop last purchase of whatever part on hand. Anything I upgrade I keep one old one in case of hardware complete failure.

I also keep thermal paste, spare cords for a power supply, and spare cables for anything like HDMI etc. For laptops I always have at least one spare charging cable and brick.

That will cover your ass in a lot of scenarios tbh. I also keep a USB c to USB A adapter handy and the opposite A to C. My desktop only talks A, laptop only has C.

I also keep a micro USB cable or three to charge older but still good devices like my headset I'm not upgrading just because the charge port isn't as common now.

 

[VIPPER?]

If your #1 reason for owning a screwdriver kit is computer maintenance, then you're ngmi.

If I didn't do a lot of janky stuff to electronics and my bicycle, I can't think of any reason I'd own a full screwdriver set. My last roommate didn't have a single one. Even my household fixtures I gotta take off to replace lightbulbs or whatever all use wingnuts.

I also keep thermal paste, spare cords for a power supply, and spare cables for anything like HDMI etc. For laptops I always have at least one spare charging cable and brick.

Big mega pro tip on charger bricks: if you have one that's not USB-C, you can use another one of the same voltage and equal to or greater than the rated amperage/power safely. The amperage/power is max draw, just the voltage has to be actually the same. Depending on the individual laptop you can get away with +/- 1 volt or so. If the plug doesn't fit, take note of the polarity of the plug, cut the plug off your old one, and splice it into the spare. I did this 8 gorillion years ago using a gamecube power adapter to run an EEPC since both are a handy 12v.
Though all that is less relevant these days since a universal power brick is 20bux on amazon and 90% of new laptops just use a USB-C brick.

This is what a minimalistic "serious" home computing setup looks like, anno 2025.

If you throw in an anime video card this would be peak /g/ trooncore

 

[⚞⛇⚟]

A lot of this surplus auctions near me sell a bunch of used printers. Are those good enough, or should I try to buy something new?

 

[VIPPER?]

A lot of this surplus auctions near me sell a bunch of used printers. Are those good enough, or should I try to buy something new?

Ink costs more than a printer at this point. Just go to Kinkos nigga (unless it's a Brother model you can reload with a syringe)

 

[Chuck 'n Geck]

But I consider myself above these people technologically and have both a scanner and printer (as separate items, not combined). The question is, if I had a little more money and space, what could I get that would lessen the need to spend money at third party establishments? What, besides a printer and scanner, are really necessary to have some level of self-sufficiency?

...you know, I honestly can't think of anything beyond printing and/or internet that normies and extreme minimalists need to go to libraries or copy shops for, - so as far as I'm aware, you're already golden.

I can only suggest maaaaaaybe a backup power station and a DVD drive, but that first one is a good-to-have, not exactly an "essential".