I'm not sure what's more frustrating: a product that is truly bad, or a product that has the potential to be great but instead took some poor design/business decisions that make it merely "meh".
The Uncaged Ergonomics WorkEZ Keyboard Tray falls into the latter category.
THE GOOD:
- One of the very few products that limits its scope to just keyboard & mouse. Most other products include a feature for a monitor or laptop. This has found its niche as a product for those of us who have an existing desk setup with monitors that are adjustable, and we merely want something that allows us to place our keyboard/mouse on a riser so that we can stand.
- since it is limited in scope and features, it is therefore reasonable priced. I didn't need nor want to spend over a hundred dollars (or more) on a Varidesk (or one of its clones)
- Somewhat decent number of options for adjusting height and keyboard tray incline
- Lastly, I think they had a good idea with the separate mouse platform that you can attach to either left or right side, and you can adjust the angle so that it is flat if you decide you place your keyboard on an incline.
THE BAD (aka why in the world would you not test this out and/or make these decisions?):
- Since the item is very lightweight, there is nothing designed to compensate for the fact that it will move around your desk as if it's on ice skates. This could have so easily been rectified by choosing soft/rubberized plastics where the legs meet the desk. At the very least they should include rubber/vinyl bumpers that you can stick on. That's what I wound up doing and it made the product 100x better.
- They advertise the ergonomic option of configuring the keyboard tray so that it can be positioned on an angle. i.e., tilting down and away from you. What they don't show/tell you is that your keyboard will also act as if it is on ice skates, and slide around while you type. Yes the keyboard tray is made of lightweight aluminum and has a textured surface, but it's still slippery as hell. Again I'm not sure why they didn't opt for treating the surface with some type of powdered/rubberized coating, or again include more rubber/vinyl bumpers that you need to apply to the bottom of your keyboard. That's what I did, and again it made the product so much better.
- I have several issues with the separate mouse platform attachment. First of all, it's too small. Because the surface of the platform is rather rough you need to use a mouse pad. However it is difficult to find a square mouse pad that is 7in by 7in. Most mouse pads are rectangular, and I'm not exactly sure why they didn't just make the mouse platform the same depth as the keyboard tray. Secondly, I find that the mouse platform is rather wobbly, even when securely attached correctly. I think the product would feel so much more polished and professional if the attachment mechanism was re-designed or if the metal used was thicker so that it didn't bend so easily.
In summary, at first I was very disappointed in the product, but after the significant upgrade of applying about a dozen vinyl bumpers ($3 at Home Depot) and cutting a mouse pad down to size, I am now really happy with the purchase. I've been standing at my desk for 2 days straight and there's no looking back! If you're willing to apply some vinyl bumpers and trim down a mouse pad, I think you will come to like this product.
Hopefully Uncaged Ergonomics will take my suggestions into consideration when refreshing this product for the next version. Again I really think it has a unique niche and provides a lot of value if only they would tweak a few things here and there.
| Manufacturer | Uncaged Ergonomics |
|---|---|
| Brand | Uncaged Ergonomics |
| Model Number | WEKTs |
| Colour | Silver |
| Material Type | Aluminium |
| Number of Items | 1 |
| Size | Pack of 1 |
| Manufacturer Part Number | WEKTs |
