Autonomous SmartDesk 2 Hybrid Edition REVIEW | Mac Sources
Autonomous SmartDesk 2 Hybrid Edition
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Taking workspaces to the next level.
About a month ago a co-worker of mine was promoted from a parttime position to one with full — time hours. About three weeks into the job, she started complaining of some lower back pain and I suggested that she try adding a standing desk to her office. We added in a table-top standing desk that lifts up manually by gripping handles on the sides of it. While it’s not the ‘Cadillac’ of standing desks, it’s working better for her than a standard ‘dumb’ desk. This, more than anything else, is the reason to invest in a standing desk like the ones that Autonomous offers. They have enormous health benefits for long-term desk workers, which leads to additional productivity.
Today, I’m excited to talk about the SmartDesk 2 — Hybrid Edition from Autonomous. The SmartDesk 2 is modular in a sense. When you go to order the desk of your choice, you select a surface material and color for your desktop as well as the size you want to go with. The frame is standard based on the edition of the desk you choose. Autonomous offers the SmartDesk 2 in the Hybrid Edition, Home Edition, and Business Edition. The main differences between all three are the types of motors that are included in the frame and height range. I have included a table below that compares the different models to each other.
The Hybrid Edition of the SmartDesk 2 is designed to bring ‘work to the next level.’ My first thought when it arrived was, “Why is it called ‘hybrid’?” When you compare the specs, the answer is kind of obvious — it’s the middle of the road between the Home and Business editions of the desk. According to the basic information included on the website, Autonomous “beefed up the Home Edition’s single motor design and rebuilt it with improved dual motors.” This means that it is quieter (only 45 decibels) and can accommodate more weight than the original Home Edition. The frame is designed and constructed by Peerless to be long-lasting.
Perhaps the most attractive thing about the Autonomous SmartDesk 2 — Hybrid Edition is its price. At $349, you can own a fully functional standing desk. Competitors who sell similar systems charge close to $900 for the package you get from Autonomous. Autonomous also includes a 30-day trial and a 5-year warranty.
Assembly is required with this desk, but Autonomous designed it in such a way that you can have it done in 30–45 minutes. The desktop has pre-drilled holes for attachments, which makes installation virtually pain-free. The desk is pretty heavy when it’s completed, so it’s best to assemble it near its final resting place. You can use furniture sliders to move it around after assembly, but I wouldn’t recommend simply pushing/pulling the desk from place to place since the legs could easily get caught on carpet or other obstacles in the process, which would put a strain on the wood screws that are holding it all together.
Once the desk is assembled and you start to plan out the rest of your workspace, you should take the time to program the controls on the desk. The desk comes with a control panel that connects to the power/programming hub for the motors. There are four programmable buttons on the control panel that can be used for varying heights/positions. To program the buttons, you first get the desk to the desired height and then press/hold the “M” button until the LED screen flashes. Select the number position you want to save that height to and you’re done. If you find yourself having to reset the control panel, you press/hold the two directional arrows for approximately 10 seconds until the motors move the desk to the default position. I had to do this upon installation in order to get the control panel initialized for use. All in all, the controls are easy to program and utilize once installed.
One small thing I want to mention is cable management. Surprisingly enough, the open-nature of the SmartDesk 2 does not make it impossible to have a neat cable arrangement. It does, however, take time and planning. I found one of the most convenient options for organizing cables is to use an open slot Cable Raceway from StarTech. I have a description of how Nick and I organized cables beneath his SmartDesk 2 — Business Edition that might be helpful to some people who want to take this step with their workspace planning.
I can’t advocate for the Autonomous desks enough when it comes to building a healthy, productive workspace. They can really help people who have to be at a stationary workspace for long periods of time and Autonomous really makes using a smart, standing desk easy and affordable.
For more information, visit autonomous.ai, Facebook, and Twitter.
Originally published at https://macsources.com on September 27, 2019.
