Gadgets for Traders Who Cannot Afford a Power Cut

None of this kit will make anyone a better trader. Its job is smaller: to stop a power cut or a dropped connection from making a decision for you, and to keep the account from being stolen. The desk, the power and the connection are the same whether you trade shares or currencies. People who hold crypto have one extra item, a hardware wallet.

Two Dell 27 Plus 4K monitors come to about $600, the CyberPower CP1000PFCLCD is about $200 and the TP-Link ER605 about $60. That is roughly $860 at the makers’ US prices, on top of the computer you already have, and a $29 security key takes it to just under $890. If the money has to be spread out, buy the security key first, then the second screen, then the UPS. Where power cuts are routine, move the UPS to the front.

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A security key before anything else

The cheapest item here guards the most. A security key is a small USB device that has to be present when you log in, so a stolen password alone is not enough. It is only useful if your broker or exchange supports security keys or passkeys, so look in its security settings before you order.

The Security Key C NFC by Yubico, about $29, connects by USB-C or NFC and supports FIDO2 and FIDO U2F, the standards behind passkeys and security-key logins. Yubico labels it “FIDO only”. The YubiKey 5C NFC at about $58 adds one-time codes, smart card and OpenPGP support. Buy that one only if a site you use asks for those. Yubico names two authorised sources: its own store and its authorised resellers.

A second 4K screen, or a docking one

There is no fixed number of monitors for trading. Two is a sensible start, one for charts and one for orders and news.

The Dell 27 Plus 4K Monitor (S2725QS), about $300, is a 27-inch IPS screen at 3840 x 2160, with two HDMI ports and one DisplayPort. A 4K panel has four times the pixels of a 1080p one, which is room for four full-HD chart windows in a grid, provided small text does not bother you. Dell lists height, tilt, swivel and pivot adjustment, so a second one can be turned upright for a long watchlist or a news feed. Dell lists no USB-C port, so a laptop needs an HDMI or DisplayPort output to use it. Dell 27 Plus 4K Monitor S2725QS on Amazon

The Dell UltraSharp 27 4K Thunderbolt Hub Monitor (U2725QE), about $850, is the same size and resolution, built for people who work from a laptop. One Thunderbolt 4 cable carries the picture and charges the laptop at up to 140W. The monitor also has a 2.5Gb Ethernet port, a USB hub and a KVM switch, and Dell says a second 4K monitor can be daisy-chained from it over Thunderbolt. So there is one cable to plug in each morning, and the laptop is on a wired network the moment it is docked. It costs about $550 more than the 27 Plus. With a desktop PC, which has its own network and USB ports, we would not pay that. Dell UltraSharp U2725QE on Amazon

Dell’s two-screen arm, the Dell Pro Dual Monitor Arm (MDA20), costs about $370. That is more than one of the monitors it would hold, and the 27 Plus stand already adjusts four ways. Skip it unless desk space is the problem.

A computer that can drive them

Before buying screens, check how many external displays your computer supports. The figure is on the maker’s spec sheet, and it is not the same thing as the number of ports on the side.

Apple’s spec page lists up to three external displays for the Mac mini (M6), about $900: two over Thunderbolt and a third over Thunderbolt or HDMI. It starts with 16GB of memory and has a 2.5Gb Ethernet port. The box holds the computer and a power cord, so the screen, keyboard and mouse are extra.

Check that your trading software has a Mac version before you buy one. If it only runs on Windows, apply the same test to a Windows PC: look for the supported-displays line and an Ethernet port. The Mac mini is also among the new gadgets worth a look. Apple Mac mini M6 on Amazon

A UPS to ride out the power cut

A UPS, short for uninterruptible power supply, is a battery in a box that sits between the wall socket and the computer. When the mains fails, the battery takes over.

The CyberPower CP1500PFCLCD, about $275, is rated at 1500VA and 1000W, with sine wave output, which CyberPower sells for computers whose power supplies need active PFC compatibility. It lists 10 minutes of runtime at half load and 2.5 minutes at full load. Of the 12 outlets, six are backed by the battery and six are surge protection only. The owner can replace the battery, and the warranty is three years. CyberPower CP1500PFCLCD on Amazon

Read those runtime figures for what they are: minutes. That is enough to finish what you were doing and shut down properly, or to bridge the gap until a generator or inverter takes over. A desk drawing well under 500W lasts longer than the half-load figure. Put the computer, one screen and the router on the battery outlets and everything else on the surge side.

The smaller CyberPower CP1000PFCLCD, about $200, is 1000VA and 600W, with six minutes at half load and two at full, and five battery outlets out of ten. That covers a laptop, one screen and a router. For a desktop PC with two screens, the larger one gives more margin. CyberPower CP1000PFCLCD on Amazon

Both are 120V models for North America. In a 220 to 240V country such as Nigeria, India or the UK, buy a model sold locally and look for the same two things: sine wave output and enough watts for what you plug in.

A spare internet line

The first fix is a cable. A wired connection from the computer to the router takes Wi-Fi out of the list of things that can go wrong, and both the Mac mini and the UltraSharp monitor above have an Ethernet port.

The TP-Link ER605, about $60, is a small wired router that accepts more than one internet connection. TP-Link lists up to three WAN ports plus a USB port for a 4G modem as backup, with link backup and failover in the spec. Plug in your main line and a second one, and when the first drops the router moves traffic to the other.

Two cautions. It has no Wi-Fi of its own, so it sits between your modems and the Wi-Fi router you already have. And when it switches lines, expect your trading software to reconnect, because the backup line has a different address. If a phone hotspot is backup enough for you, skip the router: the hotspot costs nothing. TP-Link ER605 on Amazon

Stream Deck shortcut keys

A “trading keyboard” with custom buttons now takes the form of a pad like the 15-key Elgato Stream Deck, about $150, with LCD keys that each show their own label. Elgato says a key can send a keyboard shortcut to an app or set off a chain of actions, and it works with Windows and macOS. Any trading program that has keyboard shortcuts can be driven from it, for switching chart layouts or jumping to the order window.

Be careful what you map. A key that sends an order with no confirmation step is a mistake waiting for an elbow. Elgato also has a phone app, Stream Deck Mobile, with six keys free, which is a cheap way to find out whether you would use the real thing. Elgato Stream Deck on Amazon

Hardware wallets, only for coins you hold

This one is only for crypto, and only for coins you hold for a while. A hardware wallet keeps the private keys on the device, and each transaction has to be confirmed on the device itself. It does nothing for money sitting in an exchange account.

The Trezor Safe 3, about $59, has USB-C, a small screen with two buttons and a secure element chip certified to EAL6+, and Trezor publishes the design as open source. It is sold on Trezor’s own site. The Ledger Nano S Plus, about $69, is also USB-C with an EAL6+ secure element, sold in Ledger’s own shop. The Trezor is $10 cheaper and its design is open to inspection, so it is our pick if it supports the coins you hold. Check each maker’s supported list first.

Neither suits an iPhone. Ledger says the Nano S Plus does not work with iOS devices, and Trezor lists no sending, setup or device management on iOS for the Safe 3. Plan to use either with a computer or an Android phone, or look at the hardware wallets that do work with an iPhone.

Where you buy matters more than which you buy. Ledger recommends buying from Ledger or an authorised reseller and says to take great care on third-party marketplaces. Trezor says to use its official shop or one of its listed resellers, so that the device is genuine and unaltered. Do not buy one second-hand. Ledger adds that a genuine Ledger never asks you to enter the recovery phrase on a computer, phone, app or website, and that anything asking for it is a scam.

Blue-light glasses, standing desks and chairs

Skip the glasses. The American Academy of Ophthalmology says there is no scientific evidence that blue light from screens damages the eye, and it does not recommend blue light-blocking glasses for computer use. Its advice for tired eyes is free: every 20 minutes, look at something 20 feet away for 20 seconds.

A standing desk and a chair are furniture, and whether one suits you depends on your height and your back, which no spec sheet settles. Sit in a chair before you buy it.