Setting up a home office
Now that I’ll be working from home, I’ve been looking in to setting up a home office, and the main thing I’ll need is a desk.
My Criteria
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Sit/Stand:
In my office at Apple, I had a motorized standing desk, so I could choose to either sit in a chair or stand. I want my desk at home to be the same.
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Height memory:
While a desk controller with just Up and Down buttons is adequate, it’s nice to have a memory bank where I can just press a button and have the desk go to the right height instead of watching the display and stopping when it gets to a decent height.
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Small surface area:
My job is done 99% electronically, so I don’t need a huge desk surface to spread out papers and other accoutrements. Additionally, based on other furniture in my room and the positions of things like outlets and closet doors, I don’t really have space for a large desk, so I want to keep things pretty small. The standard “small” desk size is 30” deep and 48” wide. That should be just about right.
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Wire management:
Wires are still unfortunately unavoidable. I hate the look of a rat’s-nest of wires that hangs down behind a desk. So at the very least, my desk should have wire grommets (holes in the top of the desk) through which I can thread power cables. This helps keep cables organized and also allows the desk to be flush against the wall.
Ideally, the desk should also have a cable tray to avoid the droopy cord problem. A built in power strip/surge protector is an added bonus.
Other Details
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Dual monitor arms:
These aren’t necessarily part of the desk itself, but are something to consider while searching. I have two 27” Thunderbolt displays, and given the small size of my desk, surface area is at a premium. So, floating the screens seems like a good way to maximize surface area, while also allowing me to position the monitors at an appropriate height relative to the keyboard. Normally I should use a riser, but the arms seem like a better option here given the size constraints.
Also, Thunderbolt displays are heavy. They’re 23.5lbs each (10.6kg). Most arms that I’ve come across are only spec’d to only support ~20lbs (9kg). While they would probably still work, I’d like to be sure.
I’d also like the arms to be adjustable vertically. Since I’ll have a sit-stand desk, the height at which the monitors are positioned might be different when sitting than when standing. I’d like to be able to just grab the edge of the monitor and move it up/down/left/right instead of reaching back to the support arm to adjust things.
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Materials:
My goal is to make my home office an “Apple away from Apple”, so that means a light-colored wood for the top (ash, maple, light bamboo, etc) and silver/gray table legs.
Anti-Criteria (Things I don’t want)
- Casters. This desk is going to be on carpet. Rolling is strictly prohibited.
- Keyboard tray. They always feel really flimsy and unstable.
- Swivel drawers. While I do have a couple of small things I would use at the desk (SIM ejector, extra lightning cables, etc), I already have a rolling cabinet in which to store them.
Options
From Twitter I got a whole bunch of options to consider:
- The Jarvis standing desk from ErgoDepot
- The maple UpDesk III from UpDesk
- The NextDesk Terra
- The BEKANT from IKEA
- The GeekDesk Max
- The Uplift Standing Desk
- The NextDesk Encore
| Desk | Height Memory | Size | Wire Management | Materials | Price | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jarvis | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | Maple + Gray | $764 | Add $219 for dual heavy-duty monitor arm |
| UpDesk III | ? | ✓ | ? | Maple + ??? | $890 | Not obvious how to customize anything on the site. Has cable channel but no grommets? |
| NextDesk Terra | ✓ | X | ✓ | Light Bamboo + Aluminum | $1,693 | Too large. Add $327 for dual monitor arm |
| BEKANT | X | ✓ | X | Birch veneer + White | $489 | It's cheap, but the one I saw in the store didn't seem solidly stable |
| GeekDesk Max | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | Beech veneer + Silver | $1,044 | Comes with grommets, cord tray sold separately (included in price here) |
| UpLift | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | Maple laminate + Silver | $733 | Very customizable. Add $174 for a dual heavy-duty monitor arm |
| NextDesk Encore | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | Light Rubberwood + Silver | $1,196 | Add $327 for a dual monitor arm |
Based on this, there are a couple I can eliminate right away. The NextDesk Terra is too large, and the BEKANT felt too cheap in the store. I’m willing to pay more money for a desk right now, because this will be a full-time workstation for me. The UpDesk III looks promising, but it concerns me that their website provides so little information. Yes I could contact support and get more information, but why not just put it on the site? Eliminating those three narrows things down to:
| Desk | Height Memory | Size | Wire Management | Materials | Price | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jarvis | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | Maple + Gray | $764 | Add $219 for dual heavy-duty monitor arm |
| GeekDesk Max | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | Beech veneer + Silver | $1,044 | Comes with grommets, cord tray sold separately (included in price here) |
| UpLift | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | Maple laminate + Silver | $733 | Very customizable. Add $174 for a dual heavy-duty monitor arm |
| NextDesk Encore | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | Light Rubberwood + Silver | $1,196 | Add $327 for a dual monitor arm |
OK, now I need to look beyond the basic features.
I’ve also been looking at dual monitor arms. Beyond the ones provided by the desk manufacturers, I’ve found things like:
- This dual monitor arm on Amazon ($45). Doesn’t allow easy vertical positioning.
- Flo Dual ($518). Claims to only support monitors up to 20lbs per arm.
- Boa II ($629). Doesn’t look like it’s built for easy vertical positioning.
- This ErgoMart arm ($578+)
- M8 Crossbar ($549)
What I’m finding is that since I’ve got two heavy monitors, an arm is going to probably run me a couple hundred dollars. Let’s say $400 to pick an average.
Adding $400 to the price of each desk would bring things to:
| Desk | Price | Price + Mfr Arm | Price + Avg Arm |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jarvis | $764 | $983 | $1,164 |
| GeekDesk Max | $1,044 | -- | $1,444 |
| UpLift | $733 | $907 | $1,133 |
| NextDesk Encore | $1,196 | $1,523 | $1,596 |
At this point I think I can eliminate the NextDesk Encore. NextDesk is a couple hundred more than the next alternatives for no apparent difference. Plus, the manufacturer monitor arm is only rated to 20lb monitors, and mine are 23. This means I’d definitely need to buy a 3rd party arm, which would be another couple hundred dollars.
Similarly, the GeekDesk doesn’t have a manufacturer-provided arm, so again I’d be looking for a 3rd party arm. Let’s eliminate them both:
| Desk | Height Memory | Size | Wire Management | Materials | Price | Price + Mfr Arm | Price + Avg Arm |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jarvis | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | Maple + Gray | $764 | $983 | $1,164 |
| UpLift | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | Maple laminate + Silver | $733 | $907 | $1,133 |
So I’m left with these two options. I have a couple of friends who have UpLifts and love them, but The Wirecutter recommends the Jarvis. Is there anything else I can do to pick one over the other?
In this modern world of instant gratification, I’d like my desk to arrive sooner rather than later. Both provide free shipping to the continental US. The Jarvis has parts that won’t be available until early November, and the UpLift would ship tomorrow.
Based on shipping times and the availability of a couple of other small add-ons, I’ve decided to order the UpLift!