Order and Deliver

I purchased a 72" x 78" L-shaped desk with a walnut laminate desktop for $2,037.54. The order was a piece of cake and the Uplift website standouts among all the competitors as the most feature rich with a live representation of most of the elements of the desk as you build it out. There were a couple very minor glitches in the process, but nothing that "broke" the building of the desk. It was a pleasure to work with a menu driven system that presented all the possibilities and being able to get three freebies during the sale was a nice little bonus. The cart functioned perfectly with all the items spelled out for easy confirmation and the total amount was fully disclosed before pulling the trigger. I did find an online coupon that took $200 off the final sale price, so make sure to check before you pull the trigger. All the components were shipped same day with a four day delivery. I tracked all the boxes (8) that were shipped and FedEx only fumbled on one box, but thankfully it wasn't a critical box, just an accessory, and that is a FedEx problem, not a Uplift problem.

Unboxing

As mentioned I received eight boxes total. Since I purchased an L-shape desk, each desktop came in their own well protected boxes. And I thoroughly inspected the outsides of the boxes prior to opening in anticipation of catching any damage. Although there was some minor damage to the desktop boxes, the actual desktops were completely unharmed. I strongly recommend that you keep all boxes and the associated packing materials with the boxes until you are completely satisfied with everything and have a fully functioning desk. More on that in a bit. Everything in the boxes was well packaged and protected and sorted across the boxes with clear indication of what each box was. If I had any nitpicks, it would be that there was no indication of "up" on the boxes, but I did realize that they are packed based on the writing on the outside, so keep the wording rightside up and you'll be fine.

Prepare for Build

The biggest tip I can give you is watch the build videos from the website to have a decent understanding of what you will be doing. However, note that the instructions do not follow the videos. I would actually say the videos are much better than the written instructions for the most part, but that really depends on the type of desk you are getting. Also, you are going to need a good amount of room to build the desk. I had everything laid out in my office where the desk was going, and honestly it slowed everything down because it was too tight to get everything set out and prepared. I strongly recommend that you also build it on a raised surface if possible.

The Build

This brings my first criticism. The video boasts a 7 minute build time. Most reviews I read stated 45 to 90 minutes. Mine was a couple hours. In large part this was due to the cramped space, the overall size of the desk, and a mistake in the instructions. I discovered that one of the steps had the illustration and instructions reversed for my desk. I was building a right-return desk, and the instructions have steps broken down by right versus left-return. The incorrect instruction required me to completely dismantle the legs and move rails around. So, pay close attention to the actual illustration and don't just go by the "L" and "R" as indicators of correct steps--if you are building an L-shaped desk. Other than the one mistake in the instructions the rest were fairly clear and easy to follow. OH! Another big tip for you, get a 4mm (you may need a 5mm depending on the desk you get) hex bit for your drill and go with a powered drill for the build. They do give you the hex wrenches that you need, along with a handle to give you more leverage, but honestly a power drill would have easily shaved an hour off my total time. When I had to put in the wood screws, the drill was incredibly fast and handy and I wished that I had had hex bits as well. You'll also want to make sure that you have a bit extender as some of the screw locations are tight and a power drill isn't going to fit. As for the accessories, they are all super straightforward and made to fit the desk. More on those in a moment.

The Accessories

I got a writing mat, three clamp on shelves, a standing mat, the mountable 8-port power supply, a cup holder, the rotating drawer, the advanced programmable controller, and the CPU holder (computer case holder for under the desk) with the spacer. There is also an included basic cable management "rail" that can be screwed directly into the desk wherever you want it. Love the writing mat. Shelves are quite sturdy and currently holding up three monitors no problem. The standing mat is nice and definitely better to stand on than a hard floor, but I think I may eventually upgrade to one of the more advanced mats that are thicker. The mountable power supply is a godsend. I am incredibly happy I bought it as it made plugging everything in so easy. The cup holder is, well a cup holder. It clamps on securely and I've been using it constantly. It is a nice piece of mind knowing that the beverage is secure and highly unlikely to be knocked over and does save me a little desk space. The rotating drawer is just okay. I needed something since I was getting rid of a full desk of drawers, but honestly other than my barest essentials, it isn't worth it. I will probably get a larger full-size drawer at some point. But, I will say that the drawer rotating out of the way is really nice and it's low profile renders it nearly invisible. I'm really glad that I got the angled advanced controller for the desk. I actually use all four buttons, and it is very easy to see and to use. This brings me to the CPU-holder. I can't recommend it. It stated that it fit up to an 8.25" width, but that puts it at the very end of the screw and after putting my CPU in it, I absolutely did not feel comfortable with relying on it. If you have a thinner smaller CPU, it would probably be okay, but anything past 8" wide is going to be problematic. I ended up getting a VIVO CPU holder instead, and feel a thousand times more confident that it will keep my CPU safe. As for the cable management rail that comes with the desk, it is a thick plastic "C" shaped rail. It is adequate to shove cables into and get them off the floor, but little else. If you need to make any changes to your cables or components later, you'll be pulling everything out of it. I'll just say that it is better than nothing, and I'm glad it was included for free. There are much better cable management systems out there, and I'll likely buy one of those in the future. Oh, and I will add that you should absolutely wait until you have the desk completely together and all shelves, arms, etc, clamped in place before mounting the cable management rail. I installed it during the desk construction and then discovered it was in the way of the shelves and had to move it. There are also 15 adhesive mounts and velcro that are included with the desk to use to help with cable management.

The Desk and its Performance

The desk itself, despite being a laminate, is very nice. No blemishes in the overall surface and the laminate is completely sealed except on one corner where it is slightly raised about a fingernails' thickness. You can see the adhesive along the edge, so I suspect that during the process something went a little off on that corner. All the hardware underneath is very solid, and I've been moving the desk up and down about eight times a day and haven't seen as much as a stutter during the operation. I have a solid hundred pounds of computer components riding up and down on it and the operation is fast and smooth. The desk really does feel quite sturdy under normal typing and writing conditions. However, if I shove the desktop it does jostle a little and the monitors shake slightly. But keep none of the other components move at all. The monitors wiggling is really just a byproduct of their own stands and the fact they are on shelves rather than arms. Loudness wise, it is a quiet desk. I actually moved it during a meeting while I was talking and nobody on the call made any comments about the noise. Although that could just be the quality of the microphone.

Customer Service

As I mentioned above, I ended up sending my CPU holder back. The process was extremely fast with my chat being answered immediately, and an offer initially to replace the CPU holder, but once I explained my concerns, she was happy to give me a refund. I did have to repackage the holder myself and this is why I strongly suggested that you keep all your boxes and packing materials until you are truly satisfied with the build. There is a stipulation that damage to the return can affect the refund amount. I am hoping that isn't truly the case, but better to be safe than sorry. I was sent a return shipping label and instructions for the return the following morning as I had called a bit late in the day. I also told her about the mistake in the instructions and she said that she would pass the information along. She also had me send pictures of the lamination issue; however, I have not heard back regarding that.

Final Summary

I am quite pleased with the purchase of the desk, and feel that I got my money's worth. I don't have any regrets about the laminate top currently, but we'll see how it holds up over time along with the motors. I feel like a lot of the bashing I read and saw regarding Uplift isn't really fair from an average users perspective. Sure technically they could be right about the laminate and the Chinese motors, but I definitely don't see any of that currently. I will make an effort to post updates on the desk as time goes by. Probably a 6 month, 1 year, and 2 year. If you have any questions, I would be happy to answer them and I'll also add the responses into this main post so that people don't have to search comments. Hopefully this proves useful to potential buyers in this sub.

The Evidence

Here is a picture of the build.

Finally finished.

The cables under the right side, are going to stay as is. These are cables that can potentially be moved (power to the laptop, lights, printer, and router; ethernet cables to the router), and since I primarily work on the left side, they won't be in the way of my feet. All the cables for the leg motors and control box are tucked away and hidden pretty well.

Edit: Added more details asked in the comments.

Edit2: Now with a picture!

9/12/2024 Update:

I've been asked by a few folks about the updated experience. Here you go:
I have zero regrets about getting the desk. I run it up and down every weekday several times and haven't noticed a single issue. The desktop has held up wonderfully, which was my biggest concern about the laminate desktop. I use all the accessories that got and have no regrets about getting them.

Some must haves from my perspective:

Desktop blotter - provides solid protection to the surface. I would absolutely recommend this, and if you are using the entire desktop, would get one big enough for the entire surface. NOTE: The one from Uplift is not the best in my opinion. It works fine, but the edge closest to me has curled up and I'm not entirely sure why. I've tried counter rolling, heat differentials to see if it contracted on one side, and even moisture to see if I could remove the curl. Nothing worked. As I said, it still does its job of protecting the surface, but is annoying at times.

Cup holder - I use this constantly and feel it is a must have to keep moisture off the desk and prevent accidental spills.

Cable management - the more the better. I ended up getting a couple 3rd party clamp shelves, conduit for the leg of my desk, and also netting. Of all of them, the shelves have worked the best. I got tired of all the cables on and under the desk, and the shelves do a great job of wrangling them without much effort.

Power - I got the large power strip from Uplift, but I wish it was even longer with more outlets. You can't have enough outlets. It would also help a lot with cable management because you wouldn't have multiple wire runs to different outlets. I have added additional power strips both under and on the desk to accommodate my needs. Seriously, assess your power needs and then maybe add another 50%. I seem to constantly need to plug something in even if it is a USB charger cable.

Standing mat - I use this every time I'm standing and it is crazy that it actually makes a difference.

Nice to haves, but not necessarily must haves:

The half round rotating drawer I got is nice, but is also super limited as to what I can put in it. I like that I can throw my EDC stuff in it and know that it is tucked away and easy to find, but I also wish I had more drawer space. I don't think getting a larger drawer mounted to the desk is for me though. I use both sides of the desk and I feel that a drawer would be in my way too much. A nice side table with drawers would be more fitting I think.

Desktop power strip - I have a small outlet strip on my desktop with 4 110v outlets, 4 USB-A outlets, and 2 USB-C outlets all in a nice compact size with its own power switch. This occasionally comes in really handy such as when I need to put more light on my desk, need to charge up devices, need to test electronics, etc. I don't think everyone would need it since I don't always need it either, but it is a nice to have.

Now the I wish I hads:

I wish I had monitor arms and a laptop arm. Unfortunately, this is a shortcoming of my monitors not having mounting holes and my only option being shelves. The shelves are fine, but if I had arms I would be able to achieve much better positioning and free up even more desk space.

More lighting. The couple lights I have are just okay, but not nearly enough when I'm doing hobby crafts with 3D models and electronics.

I have also thought a couple times that the crossbar version of the desk could be useful as you could use that to mount your power on and make it accessible; however, I then stretch my legs out under the desk and I'm grateful I don't have anything getting in my way. So, maybe not a "I wish I had," but more of a "sometimes I wish I had."

I also wished I had wheels on it at one point, when I thought I was going to need to move it, but it turned out that I actually didn't need to move it. If you were going to need to move it on any regular basis, wheels are a must. Especially if you have a large L-shaped desk. I'll add that whatever wheels you get, you'll want them to be able to lock in some way. There are some great casters that actually raise and lower when they are engaged, and I would probably go with those.

Also, I would encourage anyone getting a desk to try to get everything they are going to mount to it BEFORE they start putting it together. That has really been the only struggle I've had with it--mounting new accessories. If I had known more about what I was going to need, I would have gotten everything attached prior to finishing the build, flipping it over and putting it in place.

I hope all that helps you in some way.