How to Pimp Your Poker Station

PC

Let's start with an essential part of a poker setup - the PC. If you're not a serious grinder with a database consisting of millions of hands who uses a bunch of different software and solves complex PioSolver equations, you don't really need that strong of a machine to play poker.  Any PC or business laptop manufactured in the last 5 years or so should do the trick. Choosing a PC for poker is a very complicated subject worthy of a separate article so we're not going to discuss it here. We are, however, going to give you a few tips on how to make your current PC look better.

If you're on a budget improving the looks of your setup can be as simple and cheap as - cleaning it. A can of compressed air and a microfiber cloth can work absolute wonders, not to mention the fact that cleaning your PC with compressed air can boost the efficiency of its cooling system and make it run faster (which is especially relevant for laptops). If you're using a laptop, another cheap way of transforming your ordinary PC into a proper poker playing machine is investing in a laptop skin.

This shouldn't cost more than 10-15 quid, and most companies selling the skins allow you to completely customize them. You can choose your favorite poker theme or motivational quote that always puts you in the mood for grinding.

Another way of making your setup more attractive is investing in some good looking and functional peripherals. This can be as cheap or as expensive as you want it to be, with some gaming mice and mechanical keyboards costing well over a 100 pounds. You get what you pay for, though, and if you do some gaming on the side after you finish your poker session, you might be interested in some of these options:

Gaming Mouse:

- Thermaltake Talon Blu

- Tesoro Sharur Spectrum

- Dream Machines DM Pro 1

- ASUS Strix Claw

- Zowie EC1-A

Keyboard:

- Logitech K360

- Zalman K-500

- CM Storm QuickFire TK

- Tesoro Gram Spectrum

- Corsair K70 Lux RGB

Desk

Another crucial part of the setup. Again, you can use any surface to play poker and you probably have some sort of desk that you're using right now. The good new is that if you don't mind switching your current desk for something new, there's a variety of options ranging from very cheap models you can get in Ikea to expensive pieces of furniture that can transform into a standing desk for the health conscious high-rollers:

- Ikea Linnmon

- Ikea Malm

- Ikea Hallestad Table Top + 2x Ikea Drawer Units

-  VertDesk

-  Crowley Glass Desk

You can create a great poker setup using any of those desks from super cheap Linnmon to the hybrid sitting/standing desk functionality offered by the super pricey VertDesk.

If you're perfectly happy with your current desk, but you'd still like to add some flare to your setup, get a cheap RGB LED strip (like this one from Amazon: LED Strip) and glue it on the back of the table top for a stunning effect.

Cable Management

Another cheap way of improving the looks of your poker setup is managing your cables.  You will appreciate turning your power supply from the usual chaotic spaghetti that's hanging behind 99% of computer desks in the world to something that's barely noticeable or at the very least, much more aesthetic. There are basically two ways of going about the process. One is much more complicated and time-consuming. It also requires some careful planning because it will look a bit different depending on your particular setup.

It requires you to buy a cable raceway and attach it to the bottom of your tabletop to store all the cables there. The second option is much more straightforward and less time consuming. Just buy a cable management sleeve and place all of the wires inside, letting them hang in a much more orderly fashion.

The changes described above will have the most impact on the looks of your poker setup, but don't neglect small accessories.