L-Shaped Standing Desk: Lander vs Uplift etxc.

[N9JIG]

In my office I have a fairly standard 30x60 motorized standing desk I bought from Office Depot/Max a year ago for about $500. It is actually surprisingly good for the price, it has a 1-inch thick laminated particle wood desktop on a pretty decent motorized base and was easy to assemble.

The CFO of N9JIG Enterprises (AKA the wife) has authorized the purchase of a new desk for my office, in part because she wants my current one for her crafting room, it will fit her needs well. She has allowed me to pretty much get what I want with the caveat that it reduces the clutter in the office. The new desk will carry up to 5 monitors with 2 computers (2018 Mac Mini, Hades Canyon NUC).

I pretty much have decided in an L-shaped standing desk with as large a surface as I can get. The room is about 13x14 so I can handle a larger desk in here.

I have found two sources with desks that I like, from Lander (Lander L-Desk) and UpLift (
UPLIFT V2 L-Shaped Stand Up Desk). Both offer motorized standing desk solutions and several options I like (color, extended sizes for the main and return desktops as well as the frame etc.)

What I am looking for are your suggestions and comments on these if you have any experience with them. Are there other manufactures or sources I should look at? Are either of these options exceptionally good or bad?

 

[N9JIG]

Well, the response here was overwhelming!

Anyways, I decided on the Uplift, it was almost half the price as the Lander and the customer support up to now has been outstanding. I ordered my desk this morning (Tuesday) and it is scheduled to be delivered Thursday by FedEx. That will be great since it gives me the whole weekend to assemble and transition to it.

Looking forward to it!

 

[torqueflight]

Well, the response here was overwhelming!

Anyways, I decided on the Uplift, it was almost half the price as the Lander and the customer support up to now has been outstanding. I ordered my desk this morning (Tuesday) and it is scheduled to be delivered Thursday by FedEx. That will be great since it gives me the whole weekend to assemble and transition to it.

Looking forward to it!

[doublepost=1554258393][/doublepost]I like the idea of an adjustable standing desk. Hope it works out for you.

 

[Fireproof!]

I’ve been thinking of getting a motorized standing desk, though I don’t need as big as you. Uplift has been one that has bubbled to the top for me, so good to see that you have positive experience so far.

@N9JIG - would love an update now that you’ve had it for a few months. Any regrets? Any advice for a new buyer?

I think the “sitting is the new smoking” was a bit overhyped. But I work from home (when not traveling) and am in front of the computer seated for at least 10 hours per day. While I do try to get up and move around every hour or two (largely driven by Apple Watch reminders), I can’t help but think a couple/few hours of standing work might be beneficial...

 

[N9JIG]

I love it! It exceeded my expectations in almost every way. It arrived that Thursday. That Friday evening as soon as I finished work ( I WFH) we disassembled the office and old desk and assembled the new. It took a couple hours but was easy for the wife and I.

I usually end up standing a couple hours daily in 20-30 minute blocks and adjust the height while sitting every 15-20 minutes. The desk goes plenty high enough for me to work at it, being 6'4" I can even drop it down a couple inches from max. Putting the desktop up makes it easy to work underneath on the wires as well. The casters allow me to move it around easily as well.

I have it set up pretty much self-contained. I use the CPU mount to hold my fairly large UPS as I use a Mac Mini and and Intel NUC, both with multiple displays. With just a power cord, USB cable to some external devices and an Ethernet cable I can pretty much move it almost anywhere in the room without shutting things down. By disconnecting these cables I can even move it out into the next room which made it real easy to paint the office and surface the floor.

Of course there are a few things I would do differently:

1. I would have liked one or two wire holes on the small side, they are only available on the larger side. I suppose I could cut them myself but I am not into woodworking.
2. I would redesign the power inserts for the wire holes with one or two USB power ports.
3. I would like to see a curved junction piece for the corner as an option.
4. I would like a skirt or channel for wires and cables to be hidden.
5. I would have liked a couple AC power strips better integrated under the desk, one to be plugged into the UPS and one direct to the outlet. (The cheap Office Depot desk this replaced had a real nice 4-port outlet strip integrated into the power supply for the desk motors as well as a couple USB power ports...)
6. I would have had optional ball casters color matched with the desk instead of the large and gaudy industrial style casters.

 

[D.T.]

@Fireproof!

I use a VIVO standing desk frame, it's manual, and it's interesting because you supply your own desktop, and the legs can adjust to accommodate different width tops. You can make it unique, do something custom, or even buy cheap, maim, and replace

I'm using it with an Ikea LINNMON desktop, 59 x 29.5", I like it because it's deep, it was also disposable cheap, several colors (and sizes for that matter), I used this one:

Blue adds some color and contrast vs. the red walls in the office (Flaming Sword Red to be specific ), the light wood goes nicely with the hardwood floors, the frame itself is black.

When this gets wrecked I might go cheap again, or I've got a couple of real, solid wood options identified too.

A word about manual vs. electric:

I don't raise/lower it that much, but it's like 20-25 seconds, seriesly, it's easy and quick. Just about every electric option I researched, even, $700+ models, people were complaining about motor issues/failures, when that happens, the desk is sort of just stuck. The manual mechanism is very simple, not much to break, seems very beefy.

FYI, VIVO is a pretty well known manufacturer of office equipment, they make monitor arms/stands/racks I've used for years, and their customer service is pretty solid.

 

[N9JIG]

Those Linnmon desktops are really popular and I thought of getting the frame to pair with them but got the Office Depot one instead as it was on sale and had a desktop the same size. A friend did get the Linnmon and a frame from one of the companies (I forget which) and it seemed to work great for him but he is just uising a singe iMac. I needed something larger after a year or so and decided the L-shape was my oyster.

 

[D.T.]

Those Linnmon desktops are really popular and I thought of getting the frame to pair with them but got the Office Depot one instead as it was on sale and had a desktop the same size. A friend did get the Linnmon and a frame from one of the companies (I forget which) and it seemed to work great for him but he is just uising a singe iMac. I needed something larger after a year or so and decided the L-shape was my oyster.

Yeah, there's a couple of manufacturers who do just the frame, and even a few folks who replaced the top where it's included, after it got damaged (and used a LINNMON top). It's nicely constructed, but not as hard/dense as real wood, but the whole desk is very solid up or down. I have some desktop grommets, I was (may still) going to add for to clean up some cables, that's the great thing about this inexpensive top, you can hack it up and not feel too bad

I did see when I was researching these, that someone used an L shaped top - while it doesn't have a specific design to handle a side section, just a small side area where the top is still centered seems to work pretty nicely.

On mine, I've got (2) 25" displays, an amp/DAC stack, a Mini/ full sized KB/mouse/various drives, some near field speakers, always room for a beer, pretty decent amounts of open space. You could actually do __two__ of these frames, with a slightly smaller side desk, you could have independent height control, etc.

Hmm ...

That Uplift desk is a nice design, which color mix did you go with? The bamboo is beautiful!

 

[N9JIG]

I went all black. I knew I was getting a Mac Mini to replace the iMac 5K I had at the time, all my external monitors were black as was the NUC and the various accessories. I then bought the Space Gray (Grey?) keyboard and mouse to match. It works well with the sandstone colored tile and walls and matches all the other stuff in the room.

 

[Fireproof!]

Great discussion. Really appreciate all the details posted above. My use case is simple - I just work from my MacBook. I have built-in bookcase with a seated desk area on one wall in my study. Then a simple desk in the middle of the room on a rug. That’s the one I want to replace so I can stand and work.

Manual adjustment is a good call - I’ll look into those options as well.

 

[N9JIG]

My Uplift replaced my $360 Office Depot desk:

https://www.officedepot.com/a/produ...ellan-Performance-Electric-Height-Adjustable/

I really liked the inexpensive OD desk but it was too small for the 5 monitors I wanted to use. My wife also wanted one for her craft room and liked it so much we bought her a second one so she now has 2 in her crafting room!

 

[Fireproof!]

My Uplift replaced my $360 Office Depot desk:

https://www.officedepot.com/a/produ...ellan-Performance-Electric-Height-Adjustable/

I really liked the inexpensive OD desk but it was too small for the 5 monitors I wanted to use. My wife also wanted one for her craft room and liked it so much we bought her a second one so she now has 2 in her crafting room!

That’s slick and reasonably priced.

question: when you set it up, can you choose which leg the power cord comes out of?

 

[D.T.]

Speaking of mats ...

(Sorry, saw them as a 'Frequently bought together' item in the Office Depot link ...)

I picked this one up, use it when I'm in standing mode:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01B868HIQ/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_U_L34NDb3JHSAYT

Researched them a bit, had the best mix of excellent reviews, color/size options and price.

 

[N9JIG]

That’s slick and reasonably priced.

question: when you set it up, can you choose which leg the power cord comes out of?

Yes, I have the power lead coming off the center leg. The Uplift allows you to place the power supply almost anywhere along the center rail.
[automerge]1570738138[/automerge]
My wife has a couple if these mats in the kitchen and a couple in her sewing room as well as the laundry. I stole one and used it in the office and liked it enough to buy my own with the desk as part of the package.

 

[N9JIG]

So it has now been abut 10 months with the UpLift desk and so far so good. I have had a few ideas that I am considering.

The community I live in has an active woodworking club and I am thinking of having them build me a new desktop to replace the one I have now. I would like curved ends and curved inside corner. I would an under-desk shelf* to accommodate power supplies, outlet strips, the network switch and other accessories as well as hide the wires that seem to multiply overnight. If I can find outlet inserts with USB power I might have them accommodate those as well. I would also add a couple smaller wire access holes in each desktop.

I had my wife make me a couple denim skirts that velco underneath the desk to hide the shelf and wiring, these would not be needed if I have the club build the shelf underneath but for now they work well.

I might have a metal-working friend fashion a couple support bars between the rear 5th leg and the two rear end legs. With the size of the desk I just do not trust this and it would make me feel better. When the desk is set to the highest position it looks a little wobbly when I move it, the 5th leg has no supporting partner.

I have the desk set up as entirely self-contained, just one power lead and a couple other cords (USB, Ethernet and a couple radio wires) that come out as a unit. I can move the desk almost anyplace in the office without needing to unplug anything, and if I need to remove it entirely I can do so in a minute.

* I bought one of those clamp-on 2 monitor shelf units and slung it underneath the desk to hold these things and it works great but there are 2 large clamps sticking up above the desktop. While well hidden by monitors I would prefer them not being there...

 

[millerj123]

@Fireproof!

I use a VIVO standing desk frame, it's manual, and it's interesting because you supply your own desktop, and the legs can adjust to accommodate different width tops. You can make it unique, do something custom, or even buy cheap, maim, and replace

I'm using it with an Ikea LINNMON desktop, 59 x 29.5", I like it because it's deep, it was also disposable cheap, several colors (and sizes for that matter), I used this one:


View attachment 868339


Blue adds some color and contrast vs. the red walls in the office (Flaming Sword Red to be specific ), the light wood goes nicely with the hardwood floors, the frame itself is black.

When this gets wrecked I might go cheap again, or I've got a couple of real, solid wood options identified too.

A word about manual vs. electric:

I don't raise/lower it that much, but it's like 20-25 seconds, seriesly, it's easy and quick. Just about every electric option I researched, even, $700+ models, people were complaining about motor issues/failures, when that happens, the desk is sort of just stuck. The manual mechanism is very simple, not much to break, seems very beefy.

FYI, VIVO is a pretty well known manufacturer of office equipment, they make monitor arms/stands/racks I've used for years, and their customer service is pretty solid.

I went with the Ikea Lack end tables for work https://alphacolin.com/ikea-standing-desk-for-22-dollars. At home, in my office I'm using a wire shelving unit, and in my living room I'm using a manually adjustable desk set to my height. Having a pad to stand on is pretty critical, and I also use a stool for resting my legs.