【Secretive Boarding House】

Nicole Rafiee has been around the block on Secretive Boarding HouseYouTube. The 25 year-old creator made her first channel in middle school, and after deleting her channel a few times (she wasn't thrilled when her high school's football team found it), she started seriously posting to YouTube her sophomore year of college.

These days, she'd have a lot more difficulty if she felt like deleting her channel when someone in her real life found it. She's garnered an audience of 1.07 million subscribers on YouTube, thanks in part to her "Chronically Online Girl explains" series, which covers everything from Ariana Grande to the Frenemies lore.

Credit: Mashable Composite: Zooey Liao/ Image Credit: Getty Images/ Amazon/ Canon/ Nicole Rafiee's Instagram

We caught up with her at VidCon 2025 to get the scoop on what she uses these days to streamline her content creation process — and to learn how exactly she manages to record her and Jake Thatcher's Talk Nasty to Mepodcast in her bathtub.

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A portable SSD

Opens in a new window Credit: SanDisk SanDisk Extreme Portable SSD $99.99 at Amazon

When Rafiee first started out with videos, she ran into some tech issues right off the bat.

"I was like, why is my computer running at like the speed of nothing? And why is my computer as hot as an oven right now? Like, I could actually make a pancake on it because it's so hot and I have, like, third degree burns on my lap because of this."

The solution? A solid state drive (SSD) to store her many hours of footage. She says she's collected six over the years — at about $99 a piece, it's definitely cheaper than buying an entirely new laptop (and lets you avoid some tech waste).

" Everybody should get an SSD if they want to (create content) — not everything needs to live off of your computer or phone," she said. "I say that as I have literally 85,000 photos on my phone. I should take my own advice."

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A Sony camera made for creators

Opens in a new window Credit: Sony Sony ZV-1 $749.99 at Best Buy

Rafiee isn't exactly a fan of all products catered toward creators: "Sometimes when brands are like, 'this product is made for creators,' it's like, okay, this sucks," she said. "And it just comes in, like, pink or something and they're like, 'This is it!' and I'm like, 'alright I don't need all that.'"

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The Sony ZV-1 doesn't fall into that category, thankfully. Rafiee told us it's the camera she's used the longest, mostly because it's so user-friendly and versatile: she uses it for everything from filming her podcast to vlogging in her car.

A great video light (literally)

Opens in a new window Credit: GVM GVM 30W Soft Light Bi-Color LED Key Light $139 at Great Video Maker

" I do care a lot about lighting in my videos because I feel like I have to set a vibe. I don't like a harsh lighting; I want it to look like I'm literally in my house," Rafiee said.

This key light from GVM helps her do just that. She likes it because it's easy to adjust the warmth, it's portable, and it can mimic the light of the sun to set the perfect ambience.

Bose headphones

Opens in a new window Credit: Bose Bose QuietComfort headphones $359 at Amazon

Rafiee has been using the Bose QuietComfort 45 headphones for years. " They are my true ride or die. I just replaced the padding in them because they were just deteriorating so bad from my own sweat," she told us.

Unfortunately, Bose phased out that exact model, but the nearly identical Bose QuietComfort headphones are still available for purchase.

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Acoustic foam for soundproofing

Opens in a new window Credit: Audiosoul Audiosoul 52-pack acoustic panels $34.95 at Amazon

Rafiee didn't say exactly which acoustic foam she uses, but she did cite it as a crucial part of her podcast setup. It makes sense, considering she and her co-host Jake Thatcher sit in an empty tub to record it.

It'd be a challenge for even the most seasoned audio engineer, and Rafiee doesn't expect the episodes to sound like they're in a studio: "It'll never get there because at the end of the day we are in a ceramic room. But [the foam] does make it a lot better." Placed just out of camera line, the foam works alongside some pillows in the tub and rugs on the floor.

Honorable mention: A wellness routine

Rafiee's last essential is a strict wellness routine. "I need to be (in) 10 out of 10 health in order to make a video," she said. She came to the realization after she found herself throwing up and dealing with migraines consistently while filming her "Chronically Online" series, after hours of standing under the lights and not getting enough sleep.

While not a physical product, it's a good reminder that getting plenty of rest and taking care of yourself are just as important as any recording equipment or editing software.

Mashable was live at Anaheim Convention Center covering VidCon 2025. Check back at Mashable.com, where we’ll be talking to your favorite creators, covering the latest trends, and sharing how creators are growing their followings, their influence, and making a living online.

Topics VidCon