Ikea Computer desk – GALANT Corner desk

While surfing the net for computer desks, I found a someone who has a very similar computer desk setup from Ikea I did a while ago. My Ikea computer desk is actually very symmetrical (not corner) and not too many things to “accessorize” the computer desk, I like to keep it simple, functional, minimal yet practical.

It is very nice to see however people using similar Ikea hacks and ideas to create a very similar desk setup to mine, they have the same , birch veneer, silver color desk I have but in this case they use the Ikea GALANT Corner desk.

Here is the photo of their setup, followed by my mine.

SOURCE:

http://www.tophostgames.com/ikea-computer-desk-hack.html

Which one would you prefer corner desk or not?

Laptop & Gadget Charging Stations

When it comes to  charging stations, the first thing that comes to mind are images like the ones below:

                               

Those are the Balt Mobile Laptop Charging Station With Electrical for 10 Laptops and the Whitney Brothers Birch Laminate Laptop Security Cabinet, Single that you can buy from Amazon for a reasonable price.

The nice thing about laptop charging stations is that they are big enough to place a few laptops, tablets and gadgets in a single place in your house where you can find them, and keep them always charging and always ready.

Chances are that you already have a large number of mobile gadgets with you, like laptops, tablets, cell phones, MP3 Players etc, and they all need to be charged, but most important they must be charged right when you need them.

The problem with having many devices is that people usually don’t create or have a simple place dedicated to charging those gadgets and therefore is a pain when you need to use them and they are not charged and you need to find all those charging cables.

Do yourself a favor and get a nice, simple and compact charging station for all your gadgets now :).

Here is another nice charging station with 12 shelves:

Laptop Storage & Charging Cart For 12 Laptops

Simple Clean White Computer Desk and Chair

This particular computer setup reminds me of apple products and/or the apple store, where everything looks simple yet function, and the white and grey color matching with the chair makes it looks cooler as it both the chair and desk came together, I really like how minimal and clean this setup looks, maybe is just me but I really enjoy the white/gray colors of this furniture, it makes it looks so clean, simple and not busy at all.

The only thing that is not quite working there is the dark and brown colored floor and fireplace, I think this would go better with a lighter colored wood, as well as with a clean not so brown accents, maybe a few pictures of a beach or green trees.

I don’t usually see many white colored computer desk chairs, but in this case it goes really well with the white computer desk top, and white walls.

 

One thing was hidden was the computer monitor arm, which as a metallic and grey color that often goes really good with white furniture in this case the the white computer desk and chair.

One cool thing to notice about this particular computer monitor arm is that besides looking very strong it also has build in cable management, how cool is that?

Source: Flickr

The Most Practical IKEA Computer Desk - VIKA VEINE

I am a huge fan IKEA computer desks, not only because they are reasonably priced, but most important they are among the most practical desks you can easily find, very lightweight, easy to move and easy to assemble.

I myself put together an IKEA computer desk, the IKEA Galant desk. The desk itself is very useful, plenty of desk flat space and even had enough space to put a monitor riser, all and all a good, solid and practical desk all around, however sometimes I find myself cleaning the desk all the time, I end up putting many things on top my desk and most of the time looks like this messy computer desk.

I recently came across the VIKA VEINE computer desk from IKA, and I have come to the conclusion that is definitely one of the most practical and clever computer desks you can get from IKEA. The desk looks like a good size, not too big or small, but what makes this desk the most practical is the fact that it “hides” the computer parts such as the mouse, keyboard, cables laptop or monitor or whatever other thing you usually have laying around your desk. The top of the desk is foldable so when you don’t need to use the computer simple close the folding top and done, you have a clutter free desk, and when you need to work on the desk just fold the top up and all your stuff is there like  you left it, cables, mouse, pens, headphones, papers keys, mobiles devices etc.

The cool thing about this setup is that you can always keep your desk as messy as you need it but only when you are working on and using the desk, when  you are done simple fold the top down and the mess is gone.

Its like having a closet, you can always keep it messy, but for a quick “clean up” just close the folding top and the mess is gone, is that super practical or what?

When the desk is not folded you can use the build in pockets to hold your pens and papers or get even more creative and add more pockets yourself to fit your needs.

The desk also hides any electrical outlets, power strips which makes it a very convenient as a way of cable management to hide all those messy cables away from plain sight, and straight from IKEA comes in two colors: brown or white. and if you are really feeling creative you can always paint it with your favorite color.

If you have a computer desktop, you can also customize the desk and “bolt” down the computer monitor do the folder desk top to make it easy to hide, the only thing you will not be able hide is your desktop tower, but simple just leave on the floor or in a nearby corner.

The computer setup in this photo shows a computer monitor “bolted” to the computer desk, this setup is cool because you can put a big monitor and when you are not using it, just close the top and the monitor his hidden, along with everything else and you get a clean desktop. Keep in mind that mounting a computer monitor to the desk this way requires a lot of skill and not all monitor will work for this setup so make sure you check the ideahacker link below for more info.

This is definitely a practical and awesome folder desk or “hidden” desk, what do you think? is there a better hidden desk than this one?

Sources:
www.ikeahackers.net
www.ikea.com
www.apartmenttherapy.com

Don’t be this guy. Computer desk full of electronics

Today’s life if full of electronic gadgets. Electronics can make our life easier, but if you are not careful, they can easily take over your personal space! In this site you will find useful tips on how to organize your home office.

How to build the best IKEA computer desk (parts & Instructions)

A while ago I put together The Best Computer Desk setup from IKEA,  usually I don’t really care much about computer desks but after going to IKEA and building/putting together the perfect computer desk setup for my shiny (at the time) Windows 7 Desktop I realize how cool (and time consuming)  was the whole experience.

If you would like to see the computer desk I put together from Ikea you can see more pictures here: The Best Computer Desk setup from IKEA

Here is a picture from of desk I put together:

Now more importantly if  you would like to put together the same computer desk setup for yourself, I am going to do you a favor and save you some time and tell you exactly what are all the parts I got from Ikea to to make my super cool and awesome computer desk from IKEA.

The Computer Desk

So this picture pretty much is taken straight from the IKEA site and display exactly the computer desk I got, the model is called the IKEA GALANT DESK frame and comes with a table top that is 160 cm by 80 cm or 63 inches by 31 inches, which gives  you plenty of room to put key board, mouse and anything else you might need. The table top I got is the birch veneer wood which gives it a very nice and tropical clean wood color  and the legs I got is the T-Legs for the desk I found this legs to be the most convenient because while you are sitting town the desk you are less likely to hit your knees in the desk legs than if you go with “A”-Shaped legs, I also recommend going with the desk that is silver color because looks cleaner and nicer just like the photo. And the most important point about this T-shaped legs is that you can adjust the height of the desk very easily only one screw on each leg and done.

One thing  to consider is the table top, if you go to the IKEA store in person you will see that you can also get a table top that is all glass, I think this is a totally personal choice however I recommend not get the glass top because it is heavier and not to mention glass is a magnet for fingerprints and I don’t feel confortable with glass since it can break and you can get cut, even though the glass is supposed to be very tough etc, but glass will be glass. One big plus for the wood table top is stain resistant and easy to keep clean.

The Monitor Riser Stand

The stand table that raises the monitor is made with the EKBY JARPEN  wall shelf (without the wall mounting parts) in birch veneer color to match the desk also in the same wood color, this is another reason go to with a table top for the desk that is not glass since you can’t get this wall shelf in glass. It is very nice to use the the wall shelf to be used as monitor raiser to match the same material and color as the desk table, that way people think it actually came with the desk, not to mention everything looks less ghetto when it all matches. in my case I went with the light color wood and silver color for metal parts.

One thing to keep in mind is that you can get 2 of these wall shelf: one to use as a computer monitor riser and the other one to use as an actual wall shelf above the computer monitor, that is exactly what I did, if you do the same you must remember to get the pieces that are use to mount the wall shelf to the wall which I believe they are the “EKBY BJARNUM” pieces and they are metallic and they screw into the wall to hold the wall shelf, I recommend this to make your home office look more nice with everything of the same color (silver/metallic and birch veneer wood color)

The wall shelf is 46X11 inches.

The Computer Monitor Riser Legs

The monitor riser shelf needs to have 4 legs in my case I went with 4 IKEA CAPITA Legs which come in  stainless steel and complement very nicely the silver color frame of the IKEA GALANT desk. The IKEA capita legs come in a 4 unit Pack, which means you get the 4 legs you need in one package. These legs come in the size 4, 6, and 8 inches, and trust me on this one you want to get the smaller size (4 inches) if you can’t find the 4 inches size at the store try to order them online or Ebay because 4 inches plus the thickness of the wall shelf is just about the right height to rise the monitor, anything longer is it is just too high. Also remember that the legs need to be screwed to the wall shelf (not to the desk)  and once they are screwed to the wall shelf simple put the lets on top of your desk, there is no need to secure them to the desk.

Computer Holder

The IKEA GALANT desk does not comes with a desktop computer desk holder, however you can get this holder for very cheap and I highly recommend it, this holder is very strong and sturdy and can hold computer of all sizes and you can put it very conveniently on either side under the desk. this is a metal holder and you must remember to get it in the same silver color to match the desk frame and legs.

IKEA Cable Management for Computer Desk

Optional Drawer Unit

HELMER Drawer unit comes with casters and the same silver color to match the silver metal parts of the desk frame. Slot for label on each drawer. Helps keep contents organized and easy to find. comes with 6 bays. Highly recommend this to keep all  your cable etc.

Optional Desk Lamp

This item is optional because not everyone needs a desk lamp, but if you do IKEA has many desk lamps, I was not able to find the one I have setup with my desk (if you see at my picture above) however this one is very close to what I have, which has a metallic silver frame to match the desk and can be attached either to the desk or even better to the monitor riser stand.

Optional Mouse Pads

Ikea also has mouse pads in stock, in my case I got the LAGIS Mouse pad which I believe is the only model they have, I got myself white but if you find silver get it to match the rest of your desk setup and since they are so cheap buy a few in case you loose them or you get them dirty.

Optional wine glass rack as cable management

Wine glass rack from IKEA used to hold other electronic related needs like a wireless router, an external hard drive, a mini computer etc.

Optional Ikea LED lights

Conclusion

That’s pretty much it in a nut shell, what do you think? what would you change about my desk setup?