How to Use Your Laptop Outside
July 17th, 2007 (9:28am) Mike Gunderloy 28 Comments
One of the great attractions of web work is supposed to be the ability to work anywhere, right? And now that we’re at the height of summer, the urge is strong to charge up the laptop and head to the beach or the mountains or even the local park and set up outdoors, enjoying the sun while billing some poor office-bound client your full hourly rate. What could be better than touching up your tan while you work?
If you’ve ever tried this, you know immediately what could be better: being able to actually see your laptop screen, that’s what. Laptops are great for many things, but visibility in bright sunlight is not one of their high points. Over my years of mobility, I’ve tried a bunch of things to get around this, and collected ideas from others. If you insist on going out to work, try some or all of these potential solutions to see what you’re doing:
- Work under an awning or umbrella.
- Wear a baseball cap, cowboy hat, or other cap with a brim, pulled low to put your eyes in shadow.
- Wear polarized sunglasses.
- Equip your laptop with an anti-glare screen. (The last time I tried this, a few years back, I couldn’t actually find any that worked, but perhaps the technology has improved.)
- Equip your laptop with a sunshade. You can buy a commercial version or spend a few minutes with a big piece of cardboard and some tape to make your own.
- Take frequent breaks to look away from the screen to ease your eyestrain.
- Give up, have a beer, and decide that the summer sun is more important than work. You probably need to stop billing in this case, though.
If you’ve got another solution to using a laptop out in the summer sun, we’d love to hear it!
28 Comments Post your own comment
BetterFasterNow! says: July 17th, 2007 10:57am
The umbrella tip is a good one. That’s the drawback of the newer glossy laptop screens, they reflect EVERYTHING … I miss my older, slower laptop that had more of a “matte” finish.
- Dave
Take it Outside, Will Ya! : Computer Assistance Services says: July 17th, 2007 11:57am
[...] to the point of this post…how to use a laptop outside. If you’re determined to do it, Web Worker Daily explains how to actually see the screen when you’re in the great outdoors. An [...]
ronak says: July 17th, 2007 3:38pm
beer sounds good to me…
Top Posts « WordPress.com says: July 17th, 2007 4:59pm
[...] How to Use Your Laptop Outside One of the great attractions of web work is supposed to be the ability to work anywhere, right? And now that […] [...]
Tim says: July 17th, 2007 6:50pm
The glossy screens are brighter, so in theory should be easier to see outside? Only just ordered one so it will be interesting to test. Also older laptops simply aren’t as bright as newer ones, and of course the brighter the better.
You might need to test different polarised sunglasses. A cheap pair I tried only let light in from my powerbook screen at a 45 degree angle. Maybe other glasses or panels work at different angles?
Using the laptop in the shade, with a hat to block as much sunlight reaching your eyes as possible is the best I’ve managed to get it.
Perhaps something like a privacy socks might be good?!
Alex says: July 17th, 2007 8:05pm
I think the point of this post was to get outside and get some sun instead of sitting on the computer all day :)
Jonathan says: July 17th, 2007 9:27pm
Some of the tablets and ruggedized laptops have ‘ViewAnywhere’ displays that you can use outside as well as inside. Quality, of course, varies…
Best advice for using your laptop outside says: July 18th, 2007 12:20am
[...] It’s summer, well in the Northern Hemisphere at least, and some of us might be tempted to use our laptops outside occasionally. Web Worker Daily has a few tips for this and this one is my favourite: Give up, have a beer, and decide that the summer sun is more important than work. You probably need to stop billing in this case, though. Source: Web Worker Daily » Blog Archive How to Use Your Laptop Outside « [...]
byrnegreen says: July 18th, 2007 9:24am
Mac users (I would think there would be a windows equivalent) can also install “Nocturne” (http://nocturne.en.softonic.com/mac) a freeware app that switches display to a negative monochrome. It’s listed as being helpful to reduce eyestrain at night (low light), but I also find it helpful when working outside or in a bright cafe (both inderect light).
I also find this better than the Universal Access (System Preferences) alternative, b/c the monochrome does not reverse colors, thereby making them distracting (to me).
May not work with serious browsing, but with text editor / spreadsheets / etc., I find it very useful.
Thomas says: July 18th, 2007 12:36pm
That’s how I created my Sunbox and it’s still working after a year.
crackho says: July 23rd, 2007 3:49pm
Thomas,
your sunbox cracked me up, but after all I am the ‘crack’ho
great idea, I’ll give it a try
Dusty says: July 25th, 2007 9:09am
Glossy screens reflect WAY more light than regular screens. I’ve noticed that the glossy screens are way more difficult to read anywhere where there might be glare. The glossy screens are only meant for indoors. Get a nice “Work” laptop, rather than a “Media” laptop, and you’ll get bright, non-glossy screen.
Scott Oertel says: July 25th, 2007 9:34am
One more thing you forgot to mention, if one still requires internet for working in the outdoors on their laptop, I suggest getting a wireless card from your cell provider. Personally I use a 595U from Sprint on my MacBook. I wouldn’t trade it for anything!
Tablet PC and Ultra-Mobile PC News and Reviews - GottaBeMobile.com - Working Outside with Your Tablet PC says: July 25th, 2007 9:40am
[...] outdoor viewable screens.WebWorkerDaily ( a great blog to follow for those who are mobile workers) has a great post on tips to make outdoor viewing more pleasurable, like working under an unmbrella, wearing a hat, [...]
Working Outside with Your Tablet PC - Pocket.Net - Mobile 2.0 says: July 25th, 2007 9:51am
[...] outdoor viewable screens.WebWorkerDaily ( a great blog to follow for those who are mobile workers) has a great post on tips to make outdoor viewing more pleasurable, like working under an unmbrella, wearing a hat, [...]
engtech says: July 25th, 2007 10:08am
I tried to make my own cardboard blocker and it sucked hard. I will have to try to find some polarized sunglasses that match the polarity of my monitor.
giantrat says: July 25th, 2007 10:38am
try going inside, it works just great
Tips for Outdoor Laptop Computing says: July 25th, 2007 10:48am
[...] there are a few tricks you can use to make your computer’s screen easier to see. In “How to Use Your Laptop Outside“, Web Worker Daily presents a few of their [...]
Ask The Readers: Computing outdoors? : Teknicks Blog says: July 25th, 2007 10:58am
[...] any suggestions for making outdoor computing more practical this July? Hit us up in the comments. How to Use Your Laptop Outside [Web Worker [...]
mike says: July 25th, 2007 12:47pm
you can use the new mac book pro laptop which is led backlit.
Dave says: July 25th, 2007 4:32pm
It’s an expensive solution, but if you can afford the flight and the time out fetch you laptop over to England - there’s a real lack of sunshine here this July!
Probably best to secure your laptop in waterproof casing though!
Alpay says: July 26th, 2007 12:25am
Either use a MacBook Pro 15 inch with LED display which provides an improvement over other displays in terms of brightness or use kntrl+option+command 8 to invert your colors. The problem I have is not outdoors, but busses, planes etc where the space is pretty much limited.
links for 2007-07-27 « geek notes says: July 27th, 2007 2:25am
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Web Worker Daily » Archive Outside Laptops Revisited « says: May 11th, 2008 10:10am
[...] took a look at this subject last summer, and our advice there is still a good start: work under an awning or umbrella, wear a cap with a [...]
Web Worker Daily » Archive How to Use Your Laptop Outside « says: June 1st, 2008 5:30pm
[...] Web Worker Daily » Archive How to Use Your Laptop Outside « If you’ve ever tried this, you know immediately what could be better: being able to actually see your laptop screen, that’s what. Laptops are great for many things, but visibility in bright sunlight is not one of their high points. Over my years of mobility, I’ve tried a bunch of things to get around this, and collected ideas from others. If you insist on going out to work, try some or all of these potential solutions to see what you’re doing: [...]
thegeezer says: June 13th, 2008 2:24am
wow, i’ve just discovered something.
turn off the backlight, and sit with your back to the sun. the sun provides enough light to show waht’s on the screen, even in teh sahdow of my head, and battery life is no really highly extended!
just as well there is a matte screen on my samsung….
brainandspinalcord says: August 5th, 2008 10:38am
I just used the “box method” which is allowing me to sit outside and still see the screen!