In our house, with two adults and two school-age children, the desk in our study/home office gets a lot of use. It gets used for sitting down to pay bills, working from home and of course school homework and even crafts. But as we all know, sitting down at a desk for long periods of time isn’t good for our health – it has been linked to bad backs and shoulders, being overweight and obesity (due to eating whilst sitting down and being sedentary), type 2 diabetes, heart disease and more. We don’t want bad backs or any other health issues associated with sitting and bad posture for our families, so we are always looking for better ways to work.
Because of Coronavirus (COVID-19) we have all been stuck indoors and working more from home and spending more and more time sitting at a desk. Because our desk is used by all members of the family who are of different heights, a desk that is a comfortable size for everybody is a must. We also need one that will give us a break from sitting.
Standing desks are an excellent idea and there are different types and options. There are fixed sized ones that allow you to stand and work, there are sit/stand desks so that you can change from sitting to standing and continue to work and you can even get desktop convertors that you can place on your existing desk to change from a sitting to standing position with a bit of moving things around on your desktop. They are all good and have their own merits, but we wanted something that was quick to use with minimal fuss and one that the kids could use just as easily as the adults. FlexiSpot have the answer with their electric standing desk frames and kindly sent us one to try out in exchange for our honest opinion.
We received the FlexiSpot Electric Standing Desk Frame 3-Stage Premium Option E5 in white (black and silver options are also available). The frame is sold without a desktop and this can be purchased separately, or you can use an existing one if you already have one. We also received the 120x60cm Desktop in white (can also be purchased in black, maple or mahogany), which is made from a solid and heavy chipboard.
The FlexiSpot Electric Standing Desk is an electric, height adjustable desk that you can sit at or with the push of a button covert it into a standing desk with different height levels (perfect for our family needs). An easy way to transition from sitting to standing without moving desks or adding a desk convertor.
The E5 frame features:
- Dual-motor lift system (one on each leg)
- Lift speed of 3.8cm/s
- Quiet motor under 50 dBs
- Smooth operation
- Double steel tubing
- 3-stage frame is adjustable for different sized desktops (43.3″ to 70.9″ / 110-180cm)
- Height range from 62-125cm / 24.4″ to 49.2″ (accommodates 99% of the population)
- Cable tidy within the frame
- Support heavier weight up to 125kg
- 7-button digital display handset
- 3 programmable presets (displayed on LED screen)
- Sit/Stand reminders alerting you to when it is time to change from sitting to standing (0-99 minutes customised reminder settings, can be turned on/off to suit workflows).
- Powder-coated seamless surface resists scratches, water, and stains
The Desktop is available in 3 options:
- Rectangular 120x60cm (black, white, maple or mahogany)
- Rectangular 140x70cm (black, white, maple or mahogany)
- Curved 140x70cm (black)
The frame and desktop arrived in two desperate (heavy) deliveries. Assembly is required, so you do need to be somewhat competent with DIY, but it isn’t difficult at all to assemble. The instructions are clear, concise and easy to follow. Working together, it took approx. 30 minutes to assemble.
Assembly is very straightforward and the assembly booklet, as already mentioned, is clear, concise and easy to follow. The frame is supplied with everything you need to assemble the desk, including tools (2x Hex Keys – one with a crosshead screwdriver on the other end) so nothing extra is required. All the screws, bolts and tools are supplied in a compartmented bag labelled A-E, making it easier and faster to get the bits you need. The frame can be adjusted laterally for different sized desktops, from 43.3″ to 70.9″ (110-180cm) – purchased from FlexiSpot or you can use your own (FlexiSpot versions will have pre-drilled holes for screws, if using your own desktop you will have to make new screw holes). It even has a cable system to keep as much of the cabling for the desk, as well as your laptop or desktop PC, out of the way as possible.
After a quick assembly, we were really impressed with the desk. There is a lot of weight to the desk and it feels really good quality, very solid, robust and is aesthetically pleasing. The double steel tubing construction with powder-coated seamless surface resists scratches, water, and stains. Now we had a good quality, nice looking desk with lots of space of the desktop that the whole family could use. But now for the really cool part.
The frame has to be plugged into a wall power socket to use the desk properly. It has two motors (one on each leg) and with the push and hold of the up arrow on the 7-button control box on the underneath of the desk you can raise the height of the desk. This allowed us to adjust the height for each member of the family to sit and work comfortably as well as adjusting to stand at it. In about 10 seconds it reaches the full height of 49.2″ (125cm). It has a lift speed of 1.5” per second (3.8cm/s), and what is even better is that it is virtually silent whilst doing so. When you get to the desired height level (height displayed on the LED display) you can save the setting into one of the 3 memory positions so that you then only have to press 1, 2 or 3 to adjust to your ideal height (to save desired setting, set the table at the height you want, press M followed by 1, 2 or 3 and that setting is saved in that memory position).
The desk also features an alert system to remind us when it is time to stop sitting and change the desk into its standing position, this is really useful. If like us when you sit down to work you get caught up in it and don’t notice the time flying past then you can set an alarm so that when it goes off it reminds you to stand. You can stop the alarm by adjusting the desk (ignore it and it goes off 5 minutes later).
Overall, the FlexiSpot Electric Standing Desk is something that every home office should have. We have used desk convertors before that are good but can be cumbersome and require things moved off the desk to put it on. The E5 standing desk means that you can leave all your stuff on the desk and 10 seconds later you are working from standing position – it couldn’t be simpler and means the whole family can adjust the desk for their perfect height setting at the push of a button; we really can’t recommend it enough. The build quality and nearly noiseless smooth operation along with the presets and alarm are excellent and there is very little noticeable wobble with this desk, even at its full height where we would have expected more.
Switching regularly between sitting and standing is better for our backs and we are not suffering with a back/leg/hip pain by the end of the day – a much more comfortable way to work over constantly sitting or standing. We are thinking about one of the anti-fatigue standing mats to go along with it, to further reduce stress and fatigue and make working whilst standing that bit more comfortable.
And for those of you that want to stay active and continue to read or work, FlexiSpot also do a Cycle Desk Bike so that you can get some exercise whilst still continue to do other things, it looks really good.
To sum it up, the E5 3-stage standing frame and desktop is expensive compared to basic 2-stage versions (but cheaper than some other 3-stage versions), but it is of high quality, very stable, constructed extremely well, works fast and is virtually noiseless. It is an excellent way to help reduce stress on the back, reducing back pain, so is a good piece of equipment for working from home, doing homework or even the kids doing different crafts whilst promoting a healthier way of working if used correctly (as already mentioned, sitting for an extended period of time is no good for our health).
The FlexiSpot E5 standing desk is definitely an essential piece of equipment for anyone having to work at a desk all day, whether working from home or from an office. And with more of us working from home it is definitely a worthwhile investment as it can help with productivity as you won’t need constant breaks to reduce the pain in your back and shoulders. And as a family using it, it is excellent to be able to set the desk at a good working height for everybody.
Rating: 5/5
RRP: E5 Standing Desk Frame is £359.99 / Desktop from £79.99
For more information or to buy, visit flexispot.co.uk.
