So I have a little confession to make; I am a bit of an office junkie, and I love testing and trying out the latest and greatest, or just making my life easier or more relaxed while I am working. While I was initially hesitant to post anything like this because it is so far out of the norm for this site, but temptation got the better of me. I took a little inspiration from Gear Patrol (a great site, by the way) and made my own buying guide built especially for traders and office junkies alike. And so here is an abridged list of ideas, all in the spirit of the holidays, of course.

HooToo TripMate Wireless and Portable Travel Router

Let's say you're on the go and need some wireless connectivity, but don't want to latch onto the same network in your hotel that the guy in the parking lot is using to hack into guests devices. Either that, or the hotel's wifi routers aren't exactly living up to expectations. The concept is simple: plug it in, and you create your own, encrypted wireless access point.

[dt_button size=”medium” animation=”none” color=”” link=”http://bit.ly/1dvG4dz” target_blank=”true”]Buy Now: $49.99[/dt_button]

BlueLounge Cable Bin

I have gone through a fair share of cable organizers, and nothing really seems to work as plainly well as a simple bin, much the one produced by Bluehost. Mine rests flat in the corner, tucked out of view.

[dt_button size=”medium” animation=”none” color=”” link=”http://www.bluelounge.com/products/cablebin/” target_blank=”true”]Buy Now: $89.95[/dt_button]

Wemo Home/Office Automation

The list of uses for these devices is somewhat endless. Home automation is becoming a much bigger market these days as manufacturers find more and more plug and play means of making the magic happen. WeMo is a cost-friendly solution to convenience.

[dt_button size=”medium” animation=”none” color=”” link=”http://bit.ly/IW5VRX” target_blank=”true”]Buy Now: From $49.99[/dt_button]

DropCam Remote Monitoring

Keep an eye on your office while you are away with Dropcam, a fantastic solution to remote monitoring. NBT central headquarters has several of these installed, and we love them. The basic cloud service is included free with the device, giving you the ability to monitor 2/7 on all of your devices. A recording option is available for a monthly fee.

[dt_button size=”medium” animation=”none” color=”” link=”https://www.dropcam.com/” target_blank=”true”]Buy Now: $199.99[/dt_button]

Belkin NetCam Remote Monitoring

Another monitoring solution, robust with features and a little more cost effective than Dropcam. The downside is the lack of cloud service, although any strong wifi connection will do.

[dt_button size=”medium” animation=”none” color=”” link=”http://bit.ly/18sjEfn” target_blank=”true”]Buy Now: $99.99[/dt_button]

Twelve South Hi Rise iPhone Stand

This simple little stand keeps your calls and notifications in full view throughout the day, because seriously, who has time to keep picking up their phone to look at it? You will probably be surprised at how much you enjoy having something like this that you would normally pass by if you saw it on a shelf.

[dt_button size=”medium” animation=”none” color=”” link=”http://bit.ly/IVZK09″ target_blank=”true”]Buy Now: $34.95[/dt_button]

Jot Pro Stylus

Sometimes it's just nice to write, even if it happens to be on an iPad. If you're looking for a good stylus to craft out your order of operations in your next trading system, look no further. The Jot Pro holds up well and does its job as good as a stylus could possibly do.

[dt_button size=”medium” animation=”none” color=”” link=”http://adonit.net/jot/pro/” target_blank=”true”]Buy Now: $29.99[/dt_button]

Sennheiser RS170 Wireless Headphones

Who wants to disturb your coworkers with the noise of annoying squawk feeds, lunchtime news videos or guilty pleasure music? Moreover, who wants wires or crappy quality audio? Sennheiser's wireless headphones are unique in form for its audiophile target market that seeks convenience.

[dt_button size=”medium” animation=”none” color=”” link=”http://bit.ly/18HL0MC” target_blank=”true”]Buy Now: $181.55[/dt_button]

Sony SRSBTX300 Portable NFC Bluetooth Wireless Speaker System

A beautiful little bluetooth speaker that just gets the job done. Fits nicely on a shelf and easily looks cool doing it.

[dt_button size=”medium” animation=”none” color=”” link=”http://bit.ly/IWnMs1″ target_blank=”true”]Buy Now: $128.00[/dt_button]

Kikkerland USB Flex Multi Light

If you need to shed a little light on your work, here's a plenty good option. Perfect for laptops, this light plugs right in and can be shifted anywhere you want while you juggle paper and digital in the hotel room late night.

[dt_button size=”medium” animation=”none” color=”” link=”http://bit.ly/1dvEhFn” target_blank=”true”]Buy Now: $13.00[/dt_button]

Bretford MobilePro Wall Mount

If you need to display a random monitor or two, this is the mount you should use to do it. Functional design and she sure is a beaut. If the cost is a concern, I have had some great luck finding solid ones via eBay as well.

[dt_button size=”medium” animation=”none” color=”” link=”http://bit.ly/1dvEhFn” target_blank=”true”]Buy Now: $139.95[/dt_button]

Oyster Books Subscription

Known as the “NetFlix for Books” this service does just as it says, all digitally. $9.95 / month gets you unlimited downloads of whatever you want in the Oyster Books library.

[dt_button size=”medium” animation=”none” color=”” link=”https://www.oysterbooks.com/” target_blank=”true”]Buy Now: $9.95/month[/dt_button]

Uber

For those of you that haven't yet tried Uber, please get your butt in gear. Uber is available in many major cities and if hands down one of the best, easiest and most cost effective black car/cab services I have ever used.

[dt_button size=”medium” animation=”none” color=”” link=”https://www.uber.com/” target_blank=”true”]Buy Now: Varies by Distance[/dt_button]

The Butler

I stumbled across this somewhere, somehow, and all I can say is that it looks cool and serves a noble purpose. I have had more than a couple instances where I've had to run back up the elevator because I left my wallet/keys on my desk – centralizing them makes sense, right?

[dt_button size=”medium” animation=”none” color=”” link=”http://www.etsy.com/listing/99616458/the-butler” target_blank=”true”]Buy Now: $119.00[/dt_button]

UltraBooks

Ultrabooks offer a level of productivity other laptops simple can't compete with: they're lightweight, very portable and because of this, you are more likely to use them more often. Personally, I have a MacBook Air, and I love it / get tons of work done on it. I use virtualization software for any Windows-dedicated programs and don't usually come across too many difficulties. Either way, I can't recommend getting one enough. One of the best electronic purchases I have ever made.

[dt_button size=”medium” animation=”none” color=”” link=”http://bit.ly/1dvIRTT” target_blank=”true”]Buy Now: Varies[/dt_button]

Logitech Washable Keyboard

If you're not tied down to a Bloomberg keyboard, then you might want to consider a Logitech washable keyboard as an alternative to removing the months/years of crud that inevitably develops on most others.

[dt_button size=”medium” animation=”none” color=”” link=”http://bit.ly/19lFtvz” target_blank=”true”]Buy Now: $34.99[/dt_button]

Satechi 10,000 mAh Portable Charging Station

One of the best and most highest rated portable charging stations, and looks good to boot. If you're like me and have a jumpy iPhone battery than having backup on the go is a must.

[dt_button size=”medium” animation=”none” color=”” link=”http://www.satechi.net/index.php/satechi-10000-mah-portable-energy-station” target_blank=”true”]Buy Now: $59.99[/dt_button]

Western Digital My Passbook Ultra External Storage (500gb, 1tb or 2tb)

I've been around the block a few times when it comes to external storage, and I almost always find myself coming back to Western Digital products. The My Passbook Ultra is just, well, reliable, and I've never had any issues with it to date.

[dt_button size=”medium” animation=”none” color=”” link=”http://bit.ly/191zkH8″ target_blank=”true”]Buy Now: From $69.99[/dt_button]

Realspace® PRO Quantum 9000 Series Mesh Mid-Back Chair

The seat on which you work tends to be the most underestimated component of your office. In the past, I've sat in chairs that can basically make or break my productivity for the week or day, so finding the right one was obviously important to me. This is the one I ended up getting, and have zero regrets. I like to keep it high so my arms are basically reaching down on the desk and not clamoring upwards. These mesh design chairs can get very expensive (I know the ones I used to use at my last banking gig cost around $800 each) so buy wisely. When you consider its importance, the money seems to make a lot more sense.

[dt_button size=”medium” animation=”none” color=”” link=”http://bit.ly/191ATVk” target_blank=”true”]Buy Now: $279.99[/dt_button]

KillSpencer Hardshell Briefcase

Here's a mighty fine-crafted and good-looking briefcase. If you travel a lot and have some extra bucks to spend, this is an excellent candidate for a briefcase that will hold up for a very long time. While you're on the KillSpencer site, please check out some of their other stuff. They make some truly awesome products.

[dt_button size=”medium” animation=”none” color=”” link=”http://killspencer.com/hardshell-briefcase/black-leather-hardshell-briefcase-1.html” target_blank=”true”]Buy Now: $750.00[/dt_button]

Suoran Wool iPad Air Sleeve

Gotta protect the goods. Extra but slim pockets make it versatile but still practical.

[dt_button size=”medium” animation=”none” color=”” link=”http://www.etsy.com/listing/167659379/suoran-ipad-air-case-ipad-air-sleeve?amp&br_feed_tlp=mobile-accessories&ref=br_feed_3″ target_blank=”true”]Buy Now: $26.90[/dt_button]

Apple TV

Apple TV at an office? Yes, 10000%. It is hard to go wrong with one of these. I use mine for airplaying presentations or just streaming TV (usually just Bloomberg) or music (non vocal jazz is usually my go-to) throughout the day. If you're an iPad, iPhone or Mac owner, having one of these at your place of business is a pretty easy decision.

[dt_button size=”medium” animation=”none” color=”” link=”http://bit.ly/1dvJ6hK” target_blank=”true”]Buy Now: $99.99[/dt_button]

Google Chromecast

For the Android fanatic, there's the Google Chromecast. This little stick, resembling a standard USB flash drive, plugs right into your TV and does a surprising amount for its size. It is also cross compatible with iOS devices in certain capacities and offers its own version of airplay.

[dt_button size=”medium” animation=”none” color=”” link=”http://www.google.com/intl/en/chrome/devices/chromecast/” target_blank=”true”]Buy Now: $35.00[/dt_button]

HP 2511x 25-Inch LED Monitors

I have another confession to make today: I plan on ditching 3 of my 7 monitors, and don't plan on replacing them. I had 1 monitor hooked into a Mac and then 6 others on my main workstation. We are now down to 4 total. Why? Well first of all, the monitors I was using were just outdated and boxed, not widescreen. Second, I find myself wasting way too much real estate on my computer, causing me to get distracted, or just not focus on one single task far too easily. I have had good luck with HP LED monitors in the past and so I'm sticking with them. This was my choice. I'm going for 25″, which is plenty large, but its a personal preference. These do come in other sizes.

[dt_button size=”medium” animation=”none” color=”” link=”http://bit.ly/JievuG” target_blank=”true”]Buy Now: $199.99[/dt_button]

Multiple Monitor Stands

When it comes to multiple monitor stands, just trust me, go eBay all the way. I was worried about quality for what I paid for mine, but when it showed up I was very happily surprised. 5 years later, it's still a beast.

[dt_button size=”medium” animation=”none” color=”” link=”http://bit.ly/Jigb7D” target_blank=”true”]Buy Now: Varies[/dt_button]

Dsptch iPad and Mac Cases

While they're build with Mac in mind, these cases can hold any number of Windows devices. Well made and rugged.

[dt_button size=”medium” animation=”none” color=”” link=”http://www.dsptch.com/collections/cases” target_blank=”true”]Buy Now: Varies[/dt_button]

Bonavita BV1800 Coffee Maker

Traders and coffee share a very special bond. Bonavita makes one of the best coffee makers for the buck and can keep you junked up on caffeine right through the 3:00pm stretch.

[dt_button size=”medium” animation=”none” color=”” link=”http://www.clivecoffee.com/product/bonavita_glass_coffee_maker.html” target_blank=”true”]Buy Now: $139.99[/dt_button]

Aluminum Prints via Yellow Korner

It took me about 3 years to even get anything on my office walls, but when I did, I think I did a pretty good job at it. I found out about Yellow Korner just by walking by one of their stores in SoHo, New York one day, and have an aluminum print of theirs hanging in my office. To this day, it's the one thing that everybody makes comments about when they make their way though the space. If you've never seen a photograph printed on aluminum, do a quick Google search and look into it. Yellow Korner specializes in some pretty amazing limited edition stuff and originated in Paris. They also do plenty of regular mounting.

[dt_button size=”medium” animation=”none” color=”” link=”http://en.yellowkorner.com/” target_blank=”true”]Buy Now: $125.00-$775.00[/dt_button]

Talk: Jabra Pro 9470

I love my Jabra – without writing too much here, the range on this headset is phenomenal (I could literally be on the other side of the floor and it's crystal clear), and it works with all 3 devices I might happen to be using: mobile phone via bluetooth, landline via hardwire, and Skype/Facetime via hardwire. It is also very comfortable and the battery life is nothing I've ever complained about.

[dt_button size=”medium” animation=”none” color=”” link=”http://bit.ly/IVW8LK” target_blank=”true”]Buy Now: $258.99[/dt_button]

West Elm Chimney Humidifier

I live in Colorado now: it's dry as a bone here. And the built in HVAC humidifier doesn't exactly cut the mustard these days. A humidifier becomes more a must and less of a want after a while.Here's one that wont look funny in your office and will get the job done well.

[dt_button size=”medium” animation=”none” color=”” link=”http://bit.ly/18sai3h” target_blank=”true”]Buy Now: $200.00[/dt_button]

Dot Grid Notebooks

I take a lot of notes, and they are very project-specific. They are also usually packed with rules when it comes to trading system development. Many times, I'll sketch my ideas out at lunch, or whenever I've basically got a cool head. I always prefer a grid base – dots do the job well so other / too many lines aren't getting in the way.

[dt_button size=”medium” animation=”none” color=”” link=”http://www.creativesoutfitter.com/product/34/dot-grid-book” target_blank=”true”]Buy Now: $16.00[/dt_button]

And so before my head explodes from shopping overload (I am not what you call a “fan” of any shopping mall) that will do it for today. Any other ideas? Feel free to fire away and list them below.