Handy
Ikea's new gaming accessory lineup includes a wooden hand-shaped stand
The collection is delightfully understated and affordable, and includes the $20 Lånespelare headphone or cable holder.
We're ditching all hand puns to get straight to the point: Ikea's wooden hand for gaming accessories, known as the Lånespelare, is coming to an Ikea near you soon as part of the Swedish homeware company's new selection of gaming-related furniture and accessories. It's set to cost about $20 and is only available in China at the moment. In May, it will appear in the company's Japanese stores, while the rest of the world can expect it in October.
The new range was designed in collaboration with the Asus' sub-brand, Republic of Gamers (ROG), and seeks to help gamers create ergonomically friendly setups, while also offering them gear that's devoid of the usual plethora of multi-colored LED's that traditionally a hallmark of "gaming gear."
What else you can expect — The lineup is comprised of more than 30 items, including chairs, desks, a ring light, a neck pillow (that can double as a chair headrest), a multi-function cushion, a clip-on cupholder for the desks, various storage units, and other equipment specifically catering to the gamer lifestyle.
"We cooperated with ROG the whole time and met both professional and high-performance gamers," Ikea product developer Sofia Wiktorsson said. "We saw a need for comfortable and ergonomic chairs and aids for long gaming sessions, stable furniture and accessories that improve the precision, and smart storage for the hardware. But, we also developed solutions that make it easier to eat and drink without spill while playing."
Talk to the hand — Designed by Jon Karlsson, the wooden hand is 13 inches tall and is made of solid beech while its joints (which help to move the wooden fingers around) contain polyamide plastic. As you may have noticed in the photo above, the wooden hand is great for storing headphones, but we imagine it'd be decent for our electronic spaghetti collection, too.
We're not sure anyone really needs a Lånespelare, though. It looks primarily decorative, and similar to existing Ikea products like the human-figure Gestalta or the decorative Handskalad. That doesn't mean we don't want one, though... or this media center... or the rest of the ROG-related lineup, really.
