Professionals across industries swear that using multiple monitors is a life-changer, and for good reason. From accountants to designers to programmers, using two or more monitors can increase productivity by up to 30%. With toggle time alone, users save an average of 15 minutes each workday just jumping from screen to screen.
Is it true, then, that increasing from two monitors to four could boost your productivity even more?
Most developers would say “yes,” but the question merits a good, hard look. Knowing whether the investment is worth it and if it will help or hurt your productivity is essential before plugging in more screens.
What Makes a Good Monitor Setup?
A good monitor setup keeps everything you need in front of you and easily viewable. More screens will mean more screen real estate for all your open programs. What you might not have is space on your desk, or the right-sized monitors to make the layout ergonomically sound. These are two additional factors to consider when deciding on the right monitor setup for you.
More Than Two Monitors, for Sure
You’ve got your work in front of you. A new email comes in, and you’re having to move windows out of the way to see it. A call is coming in on your phone system, and you have to bring it to the foreground to see if it’s for you or your entire team, and catch the caller ID.
A third monitor (at least) could make a big difference if you choose the right screen.
A vertically-oriented screen can make a lot of sense for spreadsheets and even word processing. A big screen dedicated to in-office meetings can be very useful. As you add to the mix, specialty screens can make all the difference in the world.
How Many Monitors?
Security teams often have up to six screens in front of them at a time. A dedicated screen for chat, calendar, or reference materials, open browser windows, or anything you can think of could be valuable.
As long as you set your monitors up with your ergonomic health in mind, the move is probably a good one.
Ergonomics
If you’re working all day and squinting at tiny fonts through a letter box on a laptop, that’s not going to be good for your eyes. Adding multiple monitors is automatically going to be ergonomically beneficial for any programmers with this setup.
At the same time, monitors must be set up at a comfortable height for you to look at each one of them, including working entirely off any one of them at a given time. Consider angle, height and distance when you install more screens, or you’ll risk back or neck issues you really don’t want.
Questions about your setup? Start the conversation with us today!