The standing desk can determine the quality of the day-to-day life that you’re living—your comfort and well-being, your productivity, your health, perhaps even the number of years you’ll live. The right sit stand desk can significantly improve the overall quality by which you experience life, and it is therefore important to find the right standing desk.

Canada offers a wide array of standing desks from different manufacturers and providers, among them MotionGrey and Autonomous. Both companies pride themselves for offering high-quality standing desks at reasonable costs. If you’re looking for a new standing desk for your workspace and you’re considering one from these two providers, you might want to do some comparative check of the top products from each.

A Closer Look at the MotionGrey and Autonomous Standing Desks

In this blog post, we’ll do a comprehensive review of the Motion Series Standing Desk and the SmartDesk Core, both leading products of MotionGrey and Autonomous and offered at the same price. In our review, we’ll take a look at the top factors and features we believe you should check before deciding on any of the standing desks.

Standing Desk Motor: Quality and Reliability

The motor being at the heart of the standing desk, it is important for you to carefully check its quality and durability, and this often starts with the manufacturer of the motor and the motor design. Both the MotionSeries Desk and the SmartDesk Core come with a dual-motor system, but let’s take a look at the motor manufacturer to see how they fare.

MotionGrey Standing Desk: German-Manufactured Bosch Motors

Being the only provider of Bosch-powered standing desks in Canada, MotionGrey distinguishes itself in terms of motor quality, power capacity and desk operation, as well as motor longevity evident in the 10-year warranty that covers both the frame and all electronic components, including free replacement and shipping within 14 days after purchase. Bosch is a leading manufacturer of high-quality motors worldwide, and these are found in many applications. The quality of the Bosch motor in the desk translates to other noteworthy features, which we shall look into later in this post.

Autonomous Standing Desk: Chinese-Manufactured TiMotion Motors

Online information reveals that Autonomous has partnered with the TiMotion Motors for all the electronic components of its standing desks. TiMotion Motors manufactures linear actuators and gear motors, and it offers motor kits for standing desks. The company brands itself as a partner to “leading ergonomic furniture manufacturers worldwide” and its motors appear neatly crafted. However, there had been some issues recorded about its standing desk motors—particularly pertaining to errors in the encoder that leads to the need for full standing desk reset. This may have affected the shorter warranty offered with the Autonomous desks at only 7 years. The SmartDesk Core, specifically, comes with 5 years warranty for frame and 1 year for top.

Standing Desk Height Adjustability Range and Weight Capacity

The height range and weight capacity of a standing desk determine the type of users it can accommodate, whether it’s the right fit for you or not. The correct height will guarantee good posture and comfort as you use the desk, while the right weight capacity will ensure that the desk will be able to handle all the work equipment you’ll place on it. The wider the height range and the higher the weight capacity, the better. Let’s take a look at both standing desks to check where they do well and not so well.’’

MotionGrey Standing Desk: 23.6”-49” height range and 230lbs weight capacity

One notable feature of the MotionGrey desk is the fact that it is perhaps one of, if not the only, standing desk that caters to users with shorter heights, all while also offering decent height for taller users.

In terms of weight, its 230lbs capacity allows it to carry all the basic work equipment you’ll need, and more—laptop or desktop, an extra monitor, some computer accessories, maybe even a plant or two to liven up your workstation. And the great thing is, all of these, the desk can move in a whisper-quiet operation at a speed of 1.5” per second. Producing 40dB of operating noise, the desk will offer no disruption to your focus as you work.

Autonomous Standing Desk: 29.3”-48.5” height range and 250lbs weight capacity

The Autonomous desk stands out in terms of its higher weight capacity at 250lbs (only 20lbs higher than the capacity of the MotionGrey desk) and its speedier operation at 1.1” per second. However, these higher weight and speedy movement come at a price—a much noisier operation rated at 45dB.

The height range of the Autonomous desk is not too impressive. At 29.3”-48.5”, it is rather limited and cannot readily accommodate users in the shorter or taller spectrum. If your height falls outside the average range, the MotionGrey desk may be a better choice for you.

Standing Desk Tabletop Quality and Selection

While the motor is the heart of the standing desk, you can consider the table top as its face, the space that allows users to customize and let their personality and preferences shine through the specific selection and design they go for. Apart from design, you must also look into the quality of the top—what it is made of, what its size is, down to the color and style.

MotionGrey Standing Desk: 3 sizes, 3 colors to choose from

The Motion Series standing desk is offered in standard, medium, and large sizes, with color options of white marble, oak brown, or black oak wood. The availability of more options means that you can easily customize your table top to match your workplace or home office in terms of the space available and the overall look of the space.

Similar to the SmartDesk Core, the MotionGrey desk is also made from high-quality MDF wood, one that can withstand daily wear and tear. The top is covered by an 8-year warranty, although the coverage does not include cosmetic damage brought by daily use. The assembly is easy, and all you need to do is a little bit of drilling during installation.

Autonomous Standing Desk: Multiple colors offered in a single size

The SmartDesk Core is offered in 2 material options—MDF wood and bamboo. The table top stands out in terms of the 6 color options available for the top, from white and black to walnut, white oak, and bamboo. However, although the frame can accommodate a range of sizes, the SmartDesk Core is offered with a single classic top measuring 53” x 29” x 1”.

The warranty coverage for the Autonomous table top leaves something more to be desired, with only a 1-year coverage offered for its table tops.

In terms of other general table top options, MotionGrey prides itself for offering a sustainable table top selection in partnership with eco-conscious providers. It offers a sustainable ChopValue table top made from recycled chopsticks, as well as a handcrafted Canada-made solid wood top.

The Autonomous counterpart, The Desk, is a new sustainable product made from natural solid ash wood.

Standing Desk Frame

The quality and engineering of the desk frame usually determine the durability and longevity of the frame, including its height range and capability for being extendable. The overall capability of the desk provides a glimpse into the quality of the frame that supports it.

MotionGrey Standing Desk: Three-segment frame with a wider height range

The Motion Series standing desk share the same material and color with the Autonomous SmartDesk Core for its frame—both made from SPCC steel and offered in white and black paint color. The frame comes with a three-segment design, which is instrumental to the wider height range capacity of the desk.

The frame currently used in all MotionGrey standing desks have gone through a rigorous redesign following its shift to the Bosch motors, ensuring the right match between motor and frame to give users the highest standards in design and functionality.

Autonomous Standing Desk: High-quality frame with height range limitations

Autonomous also made a switch to a new provider for all its frames, with its frames now manufactured by Aoke Furniture in China. Although sharing the same material and paint color with the MotionGrey standing desk, the design of the Autonomous desk can do better to accommodate a wider height range.

Standing Desk Price, Warranty, and Returns

Both the Motion Series standing desk and the Autonomous SmartDesk Core are offered at $499, with only a $0.99 difference between them. Where they differ are in the warranty and return.

MotionGrey Standing Desk: Longer Warranty Coverage

Of the two desks, the Motion Series standing desk comes with a longer coverage of 10 years. This covers the motors and the frame, while the table top is offered with an 8-year warranty. In addition, MotionGrey offers a 14-day period for replacement of any defective desk, with free shipping included. If the defect happens after 14 days, replacement may still be given, although shipping is no longer free.

Autonomous Standing Desk: Average Warranty Coverage

The SmartDesk Core standing desk shares the same 30-day trial period with the MotionGrey desk, a period that allows users to test their desk and return it for a full refund in case they are not satisfied with it. However, in terms of the overall warranty, the coverage of Autonomous is much shorter at only 5 years for the frame and motors and 1 year for the top. Those looking for a longer warranty may want to go for the longer coverage that MotionGrey offers.

MotionGrey: Market Position and Pricing Strategy

When MotionGrey was founded in 2016, the company positioned itself as a provider of affordable high-quality standing desks, catering to individual users who are looking for a budget-friendly height-adjustable desk for their workplace or home office. MotionGrey brought ergonomic solutions within reach of average individuals.

In a sea of exorbitant prices for ergonomic solutions such as standing desks, with options offered at prices above $1000, how is MotionGrey able to offer its standing desk at such an affordable rate? The answer is a combination of mindful marketing strategy and consumer-driven investment choices.

Low-cost marketing for high-value products

Everyone knows that marketing can form a significant chunk in any company’s operational spending, and MotionGrey mindfully chooses its marketing strategy to favor lower cost over increased marketing efforts. By lowering its marketing spend, the company is able to reroute its spending towards creating more value for its consumers:

• Using premium components in its desks, such as the Bosch motors
• Extending the warranty of its standing desks, including other offerings
• Lowering the overall cost to make the desks available to more users

Long-term investment for consumer advantage

Two other factors that contribute to the position of MotionGrey as a low-cost provider of standing desks are:

Its decision to invest in its own warehouse vs. leasing a space

MotionGrey is one of, if not the only, major ergonomic solutions provider to invest in its own warehouse. This not only signifies the company’s commitment to be in the business for long term to support all of its customers, but it also protects said customers against the fast-rising lease cost. This means when you pay for a MotionGrey standing desk, you are paying for more value.

Its operating design of having more units sold for lower cost per unit

Over the years, MotionGrey has grown to become one of the leading suppliers of standing desks for different consumers and industries, both individual users and commercial businesses. Because of this, the company is able to move bulk quantities at a time, allowing them to negotiate more units at a lower cost per unit. And, all of these benefits are passed on to customers.

MotionGrey Product Offerings

Apart from high-quality standing desks, MotionGrey also offers a suite of ergonomic chairs for both office and gaming use, together with a wide array of ergonomic accessories such as anti-fatigue mats, monitor arms, and walking pads. All of these share the low price of the desks, all designed to meet the needs of customers looking for reliable ergonomic solutions for their day-to-day office and home needs.

If you’re looking for height-adjustable desks that deliver true value without burning a hole in your pocket, the MotionGrey and Autonomous desks are good options. Although both positioned in the lower-price range for their products, they have differences in design and performance, and these can be dealbreakers to some users.

Specifically check on motor quality, height range and weight capacity, table top and frame construction, as well as warranty. These factors will help you choose the right desk that will meet your specific needs for work productivity and overall health.

About Us

MotionGrey is a Canadian standing desk company that specializes in ergonomic furniture. We supply and install only the best quality standing desks and ergonomic chairs in the country. We offer free shipping within Canada and the US.

What made you switch to standing desks? Our products are designed with wellness as the focal point. From our electric standing desks to our office and gaming chairs, we deliver best value by putting your health, safety, and comfort as top priority. Boost your creativity and level up work performance. We want you to create great outcomes so we’re providing you only the best tools to make them possible.

If you are not satisfied with your purchase, check out our Refund Policy.