I’ve recently made several improvements to my home office / desk setup. Several people have asked for details on the parts/pieces I used to complete this, so I wanted to take a moment and document them here.
I started with an Autonomous SmartDesk 2 – Home Office motorized sit/stand desk. There is a premium version of this desk that appears to have more range (can go lower/higher) than the home version, but for my needs the home office version seemed to have very similar specs and was slightly less expensive.
I already had a very good desk chair (the Autonomous ErgoChair 2), but also added a Topo Comfort Mat for when I’m standing. This was a touch more than I planned to spend, but came highly recommended and initial impressions are very good.
I’m using two different monitor arms, one from my previous setup and a new ErGear Adjustable Gas Spring mount which was very inexpensive (only $25) and supported the weight required by my monitor (the specs for the monitor arm show it supports up to 26.5 pounds).
Lighting was the toughest problem to solve. I wanted to have a primary light source that was centered in front of me, to reduce shade cast from one side of my face for video calls, but also desired more light than most round / camera lights provide. I also preferred an indirect light source that would bounce of the ceiling first, but not be blocked by my monitor when in a standing position. My first thought was a very tall floor lamp, but I didn’t really want a base that I would be kicking right in front of my feet, and couldn’t find anything tall enough anyway. I found some desk mounted lamps that looked like they might work, but I couldn’t find any with the right height to be able to reach over my monitor. What I settled on was a fairly custom solution. I purchased a Twinkle Star Floor lamp with Remote Control, but disassembled / rewired part of it and mounted it to an unused monitor arm I had laying around using some bolts and rubber wire clamps. The end result is a desk mounted lamp that’s the perfect height (and adjustable), but also has a remote control that can adjust light temperature and brightness.
I hope you find this info useful!