Stacked Laptop Monitor

January 26th, 2024
tech, wrists
A few weeks ago I broke my laptop's screen and was speculating on whether putting a portable monitor above the screen would do what I wanted. The hope was that it would let me set up a laptop where both my wrists and neck were in comfortable positions. It does!

The monitor is a 1080p model that gets it's power and video signal over USB-C. It's screwed to an aluminum plate with M4 VESA screws, which is connected to another plate with butler tray hinges:

Then the bottom plate velcros to the back of the laptop screen:

I probably should have gotten some kind of hinge that locks, but since I didn't I cut a piece of wood to chock it:

I should sort out something sturdier and harder to lose.

It folds up, with the portable monitor's cover protecting the screen:

It still fits in my backpack's laptop pocket, but only just.

I tried it on the airplane yesterday, and it's so much better ergonomically!

It also doesn't need the chock, since to fold up the seat in front of me would need to not be there.

There are a few downsides, though:

  • I need to be careful to position it so all the forces are aligned, and only use it in places where it's not going to get jostled. Building a kickstand (which all the others seem to have) would probably help a lot with this.

  • If you use it in a meeting you can't see the person across from you:

  • If you're nine it's probably too high for you:

I've only used it a bit, but so far I'm very happy with it. I'm composing this post on it while traveling, and it's way more comfortable.

Referenced in:

Comment via: facebook, lesswrong, mastodon

Recent posts on blogs I like:

Book Review: The Kingdom, The Power, and the Glory

Against the Internet

via Thing of Things April 25, 2025

Impact, agency, and taste

understand + work backwards from the root goal • don’t rely too much on permission or encouragement • make success inevitable • find your angle • think real hard • reflect on your thinking

via benkuhn.net April 19, 2025

Which Came First, the Chicken or the Egg?

When I thought about this question it was really hard to figure out because the way it's phrased it's essentially either a chicken just pops into existence, or an egg just pops into existence, without any parent animals involved. I thought about t…

via Lily Wise's Blog Posts April 13, 2025

more     (via openring)