1 00:00:00,060 --> 00:00:02,780 The comments on this one are gonna be a doozy… 2 00:00:02,780 --> 00:00:03,600 Hello there! 3 00:00:03,600 --> 00:00:07,340 Did you know that some people work differently than you do? 4 00:00:07,340 --> 00:00:08,540 Weird, right? 5 00:00:08,550 --> 00:00:15,080 Well, today I’d like to talk to you about one of the fundamental tools I use to do my work. 6 00:00:15,080 --> 00:00:15,760 This! 7 00:00:16,200 --> 00:00:17,440 A laptop‽ 8 00:00:17,440 --> 00:00:19,940 You edit videos from a laptop‽ 9 00:00:19,940 --> 00:00:22,580 Why are you doing that to yourself‽ 10 00:00:23,140 --> 00:00:26,340 Oh it gets worse; I often write them on a Chromebook! 11 00:00:26,340 --> 00:00:30,020 But anyway, this is much more than just a laptop. 12 00:00:30,020 --> 00:00:33,360 It’s also quite a capable desktop computer. 13 00:00:33,360 --> 00:00:35,140 I know, it’s confusing, 14 00:00:35,140 --> 00:00:37,620 but that’s what we’re gonna be talking about today! 15 00:00:37,620 --> 00:00:38,520 But first! 16 00:00:38,520 --> 00:00:40,080 Hi! I just wa… 17 00:00:40,080 --> 00:00:41,600 ooh, wrong shirt! 18 00:00:41,600 --> 00:00:42,380 Hi! 19 00:00:42,380 --> 00:00:47,420 I just want to set the record straight and let you all know right now that 20 00:00:47,420 --> 00:00:53,600 I’ve also got a duper super pancy fants for-real desktop PC. 21 00:00:53,610 --> 00:00:56,260 You can tell it’s good 'cause it has blue lights in it! 22 00:00:56,260 --> 00:00:58,870 But you see, through some deep, 23 00:00:58,870 --> 00:01:02,520 deep soul-searching, I’ve come to the conclusion that… 24 00:01:02,520 --> 00:01:04,220 I don’t really need this thing. 25 00:01:04,220 --> 00:01:08,280 It’s... it's nice to have, but I don’t really need it. 26 00:01:08,280 --> 00:01:14,020 You see, while I need a fair amount of computing horsepower to do what I do for you, 27 00:01:14,020 --> 00:01:16,660 I actually don’t need all that much. 28 00:01:16,660 --> 00:01:23,480 especially because video editing is only but a small part of my overall video making process. 29 00:01:23,480 --> 00:01:28,600 Now first - let me be clear that, just as I said there are people that work differently from you, 30 00:01:28,600 --> 00:01:30,840 there are people that work differently from me! 31 00:01:30,840 --> 00:01:37,280 Some people do nothing but video editing all day long, and they’re certainly not gonna find my tools adequate. 32 00:01:37,280 --> 00:01:39,360 Or maybe you work with CAD 33 00:01:39,360 --> 00:01:44,200 or other modelling software and you need some big beefy GPU at your disposal - 34 00:01:44,200 --> 00:01:47,180 but specifically to you folks - hang tight. 35 00:01:47,180 --> 00:01:52,860 What I’m about to show you in this video certainly isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution or anything, 36 00:01:52,860 --> 00:01:58,000 but it’s an option that I think is really underappreciated and also just… 37 00:01:58,000 --> 00:02:01,920 not very well known outside of specific corporate environments. 38 00:02:01,920 --> 00:02:05,740 And that option is a laptop and a dock. 39 00:02:05,740 --> 00:02:06,800 Watch this magic! 40 00:02:06,800 --> 00:02:08,780 Here’s my laptop all neat and pretty. 41 00:02:08,780 --> 00:02:10,980 And here’s a desk! Slightly… 42 00:02:10,980 --> 00:02:11,760 less neat. 43 00:02:11,760 --> 00:02:15,960 Over here is a cute little box with a bunch of cables and junk plugged into it, 44 00:02:15,960 --> 00:02:20,020 and if I take this single cable and plug it into the Thunderbolt 3-capable 45 00:02:20,030 --> 00:02:22,400 USB-C port of my computer… 46 00:02:22,400 --> 00:02:26,690 suddenly my laptop has transformed into a veritable desktop computer, 47 00:02:26,690 --> 00:02:28,620 part of a complete desktop breakfast. 48 00:02:28,620 --> 00:02:30,500 I’ve got a real keyboard and mouse, 49 00:02:30,500 --> 00:02:34,500 a high resolution ultra-wide monitor (and I could even have a second one if I wanted, 50 00:02:34,500 --> 00:02:38,260 or just use the laptop’s own screen as a second display), 51 00:02:38,260 --> 00:02:42,660 I’ve also got some real speakers, and thanks to the fact that the dock has ethernet, 52 00:02:42,660 --> 00:02:47,880 I could even have this wired into networking and printers and whatever other junk I might need! 53 00:02:47,880 --> 00:02:51,280 Oh, and it’s charging the laptop through that cable, too, 54 00:02:51,280 --> 00:02:56,920 so it really is 100% functionally equivalent to a desktop PC. 55 00:02:56,920 --> 00:03:01,240 And here’s the kicker - when I’m working on my videos in Adobe Premiere, 56 00:03:01,240 --> 00:03:09,020 I don’t notice a difference at all between my laptop and my desktop when it comes to overall performance. 57 00:03:09,020 --> 00:03:12,360 Granted, they are running essentially the same processors 58 00:03:12,360 --> 00:03:17,060 (a 7700K in the desktop and a 7700HQ in here) 59 00:03:17,060 --> 00:03:20,480 but there’s a pretty substantial difference in graphics hardware. 60 00:03:20,480 --> 00:03:23,000 A 1050 vs. a 1080. 61 00:03:23,000 --> 00:03:29,480 Despite that, there’s only one thing that I know my laptop doesn’t do as well, and that’s export the video file. 62 00:03:29,480 --> 00:03:35,000 Some of that is down to the notoriously flawed thermal design of this Dell XPS 15 63 00:03:35,000 --> 00:03:39,360 the voltage regulator modules overheat causing the most annoying throttling ever, 64 00:03:39,360 --> 00:03:44,280 not thermal but power throttling and it sucks (here’s hoping the redesign has fixed that)- 65 00:03:44,280 --> 00:03:49,260 but thanks to the latest Adobe update which takes advantage of the GPU for actual rendering, 66 00:03:49,260 --> 00:03:51,260 that issue is much less pronounced. 67 00:03:51,260 --> 00:03:57,140 As it stands now, my laptop is about 20% slower than my desktop at rendering a video. 68 00:03:57,140 --> 00:03:59,860 So it takes like 20 minutes instead of 16. 69 00:03:59,860 --> 00:04:01,860 Tragic, I know. 70 00:04:01,860 --> 00:04:05,740 Now I’m sure many of you already know about the wonderful world of docks. 71 00:04:05,740 --> 00:04:09,200 Some of you might have even heard some sort of tech tips about them. 72 00:04:09,200 --> 00:04:10,980 But for those who haven’t, 73 00:04:10,980 --> 00:04:16,240 well I’m here today to extoll the virtues of this wonderful method of personal computing, 74 00:04:16,240 --> 00:04:20,260 and also tell you about some of its current challenges and future opportunities. 75 00:04:20,260 --> 00:04:27,000 Because, you see, I think there are many more of you out there that would benefit from this computing lifestyle 76 00:04:27,000 --> 00:04:28,340 than you realize. 77 00:04:28,340 --> 00:04:32,800 A modest laptop these days is more than powerful enough for the average person, 78 00:04:32,800 --> 00:04:39,600 and if you, like me, value having both mobile and desktop computing capabilities, 79 00:04:39,600 --> 00:04:44,260 you might find having one device fill both roles to be quite splendid. 80 00:04:44,260 --> 00:04:48,120 Oh and before I forget, this isn’t exclusive to Windows machines. 81 00:04:48,120 --> 00:04:51,760 Macbooks can make use of docks too, but don’t ask me for any advice there 82 00:04:51,760 --> 00:04:53,280 ‘cause I don’t have any. 83 00:04:53,280 --> 00:04:54,590 Those of you using Linux, 84 00:04:54,590 --> 00:04:58,540 you’ll just have to figure it out yourself like you do everything else about your computer. 85 00:04:58,540 --> 00:05:01,340 First, an acknowledgment of history. 86 00:05:01,340 --> 00:05:04,860 This isn’t anything new, docking solutions have been around for a long time. 87 00:05:04,860 --> 00:05:08,080 Lots of them involved weird, giant proprietary connectors 88 00:05:08,080 --> 00:05:11,740 on bottoms of laptops that would give your old iPod pin envy. 89 00:05:11,740 --> 00:05:17,460 What is new-ish is the world of USB-C or/and Thunderbolt 3 docks. 90 00:05:17,460 --> 00:05:21,460 And, well, regrettably this world ain't perfect yet. 91 00:05:21,460 --> 00:05:23,620 Particularly on the Thunderbolt side. 92 00:05:23,620 --> 00:05:28,260 There seem to still be a few compatibility bugs floating around, and support for Thunderbolt 3 in general 93 00:05:28,260 --> 00:05:30,560 remains somewhat spotty and also… 94 00:05:30,560 --> 00:05:33,020 just incredibly confusing. 95 00:05:33,020 --> 00:05:38,220 Look, I know we’re heading towards One Connector to Rule Them All which is pretty great, 96 00:05:38,220 --> 00:05:41,790 but having the same physical connector support so many wildly 97 00:05:41,790 --> 00:05:45,020 different technical standards is not easy to parse. 98 00:05:45,020 --> 00:05:48,300 Let’s not get started on USB 4, either. 99 00:05:48,300 --> 00:05:52,800 And even where compatibility seems assured, there are sometimes other nuanced issues. 100 00:05:52,810 --> 00:05:57,830 Like, in the case of Thunderbolt, how many PCI express lanes does that particular connector 101 00:05:57,830 --> 00:06:00,380 on your particular laptop support. 102 00:06:00,380 --> 00:06:02,040 Or even weirder things. 103 00:06:02,040 --> 00:06:09,070 For example, this model of dock is specifically listed as compatible by Dell with this specific model of laptop. 104 00:06:09,070 --> 00:06:14,620 Which is cool, because it is, but the dock was available with two different power supplies. 105 00:06:14,620 --> 00:06:19,300 This laptop needs the larger one to work correctly, otherwise it might have been power limited 106 00:06:19,300 --> 00:06:23,100 by the smaller power supply, or potentially it wouldn’t have been able to charge from it, 107 00:06:23,100 --> 00:06:25,120 or perhaps it wouldn’t work at all. 108 00:06:25,120 --> 00:06:29,050 This appears to still be a factor with currently available models. 109 00:06:29,050 --> 00:06:34,710 There’s definitely work to be done to make this a more seamless and universal experience, 110 00:06:34,710 --> 00:06:39,270 like for example the fact that many docks aren’t even using Thunderbolt at all and 111 00:06:39,270 --> 00:06:45,400 are just operating over USB (and for the moment those seem to be more universally compatible). 112 00:06:45,400 --> 00:06:48,340 But for what it’s worth things are wonderful - 113 00:06:48,340 --> 00:06:52,820 no, blissful when you have a known-compatible setup. 114 00:06:52,820 --> 00:06:56,280 Take, well, take this exact PC. 115 00:06:56,280 --> 00:07:00,760 The laptop’s display is a downright gorgeous 4K panel, 116 00:07:00,760 --> 00:07:07,960 but since 4K on a 15 inch screen is a little ridiculous, I have Windows scaling everything to 175% 117 00:07:07,960 --> 00:07:10,460 so I can see things. 118 00:07:10,460 --> 00:07:13,389 Windows gets a lot of hate for how it handles scaling, and to be honest 119 00:07:13,389 --> 00:07:16,380 it deserves it (though it has gotten much better lately), 120 00:07:16,380 --> 00:07:21,420 but to its credit when I plug in the dock, it correctly remembers to turn off the scaling 121 00:07:21,420 --> 00:07:23,680 and everything recombobulates pretty well. 122 00:07:23,680 --> 00:07:28,440 After a few seconds of reconfigurationizing and handshakes and whatnot everything is good to go. 123 00:07:28,440 --> 00:07:31,940 Now I have a honest-to-goodness desktop! 124 00:07:31,940 --> 00:07:38,060 This particular dock is fairly basic (and also I think discontinued) but has connections for three monitors 125 00:07:38,060 --> 00:07:42,400 (though I'm pretty sure it's limited to using only two at a time, if memory serves) 126 00:07:42,400 --> 00:07:46,700 over HDMI, Mini DisplayPort, or VGA if you wanna go that route, 127 00:07:46,700 --> 00:07:51,740 gigabit Ethernet, 2 USB 2.0 ports, 3 (but he said 4) USB 3 ports two on the front two on the back, 128 00:07:51,740 --> 00:07:54,477 a rear audio jack, and a front headphone jack. 129 00:07:54,477 --> 00:08:00,449 You can add a hub onto one of the USB ports if you needed, but also keep in mind that all of the ports 130 00:08:00,449 --> 00:08:03,980 and the card reader on the laptop itself remain usable. 131 00:08:04,000 --> 00:08:05,940 If you have any, that is! 132 00:08:05,940 --> 00:08:11,780 But, sadly, even this officially compatible dock from the same manufacturer as the computer 133 00:08:11,790 --> 00:08:13,780 has misbehaved a few times. 134 00:08:13,780 --> 00:08:16,000 Occasionally when I first plug it in, 135 00:08:16,000 --> 00:08:20,300 it just doesn’t notice that that happened and won’t do anything until I cycle the power to it. 136 00:08:20,300 --> 00:08:25,120 I still haven’t figured out when exactly the little power button on it is going to actually wake up 137 00:08:25,120 --> 00:08:30,240 the laptop when it’s asleep or shut down - it seems to have about a 70% success rate. 138 00:08:30,240 --> 00:08:34,340 And as seamless as the overall experience is when it’s playing nicely, 139 00:08:34,340 --> 00:08:38,240 the way Windows handles its audio devices is a little… 140 00:08:38,240 --> 00:08:42,580 strange, and a few fights have occurred between Premiere and Windows 141 00:08:42,580 --> 00:08:44,920 regarding which audio should be going where. 142 00:08:44,920 --> 00:08:46,370 It’s fun! 143 00:08:46,370 --> 00:08:51,180 Now, you might be asking, why is he telling me all of these bad things if he wants me 144 00:08:51,180 --> 00:08:52,980 to like docks so much? 145 00:08:52,980 --> 00:08:57,980 Well, for one thing, I don’t want to oversell the experience as being universally amazing. 146 00:08:57,980 --> 00:09:01,380 Because as it stands now, if you (or someone you know) is 147 00:09:01,380 --> 00:09:07,900 not computer savvy enough to be comfortable with A) finding a compatible laptop and dock combo 148 00:09:07,900 --> 00:09:12,940 and B) a bit of occasional troubleshooting this might be a bit frustrating. 149 00:09:12,940 --> 00:09:17,980 Now, a bit ‘o googlin’ reveals that at least for general purpose docks things are much much 150 00:09:17,980 --> 00:09:22,900 better than they used to be (which is corroborated by my personal experience)… however 151 00:09:22,900 --> 00:09:26,820 things just aren’t quite perfect yet. I won’t sugarcoat it. 152 00:09:26,820 --> 00:09:30,140 But, assuming you’re comfortable with a little turning it off and on again 153 00:09:30,140 --> 00:09:33,380 (and/or that things improve as I’m sure they will) 154 00:09:33,380 --> 00:09:39,340 let me tell you why this might be the bee’s knees for thee. You see, if you’re like me, 155 00:09:39,340 --> 00:09:43,900 you want to be able to do anything you might do with a computer on the go. 156 00:09:43,900 --> 00:09:48,680 I want a portable machine with a full-blown desktop operating system 157 00:09:48,680 --> 00:09:53,529 with all of my delightfully buggy Adobe software at the sometimes-ready. 158 00:09:53,529 --> 00:09:59,580 So, a few years ago I purchased this fairly high-end laptop ($1,600 for those curious) 159 00:09:59,580 --> 00:10:01,880 which can handle that competently. 160 00:10:01,880 --> 00:10:05,500 Now say you want to also have a desktop computer. 161 00:10:05,500 --> 00:10:10,440 There are plenty of reasons you might want one, such as the dramatically improved ergonomics of a 162 00:10:10,440 --> 00:10:15,000 real chair with a real monitor at a real height and a real keyboard and a real mouse. 163 00:10:15,000 --> 00:10:18,960 Maybe you’ve got a printer and scanner thingy set up there all nice and convenient like. 164 00:10:18,960 --> 00:10:24,820 And maybe you’ve got a bunch of external drives and other peripherals just dying for something to talk to. 165 00:10:24,820 --> 00:10:31,720 Well, you could buy another computer to make use of those things… or you could just instead 166 00:10:31,720 --> 00:10:33,040 buy a dock. 167 00:10:33,040 --> 00:10:38,700 Then, the very same computer that you use on the go can access that monitor and that printer scanner thing 168 00:10:38,700 --> 00:10:42,620 and that keyboard and that mouse and even your external drives or whatever else 169 00:10:42,620 --> 00:10:44,840 all with just a single cable. 170 00:10:44,840 --> 00:10:49,860 And, because the dock will charge the laptop for you, if you do a lot of back-and-forth 171 00:10:49,860 --> 00:10:55,080 between mobile and stationary computing, well you can just leave your laptop’s power brick and 172 00:10:55,080 --> 00:10:57,700 other portable-mode accessories in your bag. 173 00:10:57,700 --> 00:11:00,980 Just take the laptop out, plug it in, and boom! 174 00:11:00,980 --> 00:11:02,240 Full-blown desktop. 175 00:11:02,240 --> 00:11:04,880 No need to get out the power brick or anything at all. 176 00:11:04,880 --> 00:11:07,380 And when you need to take your computer somewhere, 177 00:11:07,380 --> 00:11:11,340 all it takes is *bink* detaching from the dock and putting in your bag. 178 00:11:11,340 --> 00:11:15,900 The very same computer is now your laptop, fully charged and ready to go. 179 00:11:15,900 --> 00:11:20,660 I like this solution a lot. So much in fact that I’m considering upgrading to the new 180 00:11:20,670 --> 00:11:25,980 Dell XPS 17, which seems to have addressed the annoying thermal issues of this design, 181 00:11:25,980 --> 00:11:28,920 and potentially retiring my desktop altogether. 182 00:11:28,920 --> 00:11:31,020 I know, blasphemy! 183 00:11:31,020 --> 00:11:32,380 But here’s the thing; 184 00:11:32,380 --> 00:11:36,079 I have a somewhat minimalist philosophy when it comes to my computer stuff 185 00:11:36,079 --> 00:11:38,960 (and more generally my IT life). 186 00:11:38,960 --> 00:11:45,340 I don’t like spending any time on perfecting my workflow or optimizing system performance or any of that junk. 187 00:11:45,340 --> 00:11:49,680 I just want something that allows me to do my work with basic competency. 188 00:11:49,680 --> 00:11:55,180 Oh, and speaking of competency, one of the more exciting things that Thunderbolt 3 specifically has 189 00:11:55,180 --> 00:11:59,420 allowed to happen is docks with external GPU enclosures. 190 00:11:59,420 --> 00:12:03,660 Thunderbolt 3 carries certified fresh PCI Express through it, 191 00:12:03,660 --> 00:12:08,200 meaning that real graphics cards can operate over Thunderbolt 3. 192 00:12:08,200 --> 00:12:12,900 For those of you that are into gaming or otherwise need a powerful GPU at your disposal, 193 00:12:12,900 --> 00:12:14,660 this is an exciting option. 194 00:12:14,660 --> 00:12:19,660 Slap an RTX 2080 in there or whatever is current and suddenly your laptop 195 00:12:19,670 --> 00:12:23,820 is able to take advantage of an actual desktop class GPU. 196 00:12:23,820 --> 00:12:27,440 Now, if you wanted to do this, you should know that the whole 197 00:12:27,440 --> 00:12:30,600 “how many PCI express lanes does this port carry?” 198 00:12:30,600 --> 00:12:35,740 becomes a significant factor, and compatibility becomes even more dicey so… 199 00:12:35,740 --> 00:12:39,860 I’m not saying this is perfect, but I do expect it to improve as time goes on. 200 00:12:39,860 --> 00:12:44,540 If it interests you I’d suggest you do some research on the topic before you get too excited. 201 00:12:44,540 --> 00:12:49,260 Compatibility between devices seems to be not-at-all guaranteed at this point, 202 00:12:49,260 --> 00:12:52,660 especially when you factor in other operating systems. 203 00:12:52,660 --> 00:12:57,450 Now, there are some people who like to insist that I’m somehow losing the game of life 204 00:12:57,450 --> 00:13:00,060 by using a laptop for video editing. 205 00:13:00,060 --> 00:13:02,800 Some people say I’ve wasted money on a laptop. 206 00:13:02,800 --> 00:13:06,820 I could have saved like… 400 whole dollars if I built my own desktop 207 00:13:06,820 --> 00:13:09,060 which is not portable but nevermind that. 208 00:13:09,060 --> 00:13:16,040 Or sometimes they insist that by not using the fastest available hardware, I’m slowing myself down. 209 00:13:16,040 --> 00:13:20,840 This, in particular, leads to an assertion I’ve had to make over and over again, 210 00:13:20,840 --> 00:13:23,100 particularly on Twitter (said with extra salt); 211 00:13:23,100 --> 00:13:26,260 Render time is not work time. 212 00:13:26,260 --> 00:13:27,960 At all. 213 00:13:27,960 --> 00:13:32,860 When I make a video, even a simple one, there’s gonna be at least two days of script writing 214 00:13:32,860 --> 00:13:36,860 and revision (even with a script like this in which I don’t really do any research at all), 215 00:13:36,860 --> 00:13:41,529 at least a full day of shooting video (or more depending on the project’s complexity), 216 00:13:41,529 --> 00:13:45,880 and then usually two or three days at the very least of editing work. 217 00:13:45,880 --> 00:13:53,500 The time it takes my computer to turn all that work into a finished video file is an entirely insignificant factor, 218 00:13:53,500 --> 00:13:55,740 because it’s not work to me! 219 00:13:55,740 --> 00:13:58,780 It’s about as much work as preheating your oven. 220 00:13:58,780 --> 00:14:02,800 All I need is a computer that can handle the editing part, 221 00:14:02,800 --> 00:14:05,720 that’s the only part where I'm actually interacting with it 222 00:14:05,800 --> 00:14:07,580 without being frustrating. 223 00:14:07,580 --> 00:14:12,020 If I can scrub through the timeline and preview the video without issue, I’m fine! 224 00:14:12,020 --> 00:14:15,470 And both this laptop and my desktop, which are both 225 00:14:15,470 --> 00:14:18,940 three years old now, are more than capable of that. 226 00:14:18,940 --> 00:14:24,340 Editing only taxes hardware in short bursts, so even my thermally challenged laptop 227 00:14:24,340 --> 00:14:29,900 doesn’t have a problem with that very long and involved part of the creative process. 228 00:14:29,900 --> 00:14:34,740 Granted, I don’t shoot video with a RED 8K camera or even a BlackMagic Pocket or whatever… 229 00:14:34,740 --> 00:14:36,900 but I don’t feel like I need to. 230 00:14:36,900 --> 00:14:41,160 For my work, my camera (which is a Lumix G7 by the way) is totally fine, 231 00:14:41,160 --> 00:14:44,400 and I don’t feel held back by it, at least not yet. 232 00:14:44,400 --> 00:14:46,860 I’m probably gonna keep using it ‘till it either breaks, 233 00:14:46,860 --> 00:14:51,130 or I find it is holding me back. If I got a new camera and find that my computer can’t 234 00:14:51,130 --> 00:14:55,280 handle its output then sure, I might need to invest in a more beastly machine. 235 00:14:55,280 --> 00:14:58,720 But right now… that would just be a waste of money. 236 00:14:58,720 --> 00:15:03,600 And also time. Transition costs are a real thing, you know. 237 00:15:03,600 --> 00:15:08,060 Serious talk time; I’m trying not to toot my own horn here, especially because there 238 00:15:08,060 --> 00:15:12,950 are upgrades to my equipment that I want to make, but I think that one of the most damaging 239 00:15:12,950 --> 00:15:19,300 things the tech community has done is create lust for shiny new things and worse, suggest 240 00:15:19,300 --> 00:15:23,660 the thought that without them… your work is less valuable. 241 00:15:23,660 --> 00:15:24,715 That’s not true. 242 00:15:24,715 --> 00:15:26,400 And it never was. 243 00:15:26,400 --> 00:15:29,880 You are what makes your work unique, not the tools you use. 244 00:15:29,880 --> 00:15:34,880 If you have the resources to get the most whizbang stuff out there by all means have fun. 245 00:15:34,880 --> 00:15:37,940 But don’t think that you can’t get started with what you have. 246 00:15:37,940 --> 00:15:41,880 And while I know and understand that if your tools are faster or better 247 00:15:41,880 --> 00:15:45,649 you can get more done, you need to put thought into where those 248 00:15:45,649 --> 00:15:50,340 time savings will actually occur, and whether they’re actually helpful. 249 00:15:50,340 --> 00:15:57,280 For me, an independent content creator, my computer is not and has never been a limiting factor. 250 00:15:57,280 --> 00:16:02,459 And making regular upgrades to it would be more of a bother than it would be helpful. 251 00:16:02,459 --> 00:16:06,690 I deal with a lot of people telling me that I should be doing things this way or that way, 252 00:16:06,690 --> 00:16:10,820 and ya know that’s fine. A lot of it is earnest offers of help. 253 00:16:10,820 --> 00:16:13,040 Or at least is perceived to be. 254 00:16:13,040 --> 00:16:19,680 But a lot of it also doesn’t bother to understand my workflow, my desire for simplicity rather than complexity, 255 00:16:19,680 --> 00:16:26,160 or my philosophy that time spent chasing performance gains is usually time poorly spent. 256 00:16:26,160 --> 00:16:29,360 If it’s something you enjoy, or if it’s your hobby, by all means. 257 00:16:29,360 --> 00:16:32,440 But I’ll tell you now that I am much more frustrated by 258 00:16:32,440 --> 00:16:36,120 those who try and tell me why I’m being held back by the way I work 259 00:16:36,120 --> 00:16:39,300 than I’ve ever been frustrated by this computer. 260 00:16:39,300 --> 00:16:43,640 To put it bluntly, I like to do work on my computer. 261 00:16:43,640 --> 00:16:45,640 Not work on my computer. 262 00:16:45,640 --> 00:16:47,720 And that’s why I don’t use Linux! 263 00:16:47,720 --> 00:16:48,520 Yeah. 264 00:16:48,520 --> 00:16:49,840 I went there. 265 00:16:49,840 --> 00:16:54,120 Anyway, that aside aside, let’s talk about cases where this wouldn’t be appropriate 266 00:16:54,120 --> 00:16:55,440 or desirable. 267 00:16:55,440 --> 00:16:57,100 First - gaming. 268 00:16:57,100 --> 00:16:57,940 Maybe. 269 00:16:57,940 --> 00:17:00,540 GPU enclosures make that a possibility, but there’s a lot 270 00:17:00,540 --> 00:17:01,940 of nuance there that I won’t go into. 271 00:17:01,940 --> 00:17:06,400 Secondly - people who don’t need a full-blown desktop OS on the go. 272 00:17:06,400 --> 00:17:09,959 If you’re someone who does a lot of work on an iPad then maybe you don’t 273 00:17:09,959 --> 00:17:14,500 use a laptop at all in which case this solution is entirely meaningless to you. 274 00:17:14,500 --> 00:17:21,040 And third - real power-users who need or can otherwise take advantage of a threadripping desktop PC. 275 00:17:21,040 --> 00:17:26,100 For you, even if you also have a laptop, a dock is likely not of interest. 276 00:17:26,100 --> 00:17:31,800 But if you’re someone who uses a desktop operating system on the go with any regularity 277 00:17:31,800 --> 00:17:34,580 (meaning, you’re someone with a somewhat capable laptop) 278 00:17:34,580 --> 00:17:37,809 and you also like having a true desktop experience 279 00:17:37,809 --> 00:17:42,080 for long, agonizing sessions of staring at Premiere and hoping it doesn’t crash when 280 00:17:42,080 --> 00:17:47,480 you import that jpeg, then perhaps there’s no need to have two computers. 281 00:17:47,480 --> 00:17:50,620 I can honestly say at this point that I really don’t. 282 00:17:50,620 --> 00:17:56,760 And I would have actually saved money had I bought this laptop before I bought my desktop. 283 00:17:56,760 --> 00:17:59,330 I know, that just blew some minds out there. 284 00:17:59,330 --> 00:18:03,060 I could have saved money by buying this first. 285 00:18:03,060 --> 00:18:05,850 Because, well, even with its thermal issues 286 00:18:05,850 --> 00:18:10,480 which do annoy me quite a lot it has yet to get in my way. 287 00:18:10,480 --> 00:18:15,920 I’ve spent much more time trying to eliminate the thermal issues than I could ever have hoped to save 288 00:18:15,920 --> 00:18:17,440 by fixing them. 289 00:18:17,440 --> 00:18:20,040 And that’s what I mean about chasing performance gains; 290 00:18:20,040 --> 00:18:22,809 it can often be a silly time waster. 291 00:18:22,809 --> 00:18:26,780 Now, to address the concerns of the laptop haters out there, you’re right! 292 00:18:26,780 --> 00:18:31,669 Laptops tend to not last as long, they’re harder to repair, often impossible to upgrade, and 293 00:18:31,669 --> 00:18:36,679 the cost of a laptop with equivalent performance to any particular desktop is always higher. 294 00:18:36,679 --> 00:18:42,240 Plus, as my laptop is a wonderful example of, many have disastrously flawed thermal designs 295 00:18:42,240 --> 00:18:44,400 so long gaming sessions or... 296 00:18:44,400 --> 00:18:47,460 rendering video, can be a problem. 297 00:18:47,460 --> 00:18:52,340 But personally I think that shouldn’t be something thrown at laptops as a category, particularly since 298 00:18:52,340 --> 00:18:54,700 better thermal designs do exist. 299 00:18:54,700 --> 00:18:57,440 They’re just frustratingly uncommon. 300 00:18:57,440 --> 00:19:03,600 But more importantly, those concerns are more often than not irrelevant to the average person. 301 00:19:03,609 --> 00:19:08,690 If you’re concerned about the thermal performance or upgradability of your machine, you are 302 00:19:08,690 --> 00:19:14,000 probably an enthusiast, power user, or gamer. There are a lot of you out there, yes, 303 00:19:14,000 --> 00:19:16,080 I'm not saying you don't exist, but 304 00:19:16,080 --> 00:19:19,460 there are also a lot of people who don’t fall into those categories 305 00:19:19,460 --> 00:19:22,020 and couldn’t care less. 306 00:19:22,020 --> 00:19:27,850 Honestly, I lean in that direction, though I’m not shy to performing a few upgrades. 307 00:19:27,850 --> 00:19:33,630 And here’s the thing - even I, a professional content creator (I think I get to say that now) 308 00:19:33,630 --> 00:19:37,540 am fine with this flawed, three year old machine. 309 00:19:37,540 --> 00:19:41,860 There is something to be said for the upgradability of a desktop PC. That’s for sure. 310 00:19:41,860 --> 00:19:45,980 And it’s true that my laptop might break long before my desktop would. 311 00:19:45,980 --> 00:19:48,060 But here’s my truth; 312 00:19:48,060 --> 00:19:52,220 I want a laptop which can handle everything I do for this job. 313 00:19:52,220 --> 00:19:57,080 I want to be able to take it with me when I travel and be productive anywhere. 314 00:19:57,080 --> 00:20:01,740 That means I’m always going to have a powerful portable computer. 315 00:20:01,740 --> 00:20:07,180 And given that, why would I also need a powerful stationary desktop? 316 00:20:07,180 --> 00:20:12,309 The fact is I don’t. Thanks to a dock, I can have the best of both worlds 317 00:20:12,309 --> 00:20:17,179 with one machine. It doesn’t matter if my laptop cost more than an equivalent desktop 318 00:20:17,179 --> 00:20:22,249 or if it breaks sooner or any of those other concerns because I will always have one. 319 00:20:22,249 --> 00:20:26,920 It’s that subset of people where I think a dock can be really valuable. 320 00:20:26,920 --> 00:20:29,480 And actually save you money. 321 00:20:29,480 --> 00:20:33,120 And there’s one other benefit that I think deserves attention; energy use. 322 00:20:33,120 --> 00:20:37,980 Laptops are always, at least to some extent, designed to optimize their energy efficiency. 323 00:20:37,980 --> 00:20:42,480 Because if you’ve got a battery onboard, you want to maximize the time you can use it. 324 00:20:42,480 --> 00:20:43,660 Duh. 325 00:20:43,660 --> 00:20:47,799 Desktop PCs have gotten a lot better in recent years, but in general efficiency isn’t a 326 00:20:47,799 --> 00:20:49,140 huge concern of theirs. 327 00:20:49,140 --> 00:20:54,500 My desktop pulls more power from the wall at idle than this does does when rendering a video. 328 00:20:54,500 --> 00:20:57,280 And that’s… well that adds up. 329 00:20:57,280 --> 00:21:03,200 Which might be part of why docked laptops are increasingly gaining favor in the corporate environment. 330 00:21:03,200 --> 00:21:07,020 When you’ve got hundreds of computers running for 8 hours a day or more, 331 00:21:07,020 --> 00:21:11,460 you can save some serious dough on your energy bills if they’re all laptops. 332 00:21:11,460 --> 00:21:16,920 And boy are companies that made that switch happy given that there’s a pandemic right now. 333 00:21:16,920 --> 00:21:21,540 If you can take your entire computer home with you when needed, that’s a nice bonus. 334 00:21:21,540 --> 00:21:26,000 But I’d like to see docks get a little more traction outside of the corporate world. 335 00:21:26,000 --> 00:21:31,179 As I said, I’m honestly to the point where having an actual desktop PC is superfluous 336 00:21:31,179 --> 00:21:32,420 for my needs. 337 00:21:32,420 --> 00:21:38,280 Yes I want a desktop computer, but there’s no reason it needs to be a 15 pound box on the floor. 338 00:21:38,280 --> 00:21:42,169 One thing that DESPERATELY needs to happen, and not just for the benefit of docks, 339 00:21:42,169 --> 00:21:46,980 is consistent branding and clear delineation between USB-C and Thunderbolt. 340 00:21:46,980 --> 00:21:51,660 It’s a mess and there are docking solutions using both technical standards. 341 00:21:51,660 --> 00:21:56,369 Given that Thunderbolt 3 is more powerful overall with the potential for eGPUs and whatnot, I would 342 00:21:56,369 --> 00:22:01,440 expect it to eventually become the defacto standard but right now that’s not the case 343 00:22:01,440 --> 00:22:05,340 (and the future is anything but clear) so if you’re interested in this as an idea 344 00:22:05,340 --> 00:22:08,739 I cannot stress enough that you should make sure whatever dock you’re looking at is 345 00:22:08,740 --> 00:22:10,780 compatible with your computer. 346 00:22:10,780 --> 00:22:15,280 And also, since this is the world of tech, unfortunately we can’t be assured things are gonna be 347 00:22:15,280 --> 00:22:20,580 anything near stable. If these rumors that Macs are ditching x86 architecture are true, 348 00:22:21,680 --> 00:22:24,860 well I wonder how Thunderbolt will stay a thing in that ecosystem. 349 00:22:24,860 --> 00:22:29,360 Perhaps it will just be fine but… I can’t imagine things are gonna just be all hunky dory 350 00:22:29,360 --> 00:22:32,180 (particularly with external GPUs). 351 00:22:32,180 --> 00:22:37,020 The way we compute is constantly being upended, and in fact that’s one of the primary reasons 352 00:22:37,020 --> 00:22:39,860 desktop PCs have largely fallen out of favor. 353 00:22:39,860 --> 00:22:45,660 I mean, loads of people hardly use traditional computers at all anymore, laptop or desktop. 354 00:22:45,660 --> 00:22:49,080 I’m sure that annoys all you gamers out there but it’s true. 355 00:22:49,080 --> 00:22:54,480 And speaking of rumors of switching to ARM, here’s perhaps the most embarrassing thing I own. 356 00:22:54,480 --> 00:22:58,220 This is a Microsoft Lumia 950XL 357 00:22:58,220 --> 00:23:00,940 the last flagship Windows phone. 358 00:23:01,400 --> 00:23:02,380 Yeah. 359 00:23:02,380 --> 00:23:04,120 I bought this! 360 00:23:04,120 --> 00:23:08,140 For the virtually all of you that are unfamiliar with this, it had one feature that 361 00:23:08,140 --> 00:23:12,980 I naively thought would change the smartphone game; Continuum. 362 00:23:12,980 --> 00:23:16,380 Microsoft developed a dock that worked with this phone (and certain others) 363 00:23:16,380 --> 00:23:21,580 to create a true Windows 10 desktop environment running from the phone itself. 364 00:23:21,580 --> 00:23:26,139 You could plug this phone into the dock and suddenly have full desktop-versions of the 365 00:23:26,140 --> 00:23:30,580 Microsoft Office suite and, hopefully down the road, other apps. 366 00:23:30,580 --> 00:23:31,940 I thought this was pretty neat! 367 00:23:31,940 --> 00:23:36,360 Imagine a world where your smartphone was the only computer you need. 368 00:23:36,360 --> 00:23:42,320 People envisioned laptop chassis which were basically just a display, keyboard, and extra battery for the phone, 369 00:23:42,320 --> 00:23:47,100 and it seemed like there was a lot of potential to make the phone the new PC. 370 00:23:47,100 --> 00:23:51,259 While I never once used it (I have the dock somewhere and might play around with it on 371 00:23:51,259 --> 00:23:55,280 the second channel at some point) I thought this could really be a game changer. 372 00:23:55,280 --> 00:23:56,039 Of course, 373 00:23:56,039 --> 00:23:56,820 it wasn’t, 374 00:23:56,820 --> 00:23:57,780 not at all, 375 00:23:57,780 --> 00:24:00,220 but it was a really neat idea. 376 00:24:00,220 --> 00:24:02,500 And frankly, if these rumors about Apple are true 377 00:24:03,760 --> 00:24:08,300 one has to wonder if iOS, iPadOS, and macOS will eventually merge into one, 378 00:24:08,300 --> 00:24:12,140 and Apple will reinvent this concept and probably get credit for it, too. 379 00:24:12,140 --> 00:24:14,200 But anyway, that’s neither here nor there. 380 00:24:14,200 --> 00:24:18,500 Also I should add that there are android phones out there today which can do this very thing 381 00:24:18,500 --> 00:24:22,700 with a USB-C dock, though obviously there are limitations there. 382 00:24:22,700 --> 00:24:26,499 I want to reiterate that this certainly isn’t for everyone. 383 00:24:26,499 --> 00:24:30,970 If I didn’t want the ability to edit videos in Premiere on the go, I probably would have 384 00:24:30,970 --> 00:24:32,920 a much cheaper laptop. 385 00:24:32,920 --> 00:24:37,180 I mean, I do, it’s my Chromebook, but that might be my only portable computer. 386 00:24:37,180 --> 00:24:43,500 And if spending more money on your desktop in favor of a cheaper or no laptop is your game, 387 00:24:43,500 --> 00:24:46,140 I’m not gonna stop you. That makes a lot of sense! 388 00:24:46,140 --> 00:24:53,119 In my shoes, though, I want a powerful laptop. And given that, my desktop is largely redundant 389 00:24:53,119 --> 00:24:54,260 at this point. 390 00:24:54,260 --> 00:24:57,340 I’m surely not going to get rid of it, not any time soon, and even if 391 00:24:57,340 --> 00:25:01,580 I do upgrade my laptop there is value in having a separate computer for other things. 392 00:25:01,580 --> 00:25:06,180 Compartmentalizing in that way can be quite helpful, and honestly I’m doing that right now. 393 00:25:06,180 --> 00:25:08,800 Plus, it doesn't hurt to have a backup machine. 394 00:25:08,800 --> 00:25:12,260 But I hope this video has gotten you thinking a bit. 395 00:25:12,260 --> 00:25:16,180 If nothing else, I just want to spread awareness of this solution. 396 00:25:16,180 --> 00:25:19,960 Even if you had no interest at all in a desktop PC, 397 00:25:19,960 --> 00:25:24,600 well maybe you’d like some way to seamlessly use a real monitor and stuff. 398 00:25:24,600 --> 00:25:27,860 With a dock, form factor is arbitrary. 399 00:25:27,860 --> 00:25:32,200 I bought my laptop before I was aware of the existence of Thunderbolt docks. 400 00:25:32,200 --> 00:25:36,340 It was actually an upgrade of my mom’s work computer that brought them to my attention. 401 00:25:36,340 --> 00:25:39,299 Seeing her new computer connect to two monitors and all the other 402 00:25:39,299 --> 00:25:43,300 junk with just a single USB-C cable made me realize 403 00:25:43,300 --> 00:25:49,260 hey … my laptop has one of those ports. Is that… could I do that? 404 00:25:49,260 --> 00:25:52,140 Serendipitously, a quick Google revealed that indeed, 405 00:25:52,140 --> 00:25:56,980 her new dock was compatible with my existing laptop, so I bought one of my own. 406 00:25:56,980 --> 00:26:01,160 And I really like it. Maybe you would, too. 407 00:26:01,160 --> 00:26:04,500 Thanks for watching! Again - super important thing here - 408 00:26:04,500 --> 00:26:06,920 I am not you and you are not me. 409 00:26:06,920 --> 00:26:09,760 My priorities are undoubtedly different from yours. 410 00:26:09,760 --> 00:26:11,360 And that’s OK! 411 00:26:11,360 --> 00:26:17,320 I think that being aware of options is always good, and I get the sense that not enough people are 412 00:26:17,330 --> 00:26:21,679 aware of this one. I hope this video can serve as an example of what’s possible with a 413 00:26:21,679 --> 00:26:24,680 little outside the desktop box thinking, 414 00:26:24,680 --> 00:26:30,820 and I also hope that at least some of you will take some inspiration from the fact that a three year old, 415 00:26:30,820 --> 00:26:35,220 thermally challenged laptop makes these videos for you. 416 00:26:36,120 --> 00:26:38,640 ♫ computationally smooth jazz ♫ 417 00:26:40,280 --> 00:26:42,440 *pbbbpbpbpb* noises 418 00:26:42,440 --> 00:26:45,360 What I’m talking about… ohhh, 419 00:26:45,360 --> 00:26:48,820 I’m not talk… well I am talking about it but that’s not how the sentence goes. 420 00:26:48,820 --> 00:26:51,480 Or my philosophy that time spent chasing performance 421 00:26:51,489 --> 00:26:54,180 gains is (Windows notification sound loudly interrupts from benind) … 422 00:26:54,180 --> 00:26:55,400 THANKS!! 423 00:26:57,060 --> 00:26:58,600 Of course... 424 00:26:58,600 --> 00:27:00,519 Though, I’m gonna say for all the people 425 00:27:00,519 --> 00:27:05,460 out there who are still given windows crap for this; it’s so much better than it used to be. 426 00:27:05,460 --> 00:27:08,380 I guarantee you this will be less than a minute. 427 00:27:09,300 --> 00:27:11,280 Probably less than 30 seconds. 428 00:27:12,740 --> 00:27:19,260 A modest laptops these days is more than (voice went really high and he made lots of weird noises) 429 00:27:19,260 --> 00:27:21,700 ...those of you that… shoot. 430 00:27:22,020 --> 00:27:25,179 This is like a minute-long line! What did I do this for? 431 00:27:25,179 --> 00:27:27,640 How many takes will this line take? My guess is… 432 00:27:27,640 --> 00:27:29,220 seventy. 433 00:27:29,220 --> 00:27:32,220 There seem to still be a few compatibility blugs… 434 00:27:32,220 --> 00:27:33,660 blugs? Bugs. 435 00:27:33,669 --> 00:27:36,540 Laptop’s display is a GORGEOUS 4k … 436 00:27:36,540 --> 00:27:37,640 GORGEOUS 437 00:27:39,000 --> 00:27:41,420 I know, I know, I give Linux a hard time. 438 00:27:41,420 --> 00:27:46,120 But I'll tell you know, it ain't gonna stop so long as there's the "BUT HAVE YOU CONSIDERED LINUX?" crowd 439 00:27:46,120 --> 00:27:51,000 always relentlessly popping in whenever I make the vaguest complaint about my PC. 440 00:27:51,000 --> 00:27:54,620 You're almost as bad as the "get a Mac" crowd at this point.