How can i attach a laptop to a treamdill?

December 30, 2008 8:49 AM

Does anyone know of a product, or a DIY method to attach a laptop to a treamdill? It has to be portable.

I am looking for a way to watch videos on a treadmill at the gym. I think my video player would be a low end laptop, and now is just the problem of attaching it to the treadmill.
If this was at home, it would be just a matter of buidling a tall shelf, but because i'll be taking the laptop to the gym, i need something that will attach to the treadmill.
Surf Shelf seems like a good start, but i think it places the laptop too low, meaning that you would always look down, and mess up the posture while running.

posted by PlayWithFire to health & fitness (12 comments total)

Check out this for inspiration... Walkstation by Details and Adjustable height tables
posted by Corky at 9:09 AM on December 30, 2008

Walkstation won't work.
I'd love to just use an adjustable height table, but this is for a treadmill at the gym, not at home, so this has to be a portable solution. I am sure i could probably hack something up with $20 worth of parts from home depot, but i am sure someone's done this before, and i'd love to see it.
posted by PlayWithFire at 10:22 AM on December 30, 2008

GorillaPod + something + iPod Video?

Or maybe find a way to attach a netbook to a gorillapod?
posted by toomuchpete at 10:46 AM on December 30, 2008

Man, I had this same idea with a twist. I was going to make the treadmill my charging station. In other words, I could use the laptop sitting until the battery was drained and to charge it back up I'd have to get on the treadmill.

I was thinking of some type of fabricated shelf/tray and a couple of gussets to keep it level. Just $10 in parts from Home Depot. Then maybe a bungee across the keyboard area as an extra precaution. I would not enjoy watching my Macbook Pro crash to the ground - healthy or not!

I'll be watching this thread for sure!
posted by cdmwebs at 10:53 AM on December 30, 2008

A zune with a horizontal stand is surprisingly stable. I wouldnt bring a laptop to the gym and I would not try balancing it on a piece of equipment.
posted by damn dirty ape at 11:11 AM on December 30, 2008

Or you can remove the treadmill from the equation and just use an iWear.
posted by damn dirty ape at 11:13 AM on December 30, 2008 [1 favorite has favorites]

PMP such as Zune of iPod won't do the trick, the screen is way too small. I have a PSP, but it's a pain to encode videos for it. Plus, this will give me an excuse to buy a portable laptop (i am thinking MSI Wind)
posted by PlayWithFire at 11:37 AM on December 30, 2008

Bungee cord. I saw a guy at the gym do this. He just puts the laptop on the console and wraps the bungee around both, near the hinge. He was actually doing some word processing while using the elliptical.
posted by chairface at 11:56 AM on December 30, 2008

I have a treadmill at home, and it works fine with my laptop, no additional accessories needed. I just set it on the magazine tray.

The only caveat is that your laptop lid needs to be able to open almost 180 degress. My Macbook Pro will not.
posted by wongcorgi at 12:24 PM on December 30, 2008

RAM Mount? The components are mix-and-match, so you could take the appropriate sized tray and match it up with a clamp end that would fit on the equipment, something like the RAM-B-108-234-6U shown on the page I linked to.
posted by indyz at 12:38 PM on December 30, 2008

Bungee cords don't seem safe enough

The treadmill doesn't have a magazine holder, but i am sure i could buy a universal one. I'll look into it

RAM Mount seems like overkill, but thanks for the link, i've been thinking about mounting the laptop in the car as well.
posted by PlayWithFire at 1:51 PM on December 30, 2008

You could also consider getting video glasses. They've come a long way over the last few years in terms of price and non-suckiness (though the biggest improvement is price).
posted by -harlequin- at 5:10 PM on December 30, 2008