NordicTrack Treadmill Desk Review

NordicTrack is a company that specializes in exercise equipment and that specialization plays heavily in their offering of an exercise desk. The treadmill desk NordicTrack made is more of a treadmill fitted with a desk than the other way around. The desk is well made and has an attractive design, but there is a gap between what it can do and what it is meant to do. The walking belt can handle high speeds which are much more than required for a desk fitted treadmill. The iFit software incorporated into the machine emphasizes exercise more than getting work done. This approach by NordicTrack is further buttressed by the inclusion of an incline function which is unnecessary as well. The working platform is much too low for average height adults interested in doing any work as it is only at hip level.

All in all, NordicTrack treadmill desk, unfortunately, does not live up to expectation in the most important aspects. It features a lot of add-ons that, in fact, add little value to the overall usefulness of the product. Not enough attention was paid to the most important details like ergonomics, that practicality would have been a more worthy feature to consider. There are many talking points and they shall all be covered in this NordicTrack desk treadmill review.

How Does the NordicTrack Treadmill Desk Fare as a Desk?

The working surface of this unit is not bad in and of itself and at 38” by 18” is manageable if not the biggest one available for most people’s needs. The trouble arises with the adjustment of the desk surface. Despite the gadgetry on display with the NordicTrack, there is no simple way to adjust the height of the work surface when the treadmill is set up and running. One would expect a button that could be pressed for up or down adjustment while the user is on it but, unfortunately, this is not the case. The easiest way to adjust the height is when the unit is in the folded upright position but at that point, it becomes just a glorified desk and the walking component is completely bypassed. All this makes the fact that the desk is about as high as the thigh of a regular adult a big failure. A proper workstation should be such that the elbows can rest on it or it is at least not too far away but this is not the case with the NordicTrack. It is much too low even for shorter people.

On the desk, the controls are the first things nearest the user and there is always a need to lean over them in order to use the rest of the surface. The controls would have been better placed on either side to avoid accidental pushing of buttons and also just to have more access to the desktop’s area. There is no such thing as a keyboard tray or any sort of depression for the keyboard to be placed in so that it is not at the same level with the monitor. This means that whenever the monitor is at the right height, the keyboard will be too high and vice versa.

Due to the nature of the equipment, it is impossible to add any sort of accessories like monitor arms and the like to improve the user’s experience. The manufacturer also does not offer any such accessories to be purchased alongside the product. The unit is steady enough in a stationary position but there is significant vibration from the motor and from the user’s movements to distract the user from properly conducting activities like typing.

Other Features of the NordicTrack Desk Treadmill

There are a lot of features in the NordicTrack walking desk that might have been better suited for strenuous aerobic exercises and full-fledged cardiovascular workouts. However, the expectations of the product are those of a desk first and foremost and those of a treadmill second. The following features are features that favor a more exercise based approach to the product: