I already have a VESA-compatible arm to support my beast of a display. It was one of the best purchases I made to aid my tired shoulders, and make more space on my desk (that was mostly occupied by a now-retired, modded Roccat keyboard. I was already in a fortunate position, as the desk was built to my height, but my partner is at the mercy of stock IKEA furniture and monitors with a fixed height. Atumtek ATMS032 (AmazonUK, AmazonUS, Atumtek Store) monitor arm will fix that for sure, but the bigger question is – would it hold BenQ 32″ 7.5kg monitor? Let’s find out!
Arms Race
Monitor arms alone aren’t the most interactive things to talk about, and Atumtek had sent me two ATMS032, therefore, I challenged my poor partner to a building race. It’s not a fair race by any stretch, but it shows that everyone should be able to assemble one without issues. I realise that the majority of my audience wouldn’t have problems with that, if things like this intimidate you – don’t worry, you will go through it in about 20 min.
Frankly speaking, I thought the assembly would be more complex. Atumtek ATMS032 come pre-assembled and the entire DIY aspect of getting the arm ready consists of a couple of steps well explained in the manual. The manual is in English so my partner had no advantage over me, plus it ended up as a good team-building/bonding exercise. It’s so hard to get her interested in the DIY stuff.
Atumtek ATMS032 up close
I had to double-check the price as Atumtek ATMS032 feels rather inexpensive for how well they are made. Prices around $40 (use code to get 15% off: notenoughtech) arms are made of metal, spring pre-loaded with gas-powered suspension. Ideal for screens up to 32″ and 8kg in weight. Enough to support the majority of screens out there, but would it support my display which is heavier than the advertised limit?
From 360 degree swivels to 90-degree tilts, the stand will meet everyone needs. As a bonus, Atumtek ATMS032 frees a lot of space under the screen. Take advantage of that. Pre-tensioned springs can be easily adjusted to keep the monitor in place and once tuned in, lifting the screen up can be done with a single finger. If you spend hours in front of the screen, you should really invest in these.
Combine the ergonomic screen positions with frequent breaks (with short yoga routines) and the familiar stiffness of the shoulders or the back pain caused by prolonged desk use. I can attest to that as someone who spent 12h at work in front of various screens. Take care of your posture, and the body will take care of your focus, concentration and energy levels.
As a bonus, access to HDMI ports gets easier too. Flip the screen to access the backplate and locate the ports without hunting for them with your fingertips. The number of times I tried to plug in HDMI into the display port… it nearly worked once!
For my partner’s desk, I went with the clamp mount option. She has a cheap IKEA desk. Drilling through 2 pieces of thin MDF sandwiched around a cardboard insert is a bad idea. Clamping to the edge of the desk is wiser, as the edge will have more structural strength, but I wouldn’t call it ideal either. Bear in mind that extended arms, can apply a very destructive force on the mounting point, hardwood desks are recommended.
Will it hold 32″?
The question on everyone’s mind is: “Can I get away with using a heavier monitor?”. At least that was the question I asked myself, trying not to spend an excess of £70 on the stand that supports the weight of my monitor times two.
With 7.5kg, BenQ 32″ display is within the weight specification so I expected a reasonable. Looks like the clip I already had from my other stand was compatible, so mounting the monitor took only a moment.
Once fitted, I needed re-tension the Atumtek ATMS032 to hold the extra weight, but after a couple of adjustment the arm kept the monitor in place and it took very little effort to move it. Even with the arm stretched to the max, the monitor remained in place. If you want to support bigger screens, you should have no problems.
Things I didn’t like
If there is anything I would improve, it would be the cable management slots. They are horribly stiff and hard to push the cable in. I usually route every cable there so having these slightly bigger would be better. The plastic clasp that meant to keep the cables along the central pipe is absolutely useless. Any amount of pressure from the cable will pop that thing off.
Monitor arms work best when mounted on the tables with a bit of space behind it. If you press the table edge directly against the wall, you might get more creative with where the main attachment points go.
Orientation wise, Atumtek ATMS032 are tall enough to stack two 24″ screens on top of each other, 27″ would be probably pushing its limit with the bottom screen resting on the desk. Side by side, it shouldn’t be an issue.
Final Thoughts
Take care of your posture and your body will thank you. If you have a 3D printer (I have a 3 now: Ender 3, Ender3v2 and LD-002H), you can design extra cable management add-ons. You can also get a USB hub and 3M tape it to the arm so you have an array of easily accessible ports hidden out of sight. Atumtek ATMS032 (AmazonUK, AmazonUS, Atumtek Store) won’t break your bank or back, do it now, thank me later. Got any other office hacks? Let me know in this Reddit thread.
🆓📈💵 – See the transparency note for details.
