Essential IT Accessories for a New Setup
The big-ticket item — a laptop, desktop or printer — usually gets all the attention, but the smaller accessories around it are what make a workspace actually comfortable and functional day to day. Here's what's worth budgeting for.
Keyboard and mouse
If you're working full days at a desk, the keyboard and mouse that came bundled with a desktop (or a laptop's built-in trackpad) aren't always the most comfortable option for long stretches. A proper keyboard and mouse — ergonomic if you spend many hours a day at the keyboard — is one of the cheapest upgrades that makes the biggest daily difference.
A second monitor (and a dock, for laptop users)
Adding a second monitor is one of the most commonly cited productivity upgrades for anyone doing real desk work — more screen space means less window-juggling. For laptop users, a docking station turns a laptop into a proper desktop setup in one connection: external monitor, keyboard, mouse and charging, all through a single cable when you sit down.
Cables and adapters
Easy to forget until you need one and don't have it — the right HDMI, USB-C or DisplayPort cable, a power adapter that actually matches your device, or a simple hub to add ports a slim modern laptop doesn't have. Worth checking exactly what connections your new equipment actually has before assuming your old cables will work with it.
Protecting your gear
A surge protector is cheap insurance against South Africa's less-than-perfectly-stable power grid — power spikes, particularly around load shedding switch-overs, can and do damage unprotected electronics. For anyone who moves a laptop around — commuting, meetings, working from different locations — a proper laptop bag or sleeve sized to the actual device is worth the small extra cost over carrying it loose or in an ill-fitting bag.
Browse our accessories range — keyboards & mice, cables, chargers, mounts, and more — to round out a new setup.