With increasing numbers of us now working from home, or just spending much more of our leisure time around the house, the idea of having a dedicated home office or gaming room is soaring in popularity. So, if you want to create the ultimate home office or gaming room in your home, what do you need to do?
Read this complete guide from Hey! to find out…
How to create the ideal home office setup
If you’ve decided to take the leap and create your very own home office or gaming room, what do you need to do to make it happen?
Well, we’ve set out what we think are the key considerations you should take into account when creating a home office or gaming room in your home.
Find a dedicated space
Want to really concentrate when you’re working? Do you want to play your games undisturbed? Then you should set up your home office or gaming room in a dedicated space.
Ideally this will be a spare room with a door, so you can shut yourself off from distractions and truly dedicate yourself to your work or gaming. For home offices a door is particularly important - as the door not only separates you from everything else going on in your home - but also symbolises a clear divide between work life and home life.
Should you not have a spare room that you can use solely as a dedicated home office or gaming room, then there is an alternative option; converting a guest room into a dual-use space.
Failing that, then utility rooms, enclosed porches, conservatories and even garden sheds can do ‘double duty’ as home offices or gaming rooms.
Ensure the space is comfortable
This may seem like a rather obvious point, but you’d be surprised at the number of times we’ve seen people set up home offices or gaming rooms in spaces/rooms that are dark, cramped and chilly.
You’re potentially going to be spending many hours in your home office or gaming room, so make sure you set it up in a space that’s comfortable.
Ensure that the space you choose is well-ventilated, has enough room for you to sit comfortably at a desk, is neither too cold nor too warm, and has enough light (but also won’t be in direct sunlight for long periods of time).
Ensure you are working at the correct height
Following on from our point about comfort above, you also want to make sure that you’ll be working at the correct height.
What we mean by this is that you will be using a desk or table that is of the correct height and won’t cause you back or joint pain.
The industry standard height for desks is 29 inches from the floor. Bear in mind though that this standard is based on writing on paper. If you’re going to be predominantly using a keyboard, then you’ll want a desk that is about 2 or 3 inches lower than that to compensate for the height of the keyboard.
However, if you’re feeling particularly active, you could always opt for a standing desk!
Get a good chair
That old kitchen chair won’t do. No, really. If you’re going to be working or gaming for long periods, then invest in a good-quality, ergonomically-shaped chair (your spine will thank you for it).
It’s possible to buy good quality office chairs from £80, and if you really want to splash the cash, then the sky's the limit. Either way, a good quality office chair really is a home office/gaming room essential.
And, if you’re truly a hardcore gamer, then you may want to invest in a dedicated gaming chair. Like quality office chairs, a decent gaming chair will offer ergonomic support as well as a high-level of adjustability.
Invest in some blackout curtains
Blackout curtains are an especially important addition to a home gaming room.
After all, you don’t want to have your gaming sessions interrupted by pesky screen glare. A good set of blackout curtains will also help you truly get in the ‘zone’ and minimise distractions from outside.
Make sure there are enough power sockets
The last thing you want to do is set up your home office or gaming room only to find there’s only a single measly power socket in there…
Today, home offices and gaming rooms require more than a single power outlet. Think about it - you may require plugs for a desktop PC/laptop, a monitor, several peripherals, a lamp, a fan, heater and any number of other office accessories.
But don’t worry if you do only have a small number of power sockets - there is a solution - the Hey! Smart Power Bar. This nifty power bar will not only give you three extra power sockets, but it also features six USB ports so you can quickly and easily charge your devices directly.
Check your internet connection
It’s no good setting up a home office or gaming room if you can’t get the internet in it. If, like many people, your router is situated elsewhere in the house, then make sure you can receive a strong Wi-Fi signal in your chosen room.
If not, then you’ll either have to run an Ethernet connection directly from your router to your computer, or invest in a Wi-Fi booster.
This is arguably one of the most important things to think about when setting up a home office or gaming room. Remember, Wi-Fi is usually sufficient for general office work, but if you’re going to be doing some serious gaming and/or streaming, then you’ll definitely want to set up a wired connection to your router.
You should also consider how many other people are likely to be going to be using the internet in your home simultaneously. If you think you’ll be gaming whilst other people are streaming videos/films, then you may want to consider upgrading your internet package.
Sort your storage
Sure, many programs and games are now cloud-based these days, but it’s still likely that you’ll have plenty of odds and ends that can easily clutter up your home office or gaming room.
Whether it’s old DVDs, books or items of stationery, you’ll want to make sure you have some proper storage space set up within your home office/gaming room.
Ensure you have proper lighting
It’s important that your home office or gaming room has a proper lighting set up.
Lighting can affect everything from your mood to your productivity. So, invest in a decent set of smart lights to light your home office or gaming room.
Here at Hey! we stock a wide range of smart lights that are ideal for creating the perfect ambience and atmosphere in your office/gaming room.
Our ‘go-to’ piece of lighting kit is our Smart Panel Lighting Kit & Smart Bulb. It’s been featured in The Telegraph, Trusted Reviews and many other top publications and picked up great reviews across the web.
At only £10 the Smart Bulb is an affordable way of introducing smart home tech into your home office or gaming room. It’ll work with Alexa and Google Home and is easily controlled and adjusted using the free Hey! smartphone app.
It’s also easy to set up. Just follow our simple installation video and you’ll have your Smart Bulb operating in as little as 10 minutes.
Smart Dome Lamp
If you’re one of those people that likes to have a few ornaments, knick knacks or other items of ephemera dotted around the office, then you’ll love our Smart Dome Lamp.
It’s the perfect way of setting the ambience of your room and filling it with a soft glow of the colour of your choice.
Like our other smart lights, the Smart Dome Lamp is hugely adjustable and can be easily matched with any other RGBW device you may have in your room.
So, for example, if you have your gaming PC setup with a particular combination of RGB colours, you can set your Smart Dome Lamp to match!
Smart Light Strips
If you want to get the ‘pro streamer’ look then you’ll definitely need to invest in one of our Smart Light Strips.
As the name suggests, this is a strip of LED lights which can be stuck just about anywhere. Stick it behind your desk to create a colourful glow. Use it to light a corner of your room. Or even line your bookcase with it.
Whatever you choose to do with it, it’ll add a splash of dynamic colour to your home office or gaming room. Like our other products, the Smart Light Strip is easily to set up and can be controlled via the free Hey! smartphone app.
Gaming Light Kit
Well, if you’re looking for the ultimate lighting setup for your gaming room, then you can’t really do any better than our dedicated Gaming Light Kit.
The kit features our Smart Panel Light Kit, Smart Dome Lamp and Smart LED Light Strip - in other words, everything you need to turn your room into the ultimate gamers den!
Add one of Hey!’s Smart Plugs to your basket and you’ll have turned your entire gaming room ‘smart’.
Each part of the kit will connect directly to your WiFi router and is super easy to set up, install and use.
So, if you’re going to set up a dedicated gaming room in your home, then the Hey! Gaming Light Kit is an absolute must buy…
Keep an eye on the rest of the house
Whether you’ve got pets or young kids, you may want the ability to see what’s going on in the rest of the house whilst you’re gaming or working.
If that’s the case for you, then one of our Smart Internal Cameras could be ideal. Using this nifty camera you can see real-time video footage of your home - so you can check that the kids aren’t watching something they shouldn’t be on TV, or if Fido has decided to jump on that nice new cream sofa…
It also features two-way audio communication, so if you need to ask the other half to run an errand, or you need to shout at the dog - all from the comfort of your home office or gaming room - you can do that too!
Make sure your home is secure
When you’re gaming it can be easy to become totally engrossed and lose track of what’s going on around you - particularly if you’re wearing headphones.
So, for extra peace of mind when you’re gaming, you should invest in some smart home security devices. These will keep you continually updated on what’s going on both in and outside your home.
Our Smart Security Kit contains everything you need to secure your home, including cameras and sensors that can all be monitored remotely from your smartphone.
Don’t miss the postman!
This may seem like an unusual point to make in a guide to setting up a home office, but how many times have you been so engrossed in your game or work that you’ve missed the doorbell?
Missing deliveries is particularly annoying, so if you’re going to be working in your home office all day, set up a system that’ll stop you from missing the postman!
The Hey! Smart Video Doorbell features a live video stream, two-way audio communication and even night vision. So no matter what time of day the postman or delivery driver rocks up, you’ll be able to see them and chat to them, directly from your smartphone.
Oh, and it also comes with a handy indoor chime which you can place in your home office/gaming room - so you’ll have no excuse for not hearing the doorbell!
Complete your home office or gaming room with Hey!
We hope you’ve enjoyed our guide to setting up the ultimate home office or gaming room.
As you can see, a home office really isn’t complete unless it’s got some smart devices in it.
So, whether you want some cool lighting, want to be able to see if you have a delivery remotely or you want to keep an eye on the rest of the house, you’ll find the devices you need to do just that at Hey!