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The Fellowes Lotus Wants 26 Inches of Desk for a 16 Inch Base

Ten inches Fellowes asks for and never explains, on the converter that is otherwise the easiest one here to actually buy.

By Franco N.·Updated August 5, 2026

The numbers

  • Base footprint: 30.5 x 16 in
  • Surface Fellowes asks for: 33.8 x 26.3 in
  • Lift: 5.5 to 22.35 in above the desk
  • Capacity: 34.8 lb total, of which 4.8 lb on the keyboard platform
  • Minimum load: 9.9 lb, below which it will not hold position
  • It weighs about 50 lb and ships by freight
  • Warranty: five years in the manual, three in the FAQ sheet
  • Street price: around $700 to $770, in stock at named dealers

Verdict

Not a pick, and the reason is stronger than it used to be. You can buy one today at a named price, which is more than most of its rivals manage.

Fellowes takes part in the BIFMA Compliant register, and takes part seriously. It has 227 listings there, including the Kata monitor arm and the Elea chair. The Lotus is not among them, and neither is the DX or the LT. A company that enrolled two hundred products and left this one out made a choice, and that is a far better reason to hesitate than the vague wording I originally objected to.

The second problem is unchanged. Fellowes states two different warranty terms for this product in its own paperwork.

The ten inches nobody explains

The Lotus sits on a base 30.5 in wide and 16 in deep. Fellowes then asks for a desk at least 667 mm deep and 858 mm wide, which is 26.3 by 33.8 in. The width is fine, since 33.8 in of desk for a 30.5 in base leaves a sensible margin. The depth is the odd one. A 16 in base wants 26.3 in of desk.

Plan view showing the Fellowes Lotus base footprint of thirty and a half by sixteen inches inside the twenty six by thirty three inch desk surface Fellowes requires, with ten inches of unexplained clearance in front What the Lotus occupies, and what Fellowes asks for wall Lotus base 30.5 x 16 in 16 in 10 in more of desk 26.3 in of desk depth required Most converters ask for 24 in. Fellowes asks for 26.3 and does not say what the extra depth is for. Both figures are sourced below.

Fellowes does not say what the extra depth is for. It never describes the Lotus as moving horizontally, and the dimensional drawing gives a fixed base footprint and nothing else.

There is one place in the same product family where Fellowes does document horizontal travel. The clamp-mounted Lotus RT publishes a minimum reach of 24.02 in and a maximum of 35.64 in, which is a plain statement that the platform moves toward and away from you. No equivalent figure exists for the plain Lotus or the DX. Draw your own conclusion, and measure your desk to 26.3 in before you order, because that is the number Fellowes will point at if it does not fit.

For a corner desk this matters more than anywhere else. The industry norm is 24 in, which is what Ergotron asks for on the WorkFit-TL and RightAngle asks for on the Hover Helium. A corner desk that clears 24 in comfortably can still miss 26.3.

Three models, one chassis

Lotus Lotus DX Lotus LT
Base footprint 30.5 x 16 in 30.5 x 16 in platform 31.5 x 24.2 in
Lift 5.5 to 22.35 in 17 in above the desk 15.5 in
Mechanism Smooth Lift Smooth Lift gas spring
Capacity 34.8 lb 35 lb 35 lb
Keyboard platform 17 x 8.14 in, 4.8 lb max same, 5 lb max 31.3 x 11.8 in
Power none wireless pad, 2 USB charging, 2 USB data none
Desk needed 26.3 x 33.8 in 26.25 x 33.75 in not published
Warranty per dealers 5 years 1 yr charging parts, 5 yr rest 3 years
Street price about $700 about $720 to $900 about $432

The LT is the interesting one, and at least one dealer is selling it as the DX’s replacement. The DX exists to put a wireless charging pad and four USB ports into your desk surface, and nothing in the LT literature mentions power at all. The LT is a cheaper Lotus with less travel, a much bigger keyboard platform and a shorter warranty, which makes it a substitute for the plain model. If you want the charging, look somewhere else entirely.

Fellowes says three years and five years for the same product

The Lotus FAQ sheet answers the warranty question with three years. The product manual says five. Fellowes’ live UK support page also says five. Every dealer listing I checked prints five in one field and three in another, because the wholesale product feed carries both.

Five is the number to work from. It is what the manual says, and the manual is the document with the terms and the exclusions attached. But a manufacturer that publishes two different warranty lengths for one product has not really told you what it will honour, and this is the second Fellowes product in a row where the warranty is the weak link.

Worth knowing separately: Fellowes’ contract warranty, the document governing its dealer-channel furniture, does not name sit-stand workstations or desktop converters as a covered category at all. The one thing in this family it does name is the Lotus-DX Power Module, at ten years. So the module in the DX has a longer stated term than the machine it is bolted to.

One dealer is calling the DX discontinued

Fellowes still lists the Lotus, the Lotus DX and the Lotus LT together as a live series. But the retailer Chairlines carries a banner on its DX listing reading, in full, “DISCONTINUED. WHILE SUPPLIES LAST.” with a link to the LT as the alternative. Its own LT listing is sold out.

That is a dealer’s word rather than Fellowes’, and dealers get this wrong. It is still worth knowing before you spend $900 on a powered unit whose replacement part supply may be winding down. The plain Lotus carries no such flag anywhere I looked.

Weight, and how it arrives

Fellowes does not publish a product weight for any Lotus. Four separate retailers put it at 50 lb. One lists 24.2 lb for the product and 70 lb for the shipment, which contradicts itself, so 50 lb is the figure to plan around.

It ships assembled and it ships by freight. One dealer marks it “Can Ship via UPS? No” and another says LTL freight only. Plan for a pallet and someone to help you lift it onto the desk, which is not the picture the marketing photographs suggest.

What is wrong with it

Drawbacks

It asks for 26.3 in of desk depth and does not say why. Source: manufacturer documentation. That is 10 in more than the base occupies and 2.3 in more than the category norm.

Fellowes publishes two warranty lengths. Source: manufacturer documentation. Three years in the FAQ sheet, five in the manual, and the whole dealer channel repeats both.

The BIFMA claim names no standard. Source: what the manufacturer declines to state. “Meets or exceeds applicable ANSI/BIFMA standards” is a sentence Fellowes wrote about itself, with no test number and no certifying body attached.

The keyboard platform takes under 5 lb. Source: manufacturer documentation. A heavy mechanical keyboard plus a mousepad is most of that, before you have added a phone or a notebook.

The DX is a mains-powered device with no published safety listing. Source: what the manufacturer declines to state. No UL, ETL or CSA mark appears on the product page, in the manual or on the dealer listings, on a unit with a wireless charging pad and four USB ports.

50 lb, by freight. Source: retailer documentation. Fellowes does not publish the weight at all, and at least one dealer will not ship it by parcel carrier.

Who it fits

Buy the plain Lotus if your desk measures 26.3 in deep or more, you want something you can order this week at a known price from a stocking dealer, and 35 lb covers your kit. On availability alone it beats everything else on this site in the category.

Buy the DX only if you specifically want the charging pad and the USB ports, you accept there is no published electrical safety mark, and you are comfortable that a dealer is already selling it off.

Skip all of them if your desk is 24 in deep. Fellowes has told you in writing that this needs more than that, and the converters that fit 24 in are covered separately.

Questions people ask

How much desk does the Fellowes Lotus need?

At least 26.3 in deep and 33.8 in wide, per Fellowes. That is deeper than the 24 in most rival converters ask for.

How high does the Lotus lift?

From 5.5 in to 22.35 in above the desk surface. The DX is quoted at 17 in of rise and the LT at 15.5 in of range.

How much weight does it hold?

34.8 lb in total, with no more than 4.8 lb of that on the keyboard platform. There is also a minimum of about 10 lb, below which the mechanism will not hold its position.

Is the Fellowes Lotus warranty three years or five?

Fellowes says both. Its FAQ sheet says three, its manual and its live UK support page say five. The manual is the document with the terms attached, so five is the number to work from.

What is the difference between the Lotus and the Lotus DX?

The DX adds a wireless charging pad, two USB charging ports and two USB data ports. The chassis, footprint and lift are the same.

Is the Lotus DX discontinued?

Fellowes has published nothing to say so and still lists it. One retailer has labelled its own stock “DISCONTINUED. WHILE SUPPLIES LAST.” and points buyers at the Lotus LT.

Does the Lotus LT replace the DX?

Not on the specifications. The LT has no power features of any kind, less travel at 15.5 in, and a three-year dealer warranty against the DX’s five.

How much does the Fellowes Lotus weigh?

Fellowes does not publish it. Four retailers state 50 lb, and it ships by freight rather than parcel carrier.

Sources

Read how I check numbers.