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Ask HN: Are height adjustable desks worth it?

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Re: Ask HN: Are height adjustable desks worth it?

#33

I love the idea but can't deal with how much they wiggle. They all seem to only have 2 legs, which results in them being very wobbly, particularly at standing height. Interested to hear if anyone knows of any actually stable sit-stand desks..

This is an XY problem in my experience. The problem is not desk wiggle, it's monitor and webcam wiggle.

I mounted my monitor to my wall with an ergotron arm, and now I haven't noticed a single desktop wiggle.

Re: Ask HN: Are height adjustable desks worth it?

#34
post #10

I love the idea but can't deal with how much they wiggle. They all seem to only have 2 legs, which results in them being very wobbly, particularly at standing height. Interested to hear if anyone knows of any actually stable sit-stand desks..

Using mid-tear Ikea sit-stand desk for 5+ years. So far so good. Not wobbly even with a 24" display with some plants next to it.

The important thing to bear in mind here is that wobble is relative, i.e. One persons `wobbly` is another persons' `stable`.

Re: Ask HN: Are height adjustable desks worth it?

#35
I agree with others that this is pretty personal to your own values.

For me: it was definitely worth it, and if you buy a decent quality frame/desktop it'll be durable and a pretty minimal premium over time. I usually switch sitting standing 1-10 times/day depending on how restless I'm feeling.

That said:

- it's hard to know how much you'll like standing (or switching) until you try it

- it is pretty hard to vet quality unless you find a Costco/Ikea type vendor that has one in person. I personally have bought two Uplift models (me, spouse) and have been happy with how they've held up (7+ and 3+ years, respectively).

Re: Ask HN: Are height adjustable desks worth it?

#37
No. They break (even the good ones) and they everyone I know who has bought one sits down all day anyway after about 3 months of fad and blogging about it.

Get up and go and have and amble around once an hour. And have a good walk at lunch or after work. Cheaper and better.

Re: Ask HN: Are height adjustable desks worth it?

#38
Yes. Being able to stand at least part of the day is great. Some people mention wobble - I for one don't like typing while standing so I stand for meetings and sit for keyboard time.

One additional benefit is that you can adjust the height while sitting to really get the right ergonomics. I am fairly tall and most desks jam up my shoulders. Being able to match desk and chair height is key.

Re: Ask HN: Are height adjustable desks worth it?

#39
I love mine. Don’t use it to stand all that much (though I will crank it up so I can pace around and follow long conference calls), but being able to adjust my seated height is massive. I’ve never been able to get fully comfortable at a standard height desk, you can permanently adjust the height of a fixed desk which helps a lot, but being able to dial it in while seated is really convenient and being able to notch it up or down by half an inch to fit that days posture is amazing for me

Re: Ask HN: Are height adjustable desks worth it?

#40
It depends. I have a couple but I hardly ever actually adjust the height. Occasionally, it is practically useful, but after all is said and done, if I want to stand up I'd rather get up, walk around and take a break.

Dealing with cable management definitely requires a bit more effort. Your best bet is to try to keep all of the cables you can tethered to the desk. To that end, I recommend just mounting a nice large powerstrip to the bottom of the desk and drilling a couple of holes for cable routing. If you get it decently even and put some grommets in the holes it should wind up looking pretty good, and you'll just wind up with a couple of cables to deal with mostly depending on what kind of setup you have.

It's not a huge investment so it might be worth it, though realistically I think I will wind up ditching a standing desk in favor of integrating large countertops on my walls.

It is kind of useful for adjusting the height for best comfort, but honestly I think any investment in that would probably be better placed into an actually good ergonomic chair.

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