Improving Laptop Ergonomics
Let’s be honest; it’s not all that comfortable to use laptops. Sure, it’s great that you can sit anywhere and stick the machine in your lap while you recline in a comfy chair, but do it for too long and you’re going to feel it. If you just use your laptop occasionally there isn’t as much risk that poor ergonomics will cause lasting problems or discomfort as if you are an everyday laptop user. Of course, using your laptop only occasionally also likely means that typing on its smaller keyboard will seem especially uncomfortable to you.
The Problem with Laptop Ergonomics
Having the screen and the keyboard connected means that one or the other will be in a bad position for the user in terms of ergonomics. In essence, you have an unenviable choice between poor posture for your head and neck or putting your hands and wrists in an unnatural position.
Neck or Wrists?
If you have to make the choice between your neck and your wrists, choose to protect your wrists. It seems a bit counterintuitive, but your neck is controlled by larger muscles that are less prone to injury than the muscles governing the posture of your wrists. To protect your wrists, keep your laptop at an angle that allows you to keep your wrists in a “neutral” position. Generally, this means angling your computer down at a level lower than your elbows. Angle the screen in a way that you can see it without craning your neck.
Transforming Your Laptop
Using your laptop as your primary computer, especially if you work at it all day long, means a lot of strain on your body. If this is the case for you, you can fairly easy transform your machine into a more ergonomically-friendly machine by adding an external keyboard and mouse. You can also add an external monitor to transform your computer fully.
Add a negative-tilt keyboard tray to position your keyboard in a way that allows your wrists to remain in a neutral position and use an adjustable mouse platform for the same purpose. Choose a comfortable chair that promotes good posture to complete your ergonomically-improved laptop arrangement.
