Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

When I first started looking into this product, I was a bit concerned about the fact that there were a lot of glowing reviews here from people who haven't reviewed anything else. That is usually a red flag that something fishy is going on. However, I also found several other glowing recommendations elsewhere, so decided to take the plunge. Now that I've had this thing for about a week, I can confirm that it is as good as everyone says it is. That being said, there are aspects of owning a product like this that most people may not consider, and it is mostly these things that I want to touch on in this review. Buying a treadmill desk is like bringing a dog home - you will probably love it, but you really need to understand what you're getting yourself into. So, I'm here to offer the following impressions about this treadmill desk, along with some pieces of advice: - From the very beginning, typing seemed very easy for me while walking on this thing. Unfortunately, mouse precision took a pretty serious hit. This probably won't be a problem if you're a typical office worker and/or spend most of your day typing. But if you do a lot of mousing (like me), this could be a problem. In my case, using the mouse while on the treadmill is getting easier over time as I get more used to it, plus it is forcing me to use shortcut keys more to save time, so I guess that can only be a good thing :) I'm also getting more familiar with the AutohotKey scripting language (Windows), which you can use to actually program macros and stuff across different apps, which can take the place of mouse movements and clicks. When I first got the treadmill, I couldn't go any faster than 0.5mph before I could no longer control the mouse. Now I'm up to 1.0, and I can go as fast as 1.5, depending on what I'm doing. - I saw it suggested on several blogs that you should start with a standup desk before 'graduating' to a treadmill desk. Well, being someone who has had a standup desk for several months, I can say even from day one, I could go longer on the treadmill desk than I ever could with the standup, primarily because it seems that walking is a lot easier than standing in one place. Thus, I think you'll have a much easier time adjusting to walking on a treadmill for long periods of time, as opposed to just standing in one place. - Unless you're a long distance walker already, this isn't the sort of thing where you're going to get on and walk for 6 hours on your first day. After an hour or two, your legs and feet will probably be screaming for some respite :) Thus, I will recommend what I recommended in my standup desk review; it's probably a good idea to have a sitting desk beside your treadmill, and have a dual monitor setup in mirror mode - one on the treadmill desk and one on the sitting desk. Then, you can just move the keyboard and mouse to whichever desk you want to use. (Or, if you use a laptop, then it would be even easier.) - Something else I didn't see mentioned in any review is that chafing has been a bit of a problem for me, especially after being on for 2+ hours. Thus, I am trying out different kinds of 'compression shorts', because Body Glide only goes so far. The compression shorts seem to be greatly improving things, although I'm only in the experimental phase. Still though, if compression shorts are a must, I don't see this thing being very practical for office use, unless you only plan to be on it for an hour or two. As for me, I used it for nearly three and a half hours today, which is the longest I've used it so far. - Along with compression shorts, two other accessories you'll probably need is a fan (it gets hot while walking), along with a monitor stand, esp if your monitor isn't height-adjustable. I got the OFC Express Monitor Stand (20.5 x 11 x 4.25) and it's working great. I can even put my keyboard under to get the monitor closer to my face, which helps since I'm visually impaired. - About this treadmill in-particular - some reviewers have already noted that if you pause it, you have to reset your speed every time you get back on, and the treadmill beeps loudly every time you press a button. This is kind of annoying, but not a huge issue. The biggest issue I have with it is that the arm rests are probably not as soft as you think they are. They're padded, but not as much so as a padded wrist rest. As a result, my 'mousing wrist' tends to feel a bit raw at the end of a work day. I also don't like the placement of the console, and the fact that the top of it covers part of the arm rest, right in the center of where my wrists go. So I have to fidget with the keyboard a bit to make sure my wrists aren't resting on the plastic piece. I really wish they'd have put it over to one corner or something. - Some say you can barely hear this thing, which isn't exactly true. Although the motor is pretty quiet, you will always hear the 'swish-ing' sound of the treadmill belt, along with the constant 'thump thump thump' of it being walked on. Overall, I like this treadmill desk very much, but can't really recommend it for heavy office use. It's great if you work at home though :) I'll probably update this review some after I've had the treadmill for awhile. One last thing I should mention is that if you buy the treadmill and it starts making a horrible 'groaning' noise when you start walking on it, the belt is probably a little off-center, and you just need to adjust it a little. This is fairly straightforward, and is explained in the manual - you just need to turn a couple of screws in the front, and then you're good to go :) UPDATE 5/29 Pro-tip: If you're doing the treadmill desk thing and feel a little burning down there while walking, you should probably stop, even if you think it's not that bad. Chafing is like sunburn... in the moment, you only notice a little irritation. An hour or two later? Ouch time! Better have that Aquaphor handy :)