Let me get straight to the point: after using Vari’s L-Shaped Electric Standing Desk in my home office for the last month and a half, I’m in love. This solidly built, spacious desk is Vari’s largest, and there’s tons of real estate for those of us with more than just the laptop to contend with.
It adjusts quickly and easily, and it’s programmable at the touch of a button so you can save your various preferred desk heights. It’s big and heavy, so once it’s in place you’ll probably want to keep it there. But other than that, there’s just about no drawbacks to this super cool desk.
Vari L-Shape Electric Standing Desk Review: Price and availability
The L-Shape Electric Standing Desk is available now on Vari’s website. The retail price is $1,295 but it is on sale right now for $1,110 at the time of writing thanks to a site-wide sale at Vari. The company also provides financing through Affirm at checkout.
Vari offers free shipping on the L-Shape Electric Standing Desk. On top of that, you get a free 30-day return window and a lifetime warranty.
Vari L-Shape Electric Standing Desk Review: Specs
Vari L-Shape Electric Standing Desk Review: Assembly
It took me about an hour to fully assemble the Vari L-Shape Electric Standing Desk. Unpacking it from the boxes took the most time. After that, the instructions are very clear and easy to understand. You’ll want to make sure you’ve got plenty of floor space for the process.
All of the holes are pre-drilled, so you won’t need to bust out any power tools for assembly. I did use an electric screwdriver to speed up certain parts of the assembly, but you can certainly skip this and use a regular screwdriver. The rest of the bolts are Allen heads, which are easy to screw in.
If you purchased additional accessories with your L-Shape Electric Standing Desk, this is a good time to install them. I got my accessories after I built the desk, so installing those accessories was a bit trickier and involved getting underneath the desk and screwing upward.
Vari includes hook-and-loop straps and cable guides to manage all the cables that run underneath. The straps are great, but the cable guides didn’t stick to the bottom surface of the desk for very long, so I pulled most of them off.
Since this desk is very large and heavy, you’ll likely need a friend to help you position it. Don’t attempt to do it yourself; you risk hurting yourself and damaging the desk.
Vari L-Shape Electric Standing Desk Review: Design and features
The L-Shape Electric Standing Desk has three desktop pieces: a long piece, a short piece, and a corner piece. You can choose which side to mount the corner and short piece, so you can orient it to your room.
Once built, this is Vari’s largest work surface. The desktop is wrapped in a 3D laminate, and there are five colors to choose from. The front edge of the desktop is contoured as well, to give your forearms a comfortable, edge-free place to perch.
You can control the height of the desk by using the up and down buttons. This gives you a range from 25 inches to 50.5 inches. Once you find height settings that work well for you, just use the numbered keys next to the up and down arrows to save your settings. You can save four different desk heights.
There are several mounting locations for the control unit. The most common mounting location is at the corner of the larger desktop, but you can place it wherever it’s convenient for you, especially if you’re willing to drill custom holes.
The desk is held up by three legs with wide feet to provide exceptional stability for this large desk. They telescope as the motor raises and lowers the desk. All of the electric controls, junctions, and cables run underneath the desk.
Vari L-Shape Electric Standing Desk review: In use
During my first week or so with the desk, I used the up and down arrows exclusively to adjust the desk height. I didn’t want to program any specific heights until I had a chance to settle in and figure out my ideal sitting and standing positions. Once I found them, it took seconds to program those specific desk heights into the number keys. Now I use them daily.
Vari calls its motor “whisper quiet,” and while I think that’s an exaggeration, it is still quiet enough that I don’t mind adjusting the desk even with my kiddo asleep in the next room. It’s not loud, but it’s not a whisper either.
The desk is stable and solid, even in the very highest position. It doesn’t wobble or shake at all. The L-Shape Electric Desk feels like it’s built like a tank. I love that, though I don’t love having to move it to install new accessories, or if I had to change the position of the desk in my room. If you think you’ll be moving this unit frequently, you’ll need friends to help you.
I don’t imagine I’ll be moving my desk, so this is a pretty minor issue for me. I prefer the extra real estate I get for the weight and size. I can fit my laptop, an external monitor, my printer, a desk lamp, my iPad, and other accessories with plenty of room left over to use as a writing surface (or, more realistically, to lay out the mess of papers and various stuff always cluttering my desktops).
I love having more space than perhaps I actually need. It was quite a moment when I realized I could put my printer on the desk without sacrificing working space at all. Before this desk, I had my printer perched on a filing cabinet on the opposite side of the room. Now I don’t have to move from my desk to turn it on and off, and grab papers off the tray.
My sample desk came with the “Reclaimed Wood” desktop finish. It fits well with my room’s aesthetic, and it generally looks very nice. It does not, however, look like real wood if you’re looking closely. It is, after all, a laminate. But a real hardwood desktop would increase the cost of this unit significantly, so I’m okay with the trade-off. The desktop looks and feels high-quality, and it’s ready for rugged use.
Vari L-Shape Electric Standing Desk Review: Accessories
Vari includes a pair of desk hooks with the L-Shape Electric Desk. These are great for hanging a coat, a bag, or, in my case, a pair of headphones. You also get some coasters to keep your desktop stain free and some cable straps to keep all of your wires tidy.
I also tested several other optional accessories though, including the Undermount Storage ($125), Mobile Cubby ($195), Desk Drawer ($95), Hanging Desk Cubby ($165), Varidesk Essential 30 ($229), Power Hub ($99), Cable Management Tray ($50), and the Studio Lamp ($99).
All of these accessories are excellent, but I love the Power Hub, Studio Lamp, and Undermount Storage the best. The lamp features various color temperatures and light levels, and it looks great on my desk. The Power Hub makes access to plugs easy and quick (I plug and unplug my laptop frequently, so this is a great option). And the Undermount Storage functions as a drawer and a small shelf, making it easy to grab frequently used items like pens or my iPad.
To top it all off, I tested the Vari Task Chair, which has become my favorite desk chair that I’ve tested so far and is easily one of the best office chairs you can get for under $400. The combination is comfortable, ergonomic, and attractive.
One more standout accessory is the ActiveMat ($95). When you’re standing, this mat becomes almost addictive. This polyurethane mat is soft and comfortable, and it features various protrusions that allow you to stretch your legs and feet while you’re using your desk in the standing position.
Vari L-Shape Electric Standing Desk Review: Verdict
While I have some minor complaints about the Vari L-Shape Electric Standing Desk, like the cable management situation underneath the desk, I really can’t find any major reasons not to invest the money in this spacious and sturdy desk. Vari has done an incredible job creating an efficient work surface with tons of well thought-out accessories that make the overall experience superb. I highly recommend the L-Shape Electric Standing Desk.
