Stand Desk Standing Desk Review: Is It A Good Buy?

The Stand Desk hit the Australian market a couple of years ago. If you’re looking to upgrade from a cheap, wobbly standing desk, or are ready to switch from a traditional sit-down desk, you’ve probably come across it – and wondered whether it’s worth the $1,000-ish sticker price.

With dozens of height-adjustable desks available on the Australian market, it’s not always easy to compare their strengths and weaknesses.

The company was kind enough to send a Pro model – the most premium and expensive in the range – and I’ve been prodding, touching, raising, lowering, and squinting at it since.

Let’s put it under the microscope to find out.

1. Price.

Desk size significantly influences its price, so for consistency, I’ll compare Stand Desk’s 150 cm wide desktop version to its competitors.

That’s about on par with prices from brands like UpDown and Desky and about 30% more expensive than options from budget-focused brands like Artiss and Northday.

All Stand Desk orders come with free shipping, which is not standard in the industry.

What I love the most is that the price includes a built-in wireless phone charger, which no other desk on the market offers (more on that later).

2. Build Quality Of The Frame.

The sturdiness of Stand Desk‘s frame is up there with the best – in the same league as Desky and Omnidesk.

Elevate it to the highest point, and you see some movement – but I’m yet to find a desk that doesn’t do it. After all, it’s physics.

The frame’s lifting capacity is officially rated at 100 kg.

Interestingly, the frame’s real maximum load appears to be around 130kg, but it has been artificially curfewed to help the desk fulfil another selling point – the fastest-in-class speed of 8cm/sec.

You’re unlikely to place more than 50kg of weight on your desk – let alone more than 100kg. You also won’t care about minor differences in desk speed.

3. Desktop Aesthetics.

Stand Desk offers you two desktop choices:

I took a punt on the latter because it looks different from every other standing desk. Let’s face it, most of them look very similar.

The exposed, unpainted plywood edge makes it a good fit for home offices with a creative, funky, casual aesthetic. It’s definitely unusual, and stands out in the sea of “me-too” standing desks out there.

It’s sealed with a clear lacquer, ensuring it resists your next coffee spill.

But you should stick with bamboo if you’re aiming for a more mature, sleek home office design.

Size is also an important consideration.

You’ve got three size options, so choose one that fills out your workplace nicely. You don’t want it to be overcrowded, nor do you want to find yourself wishing you’d gone for a bigger size:

4. Ease Of Assembly.

I must admit, I was initially confused when I couldn’t find any instructions inside the box, and a few expletives might’ve slipped out at the time.

So I did what any person would when faced with such a seemingly insurmountable problem:

I came across a step-by-step, professionally narrated video tutorial by Stand Desk. And I was genuinely astounded at how great it was.

I’d go as far as to say it’s the best tutorial out there – and I’ve lost count of the standing desks I’ve assembled using nothing but black-and-white Ikea-style sketches as a reference.

The ability to see the Stand Desk Pro being assembled, pause, and rewind takes so much stress out of the process that you can (dare I say it?) enjoy assembling it.

Stand Desk includes everything you need – even an Allen key with a Philips head on one side, while most standing desk manufacturers fail to provide one.

The Stand Desk Pro is much quicker to assemble than most desks, thanks to a clever latching system for attaching the legs.

As for the desktop, the pre-screwed bolts were also a nice touch.

You won’t sweat while you put holes into your desktop, and there’s no risk of damaging and splitting the wood.

5. Cable Management Systems.

The cable management system starts with a complimentary cable tray.

Wide and hinged from both sides for easy access, it has cutouts for integrating externally-facing quick-access power boards.

Strangely, Stand Desk doesn’t sell such power boards. Instead, you’ll have to buy an extension lead, drop it into the tray and plug your electronics into that.

A grommet would have made it look neater – and prevented my stationery from vanishing into the abyss.

Oh, and if you’re a cable neat freak like me, you’ll appreciate this …

With the Stand Desk Pro, you’ll have the tidiest, cleanest cable situation ever. And you know what they say: tidy desk, tidy mind.

6. Any Extra Features To Brag About?

At last! I can charge my phone by leaving it on Stand Desk’s desktop, thanks to a built-in wireless charger.

Not permanently built into the desktop, the charger is held in a recess underneath by double-sided tape, so you can replace it when it becomes obsolete.

Clever future-proofing, Stand Desk.

Here’s an interesting one you might not have expected me to say …

Stand Desk Pro has an app!

Well, it’s not for controlling the desk’s height, but for setting sit/stand intervals that keep you moving throughout the workday.

Some desks – like Northday’s Everdesk – achieve this with a programmable controller, but they’re fiddly. Stand Desk’s app is much more intuitive and easy to use.

7. Warranty & Returns.

With a ten-year warranty on all parts, I felt reassured that the Stand Desk Pro is built to last.

While it’s not clear in their T&Cs if that includes accidental damage or desktop damage, they do have a pretty generous returns policy:

Meaning, “If for any reason you do not want to keep your Stand Desk, you can send it back”. No questions. No hassle. No risk.

How The Stand Desk Pro Stacks Up.

The Stand Desk Pro is a great premium standing desk on the Australian market, competing head-on with Desky, UpDown, and Omnidesk.

Technical Specifications:

Which Other Standing Desks Should You Consider?

If you’re not convinced that the Stand Desk is the best desk for you, here are a few alternative options for you to research.

1. UpDown Pro Standing Desk.

Matching Stand Desk’s 10-year warranty and a 100-day trial period, the UpDown Pro is my current favourite standing desk on the market.

It’s a little heavier than the Stand Desk Pro, and offers a much wider range of desktop options.

But it doesn’t offer a phone charger or an app.

2. Artiss Standing Desk.

If spending about $1,000 on a Stand Desk Pro isn’t the right decision, you should look into the Artiss. Costing about $350, it’s a budget standing desk that does 80% of what the Stand Desk can do – for 30% of the price.

It’s a practical, inexpensive, surprisingly sturdy, attractive standing desk. I owned one during lockdowns and was very impressed by its performance.

Artiss offers only particleboard and melamine desktops. It’s also not large, with the widest desktop width being 140 cm.

3. Desky Dual Desk.

Deskys are famous for their excellent cable management systems. This is the best desk for you if you’re a photographer or a videographer running 5+ devices and constantly running out of power outlets.

Its under-desk channel can hold at up to 8 power sockets, all within easy reach.

The Desky is rated to 140 kg of lifting capacity, second only to UpDown.

My Verdict On The Stand Desk Pro.

Should you buy one?

Yes, especially if you catch one on sale. In many ways, it’s very similar to the brands I mentioned. But what sets it apart is the unique set of extras:

Stand Desk used these extra features in conjunction with a solid frame to create quite a serious contender for your shortlist.

Steven