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A standing desk has long been on my radar, as the messaging about sedentary working has rung louder over the years, but I’ve found some of the options inadequate and stopped short. The MAGNUS Evo is the first desk of its kind that I’ve used, and it’s a great bit of kit that combines accessibility with the kind of dependable manufacturing quality Secretlab has built its reputation on. I was lucky enough to review the new desk, as well as a Titan Evo XL Witcher branded chair. My thoughts on both follow, and with Secretlab’s Black Friday sale now on, you can learn more details on discounts by following this link.
| Pros | Cons |
| Intuitive design with excellent, practical new features | The lack of compatibility with the MagPad Desk Mat mean a limit on customization. |
| High-quality finish and no high maintenance requirements | |
| High end design | |
| Functionality is silent and very smartly customizable |
Unboxing & Assembly Notes
The first thing to note is that the boxes that both the MAGNUS Evo desk and the Titan Evo chair come in are easily two of the largest boxes I’ve ever received in my life. But the excellent design and ergonomics work starts with the packaging, and while there’s rather a lot of material to deal with at the end, that’s only a very small drawback. The boxes are easily to unpack, with easily identifiable parts, and instructions to maintain them while assembled to avoid any damage.
The build instructions are also geared toward equipping even the most hopelessly inept (hello, that’s very much me) to breeze through construction. There are some heavier parts to the desk, especially if you go for the XL size, and you’ll need help lifting. It’s also best to get some assistance for fitting the legs, but as far as ease of build goes, it’s hard not to score the desk full marks.
The Titan Evo chair came with a huge Witcher-themed map of the Continent, which I confess I initially thought was just a bonus freebie. It took an embarrassingly long time to turn it over to find equally straightforward instructions on assembly. The construction is so intuitive, however, that the instructions feel more like support than some sort of practical exam as other furniture can.
The Secretlab MAGNUS Evo Desk Explained
The MAGNUS Evo is a new-to-market variation on Secretlab’s flagship MAGNUS Pro, with some distinct differences that it’s worth running over for longer-term Secretlab users weighing up a change. In design terms, there’s not a huge number of differences: the cable tray at the rear, underneath the desk top, doesn’t run the whole length. The Evo’s version is more like 70% of the total length. This is absolutely adequate for my needs, but it’s a difference to note.
More prominently, the magnet setup is different here: while the Pro’s entire desktop is magnetic, the Evo instead has magnetic zones. Again, this suits me: there’s a full steel strip across the rear edge that allows for accessories to be fitted, and two zones on either side of the most logical central sitting position. The magnets are strong enough to avoid frustrating movements, but easily movable with intent, should you want to move the position of accessories. That comes with the downside that you can’t customize the look of the desk with the existing Secretlab Magpad desk mats, but I actually found the sleek black design to be the right blend of functional and grown-up for my office.
The Secretlab MAGNUS Evo Desk & Accessories Review
But we’re not really here to talk about what the Evo desk is not: what it is is a smart, accessible sitting-to-standing desk that is impressively intuitive. I won’t say it’s radically transformed my working, but it certainly has dramatically altered the environment I’m working in. The standing mechanism is a godsend to anyone putting in a lot of hours at a desk, and it doesn’t require a second thought, nor anything invasive to transform from the seated position.
The desk has three programmable settings (the level of attention to detail in offering 3 rather than just 2 is commendable). Logic dictates that I set mine at a comfortable seated position, standing for my over 6-foot height (the highest height is actually perfect for me by some great fortune, so people of NBA-like height might find it low, but only them), and a second slightly lower seated position for my son to work alongside me. The movement itself is not quite silent, but it’s a lot quieter than you’d expect. It’s also a very smooth transition, with zero spillage of any of the (many) drinks I tested out on it while changing the positions. The pace of movement also feels appropriate and won’t catch anyone unawares or startle pets.
The size of the MAGNUS Evo XL was one of the biggest pluses for me ahead of time, because it means I can dual-screen comfortably and take up a little over half of the desk, while still allowing ample space for a separate PC for my 8-year-old to have his own workstation. He is yet to secure any contracts, but assures me he is committed to “build”.
Also included was a Secretlab Premium PC Mount, which comes in handy for that additional PC without taking up desktop space. The installation is a little more complex than the other accessories, because it’s not a purely magnetic setup (it couldn’t be, given the weight on it, of course), but the instructions are straightforward and in depth. It’s perhaps an odd thing to say, but the mount feels sturdy and well-made. On top of that, the Secretlab Magnetic Headphone Hanger is a simple magnetic clip-on affair to be added to either side of your seated position. So too is the Secretlab Cable Management Bundle, which offers both cable anchors and sheaths and helps keep the wire jungle that’s always an issue with the amount of additional accessories we both use managed.
