Lockable vs. Open Tablet Mounts: Which One Should You Buy

Tablets are an essential part of customer-facing businesses. When you walk into any hardware supplier’s catalog, you’ll find two broad categories: lockable mounts and open mounts. They might look similar at a glance, but they are different, and that difference shapes how well your setup works. Before you add one tablet desk stand to your cart, it’s worth understanding what each option is built for.

What is a Lockable Mount?

A lockable tablet mount is a secure, anti-theft holder. It holds the device inside an enclosure or bracket that’s secured with keys or a tamper-resistant screw. It features a heavy enclosure designed to fix a tablet to a desk, wall, or vehicle, preventing unauthorized removal. These mounts are common in retail checkout counters, restaurant ordering stations, hospitals, and any public-facing setup where the device needs to stay put and be protected from theft or accidental removal.

What Makes a Mount Open

An open mount, by contrast, holds a device that uses an exposed frame, adjustable clips or a cradle design instead of a fully enclosing system. This tablet stand has no locking mechanism involved. Anyone can quickly insert or remove the tablet.
This type of tablet stand is suitable for environments where the tablet moves between tasks, gets charged separately, or is shared by a small trusted team. However, the trade-off of open-mount tablet holders is that the design allows opportunistic thieves to pry the tablet out of the mount. If the adjustment knobs are loose, the device can slip out of the grip and fall.

Here’s a quick comparison:

Feature	Lockable Mount	Open Mount
Best for	Public-facing spots (kiosks, retail counters, lobbies)	Controlled spaces (offices, warehouses, homes)
Security	The belt is secured with tamper-resistant screws, a key, a combo, etc.	No locking mechanism
Theft risk	Low	Higher, since anyone can remove it
Flexibility	Limited-tabet stays put	High, easy to move between tasks/locations
Ideal user	The information is shared with the public or many unknown users.	Small, trusted team or single user

Conclusion

Choosing a lockable or tablet mount depends on matching the mount to the environment. Ask where the tablet will live and who’ll be using it. Need something in between? A tablet desktop stand offers a stationary, no-commitment alternative for a counter or desk. Whatever you choose, check compatibility with your tablet model before buying, whether that’s a lockable mount, an open mount, or a tablet desktop stand.