9am Home Dora Pro Standing Desk Review: Is It Worth $1,400?

Ever noticed how most standing desks in Australia look the same? Square legs. Rectangle top. A controller dangling off the front.

Not the 9am Home Dora Pro. This desk breaks all the design rules with its feminine, curvy aesthetic and a built-in height controller. It looks so sleek and modern, most people won’t realise that this is a standing desk.

But is it worth $1,400? I took one for a spin to find out.

Quick Verdict.

Above: The hardwood oak desktop is excellent. Note the tapered edges all around and the dramatic wood swirls in the surface.

The Dora Pro is a premium hardwood standing desk that competes head-on with top-of-the-line offerings from UpDown, Desky and Omnidesk.

Unlike those desks, it breaks away from the industrial aesthetic and opts for a soft, gentle look. It’s a standing desk that doesn’t look like a traditional standing desk.

I can see it appealing to women and any professional seeking to create a welcoming, relaxed vibe in their home office.

But this doesn’t mean the Dora Pro shortchanges you mechanically.

You get excellent stability courtesy of a cold-rolled tubular frame, torquey dual motors that lift 125 kg at a speedy 38 mm/sec and a clever set of accessories that include an integrated under-desk tray.

Oh, and the assembly process is remarkably easy. The desk arrives at your door partially pre-assembled and prewired.

But all this goodness comes at a price.

At roughly $1,400, the Dora Pro is not cheap. It’s roughly twice as expensive as the budget-oriented 9am Home Robin Pro, and 30% more expensive than bamboo-topped models from UpDown and Desky.

However, the pricing is comparable to other hardwood models.

I love that Dora Pro’s designers achieved a sleek look by integrating the height controller, cable management tray and storage tray into the desktop. As you can see in the photos, nothing protrudes or hangs from the desk.

It’s too small for my liking, and I would prefer to interact with my desk via tactile buttons, rather than a tiny touchscreen.

Above: The telescopic legs are made from a single piece, so you won’t have to attach feet to a vertical column. You can also see the hidden under-desk tray directly in the centre.

Who Should Buy The 9am Home Dora Pro.

This $1,400 desk is not for bargain-hunters. It’s for people who want a high-end desk, and are prepared to pay for it.

It’s also not for young men seeking to shout their masculinity via their “mad” workstation.

If you want to create a sophisticated, minimalist home office, and need a standing desk that looks like a designer item – not an electrical appliance – the Dora Pro is a great pick.

5 Things I Love About The 9am Home Dora Pro.

The Dora Pro is available in two colours.

I think the hardwood Oak with white legs – the desk in my photos – is the better choice. But you can also spec it with green legs and a white birchwood top.

1. Gorgeous Aesthetics.

Above: The sleek lines and curvy edges are on full display here. Notice how the under-desk tray is almost hidden from view.

Let’s call a spade a spade.

Standing desks are rarely gorgeous. Most of them have the same boxy shape.

In fact, if you read my reviews, you already know that most of them share components. I do wish there was more innovation in the space, and am impressed when a company creates a uniquely different product.

The Dora Pro is one such product.

It’s been sitting in my apartment for the past couple of weeks, and I keep glancing over at it, just to appreciate its curvy lines.

Rounded corners give the desk a softer look, while the built-in controller and under-desk tray keep it sleek.

2. Superb Build Quality.

Above: You can pair the desk with a sit/stand stool, like this example I bought from Desky.

I’m happy to report that the Dora Pro is almost as stable as she is pretty 🙂

It’s not as stable as UpDown Pros and Desky Duals of this world, but it is certainly acceptable.

The likely culprit? Dora Pro’s screw-free, fast-assembly leg system (I’ll talk about it in a moment). What you gain in speed of assembly (I’ll talk about it in a moment), you lose in stability.

I’d be far more worried if the wobble occurred in the front-to-back plane, as that movement is far easier to trigger and is more likely to throw your monitor off the desk.

Apart from this niggle, the desk is built like a tank. It’s on par with what I’d expect from a $1,400 flagship model:

3. Rapid Assembly.

Above: Undercarriage is impressively sleek. The simple cable management tray hangs at the rear and the under-desk storage tray is at the front.

I’ve reviewed and assembled dozens of standing desks. Most of them are a pain in the butt to assemble – despite what their manufacturers claim.

Instead of making the Dora Pro easier to assemble, 9am Home decided to dodge this problem altogether by shipping the desk partially assembled.

Everything you see in the image above arrives attached to the desktop.

And most of the cables are pre-wired.

All you need to do is:

Yes, you read that right. Ironically, it took me far longer to assemble the accessories than the desk itself.

Above: The instruction manual is clear and logical, but could be bigger.

The assembly manual, meanwhile, is good, without being excellent. It’s easy to follow, but not quite as clear or large as Desky’s and Secretlab’s.

4. Built-In Lighting.

Above: The under-desk strip light is subtle – but noticeable if you look closely.

A desk that puts on a show?

Apparently yes.

Motion sensors will activate a strip of light along the front edge of the desk and on the desk shelf, any time you get close.

It’s a nice touch that elevates the look of the desk and makes it feel alive.

In case you’re wondering, the lights never feel garish or excessive. To the contrary, they reinforce the desk’s understated luxury persona by providing a sense of gentle ambience.

5. Built-In Tray.

Above: Just deep enough to swallow your most frequently used accessories and stationery.

I believe that an under-desk tray is a must-have accessory.

It keeps your desktop tidy by giving your loose items a home. And let’s face it, you have a lot of loose items. They tend to expand exponentially.

While most under-desk trays are ugly, impractical or both, Dora Pro’s tray is both usable and attractive. Don’t expect to stash books or photography albums into it – it’s not deep.

But depth is not the purpose.

It’s deep enough to keep your frequently used notepads and accessories within reach.

3 Things I Dislike About The 9am Home Dora Pro.

Despite its strengths, the Dora Pro has several quirks you should be aware of.

1. Built-In Controller.

Above: The height controller needs to be at least 2X larger.

The main downside of Dora Pro’s integrated controller is its size. If only it was twice the size, it’d be perfect.

It can be fiddly to use, and I often press it in the wrong spot.

It’s not the type of controller you can use on the fly, without looking. You need to stop looking at your monitor, press the screen to bring it to life, and find the correct (and very small) arrow or preset.

On most desks, replacing it takes five minutes. With the Dora Pro, you’ll need to remove the entire desktop from the frame – and this can take a couple of hours.

2. Cost.

Above: Understated elegance is the name of the game.

You were expecting this, so I won’t harp on for long.

Australia is in the middle of a cost-of-living crisis, apparently – so a $1,400 standing desk is out of reach for most people.

Especially when you can buy a (cheap and cheerful) Artiss standing desk for less than $300.

3. Shorter-Than-Average Warranty.

9am Home isn’t shy about Dora Pro’s “10-year warranty”, but the devil is in the details.

Yes, I love the fact that the motors are covered for 10 years.

Worse, sensors and the height controller are only covered for three.

This is significantly below par for a premium flagship desk (for contrast, UpDown Pro offers flat 10-year coverage on frames, motors, desktops and electronics).

Above: Single-piece legs look better in real life than in the photos.

Technical Specifications.

Key engineering facts:

Is The 9am Home Dora Pro A Great Buy?

Yes.

If you have $1,400 to spend and want an attractive standing desk with few compromises, the Dora Pro is a great pick.

In a marketplace saturated by nearly identical standing desks, the Dora Pro stands out for its gorgeous feminine aesthetic.

Is it for everyone? No.

Many people will prefer the masculine “ultimate workstation” look of traditional standing desk designs offered by Desky, UpDown, and Omnidesk.

But if you prefer to impress people with understated elegance rather than ostentatious exuberance, the Dora Pro is for you.

Steven