Keyboard trays: yay or nay?

[ChaoZ]

The one on my desk is really small; only has room for the keyboard, but no mouse. I'm thinking of just getting a new desk. Problem is that I read that keyboard trays are actually bad for you, so I want your input on this. I also went through a few desk threads and very few seem to have them.

 

[0roo0roo]

bad, esp since mouse surface is highly restricted, its always uncomfortable, much of the time too low, restricts kb placement as well, and the rails tend to be weak. the desk is the right height. the tray is always under the desk
awful idea for most desks. esp now we have slim lcds so you don' t need a custom desk to compensate for crt ass.

 

[Mike Gayner]

I find KB trays to be a nuisance. Mine now has my Saitek X52 Pro joystick bolted to it, and only meets my desk when I wanna do some flying. I don't see how a KB tray could be "bad for you", though I'm sure some ergonomic nazi will figure out a way. I bet eits knows.

 

[LordMorpheus]

I have one of those really nice ones that slides out on an arm, can adjust up-down and left/right, with a mouse pad coming off one end that also adjusts. Also has a nice wrist-rest on in. not too hard to install on a new desk whenever I move, so I've kept it through several.

I'm a huge fan. I use a largish (36 or something) HDTV as my screen, so I can sit far away from it. It's a nice setup.

 

[0roo0roo]

yea break out the joystick and you got an unstable surface or you gotta use the top desk surface which is not optimal because the tray messes with your seating position.

 

[Red Squirrel]

Better for ergonomics, I hate having the keyboard high up on a desk. A tray brings it at a level that is better on the arms.

Just has to be strong, I hate the crappy flimsy ones that most desks have. I added a bunch of L brackets to mine, it aint moving lol.

 

[Pegun]

Get a desk that has a two piece top with a stable piece that has your monitors resting on it and a second piece closest to you which allows for height and angle adjustment to place your keyboard and mouse on. We have them at work and I love them.

 

[Mike Gayner]

Better for ergonomics, I hate having the keyboard high up on a desk. A tray brings it at a level that is better on the arms.

Lift your chair height?

 

[lxskllr]

I have one of those really nice ones that slides out on an arm, can adjust up-down and left/right, with a mouse pad coming off one end that also adjusts. Also has a nice wrist-rest on in. not too hard to install on a new desk whenever I move, so I've kept it through several.

I'm a huge fan. I use a largish (36 or something) HDTV as my screen, so I can sit far away from it. It's a nice setup.

I hate them, but I've never used any that^^^ fancy.

 

[Brainonska511]

I find they tend to get in the way while doing stuff on the computer, too low to use comfortably, and leave you sitting too far away from the monitor. I like having my arms sitting on my desk while I type.

 

[SlickSnake]

Yay.

If by tray you mean drawer the pulls out under the desk. When you say tray, I think of those things that the monitor sits on, and you pull it out for the keyboard.

Keeps it out of the way and keeps the cats off it. You need one big enough to accommodate the keyboard and mouse, tho.

 

[coldmeat]

I always knock them off with my legs/knees when getting out of my chair, gets annoying. And I prefer to have my keyboard on the desk.

 

[LordMorpheus]

I hate them, but I've never used any that^^^ fancy.

Something along these lines. Not the same model or brand. I can't find any labels on mine so I don't know who actually made it. The reviews mention how surprisingly stable the mouse pad is, which is true of mine as well. It's just hanging on there at the end, but I can rest the weight of my arm on my wrist while using the mouse no problem. It's a little different, it's a bit below the keyboard bit and it rotates back and forth, which I've grown accustomed to over the years.

Edit: actually it's almost exactly this model, except black and with a slightly different shape to the back of the keyboard tray.

 

[HannibalX]

Nay. Hate em.

 

[lxskllr]

Something along these lines. Not the same model or brand. I can't find any labels on mine so I don't know who actually made it. The reviews mention how surprisingly stable the mouse pad is, which is true of mine as well. It's just hanging on there at the end, but I can rest the weight of my arm on my wrist while using the mouse no problem. It's a little different, it's a bit below the keyboard bit and it rotates back and forth, which I've grown accustomed to over the years.

Edit: actually it's almost exactly this model, except black and with a slightly different shape to the back of the keyboard tray.

Looks neat, but they're pretty pricey. I think I'd have to try it myself before putting the money down for something like that.

 

[LordMorpheus]

Looks neat, but they're pretty pricey. I think I'd have to try it myself before putting the money down for something like that.

Yeah. Like I said, I got it free.

Having used it for a while, I'd buy a replacement if something happened to mine.

 

[F1N3ST]

Hellz no.

 

[Tiamat]

I removed the one under my desk as it was useless for mousing (just a tiny circle for mouse) and it kept interfering with my knees.

If the keyboard isn't at the right height and your chair arms aren't adjustable, you could be hurting your wrists by using a keyboard tray.

 

[Miramonti]

Absolutely Yay.

I bought a high quality height-adjustable/swivelable keyboard tray off ebay for $40/shipped and its awesome. That said, I had to make two significant adjustments to make it work...

First I had to create a reinforced plexiglass shelf for the keyboard and mouse, to give more room for the mouse next to the keyboard, yet also reinforced with metal (a 2" wide steel strip underneath and a 1/2" aluminum 'L' attached to the back edge) so it doesn't bend, particularly when resting a little using the mouse.

Secondly I had to raise my entire desk up 2". I have 2x4 pieces under all feet of my 'L' shaped workstation. That keeps my knees and legs from hitting the support.

All said and done, its perfect in terms of ergonomic positioning as well as height above my legs, and also sturdiness.

 

[theflyingpig]

Ahhh yes. Keyboard trays. One of my first contracts was for a computer guy. I broke in to his house one afternoon to wait for him to come home. When I saw the computer tray and box of tissues next to his computer, my plan became obvious. I waited silently in the closet for nearly an hour, then, I heard him enter. Like a typical computer nerd he headed straight for his computer, leaving a trail of discarded shoes, socks and pants. He sat down and pulled out the keyboard tray and began typing. I slowly opened the closed door and began walking toward him. He knew why I was there, but there was nothing he could do. He was trapped by his keyboard tray. He couldn't even get up to run. He just sat there while I while I unloaded round after round into his flabby, pale body. I heard it took the coroner a few hours to get him unstuck from behind his keyboard tray. Imagine that.

 

[0roo0roo]

Absolutely Yay.

I bought a high quality height-adjustable/swivelable keyboard tray off ebay for $40/shipped and its awesome. That said, I had to make two significant adjustments to make it work...

First I had to create a reinforced plexiglass shelf for the keyboard and mouse, to give more room for the mouse next to the keyboard, yet also reinforced with metal (a 2" wide steel strip underneath and a 1/2" aluminum 'L' attached to the back edge) so it doesn't bend, particularly when resting a little using the mouse.

Secondly I had to raise my entire desk up 2". I have 2x4 pieces under all feet of my 'L' shaped workstation. That keeps my knees and legs from hitting the support.

All said and done, its perfect in terms of ergonomic positioning as well as height above my legs, and also sturdiness.

better solution is to get a bunch of caster wheels with U bracket mounts.

 

[Miramonti]

better solution is to get a bunch of caster wheels with U bracket mounts.

Thanks for the suggestion. I'm limited by the feet as shown below. The threads where the feet insert are fairly narrow and somewhat shallow as well, so I've been concerned that the legs and weld won't support adequate sized casters and the weight of the desk without breaking if jolted or moved.

 

[Mo0o]

Absolutely not. Here are my reasons:

1: It lowers the clearance underneath the table, which makes me sit lower and prevents me from crossing my legs or sitting higher up. It also makes the table top feel too high
2: It put me further away from the desk, so I cant reach things as easily on the table as easy and directly left or right of hands is air rather than more desk space. If the keyboard was on the desk, i can have things between the keyboard and my body and everything is left, right or further away is still more within reach
3: I cant rest my arms on the desk when i type so I either have to perch them on the chair arm rests, which not all work stations have, or just have them hanging in the air, which sucks.
4: It either a) limits the amount of mouse space you have to a tiny square or b) makes you put the mouse on the desk, at a different height and depth.
5: When you actually have to use the desk to write something, you have to push the whole tray in to scoot up and use the desktop then scoot back out and pull the tray out to type again.

Overall, other than that you can shove teh tray under and hide it to make your table look more clean, I cant think of a single reason why I would get a desk w/ a keyboard tray. My current table is ideal. It's wide and it's deep so I can have the monitors at a resonable distance while still having plenty of space for a keyboard and work space on the desk

 

[grrl]

Yay. Mouse space isn't a problem either since I use a trackball.

 

[Homerboy]

I love my keyboard tray. I don't use the mouse on it though. I just need the extra desktop space more than anything, so it's nice to be able to store the KB away under the desktop.