Monitor And Laptop Stands

I have used (and I am using) several different monitor arms and notebook stands and want to share which ones I like and which ones I don’t like that much. Some things annoy me more, others are no big deal. I’ll go through the items in chronological order of my purchase in the post and end with my general recommendation. This item overview list is sorted in a more random fashion and has monitor arms first, followed by laptop stands:

1. Ergotron LX (Monitor arm, Partnerlink)
2. Amazon Basics Monitor Arm (Monitor arm, Partnerlink)
3. BONTEC Monitor Halter (Monitor arm, Partnerlink)
4. suptek Mointor Halterung (Monitor arm, Partnerlink)
5. Lindy Notebook-Arm (Notebook arm, Partnerlink)
6. Roadworx TM-X system (Various components)
7. Millenium Laptopstand (Laptop Stand)

History

My first purchase, in 2016, was the (7) Millenium Laptopstand. I used that mainly to get the laptop off the desk, so I had a little more space for an external drive, papers, and some pens. My desk back then was quite a mess, so I won’t show pictures here. However, as one would expect, this would just give some more space on the desk and does not help with any more setup. I still take this stand with me when I go on vacation to make a little nicer eye-line from the laptop monitor. And so if you are only interested in lifting a notebook up from your desk, this is a pretty reasonable, low-cost option.

The next item I purchased in my journey was the (1) Ergotron LX monitor arm. This was for sure one of the better purchases, despite it also being a bit pricier. I think, I bought this back in 2017. Back then, I switched from a twin 24″ full-HD monitor to a single 27″ 4k monitor and wanted that monitor to be a little more flexible. I also wanted to get rid of the large stand that that monitor came with. Today, I still use this arm for my main monitor, a (different from then) 27″ 4k screen. I can really recommend this item, though it is a bit pricey. I think it is worth the money.

Once I had experienced the flexibility of the Ergotron LX monitor arm, I wanted some more flexibility for how I position the laptop on the desk. Therefore, I purchased the (5) Lindy Notebook-Arm to replace the Millenium Laptopstand. The stand is quite rigid and of sturdy quality. However, what actually annoyed me over time is that the panel that holds the laptop is very slightly tilted when rotated 90 degrees. Also the panel can only be tilted something like 15 degrees. While it works for a laptop, it’s still limiting in what can be done with this mount. So, I think, there are better options, and I would not recommend this one, but instead the Roadworx TM-X system. More on that system later.

That being said, I also purchased an (2) Amazon Basics monitor arm a little later for another screen. This was simply, more or less, the same Ergotron LX monitor arm, just much cheaper and I would highly recommend purchasing this item. My current setup is a dual 27″ 4k monitor setup with one mounted to the Ergotron LX arm and one being mounted to the Amazon Basics arm. Oddly enough, none of those two arm is attached to their original mount pole. Instead both are mounted on the mount pole of the (3) Bontek monitor mount, and screens rotated to portrait mode.

For my sim-racing rig, which is mostly Frankensteined together, I then purchased the (3) Bontek monitor mount and the (4) suptek monitor mount. The suptek one mounts my old 27″ 4k screen and is used for racing, while the BONTEC one is used with a laptop holder plate and another “custom” mount with a wood panel for keyboard/mouse setup and a midi controller for my streaming setup. Both are on the cheaper end of the spectrum and offer significantly less convenience compared to the Ergotron LX or the Amazon Basics arm. It is not a gas spring and freely movable arm, instead is has a few joints and can be adjusted in height by moving the arms along the pole. For the use in the fix setup of the racing rig that is not an issue, but for a desk setup, I strongly prefer a freely movable arm.

My latest purchase is the (6) Roadworx TM-X mounting system with the options for a laptop mount and a tablet holder. I have not purchased the vesa mount set for this system, because, again, this is not a gas spring arm, but only a joints system. However, I have to say that from a sturdiness / quality point of view, I think, this is — by far — the best product on this list. It is very sturdy and feels as if it can carry actual weight. I use it with one microphone arm attached for a webcam and another microphone arm attached for a microphone. I’m currently planning to purchase another one of the pole mounts for another desk. Given that this is a setup with a more fixed-mounted monitor, it will likely be completely based on the TM-X system. Maybe the biggest downside is that, at the time of this writing, the supply was not super, and orders are expected to take weeks.

Conclusion

For an on-the-fly adjustable setup, I’d recommend either the Amazon Basics (Partnerlink) or the Ergotron LX (Partnerlink) arms. The former appears to be the latter simply relabeled.

For a more fixed setup, i.e., main motivation is to get rid of the different individual component stands, I would recommend the Roadworx TM-X system. I think this is an amazing quality product.