The Meeting Owl is a great solution if you're using it with a computer. I'm sure you can find an inexpensive one out there... they were super popular during the pandemic in schools and businesses that now have them stored in closets. ANY model will work... you don't need the latest and greatest. Check your local craigslist for more info https://owllabs.com/

It's all relative... I used to work at Adobe at the HQ building downtown. My commute from my Hayward address was almost 1.5 hours there and 2 hours home through stop and go traffic. A real grind. Now I work in the Sunset in San Francisco. My commute is 45 minutes each way and I rarely hit traffic. I suppose I could live in SF or San Jose, but my 2980 sq ft home in either of those cities would have cost me over a million dollars. I got my house for $400K a few years back. My wife doesn't have to work and both of my kids see me every day. Well worth the "short" commute.