Cover of the 2015 edition catalogue The IKEA Catalogue (US spelling: IKEA Catalog; Swedish: Ikea-katalogen) is a catalogue published annually by the Swedish home furnishing retailer. First published in in 1951, the catalogue is considered to be the main marketing tool of the company and, as of 2004, consumes 70% of its annual marketing budget. Worldwide, approximately 208 million copies of the catalogue were printed in fiscal year 2013, more than double the number of expected to be printed in the same period. For the 2013 edition, 62 different versions of the catalogue were created for 43 countries. The 2010 edition was published in 30 languages. September 2003.
(PDF) from the original on September 2, 2012. Retrieved August 29, 2007. External link in work= () •.. Archived from on June 22, 2004. Retrieved August 29, 2007.
Sometimes, slow internet is the universe’s way of telling you to go play outside. Other times, it’s the universe’s cruel joke to destroy your productivity.
External link in work= () • ^ Hansegard, Jens (August 23, 2012)... From the original on September 2, 2012. Retrieved September 2, 2012. Retrieved September 2, 2012. From the original on September 2, 2012.
Retrieved September 2, 2012. August 25, 2006. Archived from on June 29, 2011. Retrieved August 29, 2007. • ^ Parkin, Kirsty (June 24, 2014)..
From the original on August 30, 2014. Retrieved August 30, 2014. • Baldwin, Roberto (July 20, 2012).. From the original on September 2, 2012. Retrieved July 24, 2012.
• Luisa Rollenhagen (6 August 2013).. Retrieved 6 August 2013. • Molin, Anna (October 1, 2012)...
From the original on October 6, 2012. Retrieved October 6, 2012.
October 1, 2012. From the original on October 6, 2012. Retrieved October 6, 2012. • Farey-Jones, Daniel (July 5, 2006).. Brand Republic. Haymarket Business Media. From the original on September 2, 2012.
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After a year of sitting in nine top-rated chairs and talking to four ergonomics experts, we’ve concluded that the is the best office chair for most posteriors. Thanks to its ball-and-socket armrests (which function like a human shoulder), it offers a wider range of adjustability than any other task chair, so you’re more likely to find a fit that works for you, however you like to sit. Last updated: December 14, 2016 We’ve read through this guide to check that our picks are current and available, and we’re confident that what follows are the best office chairs for most people. The Gesture is also attractively designed and more compact than any other full-featured task chair; Steelcase offers dozens of finishing options, too. This means it will look better in a wider variety of spaces than its competitors.
And in addition to being more comfortable, its highly adjustable arms let you stow the chair almost anywhere since you can lower them and tuck them in as needed to fit under a smaller desk. Steelcase is also renowned for its build quality, and the Gesture is no exception, but should anything go wrong, the company’s chairs are backed by a 12-year warranty. The used to be our top pick, and we still like it a lot. Built with many of the same features as the Gesture, it’s comparably comfortable under many conditions. However, it isn’t quite as adjustable—it lacks the fancy arms—and its design is a bit chunkier overall.
Bypassing the Gesture in favor of paying a little less for this model is hard to justify, but if the Gesture is unavailable, the Leap is what we’d get. Another point in the Leap’s favor is its adjustable lumbar support, though the Gesture’s adaptive back negates any need for this feature.
The Leap has also been around for more than a decade, which makes it easier to find used at a steep discount. If you want a mesh chair because your office lacks climate control, or if you are prone to perspiring, you might prefer mesh to the Steelcase chairs’ solid foam cushioning. The mesh style was popularized by the iconic in 1994, and this chair is still the best of its kind. Although Herman Miller has released several model lines above and below the Aeron in price, the Aeron’s continued success and storied reputation make it an easy pick. The motion ergonomics aren’t as comfortable or as natural feeling as those found on the newer Steelcase designs, nor is the seat cushion as soft or as supportive of multiple positions due to its hard edge, but this chair remains one of the most comfortable options available, and it comes with a 12-year warranty. We think that paying extra for a nicer chair, if you can afford it, is a worthwhile investment since you’ll be spending a lot of time in it.
But if you can’t spend $900-plus on an office chair, is a good bargain. If it fits you—and it probably will, since it’s designed as a lowest-common-denominator product—it can be pretty comfortable compared with other cheap chairs we’ve tried in the past. The mesh back breathes well, the back-tilting mechanism is surprisingly smooth, and the chair has good build quality for the price.
But it offers almost no adjustments—just seat height and back tilt. The seat cushion is very hard in comparison with those of more expensive models, as well. To be clear, this IKEA model is good for its price, but that doesn’t mean it’s remotely comparable to our other recommendations in comfort or adjustability.
Fourteen thousand hours—if you have a desk job, that’s the minimum amount of time you’ll spend sitting over the next 10 years. Add the nights you have to work late, the weekends you’re called into the office, and those unfortunate occasions when you end up scarfing down lunch in front of your computer (which may be every day), and the hour count only goes up from there. To put that in perspective, that’s nearly a quarter of your waking existence, over the course of the next decade, that you’re going to spend with your butt in a chair (unless you work at a circus or in retail or something).
We now know that, but bad sitting—as well as the bad chairs that engender it—adds even more long-term risks to the equation. So putting a little time and money into finding a chair that makes sense for you is a worthwhile endeavor. And when it comes to desk chairs—or task chairs, as they’re known in the biz—it very much is about finding one that makes sense for you. Professor Alan Hedge, director of the, told us that finding the right chair is like finding a good pair of shoes: You’ll want yours to follow certain design principles, and you have matters of materials, quality, and aesthetics to consider, but ultimately you’ll want something you feel comfortable in. Unfortunately, even a good chair might not be enough to save you from the problems associated with a sedentary lifestyle.
Over the past few years, a huge amount of research has indicated that the central workplace health risk is not in using ill-fitting chairs but in remaining sedentary for long periods of time—whether that’s sitting or standing. We outlined the scientific case against sitting at length in, but here’s the gist: Recent studies have shown that long periods of not moving put you at higher risk of obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and a handful of forms of cancer. But the good news is that modern task chairs such as the Steelcase Gesture and the Herman Miller Embody take this into consideration and actually encourage you to move while sitting. How we picked.
All of the experts and ergonomists we talked to stressed this simple fact: Every person’s body is different, and finding the perfect chair is a highly subjective endeavor. Rani Lueder, the founder of the California-based firm, has been doing ergonomics consulting for chair manufacturers, offices, organizations like the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health, and others since 1982. She told us, “Good ergonomists don’t say something’s an ergonomic chair unless it works for that person in that specific system—the task they have and the equipment they have.” Lueder, who has spent more than two decades helping office workers find chairs that make sense for them, offered one illustration: “The Herman Miller Aeron is the most liked chair, and it’s also the most disliked.” Even so, we can say that certain features and behaviors in a chair are good or bad. In general, a more adjustable chair will ensure a better fit and a greater likelihood of promoting good postures. You can also find some less-conventional chair styles that might be better suited for certain users.
People who suffer from back pain, Lueder explained, might benefit from a chair that gently rocks instead of reclines, or a stool-chair hybrid that allows for a more open thigh-torso angle. Pull Quote “Good ergonomists don’t say something’s an ergonomic chair unless it works for that person in that specific system.” –Rani Lueder, founder of Humanics ErgoSystems On the other side of the coin are some specific things you should avoid., a physiotherapist and the author of A History of Seating 3000 BC to 2000 AD: Function Versus Aesthetics and The Design and Use of Healthy Seating, told us to “avoid chairs that force your upper spine, that part between the shoulder blades, forward. So-called ‘executive’ chairs often do this.” Basically, you want something that’s supporting your back, not sculpting it. The same goes for the lower region. Another common mistake, Pynt warned, is “sitting with the low back maximally arched. Pull Quote With the certainty that it will last at least eight years, the true cost of a high-end task chair starts looking much more reasonable. The other disadvantage of cheaper chairs is that they have limited warranties.
Whereas the typical no-name chair might be covered for one or two years, most high-end chairs come with at least an eight-year warranty, meaning the manufacturer will happily replace broken casters or out-of-whack armrests. As Wirecutter founder Brian Lam (now the parent company of The Wirecutter and The Sweethome, as of October 2016), a handy equation for determining the true cost of a product is dividing its price by the number of hours you’re going to use it. With the certainty that it will last at least eight years, the true cost of a high-end task chair starts looking much more reasonable. The idea that one high-end task chair’s incredible ergonomic design will lead you to a long, limber life while a competitor’s will turn you into a snarling hunchback is not really accurate. It’s important to find a chair that makes sense for your body, certainly, and the high-end chairs you’ll find out there represent a diversity of materials, mechanics, and philosophies about sitting. But in broader terms, you can expect the majority of the most popular options to be comparable in fundamental ergonomic principles and overall performance. “Once you’re in that price range” of several hundred dollars, Hedge explained, “it becomes more a matter of personal choice than a matter of one chair being orders of magnitude better than another chair.”.
Pull Quote Your relationship with your task chair isn’t supposed to be a passionate affair; it’s a marriage. How do you figure out what fits you? The best way, everyone we talked to agreed, is simply to test a few chairs out. Your relationship with your task chair isn’t supposed to be a passionate affair; it’s a marriage. So rather than relying on your first impression, you have to look for long-term compatibility. “You can do a 30-second butt test on a bean bag chair and it feels great,” Hedge joked. But to really get a feel for a chair, a more thorough butt test is required.
Rani Lueder recommends testing out a new chair for at least 30 minutes, in the type of setting you’d be using it in at home or in the office. That last part is crucial.
Ideally, you’ll want to bring your laptop to Design Within Reach or some other dealer, zero in on a few contenders, pull ’em up to a desk, and knock out a few emails. Yes, doing this requires a bit more of an effort than sorting Amazon search results or driving down the street to Office Max and settling on the first seat that seems like a decent fit, but when you’re talking about a product that could well be in your life longer than your current pet or significant other, an afternoon of butt testing seems prudent. If you can’t get to a retailer, many online stores have 30-day, no-questions-asked return policies for high-end chairs, so typically you can try them out for a few weeks in your own home. The 2015 testing group, clockwise from top left: Steelcase Leap, Herman Miller Aeron, Herman Miller Mirra 2, IKEA Markus, Herman Miller Embody, Steelcase Gesture. As for our own testing, in 2012 reporter Kyle VanHemert tested the,,,,, and over the course of several months; to find his favorites, he spent at least a week using each chair. In 2015, reporter Mark Lukach tested the Herman Miller Aeron, Embody, and Mirra 2, as well as the Steelcase Leap and Gesture.
Those units then went to editor Michael Zhao in The Wirecutter’s Portland office, where Michael, along with Wirecutter creative director Grant Kindrick and designer Elizabeth Brown, also tested all the models. We like the for most people because it is highly adjustable if you need that but still solid if you don’t. It’s designed to accommodate a modern workflow, where people aren’t expected to sit still in front of a keyboard and monitor all day. Lean back to check your phone, and the chair leans with you—keeping your body supported all the while. If you need to make room for a tablet on your lap, the armrests rotate outward to accommodate that, and downward to support your lowered elbows. While everybody knows not to cross one’s legs or slouch while sitting, the Gesture won’t punish you for doing so; flexible and padded edges keep the cushioning comfortable regardless of your body positioning.
And if you do want to sit up straight all day, the Gesture is just as comfortable as the best task chairs currently available. At its current pricing, it’s definitely an investment. But the Gesture’s price is in line with what other companies charge for chairs of comparable comfort that lack the Gesture’s adjustability. We may seem to be overstating the significance of adjustability, but once you understand the principles of healthy and comfortable seating, you’ll see why adjustability is so important.
“The first rule for correct chair use is to sit the buttocks as far back in the seat as possible,” explained physiotherapist in an email interview. “That should place your low back against the lumbar support, and your upper spine against the backrest with neck in line with the spine.” The Gesture makes this position easy to find with a twist of a knob on the right side of the seat cushion, whereas the Aeron doesn’t have this adjustment at all. “Your feet should be supported on the floor or a footrest,” Pynt continued. To make this possible, you have to adjust the chair’s height until you find a comfortable position.
The Gesture has a switch located on the back half of the seat-depth knob that lets you adjust the seat height as easily as the depth. Most other task chairs, like the Aeron or Leap, place these different adjustments in different locations using a combination of levers, dials, and switches. The Gesture’s arms offer an unprecedented range of motion to support your elbows in almost any position. Pynt went on to say: “Shoulders should be relaxed with upper arm beside the body.
Elbows at 90 degrees or a more open angle, with wrists in neutral if typing.” This is where the Gesture really shines: Its ball-and-socket armrests can rotate freely to support your elbows in almost any position and keep your wrists comfortable. To adjust the armrests, you hold down a tab under the rest to unlock the arm, which you can then smoothly pivot in any direction. Let go of the tab to lock the arm in place. It’s more like posing an action figure than adjusting a chair. The armrest pads slide forward and backward and rotate independently of the arms. While the Steelcase Leap can adjust in all of these directions as well, its range is much more limited in comparison because it relies on telescoping armrests for height adjustment (think adjusting the height on a pair of crutches) and on sliding armrest pads that can move outward by only a couple of inches. Not even the much more expensive Herman Miller Embody can match the Gesture’s level of adjustability.
According to Pynt, arm support is important for your back’s health as well, because your arms are heavy, and a lack of support leads to slouching: “Any posture where you are leaning forward from the vertical without arm support will require the back muscles to work overtime to maintain an erect posture, leading to muscle stress and resultant pain.” So it’s a good thing that the Gesture’s armrests can go lower, higher, wider, and narrower than those of any other chair. The Gesture’s back panel (top) is designed to flex as it reclines, like the Herman Miller Embody’s (bottom).
Back support is just as important as arm support in preventing slouching, and the Gesture’s back panel was among the best we tested. Like the Leap that came before it, the Gesture is shaped to match the natural contour of your back. Most other chairs, such as the Aeron or Mirra 2, simply pivot, but the Gesture’s back panel is designed to flex as well, since your spine has a different shape when you’re reclining compared with when you’re sitting up straight. We can’t confirm without using an MRI, but we can say that our testers felt more supported by the Gesture than by the Aeron or Mirra 2 when sitting in a reclined position. The Embody is the only Herman Miller chair that offers such support, but it costs about $300 more. Reclining support is about more than lazing around.
Rani Lueder told us that reclining can actually be beneficial. “[When] leaning back,” she explained, “not only are you intermittently relieving the loads on your spine [but also] in the process, opening up your thigh-torso angle.” Shifting between these beneficial postures is good practice in and of itself: “When you move, you redistribute pressure [and] you help promote circulation,” she explained. In addition to supporting you while you recline, the Gesture lets you easily control how much you can recline, and how readily it leans back. Simply turn the front part of the knob behind the seat-depth knob to adjust resistance (clockwise for more resistance, counterclockwise for less) and click the switch on to adjust how far back you can lean. Again, you can use one hand to make all of the adjustments you need. Compare that with the corresponding controls on the Aeron, which consist of a tilt-limiter switch on the left and a tilt-resistance knob on the right.
The seat cushion rises a bit as you recline, keeping your arms at the same height as your keyboard. Another ergonomic feature of the Gesture’s reclining mechanism (which it shares with the Leap) is that it slides the seat pan forward and pushes your butt upward a touch as you recline, unlike the Aeron, which drops your rear down as you recline—a dynamic apparently implemented in part to accommodate the Silicon Valley folks who wanted to be able to put their keyboard on their lap and type as they leaned back in their seats. It isn’t a huge difference in practice, and you might not even be able to tell the butt-drop from the butt-lift if you aren’t looking for it. But whereas the former lets you fall away from your desk, the latter moves you toward it, even as you recline. If you usually keep your hands on your desk, we think the butt-lift design makes a bit more sense.
As mentioned above, shifting between well-supported postures is a good thing, and butt-lift chairs such as the Gesture made it easier for us to work from a slight recline without having to pull the laptop toward the edge of the desk. The padded and flexible edges of the Gesture and Leap (left and right) are more comfortable in a wider number of positions compared with the hard plastic edge of the Aeron (middle).
When it comes to actual sitting, the Gesture’s seat is initially cushy, which offers you short-term comfort, yet springy, which keeps you supported for long-term sitting sessions. That might seem like a “no duh” type of thing for a chair that costs so much, but lots of chairs take different approaches.
The Aeron’s woven-mesh seat, for example, was intended to be—and in many ways is—a step beyond the common fabric-and-foam model. But many people find it stiff and unforgiving, especially if you don’t always sit in the center of the seat. Whereas the Gesture’s full-seat cushioning and flexible front edge give you some wiggle room in where you can sit while still feeling supported, the Aeron’s hard border dictates that you must sit in the middle to get the best experience; sitting too far forward makes that border dig uncomfortably into your hamstrings. With the Gesture, you do lose a bit of the micro-scale responsiveness you get with, say, the state-of-the-art “pixelated” seat cushion—constructed like a box spring—of the Herman Miller Embody, but we found, on a day-to-day basis, that having a bit of padding was something we appreciated. The padding becomes all the more noticeable if you’re getting in and out of your seat a lot (which you should be, having been educated on the dangers of long, uninterrupted periods of sitting). The Embody is very comfortable, though, and if the Embody were also priced at less than $1,000, it would be a close call for our pick, but you typically can’t get it for less than $1,200.
When you’re spending this much on a chair, you want to be assured that it will last, and Steelcase has one of the best track records around when it comes to durability. Go to any office-furniture liquidator, and you’ll find dozens of old Steelcase task chairs in perfectly serviceable condition from decades prior. The Gesture, while more complex than older chair designs, has all the characteristics of a sturdy design: Nothing feels hollow or chintzy, and there’s no rattling and very little play in the moving parts. Adjustments happen smoothly and predictably with no jerkiness.
The overall package conveys a high degree of polish. Compare that with what you get in the Herman Miller Embody, which, while comfortable, feels like it’s made of chintzy plastic.
In fact, with our test unit of the Embody, the top section of its signature dynamic back array snapped in transit from one testing location to the next. This problem didn’t affect performance, but we expected more out of a chair in the $1,200 range. This PostureFit lumbar-support mechanism is a separately sold add-on for the Aeron, but it’s a necessary expense (about $50) if you want to achieve a level of support comparable to that of the Gesture. With the Gesture, you just choose your color and whether you need hardwood-compatible casters, and you’re all set. In contrast, the Herman Miller Aeron charges extra for additional lumbar support (which we absolutely recommend, having tested a version of the Aeron without it), adjustable armrests, and other options.
The Gesture’s understated good looks are part of its appeal. While less important than ergonomics and adjustability, looks matter as well. Other chairs, such as the Knoll Regeneration and all of Herman Miller’s offerings, have much more distinct designs that command your attention and can look out of place if you don’t have a separate office.
But the Gesture’s mid-century modern aesthetic and wider range of fabric options and colors let it blend in with almost any decor. Standard polyester colors are no additional cost, but you can also pay extra to get the Gesture in a number of patterns and materials ranging from leather to virgin wool (pictured on our review model). Mesh fabrics are also available if heat is a concern. Finally, a minor point in the Gesture’s favor is the lack of exposed joints that could pinch the appendages of a curious toddler or pet.
The Aeron, by comparison, has all manner of potentially pinchy exposed intersections. Who else likes our pick. John Brandon,, loves the Gesture’s emphasis on flexibility: “All of this movement is ideal for the work environment: you are not locked into one stiff position, and the chair encourages flexibility. The adjustment levers are easy to find on the right and intuitive.” David Pogue at (which is now the parent company of The Wirecutter and The Sweethome) likes that the extended seat-cushion padding increases the number of comfortable positions you can find in it: “You can hang a limb over any of the seat’s edges without worrying about getting gangrene. (Don’t try that with the famous Herman Miller Aeron chair. Its sharp, rigid seat edges could lop your leg right off.)” Pogue also prefers the Gesture over the Embody because it tends to be around $300 cheaper.
Flaws but not dealbreakers. If you run hot, the Gesture’s foam seat cushion may get uncomfortable over long periods of time. Wired’s Christopher Null complains of this in but adds that this effect could be a result of the fabric Steelcase selected for his review unit.
We speculate that Null may have received a model upholstered in wool, judging from the Wired picture and the fact that our original testing unit was also covered in wool. The wool version we tested got a bit hot when the air conditioning was off, but we had no heat issues when using a different unit upholstered in the company’s default Connect polyester fabric. One thing we dislike: The Gesture doesn’t have adjustable lumbar support like its predecessor, the Leap, does.
However, all three of our testers were able to find a comfortable position without this adjustment, and besides the Leap, none of the other chairs we tested this time around had this feature either. We loved the adjustability of the armrests, but unfortunately the locking mechanism applies only to the vertical adjustment and doesn’t lock the horizontal rotational adjustment. The adjustments are typically pretty sticky and not prone to moving by accident, but Wirecutter staff writer Kimber Streams found that they have a tendency to slip if you lean on one instead of both to get out of the chair. Finally, while the Gesture is a great chair, it is not the ergonomic revolution its marketing materials suggest. We have no doubt that Steelcase did in fact undertake a across six continents, surveying 2,000 people to help design the chair. But fancy armrests and a couple of extra degrees of reclining aside, the Gesture feels similar to any other ergonomic task chair in the $1,000 range.
In fact, were it not for the redesigned armrests and improved control scheme, the Gesture would pretty much be the old Steelcase Leap by a different name. If you know that you won’t benefit from the adjustability of the Gesture, or if the Gesture is unavailable for whatever reason, keep in mind that we still love our former pick, the.
It’s comparable to the Gesture in comfort, but it falls short in adjustability—although it does add adjustable lumbar support, which the Gesture lacks. The Leap has traditional telescoping armrests instead of the Live 360 pivoting ones on its newer sibling, but it offers the same reclining mechanism and customizability of the Gesture. Whereas the Gesture’s ball-and-socket armrests (front) are free to rotate in any direction, the Leap’s telescoping adjustment mechanism can go only up and down, although the elbow rests themselves can slide horizontally a few inches. Overall, the two chair models are quite similar. David Pogue writes in his: “You can adjust the Leap in most of the same ways as the Gesture, but it costs less.” That’s true, but you get about 20 percent more range of motion with the Gesture in any direction compared with the Leap, and it costs only a bit more.
Considering how important proper arm support is to a comfortable posture and a healthy back, we think you can easily justify spending the extra amount for fancy armrests. The Gesture is also a bit more compact and better looking than the Leap.
However, if you’re on an especially tight budget, you can find the Leap used at steep discounts since it’s been around for more than a decade. We’ve seen good-condition Leaps for as low as $250 locally and $300 online. For hot backs. Is every bit as comfortable as the Steelcase Gesture and Leap—if you maintain good posture.
Its breathable mesh design also makes it a great choice for people who sweat a lot or who don’t like to run the AC in the summer. But it doesn’t have the adjustability of the Gesture or the customizability of either of the Steelcase models.
If you use an Aeron and you like it, you have no reason to upgrade. Similarly, if you have your heart set on an Aeron, you won’t be disappointed if you buy it. But the Gesture offers more adjustability for the same price and feels more comfortable if you’re not practicing perfect posture. The Aeron’s hard seat edge is murder on the quads if you’re not at the ideal seat height for more than a couple of minutes.
Also, while the Aeron’s mesh gives it its signature look, the design also means that you have to dust the area directly beneath the seat, because it gets gross pretty quickly. The area directly beneath the Aeron’s mesh seat cushion loves to accumulate dust. However, if you run hot or have back-perspiration issues, we like the Aeron better than other mesh-back options because it offers the best combination of value and comfort. Herman Miller’s Embody is more comfortable and supportive in a wider variety of positions, but that model sells for more than $1,200 and lacks the trim level you’d expect from a chair in that price range.
On the (slightly) lower end, the company’s Mirra model costs a bit less than the Aeron, but it just doesn’t feel as supportive over extended sitting sessions; in our tests, taller users reported back pain after just a few hours. Although you can get an Aeron for as low as $730 (less if you forgo armrests), adding adjustable armrests, PostureFit lumbar support, and a tilt limiter—all of which are standard on Steelcase chairs—pushes it over $900. The benefit of the Aeron’s ubiquity is that you can regularly find used ones from office-furniture liquidators for less than $400. If you go this route, make sure to give the chair a thorough once-over in the store to check for defects, because it won’t have coverage under Herman Miller’s 12-year warranty. Budget option. What can $200 or so get you?
Usually not much other than a whole lot of poorly executed knockoff designs and faux-luxury chairs that will last through only a few years of hard use. But the sets itself apart from the chaff with its 10-year warranty, albeit a limited one. We spent a week and change sitting in the Markus, one of the few task chairs that anyone has designated as a standout at the $200 pricing tier.
The Markus came to our attention through a that asked readers to offer their own task-chair recommendations. Of the dozens of models the commenters put forward, the IKEA chair was one of the five most commonly mentioned, and of the five it was far and away the cheapest (other picks included the Herman Miller Aeron and Embody, and the Steelcase Leap). In subsequent voting, the IKEA chair took second place. The IKEA Markus is as good a chair as you can get for $200. What is it like? Right when you start pulling things out of the box, you’ll notice the reassuring heft of the parts (this being IKEA, assembly is up to you). The materials seem to be of good quality; you get no sense of that cheap faux-luxuriousness you find with many of the chairs at this price at Office Max or wherever else.
It’s hard to say how well the Markus will hold up over years of use, but at least you’ll have IKEA’s limited 10-year warranty, a rarity among chairs of this price. That warranty expressly does not cover wear and tear, so it isn’t quite as generous as the 12-year warranties that come with the more expensive chairs—if the foam seat on your Leap starts wearing through in six years, Steelcase will likely send you a replacement, whereas in the same situation with the Markus, IKEA will not—but the coverage does offer a bit of insurance if things break at some point. Another concern: After having spent the previous few months sitting in the best task chairs money can buy, we could immediately detect differences in comfort. The Markus’s leather-covered seat pad was the least forgiving among the chairs we tested, its hard foam offering considerably less cushion than the Gesture’s softer foam pad or the Embody’s crazy pixel-matrix one.
Testers noticed the hardness less and less as the days went on, but reported more frequent urges to wiggle around to relieve pressure while sitting in the IKEA chair compared with higher-end chairs. Knowing how important that surface-level butt comfort is to people, we think this is something to consider. The Markus’s back panel (right) is a simple mesh affair with nothing but a narrow bar to provide lumbar support. It’s functional but not impressive. The biggest difference between the Markus and the higher-end chairs, unsurprisingly, is in its adjustability. This model lets you adjust the seat height, and it does offer the ability to lock the level of recline, but it gives you no lumbar adjustment, no way to move the included leather headrest, and perhaps most frustratingly, no way to adjust the depth of the seat pan.
As a result, none of our testers could dial in a perfect fit, but everyone found something adequate. Measured front to back, the seat itself is relatively short, presumably to err on the side of caution and ensure that shorter owners will be able to comfortably get their butts in the back of the seat in lieu of that adjustability. However, taller testers felt as if they were hanging off the front of the chair. Anyone over 6 feet tall is bound to encounter problems. Note that while the seat may be smaller than most, the Markus is surprisingly tall. Granted, it offers a headrest whereas most of the other tested models don’t by default, but if you’re thinking about workspace aesthetics, the high-backed Markus was certainly the biggest presence in the room among the models we tested. Pull Quote If you’re currently sitting in a piece of junk that offers no back support and routinely leaves you with a sore bottom, the Markus would be $200 wisely spent.
In short, it’s easy to see why the Markus costs $200 and why the higher-end chairs cost several times that. For anyone who can afford the Gesture, we still think that Steelcase model is a worthwhile investment. But whereas we’d hesitate to encourage someone to drop $600 or so on, say, the Herman Miller Mirra, which might not offer a sitting experience quite worth that price tag, the IKEA Markus, which shares some of the Mirra’s limitations, offers a sound seat for a third of the price.
Basically, if you’re currently sitting in a piece of junk that offers no back support and routinely leaves you with a sore bottom, the Markus would be $200 wisely spent. The competition. You can find scores of good chairs out there. We chose six of the most popular to test in 2012 and three new ones in 2015. Below, we talk a bit about the models we tested but didn’t pick. Many others might be worth your attention, however, and we also mention some of those below. The other chair in contention for our top pick was the.
Like the Steelcase Gesture, it’s very comfortable and supportive in a variety of positions. But we didn’t think its build quality lived up to its $1,200-plus street price. The armrests adjust vertically and horizontally across a range comparable to that of the Leap’s armrests (though they don’t match the Gesture’s armrests in range); they have a bit of play in them, however, and they don’t adjust smoothly. Also, the individual plastic links that form this chair’s “pixelated” back panel felt chintzy to the touch—and one of them broke in transit from San Francisco to Portland, Oregon. Thankfully, the broken piece was at the top, where it didn’t affect support or performance, but it was still annoying. The Embody’s topmost plastic linkage in the back panel broke in transit.
The rest didn’t feel as strong as the components used on the Herman Miller Aeron or on the Steelcase chairs. The Embody was not quite as immediately comfy as the Gesture, but after a few hours, the difference between the Gesture’s foam cushion and the Embody’s multipart mesh seat was noticeable. Whereas the Gesture’s foam seat pads your bottom in a fairly static way and responds only to broader shifts in your movement, the Embody truly accommodates every little shift and squirm of your tush, resulting in slightly more consistent comfort after long periods of sitting. The underside of the Herman Miller Embody looks more like the inside of a mattress than an office chair. It adapts to your every move, which feels great over extended sitting sessions. But on the whole, the Embody, like the Aeron before it, wears its complexity on its sleeve. The back is dominated by a thick plastic spine that holds the pixelated backrest in place, lending the whole thing a very bridge-of-the-starship vibe.
It’s up to you to judge whether you like the look, but we imagine some people won’t. Ultimately, the main reason we didn’t go with the Embody is the price: The base model, right now, is over $1,200—at least a few hundred dollars more than the Gesture. Every tester who sat in both the Embody and the Gesture had a hard time choosing which one was more comfortable, but considering the price difference, all of our testers said they would spend their money on the Gesture. If the Embody represents one branch of the Aeron family tree—namely, a successor that’s more complex and more state-of-the-art—the is the opposite, a chair that takes the lessons of the Aeron in a simpler, more affordable direction. The most notable feature is the frameless polymer backrest, which is essentially a big slab of plastic, pierced with a bunch of tiny holes, that’s supposed to allow for good support while requiring minimal adjustments. At about $650 at the time of our review, the Mirra was the cheapest non-IKEA chair we tested, but it was also our least favorite. Of course, it had the disadvantage of being evaluated directly against four of the most-liked high-end chairs on the market, but we had no way to get around the comfort gap here: Both the seat and the backrest felt punishingly firm from the first sit, and although this chair sort of settled into an acceptably neutral supportiveness, it was never a joy to sit in.
In 2015, we tested the new, which is to the original Mirra what the Gesture is to the Leap. It’s a similar design, but one that’s meant to support your body as you move. It also comes in a mesh-covered configuration, which makes it more like the Aeron than ever. The Mirra 2 is a good chair, and it comes better-equipped than the Aeron at a similar price. But at about $900, it’s gone from being a budget-friendly version of the Aeron to being almost a direct competitor with not only the Aeron but also the Gesture and Leap.
Next to the Mirra 2, we think the Gesture and the Leap have more to offer in this price range, for the same reasons we prefer them over the Aeron. On the, the armrests are suspended from the back of the chair, opening up three full sides of the seat pan for you to move around in. We’re not sure how often a person needs to sit sideways in a task chair—something that Knoll actively puts forward as a viable use scenario on the chair’s Web page—though the latitude could be beneficial in certain office settings. But the other part of that promise of movement is the Generation’s extremely elastic-feeling backrest, a thin piece of plastic that your back really has its way with, as opposed to the other way around. The bottom of the backrest juts forward dramatically, filling up your lumbar curve—though the plastic is thin enough that it doesn’t feel as if it’s pushing your back farther than it wants to go. The top of the backrest is just as strange, as it’s even flimsier than the lower part, allowing you to get a truly epic bear-stretching-out-after-hibernation stretch when you recline. It’s definitely a nice feeling—and overall it’s a bit refreshing compared with the other, comparatively restricting chairs we were testing—but we’re not sure how much sense the design makes for a task chair in the long run.
Again, we don’t know how our spines look during all this, but movement isn’t beneficial for its own sake; it’s good only if you’re moving between good postures. Ultimately we’d prefer something that was a bit more supportive. The Generation, which starts at about $815 currently, is a recline-and-butt-lift chair like the Leap, and the seat itself has a few features to promote movement and active sitting, too. Instead of having just a flexible front edge on the seat, like the Gesture, it offers a bit of flex on all three open sides. And thanks to four flexors underneath the seat, you get a broader range of motion in the seat pan when you’re reclining, which creates a bit of lateral motion in addition to the up and down in the other chairs. All in all, the Generation is a fun chair to sit in, but we can imagine some people yearning for a more conventional, more supportive backrest in the long run. That leaves us with the.
While other task chairs engaged in an arms race to rack up as many adjustable parts as possible, the Freedom took a different route, trying to give users a responsive, supportive experience with fewer adjustments. Our testers didn’t find it all that effective. The backrest has a mechanism that uses your weight as a counterbalance for the recline, which means, in theory, that every person gets the perfect amount of recline tension. That feature worked well enough, but the backrest itself also pivots forward and backward to adjust to your spine, and the combination of the two separate movement mechanisms made for an awkward experience. The idea of a self-regulating recline is nice, but we think people will like having some of the fine-grained controls that our other picks offer. The Freedom configuration we tested also had the optional headrest, which felt nice for lounging back and reading but generally failed to add much to our normal sitting-at-the-desk workday. Nice write up, and I think you came to a reasonable conclusion.
After years of using a Knoll Life chair, which is solid but seems to have been surpassed at this point, I moved over to a Haworth Zody in 2008. It doesn’t have the brand recognition of a Knoll or Herman Miller, but it’s served me well. The price is reasonable, especially compared to something like the Embody, and it’s stayed creak-free, which is a major plus. As for all the people saying good task chairs are too expensive (or at least thinking that as they read the article), I’d contend it’s a great use of money. Think of it like buying a good helmet if you are going to be riding a bike.
Plus, given how long these chairs last, you’re looking at a pretty reasonable investment. I just want to point out that I purchased one of the Steelcase Leap chairs and find it highly overrated. The lumbar “support” (if you can call it that) is about the cheapest piece of garbage I’ve ever encountered in an expensive chair. The padding is thin and hard, and the chair doesn’t at all conform to your body nor does it support you on either side of your upper body, or your torso. You tend to slide around from side to side.
The lumbar support is about the worst part of this chair. The padding is horribly thin, and again the lumbar support is very stiff and hard plastic with a steep angle (. Cody, thanks for your opinion on this chair, which is certainly worth something since you tested it. What other chairs did you compare this to? Because we state above that testing chairs in real life is important before buying, and also, we tested the leaf versus others and found it better overall, so, it’s quite possible you’d like other chairs we tested against even less. The total research and test time in this article was between 30-40 hours, and we take our results seriously, so I’m sorry to hear the chair didn’t work out for you.
Did you return it? Hi again, I have yet to return it as I wanted a direct comparison for a few days with a Herman Miller Aeron which I am now sitting in.
The model with the fully adjustable (non-leather) arm rests and the PostureFit back insert versus the lumbar pad. Overall this is a much better chair than the leap.
The mesh material conforms much more than a solid plastic back and thin foam padding (as seen on the Leap chair) and the PostureFit back is excellent. Much more supportive than the hard plastic insert in the Leap. I urge you to pull out the lumbar support in the Leap to see what I mean.
Very cheap, and not much thought put into it. The areas that I will say that I like the leap better are in the looks department, and the arm rests which I find to be much more comfortable and desirable than the Aeron’s.
I also like the way the Leap leans. However, the forward sit position -very nice feature- and the overall comfort level of the Aeron is “Leaps and Bounds” more comfortable than the Steelcase.
The back on the Leap does *anything* but conform to your back. Even on the lowest resistance setting on the lower back of the Leap it still feels like something is forcing your spine to conform. Which IMO, your lumbar is your only ‘free floating’ area of your spine and should be supported, not forced into position. The other problem with the Leap is the seat pad. At the rear of the seat bad and with the open space between your pelvis/lower back and the backrest, it forces your hips to tilt at an unergonomic ratio. After a while, you might even find your butt to ‘tingle’ a little.
It’s poorly designed and shouldn’t tilt you back like this. The Aeron’s seat has a much better slope at the front, and back of the seat pan. So again the Leap just is not deserving of a #1 spot. I used a Leap for about 4-5 years in an office environment, and also have a Coach edition Leap at home. I like it much better than the Aeron, which I feel has an inferior build quality. I tend to sit high to match my elbows to the desk height.
I also like to slope down the front edge of the seat and not sit against the back (unless I’m relaxin’). I tend to get up and pace a lot so I tend to bounce in and out of the seat and the hardware shows no sign of wear and tear from the years of getting up and down. The biggest problem I have is that the rubber arm rests on the Coach Leap disintegrated, and replacements are not to be found since it is a ‘special edition’ style. I had to make my own arm pads from foam and felt fabric.
I actually use a Leap at work, and I have an IKEA Markus at home (the blue fabric, non-leather, $170 version.) I like the Markus better. I’m 6″ and 200 pounds, and my back hurts pretty regularly. The Leap doesn’t help. I’m not a huge fan, personally. It’s better than the other terrible old chairs that we have, but I don’t think it’s great. It’s entirely possible I don’t have it adjusted properly, but I don’t think that’s the problem.
The Markus, on the other hand, is pretty great. The mesh is comfortable and it’s nice to have a headrest you can use.
Plus the chair makes me feel like a supervillian when I spin around. It’s a cool-looking, comfortable chair. If you’re looking for a chair that doesn’t cost more than your phone, go to IKEA and sit in one.
I didn’t think I needed a new chair until I sat in it, then decided to buy it within 10 minutes. [Steelcase Leap V2 – Lacks Upper Back Support] I thought I did my homework, research, et. After reading many an article like this I finally threw-down and bought a Steelcase Leap (V2). It’s not worth the money (or rather, I wish I bought a different chair). For me the chair doesn’t offer enough upper-back-support (I wanted a chair that offers a setting that almost makes you lean forward -I thought the Leap was it, but no). Even with the Leap’s settings as upright, or tilted forward as possible, the Leap V2 seems to compromise one’s upright posture (in my humble opinion). I think a lot of people really mean comfort when they say ergonomics.
What gives you back pain is lack of movement and exercise, not “uncomfortable” sitting. So, a task chair should make it easy for you to change positions and move around, not be as comfy as your couch. My experience with the Aeron, e.g.
(haven’t tried the Leap yet): it’s pretty comfy, and it sucks you into it like a La-Z-boy. It also shreds your pants. This article sums up what I understand now a good chair needs:, I wish I knew where to get that chair, seems like the next best thing to being able to switch between sitting, standing and walking at work. I’m 5’4″ with upper back/neck problems, and love the Stressless recliners.
They’re very expensive (my model is the cheapest; I think it’s the Diplomat and is $1500) but we’ve had it for about ten years and it’s the favorite of everyone in my family (tallest is 5’7″) for comfort and support, looks great and is still in great shape with no signs of wear. The headrest only has one option for adjustment but it’s just right for me. I recently shopped for a cheaper second chair and decided to save up for another Stressless. I’ve had a Leap for many years in a home office setting. I can honestly say, I hate this chair.
I’m not a fan of the seat edging forward when you lean back while keeping itself parallel to the floor. All I feel is heavy downward pressure (I’m an average sized man) on my backside all day and I constantly lean forward, shift left and right, or put my feet up to alleviate that pressure. I’d prefer to have a chair with a tilt-back mechanism. Paid $800 for this back in 2000. Going to finally break down and seriously start looking again. On this site’s recommendation, I bought the Steelcase big mistake. It squeaks after just 4 months.
I’m overweight, but not horribly so. I know crossfit. But this thing is terrible. I’ve had much cheaper chairs last years without this issue. If this had been a cheaper chair, then fine.
But it wasn’t. I don’t even spend all my days in my chair. Most of the time I’m up and about. I’ve had good success buying items from TheWireCutter’s recs, but this was not a good choice. Rbx The Rbx Files Zip Download on this page. Extensive testing, I now know, means having it around for months and seeing how. If anyone is as disheartened by these prices as I am, I really recommend looking for any used office furniture sellers in your area (I just googled “used office furniture Chicago” and found some great options).
I guess the upside of a bad economy is lots of office chairs for sale. One store lists their inventory online, and is selling one model of the Steelcase Leap for $199. Sure, that one has no arms and is a weird periwinkle color (the other options have arms and cooler colors and start at $299 instead), but still! A $900 chair for $200! That is insane!
You don’t get the warranty which is a bummer, but you can go try the chair yourself, and if it’s worn out that should be pretty apparent. That also means you can try out a few models and see which is most comfortable for you, but I’d recommend doing some research before hand, since the one I was looking at has tons of chairs. And again, I don’t want to harp on the $200 thing because I’m guessing that’s an extreme example (they have 70 of those chairs, I am assuming they want to get rid of them), but for the price of the economy option offered in this article you could buy their first place choice. I have bought a used SteelCase chair which appears to be the Leap V2.
However, the back of the seat has no padding on it. It is just plastic. Is this a variation on the Leap model, or is this a chair that is missing the padding on the backside? I’m confused about this, because in doing a Google image search, I’ve found a few chairs like this, with no back seat padding. But I don’t see this option anywhere on the SteelCase website or with other retailers. Can anyone tell me.... What do I have here?
Phil in Boston •. Thank you for this thorough review. After reading, I’m still undecided between the Leap and the Embody.
From the review, it seems like the Leap is basically equal to the Embody when it comes to function, except that the Embody is slightly more comfortable over long periods of sitting. I only sit at my desk for around 4 hours a day, on average, but my main task requires me to be stationary for about 3 hours. I’m not able to get up even for a few seconds to stretch or walk around.
I do my best to keep my back straight, but without proper back support, it’s really hard not to slouch after a while. Back support and correct posture are my two biggest concerns. Between these two chairs, is one better at encouraging/forcing good posture over a long sitting? Looking at historical prices on Amazon, the Leap never goes on sale, but the Embody goes on sale twice a year, and is $1,019 when it is on sale, compared to $889 for the Leap. When the price difference is $130, does the Leap still win the comparison, or does the Embody seem like a better fit in my situation? I’m going to go to a showroom to demo both of these chairs, but I won’t be able to draw any meaningful conclusions in just a few minutes, so any insight will be greatly appreciated.
I only sat in each chair for a few minutes, but the Leap was the best fit for me by far. I also tried the Aeron and Embody, but neither of these made me feel as comfortable as the Leap did, which made me feel supported everywhere as soon as I plopped down. I found out that I preferred a lot of lumber support, which the Leap has in spades.
The fact that the back is separated from the seat pan allowed me to sit farther back, so that the back support cradled my lumber region. The Herman Millers were very lacking in this regard, and I just couldn’t find a comfortable position in them. The Leap has a lower back firmness adjustment, which the Gesture does not. The Gesture’s articulating arms are indeed very cool; however, I don’t see myself needing all that adjustability, since I just work with a keyboard and mouse. If you’re switching devices all day, and like to switch sitting positions, then the Gesture might be a better fit for you.
It might also have an upgraded version of LiveBack, because Steelcase lists the feature as “3D LiveBack”, but I couldn’t really tell a difference between it and the Leap during a casual sitting. To be honest it is quite difficult to find a chair tailored to alternate seating styles.
I recommend the Nightingale CXO which has a huge and thick cushion. The local retailer told me it had the best cushion of any office chair. I tried it, it also has good back support. The chair itself is VERY heavy.
It is pricey, about $850. I have a Haworth Zody which I purchased refurbished. It is also good but the back sways too far back on lock mode and the cushion is not outstanding.
But it is one of the most acclaimed task chairs on the market. If you want something less expensive but still good I have found the Tempur-pedic TP9000 to be sufficient. It is sold exclusively at Staples so you can try it out easily. It retails for $300 but look for sales or coupons you can get $50 or $100 off on occasion. No, but I do like to alternate the position of my legs from straight (knees directly in front) to slightly, or widely spread apart. This is partly to deal with my height-related issues about which I’ll make a separate comment.
But lets just say that being able to adjust the spread of your legs a bit is probably a good thing “for everyone.” The Herman Miller Aeron has a very slightly dished seat, which makes this difficult / impossibly uncomfortable. The slightest amount of upward curve towards the outer right and left side of the seat. I suppose it might be stylistic. It is not like it is going to keep me from sliding off the seat to the right or left, even if there were the slightest risk that I might do that! Yes – my legs do (naturally) curve upwards – my thighs are rounded, not square.
If we’re really going for a bucket seat, then go all the way with a full hip-hugger. If not, keep it flat to maximize options.
I’m surprised. This entry was pretty long for a recommendation that did not post the Herman Miller Aeron Chair, or a Herman Miller product in general: The Aeron chair comes with a lifetime guarantee and I think its features and benefits are worth the investment–I have back problems, and had to bring the Aeron chair from my house to the office, because I can’t sit in cheap chairs. “The base model, right now, comes in at $1200–nearly $300 more than the Leap. If you have the money, it’s definitely an amazing chair, but I think ultimately its appeal will be slightly less universal than the Leap’s.” It sounds like you did not go with a Herman Miller product because of what, price?
The Aeron chair is whatever price posted on the site, and normally when you find a dealer–they’ll include a discount, and it is listed cheaper than the Steelcase Leap anyway. I have to say that I totally disagree on your statement about appeal, if anything–owning any product from Herman Miller demonstrates your status, success, and knowledge of the industry–most of the chairs and office environments you see in the movies and TV shows depicted in the modern era are from Herman Miller. I’m not employed by Herman Miller, but am familiar with many of their products, having tried the Herman Miller Mirra, Embody, and others from Knoll, Geiger, etc.
I always go back to the Aeron chair myself and am sharing my knowledge and experience because sitting is one of the worst things one does to their body, and great care should go into choosing the sitting accommodations one has in their main office, sitting at the computer, reading these reviews. You can’t put a price on the health of your body. I have used this website to great lengths and have based purchases on more than one occasion in part because of the wirecutter’s suggestions, but I have to say–this entry makes me disappointed. You are entitled to your opinion, as am I–but you reach a greater mass of readers than I do, so thanks if you read this and take it into consideration. Yes, even if you have to travel some distance to check out chairs, it is definitely worth it. I thought from sitting in the Mirra 2 in showrooms that it was going to be the right chair for me. Unfortunately, although my back never felt better, it put pressure somewhere on the upper thigh underneath that aggravated my sciatic nerve once I took it home for a week’s trial actually using it to work.
I then test-drove an Embody. I wound up getting the Embody, although it’s still not perfect. I also have a Leap chair.
They are both fantastic chairs and you can’t go wrong with either one. I would say the Leap will fit more people though, as the Embody’s lumbar is not adjustable and it either hits you in the right place or it doesn’t. I love how the rest of the back adjusts, however, giving full back support. Hi, everyone.
I am an official court reporter in Orange County, California. I don’t think anyone sits in a chair the way a reporter does without moving for several hours. I have horrible Sciatica that has been almost debilitating. I am actually going to get shots in my lower back. I also have Lordosis, which means my back is arched more so at the lower part of my back. I just bought the Aeron fully adjustable lumbar.
Within two days my back pain is way better. The only problem is that it doesn’t tilt forward. I went to a Steelcase store yesterday and they are going to send me a Gesture and Amia to try for a couple of days. I really like the lower lumbar support that the Aeron gives, but I need to make sure this is the absolute chair for me.
I plan on buying two. Install Deb Package On Arch Linux Logo. Yesterday I was in my office working for two hours with a different chair and I am in so much pain right now that I have to take pain pills.
Does anyone have any suggestions for someone in my position? We have someone that does ergonomics that works in facilities, but his knowledge doesn’t really pertain to a court reporter.
We are just a different animal. SB6141 now working flawlessly with AirPort Extreme Gen 6.
Background,: renting from TWC forever. Recently in my area, the download and up speed have been fluctuating dramatically: 3 -100 down and 1-10 up. This was causing mucho problems: Voip and SIP was awful. Browsing was on and off and sure looked like the Arris 680 was choking both wired and WiFi. Bought a 6141 and talked to TWC many times plus and hour or two with Arris. It just would allow the AirPort to connect to internet. Just about to return it but consulted with my son who pointed out the obvious; no router between the modem and 24 port un managed switch.
Neither TWC nor Arris customer service even asked. Dusted off an old E3000, turned off WiFi. So I hope all the posts about the 6141 “doesn’t work with AirPort” maybe missing what I was. Be sure you have a router behind the modem to assign address to your devices. The biggest bonus is: up and down speeds have all stabilized (20% variation vs 70-90% with the TWC supplied router/modem. Voip and SIP are best ever. Didn’t even have to reboot the AirPort.
VERY VERY HAPPY!!! You hit the nail on the head: the Leap is not good for working intently at a computer. I bought one three weeks ago and am now switching it out for an Amia. I did extensive research (in which this article played a part) and tried the Leap three times in two different stores before I bought it. But you just can’t tell what a chair will be like until you work in it for a day or two. If you look at all the promotional material and videos for the Leap chair, they don’t actually show anyone working upright at a desk. They’re always leaning back in some way.
As you point out, if you try to sit upright in the Leap, the back of the chair does not support you at all — causing lumbar pain. If you try to take advantage of the highly-praised back of the chair by leaning back in it, you are too far away from your keyboard and mouse to do any real work — and you are stretching your neck forward and down. I’d advise anyone thinking about buying the Leap to read the 1-star reviews on Amazon and DO NOT buy the chair without a 30-day free return policy. I bought mine from an authorized Steelcase dealer but, unfortunately for me, the dealers do not have to offer the same hassle-free return policy as the online Steelcase store.
As a result, I’m subject to a whopping 25% restocking fee to return my chair. After some negotiation, I’ve managed to convince them to switch it out for the cheaper Amia which means that, in the end, I’ll have paid Leap prices for an Amia. Interestingly, if you look at the Amia chair, it’s got a back that is much more upright than the Leap. I talked to two different customer service reps at Steelcase and one at the Human Solution and all three of these individuals said they prefer the Amia over the Leap for all-day desk work. I think the Leap might be a fantastic chair for people who do a variety of desk-related work: phones, computer, shuffling papers, talking to colleagues.
But if you work your keyboard and mouse for eight hours straight, this is not the chair for you. I just wanted to drop by and say thank you for your comments. I’m a Wirecutter writer, but when I’m in the market for a product in which I have no expertise, I come here for advice (mostly because I know how much due diligence I put into my own pieces and I know how much our articles are scrutinized).
The thing to remember is that our guides are written “for most people,” and some of us actually are beautiful and unique snowflakes. What you’re describing here is exactly what I needed in an office chair, so I pulled the trigger on the Amia instead of the Leap or Gesture. Turns out, this is exactly the chair that my back and shoulders have been needing. So thank you! I honestly don’t know which of us is doing the overhaul of this guide, but I’m going to pass along my experience with this chair as a full-time keyboard warrior. That certainly doesn’t apply to most people looking for an office chair, but it’s worth a mention, for sure.
I’m glad it helped. Until I started working from home (without distracting colleagues, watercooler chat, etc.), I never would have suspected just how important a desk chair is and how much pain can be caused by selecting the wrong one. I tried the Gesture at a couple of stores as well and wasn’t that impressed by it — seemed to have less padding in the seat than the Leap or Amia and not worth the stratospheric price point.
Those armrests are damned cool though. Incidentally, I submitted a resume for the Researcher position — perhaps we’ll be working together at some distant point. The amount of people that have asked for an update about the update to this particular office chair guide is interesting.
I would also like to know when the update is going to be online. Why tell people to “Wait!” and then not give them a realistic timeframe about how long to wait? It seems an odd course of action.
Maybe in the future The Wirecutter might refrain from telling its audience to “Wait!” until the planned update has a fairly solid release date. Telling people to wait for several months does nothing to help them as they search for a chair.
People usually start searching for chairs (or anything for that matter) when a need arises. The Wirecutter almost always produces great content, and this office chair review guide is no exception. It just seems like it would be better to not move something to “Wait!” status without a solid timeline in place because that communicates to the audience that the current information is no longer valid. I’m not trying to be a troll, but rather just offering my unsolicited two cents worth of advice. Keep making great content! I’m also looking forward to an update of this guide!
But I was wondering if you will include any gaming chairs, cause there’s a lot of them. There are several price points, with most of them being over $200 but the more affordable ones seems to do the trick as well. I’m currently eying the Markus chair from IKEA, mostly because of convenience since I’m a Swede and those warehouses are everywhere! But the amount of affordable gaming chairs is making it quite difficult for me, not to mention the great reviews.
Keep doing what you’re doing! Best consumer advice on the internet! Certainly Aeron is the best. Not only did I already know how amazing this chair was since I had sat in one for 3 years at a call center, but I also knew that I had just found the holy grail of thrift store finds. When I saw it, I was approximately 10 yards away from this chair. And also I read great reviews about it on. It shimmered like a glorious beacon of wealth, comfort and power on the other side of the warehouse sized room.
10 yards felt more like 100 yards as my eyes widened and I began a slow run towards the furniture nook. My husband, asked me a question about a wicker basket on a shelf I would later find out. Although the speed at which I started to attain would break limits my body had previously experienced, time simultaneously began to slow down. Thoughts of dread started racing through my head.
“Was this chair already taken?”. “Was this a chair meant for the thrift store manager’s office, placed on the floor as a joke?”.
These questions were not relevant to my immediate needs. My objective was to claim the chair. I weaved around a cart of old stereo equipment. Dodged a small child holding a plastic lawn mower, and lept over a sectional couch to plant my butt on this glorious chair. I sighed a huge sigh of relief as nobody had grabbed it during my trek across the room.
I scooted myself to the check out line, purchased the chair for $35 dollars and wheeled it out to the car where I called my husband to explain why I had totally lost my mind. Comfortable, Durable.
Would buy again. You said: “Another point in [the Leap’s]] favor is [its] adjustable lumbar support, but the Gesture’s adaptive back negates any need for this” I have a question regarding this statement. I wonder if you are aware that it is possible to get the Gesture with lumbar support just like the Leap if you order from a dealer. It is not available on Steelcase’s online shop.
However i wonder if it is actually a good idea to get the Gesture with the optional lumbar support because like you said the Gesture was apparently designed with this “Live Back Technology” which is supposed to give you a dynamic lumbar support. The optional lumbar support is nothing but a hard plastic bar that you can slide on the back. I tried two models at the showroom shortly, one with and one without the lumbar support and I couldn’t make up my mind as to which is better. The problem I identified on the model with the lumbar support is that at the highest position the lumbar support was bothersome for me but not when I slid it down. I guess with more time it is possible to find the perfect height at which to adjust it, but I wonder if the hard plastic bar of the lumbar support is not actually abruptly interrupting the smooth flow of the support given by the curves of the back of the chair.
Any thoughts, since you have tested both the Gesture and the Leap? Operator chairs are good, you know the big supportive chairs if you plan to be in a chair 24 hrs. I actually sit on a standard sized nothing special chair, wood frame with foam cushioning, then a memory foam pillow below and behind my back. Hilariously supportive and comfortable. I sleep in the chair average 2 hours a day, and sit in it about 14 hours a day, every day.
So its all about quality of cushioning. Stuff being at the right angle and not this trendy looking crap.
The Markus looks like a great chair with a firm memory foam pillow to sit on. The gesture and aeron are both trendy looking overpriced crap. Steelcase’s retail and sales strategy makes it hard to follow through on this particular review by thewirecutter. Here in Southern California, we called three furniture dealers. One said they carry Steelcase, but don’t have a model. The other two never replied. Then we called a few other dealers.
Of the three, two indicated they could help. One said they have no showroom but could accommodate us looking at a model when they have some days/times available. They’re supposed to get back to us. The second one said they have the Gesture there as a model in their office, and they’d have to determine who the sales rep is for our area and would email us back. Neither has actually followed up. I called the 800 number from the store link above. None of the options in the menu seemed relevant.
I tried the online chat just now, and after entering my question (summarized as “where can I look at your product in person?”), the only response I’ve received thus far is “Just a moment” Given that the article mentions that there is no one perfect task chair and people may need to find what works for them, the only thing I’m finding thus far is Steelcase’s sales strategy isn’t compatible with my needs. I’m currently sitting in a Gesture that was loaned to me via an authorized third party Steelcase dealer and the arms on this chair are amazing. The model I’m sitting in actually has the lumbar support which isn’t even an option on the official Steelcase store and I wanted to say to me it’s as good as the one in the leap but I don’t think it’s any better or any worse. I’m trying to decide between a Leap with Headrest or the Gesture. My issue is there’s very little information in reviews or in forums from people who have actually tested to some degree a leap with headrest and there’s only one video of it on youtube and it’s not what I’d call all that helpful (better than nothing however).
I have a tendency to want to lean back slightly while typing or reading as sitting perfectly upright has never been a comfortable position for me for extended periods. This is most likely from working 10 to 12 hour shifts in a chair 40-60 hours a week and neck support is something “I believe I need”. I have sat in a regular Leap and I love the way the seat will slide when I lean back. That also makes me wish for a head rest.
Once you’ve configured a leap to conform to you and you lean back it’s almost like a recliner.without a headrest or footrest (not looking for the lounge chair that they do offer). So far I wish I could buy the Gesture’s arms and attach it to a leap with headrest and to me that would be “My” perfect chair I think but then again there’s no way for me to try a leap with headrest unless I buy one and my local dealer will save me over $150 on a chair, they will not accept any returns. Steelcase online will offer 30 day hassle free money back return but is more expensive.
This review is spot on “for me” regarding much of the Gesture. The arms are so great it’s giving me hesitation over the leap with headrest. I wish I could find the previous review where they no doubt went into more detail with the leap when it was their top pick but I haven’t found that article yet.
Hopefully headrest is something that has more focus in the future on chairs that do offer it as an option because those of us who’ve already spent decades in a chair may need extra support over someone who hasn’t already developed those bad habits for which case the Gesture is probably the best chair. Here’s hoping Steelcase doesn’t release a new chair soon that does integrate a headrest into the Gesture because it’s going to be hard to sell this chair locally for anywhere close to what I’ll be paying for it. Leaning toward the leap but still very undecided.
While I tried to go cheap with the Ikea Bekant desk, I did take TheWirecutter’s suggestion on the Steelecase Gesture. All I can say so far is that it is the best chair I ever sat in.
It is a solid build and the best thing I love about the chair are the arms. Just when I think there is an angle of support that I think the arms can’t manage, they do. My arms are always supported no matter the angle. The back support is firm and responsive. I am an IT worker and I regret not investing in such a good chair years ago now that I work 100% from home. Funny story; After all the research I did on chairs, it came down to the Steelecase Leap and Steelecase Gesture.
I opted for the newer more advanced Gesture. I go into the office to fix something with my laptop, and in my cube along with everyone else’s was a brand new Steelecase Leap. Lol I sat in it and it felt pretty nice. So, I guess whenever I have to go into the office, I won’t be disappointed with my chair. My office did have the Herman Miller Aeron’s before.
But I guess they switched up to the Leap which is a lot more forgiving. I have big hips and the Aeron chair was unforgiving. The Embody can be purchased for around $750 from a local Herman Miller dealer, though only a limited selection of fabrics and colors.
At least that is what I found when I bought one around Jan 2015. You might need to ask and it might depend on the dealer.
It seems like it is sort of like car shopping, where the dealer has some flexibility to make a deal for the more stingy clients. BTW I too like the Gesture, but I bought the Embody for my bottom that has an unpleasant dislike of padded seats. Rather than say that you liked one chair more than another, it would have been much more useful to have created a table with precise dimensions of each seat component, range of motion and the chair’s overall weight, as well as a subjective assessment of cushion softness.
I know, for example, that I need a large chair (deep) with a very well padded (thick, dense) seat and above average max height (top of seat to the floor). After reading your entire article, I have no idea which, if any, of the chairs you chose to test would satisfy my needs. This chair,, has a great cushion (best I have ever tried), but the back support is quite lacking. I just bought a Gesture the other week and upgraded the upholstery with Elmosoft leather.
It’s worth noting that Steelcase provides a 5-year warranty on fabric upholstery, but extends it to 12 years for the leather. Not sure about the warranty on the wool. I agree with your pick.
Absolutely love the chair. I’ve used a few Herman Millers in the past and always wanted a Leap. I’ve always found the physical design of the Leap to be kind of ugly and outdated however. The Gesture looks really nice and modern in contrast. The back & rear cushion i’d say is on the firmer side, which is what I prefer.
It feels good to sit on for a lengthy amount of time and i’ve experienced no fatigue like I do with cheaper chairs. Oh, and the level of adjustability of the arms is amazing. It’s alot of money but I’d say it’s definitely worth the investment, especially if you sit on a chair for hours everyday.
I really like the Elmo Soft leather. It feels much higher quality and softer than the “premium leather” used on my old Chinese Herman Miller soft pad knock-off bought from Amazon. I have noticed a few times that the leather upholstery stuck to my shirt or shorts when getting off the chair, but only when I get a little damp/sweaty from warmer weather. It only happens once in a while and not enough to bother me.
Temperature is about the mid 80’s here right now in Southern California and quite warm in my room, and the leather hasn’t stuck to my clothes once today, so it’s a minor criticism imo. It is a pretty costly upgrade, but with the extended warranty and the nicer look/feel, I felt it was worth it in my case.
With some good leather solution/conditioner, it’s also easier to maintain. I read a review where somebody spilled water on their fabric version and it created a stain.
It also has that very pleasant leather smell. I posted this over on the Office Furniture/etc guide, but I figured I should say it here as well. Unfortunately I had to say that the Gesture is apparently a bit of a downgrade from the Leap/LeapPlus – I had a Leap v1 that was replaced with the Gesture (and at work I have a Criterion.) I can say that after several weeks, it went back to the office furniture place I bought it from. It suffers from poor lumbar support (actually the biggest issue of all,) additionally it’s uncomfortable, it’s tippy, and it’s not as adjustable as you’d expect (contrary to your review – which seems to be hyper focused on the arm adjustments).
Overall, I see no reason to select it over the Leap or the Criterion. I’m waiting on my Steelcase dealer to get in a Criterion with black leather, so I can compare with the Leap v2 in leather. I bought a Steelcase Gesture from the dealer in New Zealand. It was very comfortable, but had a fatal flaw.
Over the two weeks I was using it, the seat post gained more and more wiggle, to the point where I could lean from side to side or front to back and you would feel a small clunk as the seat post hit the collar. I returned it to the dealer and got a replacement which also developed the same issues. I returned that one too and bought a Herman Miller Embody which (hopefully) will exhibit none of the wobbliness that I found in the Gesture. I have been searching for a new home office chair for months and was disappointed by all the budget options I could find at places like Home Depot.
On a recent trip to IKEA, however, I came across the Markus and ended up buying it that night. Setup was easy, and the sizing works pretty well for me (6’1″, 220 lbs.). My only complaint is the smell. I bought the leather version (well worth the extra $20 compared the the cloth version) and it smells. I’ve had it for a week and can still smell it. It makes my entire home office smell. In fact, I have to keep my windows open when I work at my desk!
Thank god this isn’t in my bedroom There’s no way I’d be able to sleep with this smelly thing in the same room. You can order the Gesture with lumbar support for an additional $20.00. It doesn’t feel as good as the Leap’s built-in lumbar support (At least to my back), but the option is there and I don’t regret paying the extra for it. I don’t know if it’s because I was so used to the bad posture I had while sitting in my previous chair but the first few days with the Gesture were pretty bad.
Felt like my body was fighting the chair whenever I sat on it, but we eventually synced up and now I’m very happy with my purchase. DXRacer is garbage in comparison. I’ve sold some chairs made by them. They claim their chairs are ergonomic – compared to some office depot offerings maybe. The way the backrest is designs limits your freedom of movement.
The arms aren’t truly adjustable. The seat material wears and tears easily.
My friend brought one home from work and swapped it out the day after. Honest, their chairs are for people used to cheap $50-100 chairs. Of course your buttocks will appreciate a mild upgrade to a DXRacer, but they’ve got nothing against reputable brands like Herman Miller & Steelcase. For taller people – be very cautious with these recommendations, even though tall people were in their test set. It seems like the height-based considerations were primarily the back height, but the seat deck height is far more important. While chairs in this price range are all highly adjustable, the _range_ of adjustment matters a great deal if your body size is outside the normal range.
Ergonomic advice varies, and your preferences may vary. But it should at least be possible to attain the full range of adjustable positions, and typically the maximum seat height on the standard issue chairs doesn’t allow that for taller people. And the lower end of the range is useless – nobody who is 6’+ is going to put the chair in the bottom ~4″ of the range and sit with their knees up to their chest. Some of these high end chairs do have “big and tall” variants, which I’ve not had the chance to try as my Aeron was part of a pooled office order. Herman Miller has a size guide: but it looks very much like the Steelcase Leap is only available in one size!
Another possible fix, which I used on my Herman Miller Aeron is to purchase larger diameter casters, which buys you a few more inches eg: In my person opinion, and I think backed up by ergo advice from experts, the optimum sitting position involves a slight bit of force forward and down on your “sitting bones” ie: hips rolled slightly forward. Some of this can be achieved by lumbar support encouraging your lower back to do the right thing, and discouraging it from collapsing.
Though of course it is a bit better if your muscles can do this for you. And of course, no muscles should be doing anything fixed in position for 8+ hours per day, but you knew that. You’ve still got to adjust position, get up occasionally, etc. In order to achieve this position, the seat deck needs to go high enough to allow your feet to rest flattish on the floor, perhaps even with the heels floating just a tad.
No – you don’t need to be able to swing your feet freely, of course – and sitting that way would pretty much guarantee loss of circulation pretty quickly, as pleasant as the sensation is for a little while. But – in addition to feet-in-front-lightly-resting, it is _really nice_ to be able to move the feet through a bit of a range, to reposition over time. Push them back under the chair a tad, fully on the balls of the feet. Most office chairs, even at the very top of their range do not allow this for taller people. And if a chair has a forward/back seat tilt option, tilting just a bit forward can be nice too.
And that costs height and effectively doesn’t work for taller people as you end up with your feet lifting your legs upwards again. If you’re spending this kind of money on a chair, it should allow you to take full advantage of all the adjustments through the entire range. For your body size. Some of the comments ask about armless recommendations. On many/most of these chairs, the arms can simply be removed. There aren’t (often) models that are identical but without arms, and save you a bunch of money. Basically – the arms are part of the price.
If you don’t want them. Just take them off. Make sure that you CAN take them off your selected model if you care. It might be a bit of a process. To take them off a Herman Miller Aeron involved disassembling a fair amount of the seat base, but you should never have to dip into the hydraulics, or risk losing a tiny spring. I just bought the Markus a couple days ago. It definitely feels like a solid chair, and I like the leather version better because of the armrest.
They came out with cloth versions, but for those, the armrest isn’t padded (or very thinly) and has some weird sticky rubber for padding that pulls at my arm hairs, while the leather version is padded (faux) leather. What I did notice though, is that the seat length(around 17-18 inches) doesn’t support enough of my leg for my comfort (I’m 6’0).
It ends mid-thigh, right about where my jogging shorts ends, and leaves a good 4 or 5 inches of leg hanging. The most comfortable chair I have is around 21 inches. What makes it worse is that the entire chair feels like it’s leaning forward.
I just wish I could lean the entire chair back a couple degrees. Of course it does lean back, but I have to put some force to it so it’s not comfortable either.
I might have to return it and try to find a chair with more leg support. While on the topic of cheaper IKEA chairs, I saw a newly released chair at my local IKEA in Michigan called the Millberget. It doesn’t have a high back, but otherwise the same faux leather and comfort as the Markus, and it was only $64.99. I don’t remember the seat length but I’m guessing it’s the same.
It comes in Kimstad white, which looks very striking but obviously not very practical, or Bomstad black which looks a lot cheaper and not so nice. The only thing is that I can’t find any information about this chair at all, not on the IKEA website, and not even Google returns anything. I might have to go check it out again. It’s a little frustrating that the recommendations in this category are either $1000 or $200. As if there isn’t a single product that exists within those two budgetary extremes that could hold a human being upright and comfortably? I spent a few hours reading and searching for office chairs, trying to find something that is nice for my home. However, none of the web reviews I found recommended ANYthing below a Herman Miller, Aeron, Leapfrog, etc.
These types of chairs are industrial strength and meant for Universities and office settings to last FOREVER due to wear and tear by the ultimate eroding factor, the careless human being. But look, I’m just the one dude and I’ll take care of my possession. Surely, I can spend a little bit more and spare myself the grief of an Ikea product but avoid spending a grand on a chair. Is there no middle ground?
Your review contains two factual errors: “Another ergonomic feature of the Gesture’s reclining mechanism (which it shares with the Leap) is that it slides the seat pan forward and pushes your butt upward a touch as you recline.” In fact, a major difference between the Leap and the Gesture is that the latter does NOT slide the seat pan forward nor push your butt upward as you recline. You can clearly see that’s not the case in this excellent video review: By the way, I agree with the YouTube reviewer that the lack of the slide-forward mechanism is a good thing. When testing the Leap at a dealer, I found that as my butt slid forward, my lower back would be pulled away from the back of the chair.
You can see it happen here: — notice how the lower back is no longer supported as the reviewer leans back. I think you want a chair to maintain full contact with all of your back as you recline. I’m not sure what Steelcase were thinking when they designed the sliding pan on the Leap, as the inch or so that the seat pan slides forward makes virtually no difference when it comes to maintaining a comfortable distance to the screen, considering that reclining puts you 7-8 inches further from the screen anyway. “The Gesture doesn’t have adjustable lumbar support like its predecessor, the Leap, does.” In fact, you can get a Gesture with a height-adjustable lumbar, but only if you buy through a dealer.
Steelcase does not offer that option in its retail store. Based on a 10-minute test at a dealer, I would recommend getting the lumbar — it costs just $20 extra, but I found I could definitely feel the extra support. The Gesture also has what looks like a design flaw, which you didn’t mention in your review. When you try to tilt-lock it in the most upright position, the lock often won’t engage unless you lean forward or pull the back up with your hands (the back does not return to the fully upright position by itself). Sometimes it also won’t release the lock until you do that same, rather awkward maneuver. See here for a demonstration: I can confirm the same flaw was present in the unit that I tested.
Not sure how big a defect it is — perhaps not many people lock the back in the most upright position — but in a $1000 chair glitches like that are kind of hard to forgive. I was skeptical of the Gesture, but decided to give it a shot. After a day of experimenting with different postures, I’ve come to really, really like it. I love the way the chair leans back and still feels supportive. The chair arms are enjoyably flexible. The controls for seat depth and height are sturdy, simple and effective.
Side note: I tried the optional lumbar support, but found it wasn’t for me. It made the bottom of the chair too bulky, and the normal back support is more than enough. Fortunately, it was straightforward to remove. Any impressions about the warmth of the seat? I’m currently test-driving the Gesture (together with 2 friends) and each of us has noticed that, after 30-60 minutes of non-stop sitting, the seat gets quite hot – even a $50 store chair is significantly cooler (to say nothing something like the Aeron or Embody). Most likely this is the result of the uber-thick foam padding they used to support all those weird positions.
BTW, I’m testing the polyester fabric version (Atlantic, which is the European equivalent of Connect). I also tested the “premium” 90% wool fabric (Steelcut Trio) — that was unbearable after 10 minutes. Funnily, despite all this padding, the seatpan feels kind of hard in the upper thigh region.
The padding has more give in the tailbone area than the upper-thigh area, which makes my upper thighs go slightly numb. It doesn’t matter how I adjust the seat high or depth. Other factors to consider are durability, lifespan and warranty support. I have six 1080P video security cameras that have been recording video non-stop 24×7 since 2012. I have used Kingston, PNY, SanDisk and Transcend cards.
With constant writing and rewriting of the cards, the cards will occasionally need to be reformatted. Over a period of years, the cheaper cards will no longer be able to use the full capacity of the cards as bad sectors will emerge.
That is where the warranty and support comes in. In my experience, the longest lasting cards (with the best no-questions-asked lifetime warranty) for HARD usage are made by Transcend. If you are limited to the 32 GB size, I highly recommend the Transcend 32 GB MicroSDHC Class 10 UHS-1/U3 95 Mb/s (TS32GUSDU3). It has outlasted and outperformed all of the other cards I have tried.
I have gotten three free replacement cards from Transcend for lower model cards (that I do not recommend). We have 5-year old Embody chairs at work and I’ve had bad lower back pain the last several months. I just realized last week that it was because the chair is basically a thin piece of fabric over the hard plastic “mattress.” I’m not sure if it’s because the chair is older, but it definitely jams into my lower back. It also sounds like the chair is cracking and falling apart when I recline back in it (though it doesn’t actually break – it’s just noisy).
I replaced my chair with a Knoll Generation Chair which is far more comfortable, though not perfect. I plan to try the Gesture for my home office soon. Thanks for the reviews. I’ve had the one at home for 5 months now and the one at work for a year (though the chair itself is 2+ years old, since I “inherited” it). I love them both.
I’ve had zero issues with the back being supportive nor do I have any fears the back will wear out. Despite it’s flexibility, it seems very well constructed and hasn’t had any signs of getting weak. I sit in the one at work for 8+ hours and at home for ~3 hours a day.
I would try to test it yourself, if you can, first. Every body is different. I bought myself a Gesture back in September and as soon as I started using it I began experiencing new back pain. For the first few weeks I tried to attribute this new pain to an adjustment period but by now I’m realizing that my back strongly disagrees with something here. I opted for the adjustable lumbar support with my chair and I believe this is the issue: no matter what height I move it to, I find it deeply uncomfortable.
So my question is: does anyone know how to REMOVE the adjustable lumbar support from Steelcase Gestures? Thanks for any help.
One of my sons gave the other son an Olympus E-PM2 (w/ the 14-40 kit lens) and he hasn’t touched it, so i started to play around with it and found myself having a ball – almost like when I first started with 35mm over 40 years ago! I bought the Oly 40-150 lens (really cheap) and have been getting some truly wonderful bird photos, but feel that a longer tele would really let me get more of the bird shots I want. What do you think of the Oly 75-300mm f/4.8-6.7 II ED? Is there anything even longer at a reasonable cost? (the Oly 75-300 seems to go for ~$300 used; pretty reasonable. Thanks for your advice!
Full disclosure, I broke my first one. It was a (now discontinued I believe) Max series, and one of the sides of the frame cracked. I got it replaced (via middling, but acceptable customer service) with a Spacious series. I am a big guy, 6’5″ 275lb, but I was around 300lbs when I had the first chair. I’m reasonably happy with this chair, but will admit its probably not as ergonomic as other options.
My originial comment was more an indictment of the Aeron than an endorsement of the DxRacer. The base model Aeron I had, had no tilt lock, and the plastic frame for the mesh seat area dug into my legs. Those two things combined made it necessary to return. I have a DxRacer Max and a Steelcase Leap. I also tried the Herman Miller Aeron in store. I prefer to Leap and I never use the DxRacer (my cats use it). The DxRacer has far less features.
The lumbar support on the DxRacer is pretty much useless (the pillow/cushion is so uncomfortable and not really ajustable). The feature I like the most about the Leap is that you can “lean back”, the Aeron does the same but from what I remember you don’t have much control over it. My girlfriend works at SunLife and they use Steelcase Leap.
Oh yeah, I forgot, the gas lift on the DxRacer broke after a few weeks and they sent me another one but installing it was not easy. Got the HON Nucleus. After a week, I can report that it’s the embodiment of average. It’s not particularly comfortable or uncomfortable. No particular part is too short or too tall. There’s nothing annoying about it and nothing to praise.
If anything it could use more back adjustments as it only has a lock and tension knob, but most chairs only have these two. The seat is as comfortable as my previous $250 Staples chair, however that chair only lasted a year.
Have to wait for the test of time to see if it stays average for the next 5 years. After reading this review in depth and others I opted to go with the Embody which I think got unfairly slighted in this review because it broke. I was originally set on an Aeron. I’m not sure how you shipped it when moving it but my chair came with the spine and back removed, I can’t imagine the spine breaking like pictured unless it was shipped assembled.
Also, prices are pretty competitive right now and after a lot of searching I found a great deal from a Herman Miller dealer on one for under $1k. The great thing about this chair is it comes loaded so you’re not paying extra for a lot of other features that, when you add them to some of the other chairs here, get you up to the retail price of the Embody. I think you should give it another look with a chair that’s not broken. It’s by far the most comfortable thing I’ve ever sat in as it encourages movement rather than trying to isolate it. Hello Wirecutter, I am not a tech inclined man.
We have Time Warner Wifi only. I refuse to pay TW’s cable charges. So we have Sling /Hulu and Netflix package. It only cost 40% of TW quackery prices!!!!! I love it My job assignment was suppose to be 1 year. So I didn’t buy a Router/ WiFi because of not knowing how soon we’d be leaving.Now I want to buy a wireless Wifi router instead of the $10 rental charge. My son also plays A LOT of online gaming using Xbox One.
Which router would you recommend?? Thanks so very much!! Another excellent way to go: if you live anywhere near a city, there’s probably a used office furniture store somewhere around.
I did some casual Google sleuthing and found a few near my metropolitan area, checked the inventory of each, and was able to get myself a gently used Humanscale Freedom for $150. This particular place had Steelcase Leap’s refurbished for $300 and most of the other models listed above at similar prices.The Freedom is wonderful, by the way, and a good reminder that seating comfort is highly subjective. I find the Freedom to be infinitely better than the Hermann Miller Aeron, which is actually famously uncomfortable for a lot of people despite it’s legendary workhorse status. I’m not a huge fan of the Steelcase Gesture. In fact I even bought it and reviewed it myself here: I don’t think it’s the best choice for tall users, and after buying and testing the Steelcase Leap V2, I’ve found it still to be a better designed product. I think they spent too much time worrying about the arms on the Gesture and neglecting the adjustability of the back and the general lumbar support. For other people wondering, like @disqus_sMbiRamU0S:disqus, the Amia is a good chair.
It lacks some features from the Leap but it’s decent. My GF also loves her Haworth Zody chair at work. To embroider on something already posted, a good resource for high quality, but affordable ergonomic chairs are used office furniture stores, usually found in larger cities (there are a few online as well.) Expect to pay less than 2/3 to 1/2 of the cost of a new chair for a clean used one in good working condition. In addition, selecting an older ergonomic design will net you even more savings.
I needed a pair of chairs for my home-based business and found immaculate Herman Miller Equa chairs on the web for $150 shipped. They’re an older design, but still stylish, sturdy, and comfortable for a twelve hour shift.
I have been sitting on my Aeron for the last 16 years and I love it! I got it as a payment during dotcom bust in 2001 when my employer was going out of business. After all these years I have only replaced wheels twice(outter plastic rings always cracked), arm rests once(rugger/plastic became wood-hard).
But mesh seat and back are still in perfect condition! They have not ripped or stretched out.
Gas cylinder that adjusts seat height still works perfectly. I love the ventilation aspect of the mesh. Whenever I sit in “regular” chairs I always feel like I’m starting to have a sweaty back and stinky butt 😉 But not in Aeron.
You also haven’t mentioned it, but Aerons come in 3 different sizes depending on your height/weight. And I think it’s possible to mix-match seat and back sizes. In March I developed some back issues with sitting in an old office desk.
This lead me to finally give in and decide to order a new chair. After reading this article I made the decision that this was an investment and that going cheap might not be the best idea. Once I decided upon that it was a matter of finding the right chair.
While the Steelcase was favorably reviewed I never had a chance to try it, but I had tried some Aeron’s at the local start-up. They felt comfortable to me and given that I run hot, it seemed like the better fit. Since I was planning to own this for a long time I ordered the Aeron v2 with the following features: – Adjustable armrests – Leather armrests – Forward tilt – Posturefit XL I am convinced that despite costing extra money, each of those four features made my new Aeron noticeably superior to the older stock models that I got to try at the start-up. The leather armrests are incredibly comfortable compared to the stock ones and look great. I also never realized how much I would adjust my arm rests. They can swing in to support my arms while typing and then swing out when I want to more freely move my arms. The height adjustability is critical to sitting in a stance that is comfortable for me as well.
After reading another review I decided to spring for the forward tilt option. I am glad I did. I never realized how much time I spend leaning a bit forward focusing on my screen as I type. This feature lets the chair support me much more easily in a “perching” position than any other chair I have ever used. Finally I find the PosturefitXL unit to be superior to the regular lumbar support I tried at the start-up. It felt more natural and supportive. Ultimately it makes it feel like I can sit in my Aeron for hours without problems.
I do not think the Aeron will be the right fit for every person, but I think that someone considering an Aeron today should try the newer version with these features before deciding whether they might want to get this versus something else. I couldn’t justify spending $1K on a chair with a grad-student income, and the helpful comments about looking for used chairs hadn’t been posted here when I was looking, so, based on this review, I bought the IKEA Markus (black). I quickly regretted my decision. The seat is plenty comfortable, and the build seems fine, but the inability to adjust the angle of the backrest means I’m generally leaning back much more than I’d like to be, which puts a strain on my neck. I considered returning it (IKEA has a decent returns policy), but the cost and hassle of renting a car wasn’t worth it.
The bottom line for me is that a chair for which you can’t adjust the backrest is a deal-breaker, and I don’t think it even merits budget-pick status. If anyone is looking for an office chair they can actually afford, I’ve had one of these for two years and I still absolutely love it: It has the adjustability that their budget pick lacks, and at $140-ish, it’s significantly cheaper. I really have no idea why they didn’t look at this one. It is a cheap knockoff brand, but their customer service has been exceptional–the mesh on the seat back started to sag at one point, and all I had to do was get in touch with them and they immediately sent me a replacement part, for free, without even having to send them a receipt for verification. I’m sure it’s nowhere near as nice as the ones they picked, but most of us don’t have a grand to spend on an office chair, and I guarantee you this one is nicer (AND cheaper) than their budget IKEA pick. It disappears in a way the Leap doesn’t.
I don’t notice the Embody at all when I sit in it, no matter how long I sit in it. I never feel like I need to adjust it. The Embody has fewer levers. I set the back rigidity and seat depth and I haven’t needed to adjust it again. The seat bottom is more comfortable — Leap chairs have traditional padding which wears out.
It’s also hard to sit in an Embody with bad posture. It supports good posture without it being noticeable. It’s the only chair I’ve ever sat in in which my posture is always good. Currently I have a Leap at the office and an Embody at home — and I notice the difference every day. Let me know if you have any specific questions — it’s somewhat hard to articulate all the reasons for my preference. Steelcase Gesture looks really nice but to be honest – it’s too expensive for me.
I know that in the case of office chairs more expensive means better but I don’t have that budget and I need something cheaper. Anyone could recommend something less expensive? I think about – it has good ergonomic shape and head support (that’s what I need for my neck). I know that under $200 I can’t find perfect chair for work but at least I need something good. What do you think about this chair? Or could you recommend something similar?