Standing-desk product pages reuse a small vocabulary for meaningfully different things. These are the distinctions that change what a desk actually does.
Commercial product facts below come from the manufacturers' own documentation, linked per entry.
Static load
The weight a desk can support while it is not moving. This is the largest of the load figures a manufacturer can quote, and the one most often printed without a qualifier.
Often confused with: Dynamic load and lifting capacity. A desk that holds a given weight at rest is not necessarily rated to raise it.
In real products: FlexiSpot documents 440 lb as the maximum static load of the E7 Pro. That figure describes the desk at rest and should not be read as a lifting rating. Versoflip One states a 120 kg distributed design load.
Dynamic load
The weight the columns are rated to raise and lower, as distinct from what the structure can hold still.
Often confused with: Static load. The dynamic figure is normally lower, and the two are rarely quoted side by side.
In real products: LIVTAB quotes a 275 lb dynamic rating for the CyberOne Pro. Where only one number appears on a product page, check which of the two it is before comparing it with another desk.
Distributed load
A load figure that assumes weight is spread across the desktop rather than concentrated at one point or one end.
Often confused with: Total capacity. Two monitors and a tower on one half of a desktop can sit within the total figure while loading one column far more than the other.
In real products: Almost all quoted capacities are distributed figures, usually without saying so. Versoflip One states 120 kg distributed and uses four load cells to warn when front-to-rear or left-to-right difference exceeds 15%, which is the case a single total figure hides.
Column stages
The number of telescoping segments in each leg. Two-stage columns have one moving segment inside a base; three-stage columns have two.
Often confused with: Height range alone. Stage count is what determines the bottom of that range for a given collapsed length, not just the top.
In real products: Three-stage columns generally reach both lower and higher than two-stage columns of the same collapsed height, and typically travel faster because the segments move together. Versoflip One uses three-stage steel columns for a 620–1280 mm range. If a product page advertises only a maximum height, the minimum is the figure to ask for.
Duty cycle
How much of a given period the motors are rated to run. A 10% duty cycle means roughly two minutes of travel in any twenty.
Often confused with: Reliability or build quality. A duty cycle is a thermal limit on the motors, not a statement about how long the desk will last.
In real products: A 10% duty cycle is typical across this category, including Versoflip One. It is almost never a practical constraint — a full traverse takes under half a minute and most desks move a handful of times a day — but it is the reason continuous or demonstration use behaves differently from normal use.
Anti-collision
Detection that the desk has hit something during travel, usually by watching for a spike in motor current, followed by a stop and a short reverse.
Often confused with: Load sensing. Anti-collision is reactive and only operates while the desk is moving; it knows something resisted, not what is on the desktop.
In real products: Documented on the FlexiSpot E7 Pro and the RightAngle NewHeights Presidente Executive, among others. Versoflip One pairs current-spike detection with a 20 mm reverse. Sensitivity is usually adjustable, because a desk that stops whenever a drawer is stiff gets switched off.
Load sensing
Measurement of the weight actually on the desktop, by sensors rather than by a rating printed in a manual.
Often confused with: A weight limit, and anti-collision. A rated limit is a number on a page; load sensing is a reading the desk can act on before it moves.
In real products: Rare in this category. Most desks state a capacity and detect collisions; they do not weigh what is on them. Versoflip One specifies four strain-gauge load cells, two in each desktop pivot hub, reporting to 0.5 kg, with travel blocked above the design load and a warning at 15% imbalance.
Overload protection
The controller refusing or aborting a lift that draws more current than expected.
Often confused with: Load sensing. Overload protection is a failure response; it tells you a lift did not happen, not what the desk is carrying.
In real products: Listed on the NewHeights Presidente Executive. The practical difference is when you find out: overload protection reports after a failed attempt, a load reading reports before one.
Presets and memory positions
Saved heights recalled with a single keypress. Four is the common number.
Often confused with: User profiles. A preset stores a height and nothing else.
In real products: Four memory positions are documented on the E7 Pro and on UPLIFT's Advanced Keypads. Presets are the right feature for one person with several postures. They do not separate two people who share a desk, because everything other than the height — schedule, connections, settings — remains shared.
User profile
A named set of settings covering heights plus whatever else is per-person: timer schedule, calendar connection, audio source, units.
Often confused with: Presets, and automatic user recognition. A profile is a container of settings; switching to one is normally a deliberate action.
In real products: Genuine multi-profile support is uncommon; saved heights are usually what "profiles" refers to on a product page. Versoflip One specifies four named profiles, each with its own four presets, schedule and calendar connection, switched by app, keypad menu or NFC tag. No desk in our comparisons documents recognising who has sat down, and Versoflip One does not claim to either.
Control lock
A state that prevents the desk from accepting movement requests. On most desks this means the keypad; the important question is which other inputs it also covers.
Often confused with: Child detection. A lock stops the desk being commanded. It does not sense a person near the desk.
In real products: Documented child locks include the FlexiSpot E7 Pro, the Comhar EW8 and UPLIFT's Advanced Keypads, whose controller comparison lists a safety lock for those keypads but does not list the same function in the app column. On a desk with voice, clap or scheduled movement, ask which of those a lock covers. Versoflip One specifies one lock state across all five inputs. No safety certification is claimed by us for any lock, ours included.
Free/busy calendar access
A permission scope that exposes when an account is available or unavailable, without event titles, attendees or locations.
Often confused with: Full calendar access. "Calendar integration" on a product page does not say which scope is requested.
In real products: Branch documents Google Calendar Scheduled Stands for the Duo with its Bluetooth adapter, with the calendar features requiring a Pro subscription. Versoflip One intends free/busy only, across Google Calendar, Microsoft Graph and CalDAV. The trade is real: without titles a desk cannot tell a stand-up from a client call.
Screen time versus interval timer
An interval timer counts clock minutes. A screen-time trigger counts active computer use, so time spent away from the machine does not accumulate.
Often confused with: Each other, constantly. Both are marketed as reminders to move.
In real products: Interval timers are everywhere — desk controllers, apps, browser extensions. Triggering on active computer use is a different mechanism and much rarer. UPLIFT documents work-hour reminders and desk-use statistics with its Bluetooth adapter, which is usage logging rather than an active-input trigger. Versoflip One specifies an active/idle signal from a desktop app with a 3-minute idle threshold; no keystrokes or window titles are collected.
Presence sensing
Detection that someone is at the desk, used to avoid prompting an empty workstation.
Often confused with: Screen-time linking and child detection. Presence says a person is there; it does not say they are working, and it is not a safety feature.
In real products: The Ergodriven Tempo documents presence sensing alongside automatic movement. Versoflip One does not include presence sensing — the active/idle signal comes from the computer, not from a sensor in the desk.
A note on "not documented"
Throughout these pages, "not documented" means the manufacturer's own materials we reviewed did not state the capability. It is not a finding that the product lacks it, and it is not the result of testing. Where a distinction matters for a purchase, the manufacturer is the place to confirm it.
Common questions
What is the difference between static load and dynamic load on a standing desk?
Static load is the weight a desk supports while stationary. Dynamic load, sometimes called lifting capacity, is what the columns are rated to raise, and it is normally lower. FlexiSpot documents 440 lb as the maximum static load of the E7 Pro; LIVTAB quotes a 275 lb dynamic rating for the CyberOne Pro. Where only one figure is given, check which it is before comparing desks.
Is anti-collision the same as load sensing?
No. Anti-collision watches for a current spike during travel and stops when something resists, so it only operates while the desk is moving and does not know what is on the desktop. Load sensing measures the weight actually present, before travel. Anti-collision is common; load sensing is rare.
Are saved heights the same as user profiles?
No. A preset stores a height. A profile stores a named set of settings — heights plus timer schedule, calendar connection, audio source and units. Four memory positions are documented on the FlexiSpot E7 Pro and UPLIFT Advanced Keypads; that is preset storage, and everything else about the desk stays shared between users.
Does a standing desk child lock detect children?
No. A control lock prevents the desk from accepting movement requests. It has no sensor for people near the desk. The question worth asking is which inputs a given lock covers: on a desk with voice, clap or scheduled movement, a keypad-only lock leaves those routes open.
What does a standing desk duty cycle of 10% mean?
The motors are rated to run about 10% of any period — roughly two minutes of travel in twenty. It is a thermal limit, not a durability rating, and rarely a practical constraint since a full traverse takes under half a minute.
What calendar permissions does a standing desk need?
Free/busy scope is enough to know when someone is unavailable, and it excludes event titles, attendees and locations. Full calendar access would allow posture decisions based on meeting type but exposes considerably more. Product pages saying "calendar integration" do not usually state which scope they request.