Microsphere - Apr/May '00

Microsphere

Microsphere Inc. describes its computer chair as a new paradigm in workstation design. It's bigger than a breadbox and costs a little more than your average gadget. Sheryn is a workers' compensation attorney and a longtime desk jockey, so she knows first-hand that poorly designed workstations cost our industry hundreds of thousands of dollars each year in lost time and medical treatment for repetitive stress injuries, spine pain and headaches. Bruce has counseled many law firms about the cost of workplace injuries and lost productivity due to poor ergonomic work environments.

Heavy computer users who spend hours each day at a keyboard and screen absolutely need a custom-fitted workstation. Until now, this has meant buying and installing keyboard trays, wrist wrests, back pillows, monitor arms, footrests, and so forth to customize standard desks and desk chairs, and make them comfortable for users.

The Microsphere is a sleek, stylish, all-in-one desk and chair combination. Constructed of breathable mesh fabric and aircraft metal, it consists of a reclinable swivel chair with an oversized base that also supports adjustable swivel trays for your keyboard and monitor. Virtually every part of the Microsphere is adjustable. The chair can be adjusted for height and reclining angle; headrest height and position; armrest position; and the height, distance and angle of the free-standing foot rest.

The unique Microsphere design allows equipment to come to you, rather than forcing you to hunch over a desk to reach it. You don't sit on the Microsphere, you get into it. The monitor arm adjusts for height, tilt, angle and distance, and will hold monitors weighing up to 100 pounds. The keyboard tray easily adjusts forward and backward, tilts, angles and swivels out of the way. It also has enough room for the keyboard and mouse, with a little room left over for papers. To get out of the chair, you push your keyboard desk away and swivel the chair. Frankly, it takes a little getting used to.

The chair shipped in two very large boxes, with a combined weight well over 100 pounds. Surprisingly enough, there were very few individual pieces. Using only a screwdriver and two hex keys included, Sheryn assembled hers in about 45 minutes (winning a small cash bet that it would take at least an hour). From an assembly standpoint, the only troublesome aspect is that the tilt/level adjustment screws on the keyboard and monitor trays require one of the hex keys. Unfortunately, you might not be able to find these again when you need them. Solution: Sheryn taped hers to the bottom of the monitor tray.

The Microsphere also shipped with a cable-management kit that substantially improved the appearance of the loaded unit. However, Bruce found that the snaps holding the cable-managment system in place couldn't be reinserted once they were stressed and fell out.

Oddly enough, however, there's really no provision for what to do with your CPU. The only options seemed to be to put it on the floor next to the monitor support leg or put it behind the chair somewhere. The Microsphere online catalog indicates that a cabinet for the CPU is shortly to be released, but it won't be an integral part of the chair. Neither floor option provided comfortable access from the chair to insert CDs or power up the computer.

The Mircosphere isn't a small unit. With all of its appendages in place, it covers an area of about 5 feet by 5 feet. It will take quite a while to adjust and readjust everything to achieve a comfortable fit for your body and your most comfortable working position. Once you find the sweet spot, you simply have a seat, pull your keyboard tray close to your lap and start working.

From the footrest to the headrest, each part of your body is ergonomically supported in womblike comfort. It's relatively easy to change positions while seated, so you can readjust as your day wears on and your body tensions change. The Microsphere doesn't lend itself to sharing with other users; you'll have to readjust everything when you sit back down.

Optional accessories include a writing surface, cup holder and rolling storage cart with telephone tray. The Microsphere might seem a little pricey at $1,895, but it's not unreasonable when you consider the combined cost of the components: a desk, chair, adjustable monitor arm, fully adjustable keyboard tray, cable-management system and footrest.

Microsphere Inc.
(604) 605-3225
www.microsphere.com

$1,895

Reviewed by Sheryn Bruehl, managing partner, Bruehl & Chapman, PC, Norman, Okla.; & Bruce Dorner, solo practitioner, Dorner Law Offices, Londonderry, N.H.

April/May '00 Issue

PROS
Sheryn -- Very comfortable; a big improvement over standard desk chairs.
Bruce -- Great for those long sessions in front of the monitor and keyboard; not bad for a quick catnap either!

CONS
Sheryn -- Doesn't look particularly "officey," and doesn't have nearly enough room to work with files and other papers. The chair's design doesn't allow its armrests to accommodate a laptop keyboard.
Bruce -- My wife said it looked like a piece of equipment from a gym and my daughter said it looked like something from the dentist's office. It does take some time to get used to computing in a semi-recumbent position. This is definitely not for the casual computer user.

VERDICT
Definitely worth considering, particularly for work-at-home and power-users for whom the computer is the focal point of office productivity.