Ergonomic Office Accessories: Which Ones Actually Fix Your Workspace?

The highest-impact accessories in priority order: monitor arm (fixes neck and eye strain from fixed screen position), footrest (fixes circulation and knee issues from desk-chair height mismatch), laptop riser with external keyboard (fixes hunched posture from laptop-only use), and cable management (fixes physical hazards and visual clutter that affect focus).

Most people buy accessories reactively — after noticing pain. The more effective approach is identifying which body part is signalling discomfort, tracing it to the specific ergonomic failure, and matching the right accessory to that failure.

One important sequence rule: free adjustments first. Chair height, monitor distance, keyboard angle. These cost nothing. Only after optimising these should you add hardware. If you're still deciding whether to invest in a height-adjustable standing desk versus a fixed desk, that decision also precedes accessory selection — the accessories you need differ significantly by desk type.

Monitor arms benefit anyone whose monitor rests on a desk stand at a fixed height, or can't be positioned at the correct viewing distance (50–70cm) and height (top of screen at eye level ±5°). This describes the majority of current desk setups.

A monitor on a desk stand sits at a fixed height — correct for approximately one-third of users and wrong for the rest. Too low means neck flexion all day. Too far means constant squinting. Too close means eye strain within two hours.

A monitor arm decouples screen position from your desk surface. You choose height, distance, and tilt angle independently of where the desk sits.

What it specifically solves:

• Neck strain from screen set too low (most common problem)

• Eye fatigue from incorrect viewing distance

• Wasted desk surface (stands occupy 20–30cm depth permanently)

• Multi-user setups needing different screen heights
  
  

Who does not need one: Laptop users working solely from a laptop screen. The problem there isn't a fixed external monitor — it's the laptop's position. That requires a laptop riser instead (covered below).

Navo's monitor arm collection ranges from AED 250 for single-arm solutions to AED 500 for premium dual and RGB options. The Control Monitor Arm Model L also includes an integrated laptop tray — solving two problems with one product.

Note: for standing desk users, a monitor arm is especially valuable. When the desk raises to standing height, a monitor on a fixed stand ends up at the wrong eye level. A monitor arm that adjusts independently of the desk surface maintains correct eye level throughout the full height range. This is something worth considering when reading our guide on how long to stand at a standing desk — correct monitor position at standing height is as important as duration.

A footrest is necessary when your feet cannot rest flat on the floor while your chair is at the correct height for your desk. This specific condition occurs when standard desk height (75cm) exceeds the ergonomic keyboard range for your body height, requiring the chair to be raised - which lifts feet off the floor.

Here's the precise scenario: a user 160cm tall needs keyboard at approximately 68–70cm. Standard desk is 75cm. To raise the keyboard to desk level isn't possible - the desk is fixed. So they raise the chair to sit at elbow level - which lifts their feet 4–6cm off the floor. Without foot support, thigh pressure increases and circulation to the lower legs reduces within 60–90 minutes.

A footrest solves this immediately. It doesn't fix the desk height - it compensates for the mismatch between standard desk dimensions and shorter user height.

If you're using a height adjustable standing desk that lowers to 69cm or below, the footrest need often disappears entirely - the desk comes to you rather than you adjusting to the desk. The Navodesk Flex L-Shape reaches 58cm, covering even the shortest users in typical GCC international teams.

Who doesn't need a footrest: Users whose feet rest flat on the floor comfortably at their correct chair height. Adding a footrest when feet already reach the floor adds no ergonomic benefit.

Navo's footrest collection provides under-desk foot support specifically for this scenario.

A laptop riser elevates the laptop screen to eye level, addressing the neck flexion problem of looking down at a laptop on a flat desk. A monitor arm attaches to an external monitor connected to a laptop. They solve the same problem — screen too low — for different hardware setups.

Laptop screens sit 15–20cm lower than correct eye level for most users. Working laptop-only for 6+ hours means sustained 20–30° neck flexion — which gradually loads posterior neck muscles and cervical vertebrae.

The riser solution has one mandatory pairing: external keyboard and mouse. Raising the laptop screen without separating the keyboard means the keyboard is now too high — trading neck flexion for wrist extension.

The complete laptop ergonomic solution:

1. Laptop riser (or vertical stand for external monitor setups)

2. External Bluetooth keyboard at elbow height

3. External mouse positioned close to body
   
   

The same principle applies whether you're working from a fixed desk or - as we covered in our desk stretches guide — at a standing desk, where the laptop screen height problem repeats at standing position if the screen hasn't been decoupled from the laptop body.

Navo's laptop and monitor riser collection includes portable folding stands with 6-level height adjustment.