Occupational Health & Safety: As the methods of communication have evolved, humans have always struggled to stay upright. From the beginning, putting a pen to paper on a typical desktop involved hunching forward and dropping the head to view the writing area.
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I dont have that much experience with working all day on a tablet, but I definitely how it could cause major strain on the body after continuous use. Although, I feel like people who do generally use tablets all day have become pretty used to the way that they they have to maneuver their hands and arms to work effectively and without too much fatigue. For instance, many retail operations have taken to the system of having sales associates and cashiers use tablets as method of interacting with customers, gathering email addresses for the purpose of delivering newsletters and promotions, etc. I personally worked in one of these situations previously, and was placed on what was called "ipad duty" early in my short-lived retail career. I never necessarily felt like I was under a ton of strain even though it was customary for me to be walking around greeting guests, constantly using the iPad in hand. I'm assuming we'll learn more when studies about the ways that using our technology affects our bodies have more long-term evidence.
This article explains exactly why I hate tablets, and hate using them. I love the idea of being able to not carry around a massive laptop which doesn’t quite fit on my lap or the “desks” that are in Porter Hall which I’m convinced are made for kindergarteners. If tablets were designer for comfort during work situations, I might be more willing to try them. But alas, they are really a social media toy and completely unnecessary if I have a phone and a laptop. There is no reason to have another device which does the same thing. Comfort is a real issue for me and I’m sure other people. I have terrible neck and back problems because I am constantly at a computer and I occasionally lift objects incorrectly. The fact that a tablet is not built for comfort makes me less prone to be willing to integrate them into my life.
I absolutely hate tablets. I understand that they are SLIGHTLY more convenient to carry than SOME laptops, but they just aren’t powerful or professional enough to be practical in any environment except on-the-go Netflix or something. I cannot believe that half the population has adopted the tablet lifestyle in the past 5 years, and it’s even pretty obvious that tablets would affect posture in a similar way as clipboards or notebooks, which I’m sure we all know that writing freely on either of those is not a comfortable or pleasant experience. Tablets also require power, another thing to worry about when travelling around on a work call. I have also never encountered a tablet that had the same quality interface on common programs like excel and word as a laptop does. My main question is if it’s worth it to fumble around with your fingers on a screen just to avoid just flipping open your laptop when needed and holding the base.
I have an iPad and have found it very difficult to make the absolute switch over to the tablet. I agree with the article when it discusses how tablets are not used at a computer desk, because the tablet was not meant for the COMPUTER desk because it is not a computer. The tablet was meant to be used on the go as an alternative to the computer, not to replace the computer. The article discusses how it is uncomfortable and causes pain to use a tablet, yet as I type this comment, my laptop is sitting on my legs and my neck is in a degree of pain. It's also important to note that recent discoveries involved with text neck. This problem is common amongst technology and is not isolated to tablets. One most be cautious when using technology and take steps to actively avoid the potential pain and damage that can be caused.
I really like tablets. I use primarily my tablet when I am travelling or on vacation, and I believe that that is the difference from what this articles is describing. For work, I use a laptop with (or without) a monitor to avoid neck trouble. I have also spent a lot of time re-training myself to sit up straight with my neck in the correct position and my eyes tilted down to the screen if I do not have a monitor. The real problem comes in when discussing cell phones. Almost everyone tilts their heads down and crunches in their fingers to use their phones, so even people who have not transitioned to tablets have smart phones. I cannot believe how much pressure tilting your head forward puts on your neck! I think the most important thing to prevent permanent damage will be awareness and knowledge, thinking of ways to prevent bad posture and ways to stretch out regularly once you have it.
I don’t usually think about my posture when I am doing work on a computer whether it be a laptop, desktop or tablet but this article does bring awareness to how I look at a screen when I work. I tend to hunch forward as I try to get more comfortable and focus more. At the end of long days of working at my computer I can feel discomfort in my back and neck. So this article was a great reminder of how I sit and arrange myself when I work so that I can get the best focus and not strain my back or neck. I also think that the talk about how the tablet affects our posture can coincide with our phone use. We look down on our phones constantly which strains our necks but if we raise them up to eye level strains our arms. I feel that there isn’t a good solution but just steps to help lessen the strain. We’ll see what comes out in the future to help with this problem.
This article really resounds with what I've thought for a while now. Tablets, especially the heavier ones, really are not quite the ergonomic, especially when you are on the go. It can definitely be a pain to hold them in one hand and tap with the other. That being said, I feel like the hand problems are mostly alleviated with the smaller 7" tablets. I think OHS has a tendency to exaggerate safety problems, mainly because it's their job to.. but in the case of handheld tablet devices, I think they are pretty spot on. I feel like the same problem happens with computers with touch screens. It just is simply an unergonomic form factor to have to reach out with one hand and tap a screen directly in front of you. Your hand just gets tired after a while! Almost all lighting consoles have touch functionality now-a-days, but frankly, I usually find it more annoying and time consuming to tap the screen than just typing in a command. There is reason the keyboard and mouse reign supreme when it comes to actually getting stuff done.. Tablets are great and all, but I don't think they will ever replace traditional inputs when it comes to productivity. Besides, they're aren't even terribly ergonomic!
Many people do not realize what using a phone or a tablet does to their body. We are so used to using them in weird positions that we do not notice when it is straining our muscles unless it is for an excessive time. People have their heads down and their necks bent an insane amount of time during the day that no one realizes. Checking and using your phone is a natural reaction now and it is usually close to your lap or as high as your stomach or chest. People have a lot more neck and back problems from looking at tablets and phones than they did 10 years ago. Tablets and iPads are becoming a lot more popular as a computer because they are small and easy to carry around. Desktop computers are not seen as often except in offices. Most people have laptops and/or tablets that they do most of their work on. Those devices are quickly ruining people’s posture.
In my opinion, tablets are awesome! However, I also do believe that they can cause all sorts of trouble. First, and for most and most obviously, they are an astronomically huge distraction. This is because you can simply do everything on a tablet. It is like carrying around the internet in a note book. They are not only a distraction to the user, but also to everyone in the room. This because more often than not the user become absorbed in the tablet and then becomes only physically present and not mentally present. And, everyone wants to see what they are doing on their tablet. In may ways, these are the exact same issues that I have with all of our smart phones. We are becoming to attached to the hip with our technology and as a result our society is suffering. Basically, ask yourself, do you need to use technology to accomplish this.
I’m genuinely curious to know if the person who wrote this article has ever actually used a tablet. Let alone used one with any amount of regularity. I agree that tablets can lead to doing some thing with poor posture, and I agree with what they said about them not being very good for productivity things. But after that my agreement with them goes out the window pretty fast. First their issue that I find most ridiculous, that you can’t type properly since you can’t use the home row comfortably. Of course you can’t, why would you even try to do that. Trying to type on a tablet like it’s a normal keyboard is wildly impractical. However, that doesn’t mean you can’t type quickly and comfortably. If you have long enough thumbs you can hold it in portrait mode and reach all the letters, or if that approach isn’t for you you can use gesture recognition typing. Now that apple allows third party keyboards it doesn’t matter if you have an android tablet or an iPad, you can type by dragging your finger around the screen, it’s fast and causes practically no fatigue. The other part of the article I had an issue with was the whole thing about it being uncomfortable to hold a tablet. Now maybe having big hands skews my opinion a little here, but I’ve never found tablets too be particularly cumbersome. If you have an issue holding them with one hand, then there are plenty of other ways to hold one comfortable. As for what they were saying about weight, well I’m just kind of lost there. Modern tablets are not particularly heavy. First and second generation tablets, sure those were a bit much to hold up in the air for extended periods of time but it’s not much of an issue anymore. In the end I think they missed a chance to talk about some of the definite health issue of tablets (the poster thing they touched on for example), and instead focused on thins that are technically problems but are very minor, if not practically nonexistent at this point.
I agree with this article - whenever I use tablets I do easily experience the physical fatigue described in this article, which is also why I don’t use tablets. They are certainly much more convenient than laptops, especially when it comes to traveling, but when it comes down to functionality and efficiency I don’t see a big difference between a tablet and a phone except for the size. As technology evolves so rapidly today, there are going to be inventions that certain people like and other people don’t like. We just have to be able to find what’s right for us.
Ahhhhh, the tablet, what a remarkable piece of technology. I remember seeing the first iPad keynote and thinking to myself, man, this product is going to fly off the shelves and was I right. I got my first tablet about 5 years ago and I loved it. I used it so much my computer virtually became obsolete. I was younger and was primarily using it for games and web surfing, but after a while my arms would begin to get tired. It was hard to use it without being uncomfortable. When the author of this article says, “looking down at a tablet is the equivalent of putting 60 pounds on the neck”, I can’t really disagree.
This doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t use a tablet ever again, but taking precautions to prevent long-term damage to your body is important to maintaining good health. Next time you’re using your laptop or tablet on the coach, try elevating it. I did, and found myself more comfortable for a longer period of time. You may not notice the effects now, but this generation will see many problems if we continue to use electronics in the same way.
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