Buying Your First Standing Desks? 8 Things To Consider

• Content
• Workplace & Wellbeing
• Buying Your First Standing Desks? 8 Things To Consider

04 July 2019

Salman Mohammad shares his extensive research into standing or sit-stand desks - warning there are 8 things to consider when making that first purchase.

So let's do this thing in reverse order.

8. Budget

As standing desks are an excellent investment for your long-term health and wellness, I'm placing ‘budget’ with least importance. Height adjustable desks alone could set you back from £200 to £3,000. If you’re tight on cash and none of these fits your budget, consider a retrofitted standing desk converter.

7. Weight capacity

Not all standing desks are designed to hold the average laptop and desktop. If your standing desk is expected to do some heavy lifting, remember to check the maximum weight the standing desk can hold.

6. Ease of assembly and user-friendlyness

Some standing desks require a simple one-off installation while others may need complicated mounting. Alternatively, a retrofitted standing desk that may be collapsed and stowed away is usually excellent for hot-desking or space saving when it's not in use. Depending on your needs, choose the standing desk that offers you the most flexibility.

5. Work surface

If someone you are buying for is the messy co-worker or requires multiple large screens, be sure to check the available work surface the standing desk has to offer.

4. Warranty

Avoid purchasing cheap standing desk substitutes that don't offer a warranty. Warranty periods for quality standing desks vary greatly. A good quality desk would come with at least three years of warranty.

3. Material and quality/durability

Warranty duration usually depends on the number of intricate parts the standing desk has and also the material strength of which the standing desk is made from. Cheap plastic would have a shorter product lifespan as compared to its metal or wood counterparts. You wouldn’t trust a structurally unsound standing desk to hold your £2,000 computer. The material that gives you the best value for your quid would be good old sustainable wood.

2. Versatility, maximum and minimum height

Apart from its core functionality, some standing desks offer additional functions such as built-in speakers. More importantly, it is essential to check the height adjustment range of the standing desk to best suit your ergonomic needs.

1. Ergonomics

Lastly - or should that be firstly? - I consider the most critical factor when buying your standing desk to be  posture, after all this is what you are primarily looking to address. A height adjustable standing desk does not comply with ergonomic needs. Although it raises a user's laptop, they will soon find themself standing bent over looking down at the screen. This exacerbates upper cross syndrome. An ideal standing desk allows you to work comfortably facing straight ahead.

That's it - happy standing!

The author is VP Business Development at HumbleWorks. The company offers five years warranty on all their standing desk products.

Picture: Standing up for your right not to sit down at work.

Article written by Salman Mohammad | Published 04 July 2019

Share

Related Articles