Some of the first four-legged tables to be documented in human history were from Ancient Egypt, used primarily for dining and playing games.
Today, the table is so much a part of our daily lives that we regard it as a basic piece of furniture. Through the last thousands of years, the table has been among the long list of items that humans have been modifying and re-inventing in a seemingly endless cycle.
While piecrust and demilune tables may have been all the rage back then, a significant portion of the modern crowd pines after height-adjustable standing desks.
In the past, you had to choose between sitting at a normal desk or standing at a premium high table. If you wanted a table with a different height, you would have to splurge on it; height-adjustable standing desks have eliminated this predicament.
A couple of years back, these desks used to cost a princely sum and were available only to those with deep pockets. But recently, companies like IKEA and Omnidesk have levelled the playing field, offering sit or stand desks starting from $400 to $700 for entry-level versions, making this contraption more accessible to the masses.
One of the companies that recently have entered the market is Everdesk+, a Singaporean company that was previously branded as ErgoEdge. Everdesk+’s mission is to create top-quality ergonomic products which empower their users – one they have been succeeding at with the release of their Everdesk+ Lite and Max models.
As someone who has never seen or used a height-adjustable desk in person before, I was delighted to receive the opportunity to try out the Everdesk+ Max for myself.
What I tried out was an Everdesk+ Max with a Natural Wood (more elaboration later) tabletop, a white cable spine for cable management (there’ll be pictures of these items below for better illustration), a pegboard equipped with several accessories, a hover light, a 36cm small shelf, a 58cm standard shelf, and an under-desk switch storage component.
Overall Design and First Impressions
The structure of the Everdesk+ Max is simple yet formidable: it consists of a wooden tabletop supported by a pair of sturdy legs forged from cold-rolled steel encased in a protective coat.
A preview of what a typical Everdesk+ Max looks, taken from the official website
The Everdesk+ Max’s tabletop is highly customisable so that users can build their desks to cater for their personal tastes. There are three kinds of material that customers can select from: Classic, an engineered wood furnished with laminate, Natural Wood, which consists of layers of birch hardwood protected by a water-based coat, and Wildfolks, made of American White Oak or Ecuadorian Dark Walnut wood complemented by a beautiful resin river.
The tabletop sizes which are available to you are dependent on the tabletop material you select – the length varies between 120cm and 180cm, and for the width, 60cm to 70cm.
The Everdesk+ Max is as strong as it seems – it can support a maximum weight of 120kg.
When I first saw the Everdesk+ Max after it was fully put together by the assemblers (who were super professional and did a great job), I was impressed – I loved the rustic yet elegant look of the Natural Wood tabletop.
The dimensions of the tabletop I got measured 150cm x 60cm – the table was spacious and had more than enough room for me to place all my things. When I sat down at the desk to use my computer, I was pleasantly surprised by how stable the table was. I experimented with different heights and I’m glad to say that it is consistently steady regardless of the height it has been raised to. From dwarf kiddy chairs to towering bar stools, the Everdesk+ Max complements any chair you throw at it.
Sitting at the table made me feel like I was back at my junior college’s library; the clean, minimalistic appearance is relaxing and actually motivates me to do productive work.
Let’s dive deeper into its functionality.
The Everdesk+ Max’s In-Built Features
Every Everdesk+ Max comes equipped with the following: a height adjustment function which works in-sync with its GyroAxis Anti-collision system (a mechanism that stops the desk from moving to prevent bumping into nearby objects), and Health Coach.
Height adjustment system
Photograph of the height adjustment knob, reflection removed
Changing the height of the Everdesk+ Max is a breeze with the adjustable knob located on the right-hand side of the table. With a large range for variation in height (60cm – 124cm above ground), it is highly flexible in its functionality. By turning the knob clockwise or anti-clockwise, users can make the desk taller or shorter respectively. If you want, you can set 3 preset heights and have the desk adjust to these heights instantaneously with a click of the button on the knob. The desk remains consistently stable regardless of the height it has been raised.
In addition, you can customise the maximum and minimum height of your desk. I find this extremely useful, as it prevents the tabletop from being raised too high which can overstretch some cables connected to devices on the table.
Health Coach
The Everdesk+ Max comes equipped with Health Coach – a feature that reminds you to sit or stand if you have been in either position for too long. It doesn’t actually recognise if you are sitting or standing; rather it functions as an alarm clock. You can preset the intervals at which the desk vibrates: 15 minutes, 30 minutes, 45 minutes, and 60 minutes. As someone who easily loses track of time, I appreciate the periodic reminders to move around and stretch; sitting in the same position for long periods of time can often be a dampener on your mood. If you want, you can also change the type of vibration in the settings menu.
The UniGroove system
Some of my cables separated by the UniGroove™ cable stoppers
With the UniGroove cable organisation system embedded into the tabletop, messy and entangled wires will be completely eliminated. This system consists of two components: grooves engraved in your table and an array of cable stoppers that fit neatly into these grooves.
The cable stoppers vary in length and number of holes for the wires to pass through, allowing you to customise the way your wires are arranged depending on the number of wires you own.
What I find intriguing is the groove’s ability to also act as a stand for tablets and mobile devices. This way, users can watch media played on their screens while their hands are busy with other things. Personally, I find it useful in positioning my phone to display video tutorials or instructions while I work on crochet projects. I am certain that anyone will find this unexpected feature very useful.
Optional Components
I’m grateful for the opportunity to try out these accessories along with the desk:
- White cable spine
- Switch underdesk storage
- 36cm small shelf
- 58cm large shelf
- Hover Lightbar
- White pegboard organiser panel
- White pegboard accessories bundle (all bundles are the same):
- Shelf
- Shelf with a glass vase (and a holder for it)
- Stationery holder
- Photo frame (8.5cm x 8.0cm)
- 4 Hooks
- 4 Knobs
White Cable Spine
Personally, every single item on this list has been immensely useful to re-organising my table’s real estate in a neat and palatable manner.
In my opinion, the most useful additions to this list of items would be the pegboard organiser panel along with the pegboard accessories bundle. What I like about the pegboard accessories bundle is not only the sheer amount of complements available and their functions but also the almost infinite number of ways they can be arranged.
I feel that the shelves (36cm small shelf and 58cm large shelf) are useful for holding tall items which you wouldn’t want to knock over, like flower vases and stationery holders. The shelves each have a middle layer for the placement of additional items, however, there is not much room for height so I feel it is a little less useful.
The switch under-desk storage holds two small drawers for storing items to be accessed at your convenience; how you utilise them would depend on your personal needs. Personally, I found them useful for storing stationery and my tools for yarn work.
Besides the items above, there is a huge array of additional components which users can purchase to maximise the functionality of their Everdesk+ Max, like a float monitor arm, a power cube to provide quick power access, and even a CPU mount holder.
The ability of users to configure their desks in such a flexible manner is a massive plus for me. Among all its features, the possibility for such extensive customisation is what truly sets it apart from the average joe.
Everdesk+ Max at a Glance
- Tabletop dimensions vary:
- Maximum Weight: 120kg
- Dual motors for height adjustment
- Adjustable height (60cm to 124cm)
- Customisable tabletop material (Classic, Natural Wood, Wild Folks)
- Optional castor wheels
- GyroAxis Anti-collision system
- UniGroove system
- Health Coach
- Modular components (pegboard and its accessories, many other parts; to view the full range of these additional components, you can hop over to their website )
Price
You can purchase your own Everdesk+ Max by logging onto their official website . Depending on the tabletop material, dimensions, and presence/absence of castor wheels, the price of an Everdesk+ Max varies and begins at upwards of $749. The accessories and optional components (like the float monitor arm and power cube) can cost quite a handsome sum if you are too generous with your selection, so do keep an eye on it.
If you are looking for a less expensive desk that is similar to the Everdesk+ Max, I highly recommend that you check out the Everdesk+ Lite which starts at $599.
Should you get an Everdesk+ Max?
According to an interview with Mr Damon Lye published in the Straits Times , Marvable found that there are three main goals which people hope to achieve for their workspaces at home: a healthier relationship with their desks, less clutter, and more space.
If these values are important to you, then I feel that the Everdesk+ Max is definitely a match for you. With the spacious size of the tabletop itself and the myriad of accessories available for you to tweak the organisation of space on your desk, I have no doubt that the Everdesk+ Max has the potential to end your decluttering woes.
To me, the Everdesk+ table is essentially an amalgamation of everything which makes a height-adjustable standing desk desirable in the first place – it has all the functionality you would want and expect from a standing desk, plus its smart, minimalist design is very effective at cutting down clutter in an elegant manner.
Whether you need an office table to sit down at, a table to act as a discussion area in the centre of the room, or even a bar counter for a home party, the height-adjustable table will come in handy. With Everdesk+ Max’s great range in height (60cm – 124cm), it can always be the table you need it to be.
The icing on the cake is the alluring catalogue of tabletop designs and wood materials that are available to you. I particularly love the Wild Folks Epoxy Series – the cobalt resin river comes together harmoniously with the wooden surface. Unfortunately, it doesn’t come with the UniGroove system, so you shouldn’t choose this option if cable management is important to you (and is significantly pricier).
Conclusion
The Everdesk+ Max is a table that I look forward to using, even if for academic purposes.
I feel that the makers of the desk were thoughtful in designing it; features like UniGroove and Health Coach may not be essential to the functionality of the table yet they significantly improve the quality of the user’s experience. I particularly love the pegboard (which has to be purchased separately); the way the pegboard components fit together is very seamless and I think it is almost impossible to arrange the pegboard components in an unappealing manner.
With an elegant yet reliable structure, modular design that allows for so much customisation, and the ability to shift its height within a wide range, I believe the Everdesk+ Max is a great investment for your work life if you are willing to fork out the cash for it.
