I’m Marquez Brownlee (MKBHD) and This Is How I Work
Six years ago, Marquez Brownlee was still a kid, talking about technology with his webcam and sharing his thoughts on Youtube. Now with 2.6 million subscribers, his well- crafted MKBHD videos are some of the most popular sources of gadget commentary on the Internet.
If you are not familiar with his channel, you should; his videos are insightful and beautiful. It is intriguing and inspiring to see people like Marquez develop their skills and expand their audience through hobbies and reach a place where his work rivals that of any media network and often reaches more viewers. (Compared to that, I feel like an apathetic old man.) Besides Youtube, you can follow him almost everywhere on the Internet: on Twitter , Google+ , Facebook, and Instagram . We got in touch with Marquez to find out a little about how he does what he does and what might happen next.
Location: New Jersey, USA Current job: Web video producer . One word that best describes how you work: meticulousness. Current mobile device: Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge today. Nexus 6 yesterday. To be honest, there are different answers every day. Current computer: 8-core Mac Pro running OS X Yosemite. I would try the El Capitan developer preview, but that tends to mess up Premiere CC.
What apps, software or tools can’t you live without?
My life in Google services. Google Calendar. Google Tasks. Google Maps.
How is your workplace arranged?
What’s your best time-saving shortcut or life hack?
Dude, I wish I had one. Here’s a tip for video shooters: storyboarding. In college, I didn’t have time to storyboard a video. I jotted down a bunch of points for a few days, and then when it felt complete, I turned on the camera and tried to capture everything. Now that I don’t have classes all day, I can be more mindful about my video production, and storyboarding / planning almost every shot in advance helps me focus less on the mechanics and more on the content.
What’s your favorite to-do list manager?
Google Tasks. I am using an app called GTasks on Android and created my own in Fluid for Mac .
What gadget you can’t live without and why?
A gadget I can’t live without? My smartphone, simple. This is my calendar, my sense of direction, my camera and my connection to the world.
You always try different phones, but which of the last memories did you like the most? What would you be using if you weren’t looking at them?
I get asked this question all the time: if you could choose only one phone, which one would you choose? In truth, I have no idea. I’m using the Galaxy S6 Edge right now, but I have my favorites that I love to use year after year: Samsung’s new Galaxy Note, the new Nexus, and more recently, low-cost phones that run alongside stock Android like the OnePlus One. … …
Considering that smartphone design has become almost standardized, and every new entry follows the same basic pattern, what kind of innovation would you like to see?
I’d like a new focus on battery life. Phones are getting thinner year after year, to the point where we need an extra bulge to match all of the camera optics. In my opinion, this is not necessary. Thin phones look great when taken out of the box, after that there is little practicality. I want to see more phones, like the RAZR Maxx, which are slightly thicker, but with massive 40+ hours of battery life.
What are your favorite headphones? I’m asking because Lifehacker editors are obsessed with headphones.
For several years now, my favorite pair of headphones has been the Audio Technica ATH-M50RD . I bought a pair of Bose QC25s last year for travel and I love them for the plane. For walks, I almost never go out of the apartment without the Jaybird Bluebuds the X , a pair of headphones with bluetooth with an 8-hour time, battery life, stunning sound quality and comfort. Finally, lately, I’ve become more interested in open-back headphones thanks to the Sennheiser HD800 . Yes, this is a big step forward and I love it.
What are some of your best everyday activities?
Am I better at everyday life? Plug in USB cables the first time. I must not reveal my secrets.
What do you listen to while you work?
It takes silence for me to shoot and edit videos, but everything else has my Spotify House playlist. Madeon . Wolfgang Gartner . Daft Punk. All types of electro.
What are you reading now?
Animated Graphics Tutorials …
What is your sleep pattern?
Stay up late, get up early. I hate getting up late – the day seems too short. But the hardest part at the end of the day is putting the camera / mouse down and falling asleep.
You have achieved notable success at a fairly young age! If you weren’t writing about electronics, what do you think you would be doing? What would you like to do next?
If I hadn’t been filming technology videos, I would have just graduated from college with a BA in Business and Technology. So I probably would be sitting at the table somewhere. But I’m glad to be in the same place as now and hopefully the next ones will be bigger and better videos!
Fill in the blank: I would like _________ to answer these same questions.
I’d like other YouTubers to answer these same questions!
What’s the best advice you’ve ever received?
Best advice I’ve ever received: Be your biggest critic of yourself.