What’s up, everybody? It’s Eddie Z here from EZ Trading Computers, and you’re watching Trading Computer Secrets where I am going to share the best trading computer monitors and the importance of backup systems.
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BEST TRADING COMPUTER MONITORS
There’s no reason you couldn’t have a gorgeous 4-, 6-, 8-, or even 12-monitor display where you can trade the markets, browse the internet, watch online news and movies, and even open email, all with just one keyboard and mouse.
When it comes to monitors these days, the latest and greatest is something called IPS LED backlit technology. The use of LED backlighting is a dramatic improvement over the previous generations of LCD flat panels.
Some of these improvements include a much brighter display that is easier on the eyes, an incredible gain in contrast and color range, 20 to 30% lower power consumption, and super narrow frames. The panel itself is much thinner making it much easier to mount, and with many models, the thickness of the monitor is no more than half an inch.
A question I get asked often is how many monitors do I need? And really, this is not an easy question because it really comes down to preference. For entry-level and intermediate-level traders, four or six monitors are usually enough and provide a virtual wall of information.
More advanced traders, or screen-space junkies like me, can use 8-, 12-, and we’ve even built 16-monitor setups.
Another question I get asked a lot is what size is best for four or six monitors? I personally prefer no less than a 24-inch monitor. As I’ve gotten older, I really prefer the 27-inch monitors because everything just appears bigger.
If you want to get bigger monitors, and more monitors, expect to have at least a seven or eight-foot desk, and a chair that’s on wheels and swivels.
The best brands for the money in IPS LED backlit monitors are Acer and ASUS, and ASUS is definitely the best of the breed.
BACKUP SYSTEMS
The first area I’d like to discuss is surge protectors. Now, it might sound silly. We all use surge protectors on our TVs and our computers and so forth, but there’s another area you really need to think about. I happen to live in an area that’s prone to lightning strikes here in South Florida, and I’ve personally lost modems and routers to lightning strikes. Why? Because I didn’t have everything covered by a surge protector. That means any wire that’s coming out of the wall needs to go into a surge protector before it connects to any piece of equipment.
With lightning strikes come power outages, and you really need to have a battery backup system, especially if you’re trading. If you’ve ever been trading and had several positions in the market, then the power goes out and you have no idea what was going on. Then you know exactly what I’m talking about.
When you think about your battery backup system, you need to have that backup not only on your computer and at least one monitor. Preferably on two monitors or more if you can. You also need to have it on all of your modems and routers.
Now when the power goes out, I have enough juice to run roughly for 10 to 15 minutes. To do this, I recommend you get several battery backups. Put your computer on one backup, your monitors on another backup, and have your modems and routers on a third battery backup.
ADDITIONAL FAIL-SAFE BACKUPS
Along the same lines, something to think about is having backup or redundant internet connections. I use both fiber internet from AT&T and cable internet from Xfinity in my area. The fiber from AT&T runs at a full gigabit, so I use Xfinity as a backup. If you’ve ever lost internet access and have not been able to see what’s going on in the markets with your positions, then you know how incredibly frustrating that can be.
And finally, when all else fails, it makes sense for that just in case situation to have a backup computer. It can either be a laptop or even a little bit older desktop that you’ve outgrown. Just make sure it has all your software and all your updates ready to go at any time.
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Thanks for watching, and if you haven’t already, please go ahead and download our Complete Guide to Trading Computers by clicking the link below. This guide is jam-packed with great tips so you can totally optimize your trading experience.
My name’s Eddie Z. and I’ll see you in the very next video.