I’m considering a lot of home office equipment for my work. In other words, workstations are fluid. Today a new desk, tomorrow a different office chair, you get the idea. The one thing that hasn’t changed over the past three years? BenQ Screenbar. You may have heard of BenQ before. This Taiwanese company makes excellent monitors and projectors. But this lamp is my number one work-from-home accessory.
ScreenBar hangs above your computer monitor and brightens up your desktop, taking up less space on your desk. This is a simple little thing, but it brings me great joy. The company has been revisiting this and the latest version is ScreenBar Pro. What I’m saying here is that you should probably buy one for your home office.
Let there be light
ScreenBar comes in several varieties, including ScreenBar, ScreenBar Halo, ScreenBar Plus, and ScreenBar Pro. I tested the original ScreenBar and the Pro. Halo features a backlight that pushes light behind your monitor if you want to shine light on your desktop or wall behind your computer screen. The Plus is the same as the standard ScreenBar, but instead of a touch control on the top of the lamp, it has a separate dial attachment to control the light settings.
You can set these lamps to your liking by changing the color temperature and brightness, and turning on the auto-brightness feature to match the ambient light in your room. But what sets the latest ScreenBar Pro apart is its motion sensor. Now, a few minutes after I leave, ScreenBar Pro turns off. When you come back, the desktop lights up. It’s like a battle station is activated. Rad.
These ScreenBar lights are designed to minimize smearing so that the LEDs don’t shock your eyes. However, to avoid these LEDs, make sure your monitor is at eye level. There is almost no light bleeding on the monitor screen. That said, the only time I’ve noticed screen glare is when I’m watching dark content, such as moody video games or movies. Then turn off ScreenBar and enjoy the rich blacks and deep contrast of your OLED monitor.
I’ve had no problems using these with all types of monitors, including my current curved Alienware AW322QF 32-inch curved gaming monitor. The best part is you don’t have to use up your PC or laptop’s precious USB-A slots to keep the lights on. Simply connect and power ScreenBar directly to your monitor’s USB port. Cables are also neat.
So where do you put your webcam if you have a ScreenBar on top of your monitor? Well, I used to put my webcam a little off-center, but to make sure it’s visible, I need to move it out of the field of view. Tweaks and software adjustments were required. A better solution is to get BenQ’s webcam accessory. This is fixed to the top of the ScreenBar and allows you to balance the webcam on top. The webcam is quite high up, but I was able to angle the MX Brio well so it didn’t look weird.
leave no one behind
If your workstation doesn’t have a computer monitor, ScreenBar is useless. But even if you only work from your laptop, BenQ hasn’t forgotten about you. Last year, I tested the LaptopBar, which attaches to the back of a laptop screen to illuminate the keyboard and work area during late-night office hours.
However, this version has some tradeoffs. You need to paste the magnetic adhesive on the back of your laptop. This will fix the LaptopBar. When the LaptopBar is not attached, it has a permanent magnet circle on the outside that doesn’t look very nice. The LaptopBar is also battery-powered and can be used for about 2 hours at full brightness, but it can continue to run for longer if you connect it to your laptop (this will drain your laptop’s battery).
Still, this is a great little on-the-go lamp, perfect for those who routinely type in the dark. This lamp comes with a carrying case, is dimmable, and offers warm or cool color temperatures.
All of this may sound a little silly, but it’s just a lamp. Who cares! I know, I know. But with its unique look, the ScreenBar series really saves space on your already crammed desktop. I also love light. I like to have lights on around the house, but my wife prefers to sit in the dark (although I’ve seen her cook in the dark). , which was insane to me). So having as much light as I want on my desktop makes me feel happy at my workstation, especially during the months when the sky darkens a little after 4 p.m.
Small comforts like this make working from home so much more fun. And there’s no need to change into work clothes. Or commuting. Or a packed lunch. Well, I understand.
