As I mentioned in my previous post, I was looking for something to serve as a step-up tool to standing up for most of the day at a standing desk. I didn’t want to spend hundreds of dollars on something that I had the potential of not liking or not being able to do.
Enter the Quiklok (Quik Lok) LPH-003 laptop stand
. Quiklok is primarily a manufacturer of musician’s accessories based out of Illinois. They offer a wide selection of instrument stands, including a few stands designed to hold laptops.
I chose the Quiklok LPH-003 after doing a bit of research online on the possible choices I had. Whatever it was, it needed to be adjustable, portable, small, and not cost too much. Bonus points if I could also use it in some way after my experiment ended. There are quite a few choices when it comes to laptop stands or pedestals, but I decided on the Quiklok because it met all of my criteria and had overwhelmingly positive reviews on Amazon.com.
Pros
- Great price. It was about $100 when I picked it up–now you can grab it for around $80 with free shipping.
- Good build quality. For the price, you get a pretty well-constructed piece of equipment. Everything seems welded together properly, and I never had a problem with anything breaking or malfunctioning.
- Very portable. It folds up into a relatively small package, so you can take it with you when you’re moving locations, if needed.
Cons
The mouse tray is a bit on the small side. This is a complaint of a few of the reviewers on Amazon. It is tiny, measuring only 5.25″x5.25″ across (13.5cmx13.5cm). It took a bit of getting used to, but if you use a suitably-sized mouse, such as one of the excellent Logitech notebook mice, it is perfectly serviceable (set your mouse sensitivity a bit higher in the operating system to help things out a bit).- It’s a bit wobbly. Not too much mind you, but the higher you have it raised the more it wobbles when you’re typing on the laptop’s keypad. I’m almost 6’3″ (189cm), so it is definitely noticeable. Doesn’t affect my productivity though.
- The mouse tray isn’t vertically adjustable. I really wish it was, but it isn’t. In order to have my laptop monitor just below my head, at a comfortable height, the laptop tray is a bit higher than I’d like. Again though, it’s not too horrible, just takes a bit of getting used to. Of course, this isn’t an issue if you use the built-in trackpad on your computer, but I only do that when I’m on the go.
, it is perfectly serviceable (set your mouse sensitivity a bit higher in the operating system to help things out a bit).All in all, the Quiklok LPH-003 gets my ‘Seal of Approval’. It’s a great stepping stone to check on what the whole working-while-standing movement is all about. And hey, if for some reason it doesn’t work out for you, at least you have a nifty stand to use for presentations and the like!
And how did the experiment go? Well, I’ll be sure to write about that in the next installment.