Ergotron WorkFit-S Sit Stand Workstation Review

Review

Among Ergotron’s arsenal of desktop risers, the Workfit-S strikes a middle ground between flexibility and stability. Designed to transform any fixed height desk into a sit stand workstation, the Workfit-S benefits from the smoothest height adjustment in the market and offers a unique dropped keyboard. Its level of adjustability and capable specs make it compatible with nearly any workspace.

Unboxing and Setup

One of the many things we liked about the WorkFit-S was how easy it was to set up. Working alone, you could have it up and functional in well under an hour (careful though, user-friendly as it is, the main body of the WorkFit-S has some heft). A solid tripod base clamps to the front of a desk, making this an ideal choice for those with no room for a behind-the-desk mount. A small note about the clamp: if at first it seems too narrow for your desk, don’t panic. The mount can be flipped over, providing some extra space for thicker surfaces.

The Workfit-S assembles pretty easily, secures to the front edge of the desk, and generally will take under an hour. Components fit together so perfectly that you’ll begin to wonder if screws are even necessary. Our only gripe about this process is that you will need your own socket wrench if you want to fine tune the riser’s tension down the road. Cable control is always a drag, but Ergotron does provide zip ties and a cable sleeve to keep your desk from devolving into complete anarchy.

Once assembled, adjusting is as easy as lifting or lowering the keyboard. We were impressed with just how smooth and easy it was to switch from sitting to standing height—the whole process took a few seconds and just one hand. Compared to risers like the Varidesk or Kangaroo, which use levers and knobs, adjustments on the Workfit-S are faster and more fluid.

A Sit Stand Workstation That Glides

There’s beauty in simplicity. Some sit stand workstations, such as Ergotron’s WorkFit-A, use an articulated arm to provide range of motion, the WorkFit-S is really just a vertically sliding workstation. If this sounds like a complaint, it isn’t. The Workfit-S trades flexibility for stability and compared to the more mobile Workfit-A is less susceptible to monitor shake.

The Workfit-S is capable of tackling the day-to-day needs of almost any office. It has an 18″ range of adjustment. The LD model can lift up to 18 lbs, and HD models can lift 25 lbs. The keyboard tray drops to below your desk’s surface, so you can type in whatever position feels most comfortable. Most importantly, the monitor can be adjusted independently of the rest of the riser. This allows you to set your typing and viewing heights to the most ergonomically ideal positions.

The sit-stand motion is aided by Ergotron’s trademark tension control system. A well-adjusted WorkFit-S moves butter-smoothly, but stays where you want it. If you do have to fine-tune it, Ergotron recommends using a drill, which might be a bother for some buyers; however, the tension setting was more or less ideal right out of the box, and few users have reported any issues.

We really can’t overstate how great Ergotron’s tension-adjustment system is. The WorkFit-S can get up faster than you can, which makes finding the ergonomic sweet-spot for any position almost unbelievably easy. Jealous coworkers? Share the love: The adjustability of the WorkFit-S makes it a good multi-user workstation.

A Middle-of-the-Road Workstation

Compared to the rest of Ergotron’s Workfit line, the -S can be considered a compromise between the other two products. Compared to the Workfit-T, it isn’t quite as rock solid, and its lift capacity is lower than the -T’s hefty 34 lbs. At the same time, the Workfit-S has a smoother, infinitely adjusting mechanism, while the -T has to rely on a lever-locking mechanism that’s louder and less precise.

Compared to the Workfit-A, the -S is more stable: It’s more rooted to the desk and won’t suffer as much monitor shake. However, the -S is more likely to be in the way if you want to access your desk top. It mounts to the front edge of the desk, which means any desk top space behind it becomes nearly inaccessible. Its keyboard tray also juts out away from your desk, taking up some of your standing space and making your desk harder to reach. The -S has a larger footprint on your desk, and can’t be easily moved around like the -A.

If you’re planning to buy a WorkFit-S, or really any Ergotron product, then rest easy – you’re dealing with the good guys. The WorkFit-S comes with the excellent 5-year warranty common among Ergotron models.

Make Some Changes

As with other members of the WorkFit line, the WorkFit-S comes with some options. The Worksurface+ is exactly what it sounds like – a plastic work area that attaches above the keyboard to give a user some extra space to perch documents, coffee, or whatever else they might so desire. We recommend the Worksurface+ to any user with more than just a keyboard and mouse on their desk.

A common gripe among WorkFit-S users concern the keyboard tray, which we found much too small to use easily: Testers found themselves cramped with little space to move their mice. For more typing space, we recommend you outfit your Workfit-S with Ergotron’s deep keyboard tray option.

A Hinged Bow might be something for owners of twin 24” monitors to consider. While the included monitor arm is solid, and sufficient in other cases, things get a little tenuous under the load of two 24-inchers. Another separately-sold upgrade, the Ergotron WorkFit-S Hinged Bow, should set things straight.

The Ergotron WorkFit-S Document Holder can help keep everything close to hand. This simple device resembles a music stand, and attaches to the workstation between the keyboard and monitors.

And to make sure you’re getting the most out of your converter, check out the iMovR Tucker Pro Cable Management Kit for standing desk converters. It’s the first kit on the market designed specifically for standing desk converters.

The Takeaway

The Workfit-S is a solid desktop riser compatible with just about any desk jockey looking to upgrade their desk. Its ultra smooth adjustment method makes it very attractive to anyone worried about the several cups of coffee they have on their work surface, and a dropped keyboard ensures ergonomic typing angles in both sitting and standing modes. Compared to Ergotron’s other two risers, the Workfit-S has the best of both worlds. See how it stacks up against all the competition by checking out our desktop riser comparison guide. In the meantime, feast your eyes on what you can look forward to with the Workfit-S.

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