How I Went About: Getting A Standing Desk
I took some time on the research and decision-making process and ended up getting the desk which I was adamant against from the beginning. I thought I'd document the process and considerations. If you're thinking about whether to get one and/or which one to get, I hope this benefits you.
Please note this article is not sponsored or affiliated to any of the brands mentioned.
Why
I wanted the flexibility to sit and stand at my desk to break the monotony when working from home (WFH) especially during long web meetings. I was able to do this in the office - with higher window-facing table and high chair. As much as "sitting is the new smoking", I know this is not an immediate need, but rather I'm investing in the long-term comfort of WFH.
I went back to office to pick up a couple of items that I have left on my desk since the start of WFH requirement in May 2021. Items include Apple Magic Keyboard and logitech MX Master 3.
When
This "investment" will only be worthwhile if WFH remains the norm for the foreseeable future. As soon as the Singapore government announced the extension of WFH as the default in early June 2021, I pounced into research mode.
What I was using - as you can see in the pictures on the left and below. It was a 120x60 cm table bought on Lazada. I used stacked up books as a stand for my TV (which I used as monitor) and a foldable laptop stand. It wasn't the prettiest but it worked. Take note here that this desk came with storage options like the drawers and a lower 'shelf' where I placed my printer.
Process
First I considered second-hand standing desks on Carousell (app popular in Singapore and the region for buying and selling second-hand goods). This gave me a sense of what are the popular brands/models, colors, specifications out there. You will also see brand new standing desks for sale too.
Next are rest of the (noteworthy) options I came across:
Lazada / Shopee:
Xiaomi Squirrey (price and its no-frills nature caught my attention)
OfficeHub (super prompt with replies and super helpful in providing alternative options)
Flight (likewise - super prompt and helpful)
Omnidesk (this is the 'premium' brand with lots of ads and paid reviews)
Ikea (good to browse what's a mass-market 'safe' option)
EverDesk+ (this is possibly strongest competitor of Omnidesk, formerly known as AmpDesk / ErgoEdge)
Where I browsed for information/inspiration:
YouTube (search "standing desks" - you will see a lot of options from overseas; "standing desks Singapore": Omnidesk appears in most top-ranked videos)
Amongst the Youtube videos I chanced upon, here's one example (it's very addictive!)
Factors I considered:
Switch Pro from Omnidesk; picture from Omnidesk.
Standing desk or Converter (aka Riser)
A standing desk converter converts your existing static desk into a standing one. It is versatile and costs lesser than a standing desk (depends on which converter and which standing desk you get - the price difference may not be a lot). I went with standing desk as a converter is not able to 'raise' everything on the desk and I wanted a cleaner look.
Ikea SKARSTA sit/stand manual crank desk; Picture from IKEA.
Electric or Manual (Cranking)
This is a big differentiator of the price - electric costs more. I went with electric - I do not wish to waste time cranking and I wasn't sure about the noise it would generate (I live in a tiny place and I got a 17 month-old baby taking naps in the day.) I also want precise heights - more on that later.
Price + delivery fees + set up fees
Do factor in delivery + set up or assembly fees into total price. New standing desks are usually flat packed; hence requires you to set it up on your own.
Material and Colour of table top and frame
There are a range of material - even for wood - there are different kinds of wood. This depends on your room/home decor and personal preference. I went for wood - and went for rich dark brown colour.
Size - 1.2m seems like standard length
This again depends on your room size, needs and preference. I did have to do some measurement to ensure there is room.
Memory setting of heights vs none
For electric standing desks, there is the option of having table height memories and presets i.e. you can set your preferred sitting and standing heights so you won't need to manually adjust again. If you share the table with your partner, your partner can also store his/her preferred heights. I went with this option as I want a fuss-free experience; I do not wish to spend time adjusting heights whenever I sit or stand.
Warranty period
Electric standing desks come with motors to power the lifting and lowering of the table. And all electronic products i.e. motors in this case have a certain manufacturing defect rate (this is inevitable). Hence in my opinion, warranty and length of warranty period are important, especially for high-value items.
Two other random things I had to consider
I had stuff in the 2 drawers and lower ledge of my old desk - where am I now gonna put them? Most standing desks do not come with drawers.
Timing of selling away old desk vs new desk arriving - I needed to time it well otherwise I have no desk to work on!
Final decision (drumrolls...)
Finally after much much deliberation, I picked Omnidesk (Hevea Rich brown from their Wildwood Collection in large size 60x30 inch/152x76cm; Price: S$1,109 before any promo code).
From the beginning, Omnidesk was the brand I was adamant against on getting; a big factor was its hefty CRAZY price tag. The brand also displayed the telltale signs of being the most overpriced option - flashy marketing videos and pictures, sponsored reviews in the form of articles and youtube videos, social media and google ads, etc.
"I'm sure there is a cheaper version of Omnidesk" (skip this portion if budget has never been an issue for you)
From my past work experience (in consumer electronics and manufacturing), a lot of the consumer products you see are actually Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) products. I.e. the consumer brands sourced their products from the same manufacturer, the consumer brands then slap its own brand and logo on the products and sell them as their own. The brands try to 'differentiate' their products (though they are the same or mostly the same) via marketing, branding and distribution, etc. Simple examples are power banks and earphones (ever wondered why they look so similar even though they are from different brands?).
This knowledge now often influences the way I separate the product from the brand. In my product-searching process, I'm always looking for the 'cheaper' version of the product, i.e. the same high-quality product WITHOUT the sassy sexy marketing and branding (and hence hefty price tag).
Why I chose Omnidesk in the end
The right kind of wooden brown
After browsing the available options, I realized I really like the dark brown wooden grain look. If I am going to face my table almost every day, I need to at least like how it looks. Most of the standing desks I came across come in black, white and light brown ("wood grain"). Omnidesk offers the deep dark brown wooden options in the Wildwood Collection series. (At time of writing this - early Aug 2021, Omnidesk has launched Wildwood+ Collection presumably an upgraded version of Wildwood Collection). If you look closer, there are also differences between the type of wood you choose i.e. Walnut vs Acacia vs Hevea and also even the way the wood is treated, coated and put together to form the table top. I'm not such of a detailed wood connoisseur - I just love the deep dark brown colour of the wood - straight and simple as that. EverDesk+ also has 'artisan' wooden table top options. If you happen to be a wood connoisseur and looking for locally (Singapore) grown and sourced wood, check out Endgrain.
Picture from https://theomnidesk.com/pages/omnidesk-wildwood-series
7 Years Warranty (minimum) for peace of mind
Omnidesk offers 5 years warranty with the purchase, additional 2 if you post picture on social media and redeem it. At time of writing, Omnidesk seems to indicate they commit to total 10 years warranty with details of the remaining 3 years "coming soon", presumably to match Everdesk+'s 10 years warranty. The warranty period is also one factor of how I justified its price tag.
Fun fact: I bought size L (table length 60” or 152.4cm) - to accommodate putting my printer - the extra S$50 seems worth it.
I did not want to wait (and Omnidesk did not disappoint)
Due to Covid19-related supply chain restrictions and surge in demand for home office setup, a number of the options I explored were either out of stock or were gonna take some time to fulfil (due to order backlog). I simply did not want to wait. When I ordered (on a Saturday), the stated delivery period was 5-8 working days. To my pleasant surprise, I received a SMS from Omnidesk on Monday evening (1 working day) to arrange for delivery the next day (total: 2 working days).
Free delivery and assembly
Price I paid included delivery and assembly - not a major factor but it helped. The whole assembly took less than 15-20 mins. They were professional and efficient.
4 memory settings
High resale value and ease of ‘resellability’
This is biggest reason how I justified choosing Omnidesk which was probably the most (crazy) expensive option. On my search on Carousell, I found that used Omnidesk standing desks can command higher asking price (not too far away from their original retail price) - presumably because of its prominent branding and long warranty period. I reckon in an active resale market, investing in a product with high resale value affords me the flexibility to sell if ever I need to (e.g. moving to a different place where I need to downsize or upsize the table - not likely but theoretically possible). In other words, I buy at high price and can also sell at high price - effectively results in lower net cost for my usage of the desk for the duration of usage.
If you’ve been deliberating which standing desk to get, I hope this article has helped you. If you think I have missed out certain options or you have other suggestions, feel free to put them in the comments below! Happy WFH-ing for now!
Earlier pictures were ‘cleaned up’ version - this is ACTUALLY how messy my desk looks like all the time
Blog post picture source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZi903mkis0
