Ikea Uppspel PC Stand Review: A Win for Brick and Mortar

POSITIVES

✓ Buy in person

Same day purchase

✓ Affordable

Competitive with Amazon prices

NEGATIVES

✘ Cheap feeling

Nothing special

✘ Doesn't fit All

Not every tower supports width

Purchase Price: $19.99

Buy at Ikea

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Last year, cheap furniture retailer, Ikea, began selling gaming accessories through a design partnership with PC maker ASUS and their Republic of Gamers brand. While there are a variety of products now being sold by Ikea that are gaming-centric, many of those items aren’t necessarily a functional or aesthetic improvement over your regular desk furniture in my opinion. There was however, one product that I had needed for my setup that had been so low on my Amazon to-buy list that I had procrastinated acquiring it for years: a CPU stand with casters. So when I was shopping at Ikea one day and came across their gaming show floor section, I saw and quickly picked up the Uppspel stand to purchase. I now officially had a piece of gaming tech made by Ikea to review.

Ikea for Gaming

There’s really nothing unique about the Uppspel stand at all when it comes to aesthetics. It’s a simple non-branded adjustable CPU stand made from steel. This Ikea product is essentially the same $20 product you can buy on Amazon from a lot of Chinese off-brands. This doesn’t mean it’s a bad product; far from it. With a sub 5 minute assembly window and what seems like a widely available national stock inventory, the Uppspel has plenty of drawing power for potential buyers. 

The included casters are of similar quality to those of other Ikea products. I’ve had plenty of experience over the years with Ikea casters in the office and in the kitchen. They hold up relatively well with moderate usage for cheaply manufactured wheels. The same goes for the actual body of the CPU stand. It’s an adjustable width that should fit a variety of different PC cases. My Cyberpower Gamer Supreme Tower was just a few inches short of the minimum adjustment length for the Uppspel. Although my tower doesn’t fit snugly, it was still secure enough for transportation without wobbling. Ikea advertises the capability as anything between 9½-13⅜", so be mindful of the width of your tower prior to clicking that purchase button.

As an actual computer stand, it handles the job perfectly fine. The wheels are capable enough to roll on carpet and I surmise will be sustainable for many years. Ikea furniture isn’t known for its quality, but I don’t see a majority of the Amazon competitors faring any better if I’m being honest. This also isn’t a product that needs any aesthetic value seeing as it’s being hidden over. This review really isn’t about the product more so than what the product represents for the industry. 

A Win for Brick and Mortar

There’s nothing blatantly special about the Uppspel stand, yet I clearly do feel that it’s a big release for the PC gaming industry. Prior to this product, where would I realistically be able to buy something like this? The answer is Amazon. Amazon isn’t a physical retailer (at least not yet). While 90% of my tech purchases are online now, I do find myself going to brick and mortar shops for smaller items. This may not be the right mentality to hold, but it is one of those things that innately happens when that excitement factor for a product is low (i.e cables and SD cards). The logical places to find PC gaming accessories for same day purchases would be Best Buy, Walmart, Target or Micro Center. Even if one of those places had stock, it’s quite literally a crap shoot whether it’s a product that would work for your intended purpose. The fact that Ikea and its enormous stocking inventory now carries a PC stand with casters on it for same day purchase is a game changer. We can only hope that these gaming accessory lines sold by Ikea are successful in order for the market to continue to produce more productive gaming accessories back into brick and mortar retailers. It’s a win-win for everybody.        

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