Gaming Chairs VS Office Chairs

Just bought a Killabee 8212. Pretty comfortable for me.

How I wish they made flat seats also for smaller people. Only the biggest model typically comes without the sides at the base but it's typically a bit on the larger side for me as I'm pretty slim. Here's hoping it's a trend that catches on that people with basic logical thinking ability see the sides are more harm than useful for a office chair so they create smaller ones without the leg support which makes no sense in seat not intended to be used in a car.

I’ve been using a Staples Kroy Mesh chair for work and just bought me one for home use. Super comfortable as I have lower back problems when sitting for extended period of times. The mesh seat helps against the pressure and allows me to be comfortable.

I ended up getting a Tempur-pedic chair from Staples. Model TP7000, this replaces the gaming chair that I was hoping would get more comfortable, but never did. The best thing is I went to my local Staples and the chair was marked down to $168 from $300..

IMHO, most "gaming" marketed chairs end up being trash. Maybe it's not true at the high end, but I've heard it over the years from a lot of streamers/reviewers. But, I'm not sure what to recommend as a "budget" version because it seems those often suck.

I'd go with something just marketed for office/long-term use, gamer marketing is usually a red flag for me

I initially went with a chair from Husky Office and they are pretty high quality chairs, but the weight ratings are probably a bit off. Thankfully they have good service and sent a new lift to replace the one in my chair that eventually died. But my workplace was about to throw out some chairs still in decent condition and let me take a couple of them home, and these have been the best chairs I've ever used. Apparently mid-to-higher end B2B office furniture is pretty decent, but it is not budget-friendly if you need to buy it.

So I no longer use the Husky chair. I think the brand on these office ones is Allsteel.

In general with so called "gaming" chairs you are paying for image and branding.

If having a racy looking chair with a gaming brand logo on it is important to you and your aesthetic, I say go for it.

But if it isn't you'll get more for your money with a good office chair.

There is nothing about a "gaming" chair that makes it better for gaming. Sitting at a desk at a computer is sitting at a desk at a computer, regardless of whether you are a competitive gamer or if you are editing excel spreadsheets.

I've tried a number of different chairs over the years. I've found that when I was younger, I could get comfortable on pretty much any chair. As I got into my late 30s and now my early 40's having a GOOD chair become more and more important, or I would be in pain. Especially if sitting in it for prolonged periods of time.

As discussed earlier in this thread, I purchased a used Herman Miller Aeron chair a few years ago. As I am tall I purchased a size C. They asked $375 for it. It was and still is in great shape. These things are tanks and will outlive you, so no worries about buying them used.

I know for a while during the pandemic when there was a work from home rush, used Aeron's became quite a bit more expensive. Not sure how they are priced now, but unless they are crazy expensive, I highly recommend them over any "gaming" chair on the market.

Zarathustra[H] said:

I've tried a number of different chairs over the years. I've found that when I was younger, I could get comfortable on pretty much any chair. As I got into my late 30s and now my early 40's having a GOOD chair become more and more important, or I would be in pain. Especially if sitting in it for prolonged periods of time.

As discussed earlier in this thread, I purchased a used Herman Miller Aeron chair a few years ago. As I am tall I purchased a size C. They asked $375 for it. It was and still is in great shape. These things are tanks and will outlive you, so no worries about buying them used.

I know for a while during the pandemic when there was a work from home rush, used Aeron's became quite a bit more expensive. Not sure how they are priced now, but unless they are crazy expensive, I highly recommend them over any "gaming" chair on the market.

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I couldn't agree more, if you're looking for a really good and ergonomic chair there are few better options than Herman Miller, and buying a used chair is a great idea if you don't want to pay the full price for getting it directly from the distributors. However, this is specially the case for tall people, a friend of mine bought a used Herman Miller and it had the opposite effect for her because the lumbar support wasn't ideal for her height. I guess there isn't a perfect solution that would work for everybody, it's important to look for information and reviews online but it's also very important to try the chair and make sure it works for you.

If y'all haven't discovered La-Z-Boy office chairs, you're missing out on a goldmine of comfort and durability.

Toboggan said:

If y'all haven't discovered La-Z-Boy office chairs, you're missing out on a goldmine of comfort and durability.

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I've sat in one or two from Best Buy but they lacked the ergonomic settings the other expensive brands have. Definitely cushy seats though

Toboggan said:

If y'all haven't discovered La-Z-Boy office chairs, you're missing out on a goldmine of comfort and durability.

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Hope you're not talking about the one from Costco. Just had to toss mine after about 20 months - seat and back cushions compressed and faux leather flaked and torn.

All the different Serta and La-Z-Boy's variations you'll see in Office Depot and Staples and elsewhere all seem to be made in the same factory in China. I don't think those brandnames mean anything on these chairs either, they're probably just licensed.

The flaking faux leather is the worst. That crap tracks all over the house. I've sworn off all faux leather BS ever since my last Serta/La-Z-Boy office chair purchase

joevarmr said:

Hello, fellow gamers. I'm looking for decent gaming chairs with a limited budget of $100 to $200. I usually game for about 4 to 5 hours every day which is causing me back pain. My current chair is not a fancy one. I'm not even able to adjust the height of it. Suggest me a chair that is reliable and comfortable and doesn't break my bank either. Thanks in advance.

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Unless you really care about racy "gaming" aesthetics, you are going to get the most for your money by looking at Office chairs with no hint of "gaming".

Most "gaming" chairs are pretty bad, but there are some good ones. In either case, as soon as they make a "gaming" version, they add racing stripes, and other stupid useless features and crank up the price knob to 11. Easy way to get an extra profit margin from gaming sheep.

The best you can do on a budget is get a used Herman Miller Aeron Chair, but at under $200 that is likely not going to happen. I'd look in your area though. You might luck out. Check Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace, etc. These things last forever. They will outlive you, so there is no problem getting them used, and almost nothing is better for lower back pain than a properly set up Aeron Chair.

Autonomous.ai used to be a good budget choice for budget ergonomic chairs, and I believe had some in your price range, but I just looked at their webpage, and their prices have gone through the roof since the last time I checked.

Hopefully someone else can chime in with better options.

La-Z Boy office chair is on sale right now for $169.99 at Costco, not sure if we had a better thread for this but link:
https://www.costco.com/.product.100849066.html?&EMID=B2C_2022_1124_ThanksgivingPM

Still have and recommend the used Herman Miller Aeron from a company going out of business sale. Really comfy chair. Good office chairs last a long time and are meant for you to sit in them for hours at a time. You have to sit in the chair and find one that is comfortable for you. Gaming chairs tend to be uncomfortable and cheaply made so they don't last either. The gaming chairs at the internet cafe we used to go to for gaming tournaments were not very comfortable at all.

I've always used office chairs as the gaming chairs always hurt my back, but that ALL comes down to preference and what's good for you

I'm slowly recovering from an L4 burst fracture (long story) so I'm carefully looking into all of this. I appreciate a lot of these threads as a lurker.

https://hardforum.com/threads/valari-gaming-pillow.2025387/


This is my favorite gaming cushion turns any chair into a rocketship.

xx0xx said:

The flaking faux leather is the worst. That crap tracks all over the house. I've sworn off all faux leather BS ever since my last Serta/La-Z-Boy office chair purchase

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I'll admit regretting not getting leather on my Steelcase chair. Looks pretty bad now.

My take is that it is certainly possible to design a good "gaming chair".

This is probably one of them, but it is a bit pricy for most.

After all, all a gaming chair is, is an office chair with a racy gamer aesthetic. It's not like you sit diifferently when you play games vs when you spend hours in Excel.

A "gaming chair" is a chair. If a chair is good, it can also be a good "gaming chair".

The problem is that most "gaming chairs" seem to follow a formula much like this:

1.) Gaming peripheral brand reaches out to cheapest shittiest chair maker in all of China.
2.) Gaming peripheral brand requests a version of an existing cheap shitty chair with bigger side bolsters (because G forces?) and a racing stripe, and maybe some LED lights.
3.) Gaming peripheral brand proceeds to sell this shitty chair for 25x the price
4.) Profit ensues, while selling a shitty chair that has been prettied up (if you like that aesthetic) but still kind of sucks.

The Gaming peripheral brands are just taking advantage of FOMO kiddies willing to spend money on things with a gaming "Race Car meets Fantasy novel meets UFO" aesthetic and as long as kids keep letting them get away with it, they will continue doing so.

Zarathustra[H] said:

My take is that it is certainly possible to design a good "gaming chair".

This is probably one of them, but it is a bit pricy for most.

After all, all a gaming chair is, is an office chair with a racy gamer aesthetic. It's not like you sit diifferently when you play games vs when you spend hours in Excel.

A "gaming chair" is a chair. If a chair is good, it can also be a good "gaming chair".

The problem is that most "gaming chairs" seem to follow a formula much like this:

1.) Gaming peripheral brand reaches out to cheapest shittiest chair maker in all of China.
2.) Gaming peripheral brand requests a version of an existing cheap shitty chair with bigger side bolsters (because G forces?) and a racing stripe, and maybe some LED lights.
3.) Gaming peripheral brand proceeds to sell this shitty chair for 25x the price
4.) Profit ensues, while selling a shitty chair that has been prettied up (if you like that aesthetic) but still kind of sucks.

The Gaming peripheral brands are just taking advantage of FOMO kiddies willing to spend money on things with a gaming "Race Car meets Fantasy novel meets UFO" aesthetic and as long as kids keep letting them get away with it, they will continue doing so.

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I tried that chair.

Hated it.

Zarathustra[H] said:

My take is that it is certainly possible to design a good "gaming chair".

This is probably one of them, but it is a bit pricy for most.

After all, all a gaming chair is, is an office chair with a racy gamer aesthetic. It's not like you sit diifferently when you play games vs when you spend hours in Excel.

A "gaming chair" is a chair. If a chair is good, it can also be a good "gaming chair".

The problem is that most "gaming chairs" seem to follow a formula much like this:

1.) Gaming peripheral brand reaches out to cheapest shittiest chair maker in all of China.
2.) Gaming peripheral brand requests a version of an existing cheap shitty chair with bigger side bolsters (because G forces?) and a racing stripe, and maybe some LED lights.
3.) Gaming peripheral brand proceeds to sell this shitty chair for 25x the price
4.) Profit ensues, while selling a shitty chair that has been prettied up (if you like that aesthetic) but still kind of sucks.

The Gaming peripheral brands are just taking advantage of FOMO kiddies willing to spend money on things with a gaming "Race Car meets Fantasy novel meets UFO" aesthetic and as long as kids keep letting them get away with it, they will continue doing so.

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Not to mention all these streamers and influence are pushing the hell out of gaming chairs. They don't even have to sponsor them. They all actually believe in the marketing.