RGB is not integral to any gaming setup. Ever. Colourful disco lights won’t make you play better or be more comfortable while you (by you, I mean me) lock in for a long session of WoW.

So why exactly does the new ASUS ROG Courser gaming chair boast six areas of RGB lighting? Is it necessary? Absolutely not. But if we reduced every gaming chair down to the barest of essentials, we’d probably all be sitting in stark grey office chairs. The Courser is a gaming chair with unabashed flair. Sporting four lighting strips that extend down the sides of its backrest, with six colour modes glowing next to its all-black EPU leatherette finish.

The cutout area and rear-side ROG logo also light up, and at this point, you might be asking: if the lights aren't visible when you're using the chair, what's the benefit of having them? For those flashy design flourishes and a pretty reasonable set of conventional chair features, the ROG Courser will set you back $750 / £699. That’s definitely on the more premium end of the gaming chair pricing scale, so is the extra lighting really going to be worth it in a stacked market?

Design & Features

Well, for starters, the in-chair lights create an eye-catching look that’s ideal for streamers and content creators. The RGB looks super sleek contrasted against the dark chair. But for those who prefer to game in private, the Rainbow colour mode on the top level of brightness will add a gorgeous, subtle multicolour hue to your gaming room. This is a chair that will add heaps of atmosphere to your setup.

It includes eight different colour settings, five levels of brightness, and several lighting modes, including wave, static, breathing, and colour cycle. But alas, this isn’t Soft-Furnishings-Radar, and we are not just reviewing an ambient light fixture here.

So while the selling point of the ASUS ROG Courser is how it looks, its strongest quality is actually how it feels.

While the Courser shares much of its overall shape with the brand’s Chariot models, its broader frame makes it noticeably wider. It has a roomy seat base of 55cm, offering plenty of space for a broad range of body types.

The EPU leatherette material is smooth and breathable, perfect for keeping cool during gaming sessions on hot, sticky summer nights. It’s also notable that you get 4D armrests on the ROG Courser, which is standard for a gaming chair of this price. There are separate buttons for elevation and the twist functions, then a pull clicker for distance out from the chair.

These 4D armrests can now swivel the entire 360 degrees, too. All these comfort factors combine to form a chair so accommodating you’ll genuinely forget you’re sitting in it until it’s time to chill and kick back. This is when you will become highly aware that you are sitting in something pretty luxurious.

Assembly

Admittedly, I felt a mild wave of panic when the ASUS ROG Courser arrived on my doorstep. My previous gaming chair was constructed for me by an ex-boyfriend, and the thought of piecing together something so complex alone was daunting. I have lost patience and bawled tears of frustration over many IKEA flat-packed furniture items in the past - was my new gaming chair going to prove similarly difficult to build?

Not at all. The Courser was a breeze to assemble, even for a clumsy person with zero experience at putting a gaming chair together. All the parts slotted neatly into place, making the build experience feel simple and stress-free. It took 30 minutes for me to assemble the chair by myself, following the clear instructions card inside the box

Performance

I thought lower back ache was normal, all part of the fun of hunching in a shrimp shape over my PC while I devote another evening to Azeroth. Turns out: it’s not. I’ve been sitting in the ASUS ROG Courser for 4 weeks now, and my spine feels noticeably more limber.

The in-built lumbar support backrest appears to be the key factor here, with its fully adjustable system that can be tweaked according to depth and height - ensuring my posture stays good while I game. The Courser doesn’t have a lumbar pillow, but it doesn’t need one thanks to its dynamic lumbar support system that works very similarly to the Corsair TC500 Luxe and the Secretlab Titan Evo NanoGen.

Unlike most gaming chairs, which shift your body slightly forward or slide you down the backrest when reclined, the Courser has a Dynamic Synchronised Recline System that keeps your posture more consistent with the backrest while reclining up to 155 degrees. This is something we’re seeing more often in the gaming chair market, especially with the LiberNovo Omni, but more recently with the Secretlab Atlas.

It’s a unique, thoughtful detail that makes finding a comfortable position as you lean back much easier, as you won’t need to make adjustments every time you recline. For PC gamers especially, this is a feature to look out for because when you’ve spent ages finding the exact right height and angle of your armrests to match up with the level of your desk so you can aim precisely with a mouse, the last thing you want to do is mess that up by reclining them out of position.

Should you buy the Asus ROG Courser?

The RGB of the ROG Courser might be alluring to a lot of gamers looking for those perfect unicorn vomit vibes in their chill-out spaces, but the price tag of $750 / £699 could be equally off-putting. For context, Asus has charged similar amounts for its ROG Destrier Ergo chair line, so it’s no stranger to outlandish designs and high price tags. But for the same money, or less, you could get yourself a Secretlab Titan Evo (without RGB lighting) and a colorway that represents your favorite gaming franchise. For less money, you could get the still-expensive Razer Iskur V2 NewGen, which gets you a floating backrest, or you could get an AutoFull G7 with seemingly endless adjustable parts.

Compared to those options, Asus obviously offers RGB lighting which we don’t see elsewhere, but having sat in it for around a month, I think the lights are actually the least valuable thing here. The adjustable lumbar support, spacious seat and dynamic recline system make this chair a pleasure to sit in for hours.

If you’re looking for the best value gaming chair, there are great alternatives from Secretlab and Razer, but if you’re after a premium chair that doesn’t look like anything else on the market and backs up its flashy design with comfort, then the ASUS ROG Courser earns its place.

How I tested the Asus ROG Courser

I tested the ASUS ROG Courser for a month before this review was written. I assembled it myself in 40 minutes using the instructions card that came with the chair. It was very easy to build and to lift by myself. I sat in the chair for around 9 hours per day, either working from home or gaming.

For more on how we test gaming chairs, dive deeper into the GamesRadar+ hardware policy.

Looking for more gaming furniture? Check out the best console gaming chairs, the best gaming desks, and the best standing desk.

Back in March of 2024, I received a press release from Secretlab. The brand, having just reached its 3 millionth customer, issued a statement from one of its CEOs. "We don’t make 'gaming chairs'", it read. "Our design mentality is that we design chairs suited for long hours of gaming and other activities. Hence, our design philosophy is starkly different from most 'gaming chairs' on the market", said Ian Ang.

I must admit, when I read that, I scoffed. Secretlab is maybe the brand most synonymous on planet earth for making gaming chairs, so to claim that's never been the focus felt a tad silly. It's a company with inextricable links to gaming, from licensed gaming designs of its products to its co-founders forming a friendship through a love of games. I've now been fortunate enough to meet Ian and his fellow CEO, Alaric, and what's become clear to me is that the statements made in that press release match up far more with where the company was headed, not where it's been. Secretlab isn't satisfied with just the gaming market, and looking back now, that 3 million customer statement was really just a long-term teaser for what was to come.

The Atlas isn't designed for gaming. It's a productivity chair aimed purely at focused, ergonomic desk work. There are no licensed colorways of your favorite games; there's no library of ergonomic add-ons and improvements. This is a classy, modernized, almost Scandinavian-esque desk chair that's taking a very different approach from the Titan Evo. And I couldn't be happier about that. I've sat in the Atlas for just under a month now, and ironically, I think despite its attempts to steer clear of gamers, it's a better gaming chair than its flagship sibling. What's more, I'm no longer scoffing at Ian's 2024 comments because whether you're gaming, working, or something else, the Atlas is a great place to sit.

Design & Features

I'm sure your eyebrows are probably pushing their way down your forehead right now. How can a chair that has no design and feature set geared toward gaming be a better gaming seat than one of the most popular thrones for gamers on the market? Well, I actually think Secretlab was onto something with that statement back in 2024.

Ever since, the boundaries between gaming chairs and office chairs have been blurring, especially when it comes to "ergonomic" ones. Gaming chairs and their increased adjustability have bled into the office chair market, and vice versa. Most of the Atlas's rivals in the gaming space will sport mesh backing, for example, which is a direct pull from office chairs.

Secretlab has steered away from that convention with the design of the Atlas, because there's no mesh involved here. Having spoken at length with Secretlab's executive head of product development & industrial design and its CEOs, I find myself on the same page as them. Mesh chairs always feel like less of a product that you pay more money for, and I'm so glad they didn't opt for it here.

Instead, what we have is a leaner chair than the Titan Evo, but one that still uses the brand's signature upholstery and proprietary foam cushioning to support your posture into healthier positions. It reminds me of the fabric versions of the Fractal Refine. There's a less-is-more approach to backrest cushioning that you don't quite sink into, but it's enough for you to know it's there. It's supportive, comfortable, but not indulgent - kind of ideal for a chair that wants to improve your posture and wellbeing.

The Atlas is available in two main models, each with the brand's leatherette and Softweave materials in various colors. The base version will set you back $499 / £399, but the NanoGen premium versions will cost you $699 / £599. There are no officially licensed colorways of the Atlas, nor any Skins for it, like there are for the Titan Evo. It's unclear from talking to the folks at Secretlab if this is something they have planned in the future, or whether they'd prefer to let the Atlas stand alone as a less-nerdy and more classy aesthetic offering.

Similarly, there's no compatibility here with Secretlab's chair add-ons. The design here is fundamentally different from the Titan Evo, so it's understandable that making those add-ons compatible would have been a step too far, binding Secretlab to a similar design to its flagship. Given how the company has built on the Titan Evo with an entire ecosystem of add-ons, it wouldn't surprise me in the slightest if we saw separate add-ons for the Atlas in the future. Only time will tell, but during assembly, I did spy some unused screwholes in the seat base, and these may just be futureproofing for Vincent Sin, the aforementioned head of product development, to create some new add-ons with.

The Atlas strips back on some adjustability and features compared to the Titan Evo. 4D armrests take a drop down to 3D, losing out on their ability to slide to a narrower or wider setting. Fully adjustable lumbar scrollwheels are replaced by a Re-curve backrest designed to fit a median of body shapes. Full recline is substituted for a synchronous tilt mechanism that shifts the armrests back one degree for every two degrees the backrest tilts back.

Elsewhere, you have a clever recline tension mechanism which almost in itself gives you four recline settings, but a locking catch means you can set the backrest in any position that works for you. You also get seat depth adjustment, which may help you to sink into a chair that really encourages you to stay upright.

One thing I'd really like to applaud is the design work that went into the controls for the Atlas. There are really excellent, small bits of visual feedback to communicate to the user what tilt tension they're at or if their recline is locked or unlocked. From a tour of Secretlab's office, I've seen first-hand the buckets full of 3D-printed prototypes to get this exactly right. It's something chairs constantly neglect, but having it makes a massive difference because it's easier to distinguish what the various levers do and how you should use them. Having spoken to people who aren't as clued up about what gaming chair controls do, I know that if people don't understand them, they don't use them, so Secretlab's tireless effort in this respect could help ensure you get the most out of the Atlas.

The entire design ethos of the chair is visually distinct, but the top of the backrest in particular has a really alluring angle to it. Its inward curve and head panel aren't as pronounced as they look at first glance, but the way the shoulders only gently wrap around you means you aren't inspired to slouch inward. Overall, the Atlas has a taller, distinct look that's really grown on me. The Dune and Dune+ colorways, in particular, are absolutely beautiful and look right at home in a WFH or classy gaming space.

Assembly

In true Secretlab fashion, assembly of the Atlas was pretty painless. The brand is always good at providing videos and a big placard in the box telling you the steps to follow. It also provides the tools you need in a handy little box. The first thing I noticed when unpacking all of the separated elements of the Atlas was how light they all were. I always assemble the chairs I test solo, and having built a couple of Titan Evos, I can tell you they're easy to assemble, but their parts are on the heavier side.

With the Atlas, the seatbase, the backrest, and all of the separate parts are much easier to grab out of the box if you're a building party of one. It makes for an easy assembly because there aren't hefty bits you need to wrestle into position at awkward angles.

I'd say the Atlas takes a tad longer to put together than the Titan Evo, but I'm not sure that's a fair comparison, seeing as the Evo has been around for so long now and Secretlab has had a lot of time to work out the quickest and easiest ways to get that thing assembled.

The only thing I'd really swap from the assembly process is the casters. The other elements that make up the Atlas feel quite distinct from the Titan Evo, but these wheels feel almost exactly the same as the ones from the bigger chair, and I don't know if they're a great fit. Rolling it around on my living room/office floor carpet flooring while I'm sitting down is a massive struggle for such a light build. It might seem silly, but those small corrections to match up the chair with the middle line of your monitor can be irritating if the chair is fighting you. I don't know if substituting some narrower casters or differently designed ones would help here. Either way, be prepared for the Atlas to not be the easiest to roll around in.

Performance

I never thought I'd be saying this in a Secretlab review, but I actually have some concerns about the build quality of the Atlas after my typical month of chair testing.

Keep in mind that I'm testing one of the earliest models, and Secretlab sometimes innovates and improves on models as they extend their lives on the shelves. Your mileage may vary, but in particular, the plastics used in the mechanism of the armrests feel a little looser than I'd expect from Secretlab, and they rattle pretty loudly from side to side. Similarly, the seat depth adjustment is occasionally loose for me. When I shift my weight or cross one leg under the other, it moves ever so slightly out of position even while the seat depth setting is supposed to be locked. The backrest and cushioning both feel as new as the day I first sat on them, but for once, with a Secretlab product, I'm a little concerned about how long the bodywork may last.

I've now seen first-hand the sorts of endurance testing and R&D that go on for Secretlab products before release, so I do feel confident recommending the Atlas to you as a long-term option, but I can't help but note to you that from my month of testing, I do have some initial concerns. Similarly, like a lot of gaming chair armrests these days, these ones don't lock into position besides their height. To move them forward or rotate them to just manually shove them. These take more effort than most clicky armrests, like the ones on the AutoFull G7, which slide out of position very easily. But over time, in my experience, these types of armrests can come loose too. That hasn't happened to me with the Atlas yet, but I've sat in a lot of chairs, and that's a trend I've noticed.

All of this feels to me like it could be a result of two things, namely, the fact that the Atlas has a lighter build than the Titan Evo. It isn't quite as beefy, and like I mentioned in the assembly section, its parts feel a lot easier to throw around. Moreover, Secretlab has provided a more affordable price, and that may point to slightly cheaper materials used - plastics in the armrests don't seem as premium, for example.

I mentioned it in my early impressions, but I think the lighter build contributes good things too. It may bring more build quality concerns into play, but in my eyes, it makes the chair more comfortable. The Titan Evo Nanogen's frame and pure heft are, I think, a reason why it has a reputation for being firm. You fall into it, and the thing gives your entire body a jolt. The Atlas, with its lighter quality, doesn't do that. I can fall into this and feel caught and cushioned all at once. With a less intrusive frame and a thinner layer of cushioning, things don't feel as firm to sit in at length. The way that form has been paired with the Softweave+ fabric helps that too. It feels as though the material has a bit more flex, which allows it to feel comfier.

If there's a downside to that fabric and foam combo, it's breathability. I'll preface this by saying I've just been testing the Atlas during a record-breaking heatwave in the UK, which is a much, much tougher test of chair breathability than others in my Scottish home have gone through, but if you live in a warmer country, keep in mind that it's going to hug your shirt and you're going to feel sticky when you stand up. This happens to me even with a mesh chair in hotter conditions though.

Even so, I managed to sit in this chair for long work days and full evenings of gaming, and I felt very comfortable besides a few lumbar shuffles. That's to be expected; the backrest is never going to cater perfectly to everyone. For work and play, this thing is excellent and holds great value for money at its price point - although keep in mind that I'm testing the premium version, so I can't really speak to the more affordable options. I think if I were to nitpick one aspect of this chair, it'd need to be the armrests.

For starters, they have an excellent, plush cushioning - I have no complaints there. But there are two design flaws here that I can't help but compare to the LiberNovo Omni, another innovative ergonomic chair that puts recline as one of its main focuses. In that chair, I can recline back for the first two or three settings and still game at my desk with my arms up on the worktop to control a mouse and keyboard. It's a perfect ratio of tilt without compromising very precise armrest adjustment for gaming. In other words, the ratio of recline works so that the armrests slide back with you, but stay level with where they were when you were upright.

In the Atlas, they actually tilt back too much in my opinion, and slope upward, making it much more of a pernickety process matching them up with the level of your desk for reclined PC gaming. A readjustment of the armrest height sorts that, but it does take that second adjustment, which can get quite annoying when you just want to kick back and keep playing. Essentially, versus the Omni, it's a bit more annoying to use, but versus most other chairs, it's going to be a lot more helpful because other chairs don't sync their armrest and backrest recline levels at all. Not to mention, the Omni I'm comparing it to costs close to a grand.

The synchronous tilt system hasn't been designed for gaming, but I think the 2:1 ratio could be adjusted slightly to take on the LiberNovo Omni because it's so, so close to being that intuitive. The tilt locking tensions of the Atlas are genius, and do provide a way to keep the backrest support and relax a bit from your standard, upright focus mode. I really enjoy using the fourth recline tension for a slightly more indulgent work session, or the second mode for a much more comfortable session gaming with a controller at my desk.

Sadly, the other problem with the armrests is one I haven't been able to get past since my early impressions. Without that fourth dimension to move them narrower or wider, they compromise the ergonomics of the Atlas. Ideally, to make the most of the re-curve backrest angle, you want to sit as deep into the seatbase as possible, with the small of your back tucked right into the bottom of the backrest. If I sit in that position, my elbows don't hit the armrests without my forcing them outward from my body because they don't raise up high enough or come close enough to my midsection.

That then creates a slouch in my chest, and things get uncomfortable quickly. It's a problem I know all too well from the Corsair TC500 Luxe. If I sink into the chair a bit more, this isn't such a problem, but it's not ideal for a chair with ergonomics at its heart. For reference, I'm just over 5ft10, and I'm sitting in the Large model of the Atlas. According to Secretlab's metrics, I'm right on the cusp between the Regular and Large models, so maybe a Regular would fix this issue. Either way, it detracts from the effectiveness of the Atlas as an ergonomic seat, and I can't help but wish that just one more dimension of armrest adjustability were included because a quick shift inward is all that would be needed to fix this issue.

Should you buy the Secretlab Atlas?

It's no real secret that I've never been the biggest fan of the Secretlab Titan Evo. I think that chair is amazing for offering an ecosystem of upgrades and add-ons. I think its selection of colorways is unmatched, and its build quality is so assured that it's hard to argue against as a long-term investment. But it isn't all that comfortable in my eyes, and its ergonomics aren't anything that countless imitators now offer for cheaper.

The Secretlab Atlas is much, much more up my street. It has a distinct, sleek, and modern design; it has a beautiful blend of comfort and ergonomics; it has a good amount of adjustability for the money it costs, and most importantly, it has a value price tag which isn't sticking in the back of my mind as I review it. Secretlab typically makes pricey products, and while they're always crafted to a high standard, one sticking point for me is that I know you can often get more affordable options elsewhere.

The Atlas isn't quite as good as the Fractal Refine in my opinion. While it adds more comfort in the backrest and seatbase, it loses out on a couple of extra dimensions of adjustability - but for once, Secretlab's offering is more affordable, so I'm not wrestling to justify it against the competition.

The Atlas isn't as firm as the Titan Evo; it's got a lot of features going for it and a showstopping look that's done nothing but grow on me since the curtain was first drawn back on it. It doesn't have the same offering of add-ons at launch that the Titan Evo does, but I'm sure that in time, that could change. The Atlas isn't the best gaming or desk chair out there, but at its price, I don't think it needs to be. I really enjoyed my time sitting in it, and I think a slew of gamers and remote workers will too.

How I tested the Secretlab Atlas

I've done my usual four weeks sitting in the Atlas to test its build quality and its impacts on my body. I've sat in it for over 8 hours on an almost daily basis since then for both work, gaming, and other content creation tasks. I've also reclined in it to chill out from all of those things. I've compared my time in it with Secretlab's other chairs, as well as my time with other gaming and ergo seats like the Fractal Refine and LiberNovo Omni.

Besides my at-home testing, I also want to disclose that I was taken on a trip to Singapore to get an early look at the Secretlab Atlas ahead of its reveal. I got to meet the people behind the Secretlab brand, talk to them about the design of their products, and get a feel for the company's culture. I'm confident that this hasn't skewed my review in either direction, but it has enlightened me to the design philosophy and manufacturing standards that the company strives for.

For more on how we test gaming chairs, check out the GamesRadar+ hardware policy.

If you're crafting the perfect gaming setup, you should know about the best gaming desks, the best console gaming chairs, and the best gaming PCs.

I've been covering Prime Day for years now, and if I'm honest, it's been a continually growing trend each year that the best deals don't actually show up at the world's largest retailer; they come from competing brands. Prime Day is yet to begin this year, but other retailers like Newegg, Best Buy, and Walmart are already running competing sales.

Corsair isn't to be outdone either. It's currently running a promotion that lets you get any of its gaming chairs for 40% cheaper if you use a special promo code, which brings two of my go-to chair recommendations down to super-affordable prices.

The Corsair TC500 Luxe is one of my favorite gaming chairs I've ever tested. It manages to scratch an itch I have for gaming chairs that feel like you're sitting in a perfectly adjustable sofa, or even a La-Z-Boy. It has room for you to adjust the lumbar to suit your back, as well as a magnetic head pillow and recline, and adjustable armrests, but it's also got a wide seat base that lets you shift your position, cross a leg over, sit completely cross-legged, or just feel like you can really sink into it.

The armrests are my biggest pain point by far, and the caveat I'd issue anyone I'm recommending the chair to. I don't think they're a deal breaker because the rest of the chair is so good, but because they're set too wide apart, the ergonomics do suffer a bit. You can hear more in my full review, linked above.

Meanwhile, the Corsair TC100 Relaxed was the first gaming chair I ever reviewed, and it's kept its place on our best chair list ever since. It's a near-perfect starter chair, offering a nice blend of comfort with some beginner gaming chair perks. Yes, the lumbar cushion and head pillow are both strap-on ones, which isn't ideal. No, you won't get the last word in armrest adjustability, but you do get a chair that can stand the test of time, and will keep you comfortable for long hours at a desk.

There's a strong chance we could see both of these seats get Prime deals of their own once Amazon opens up its big summer sale selection, but if I were you, I wouldn't wait around. For these offers, you get them straight from Corsair without any middlemen that will likely only make things more expensive (unless you already have free shipping through Prime). If you're not a Prime member, you're unlikely to see better offers than what Corsair is offering on its products through its own website.

For more on Amazon's summer sale, check out Prime Day Kindle deals, Prime Day PC deals, and Prime Day Meta Quest deals.

Prime Day is coming up next week, and that means it's one of the few times throughout the year where shopping for one of the best gaming chairs gets a little more affordable. Since we're now inundated with AI overviews and generative chat bots whenever we do any research for what to buy, I'm sure there are probably lots of folks who are tempted to dodge the experience of sifting through deals by asking AI for a helping hand. I really don't think you should do that.

Especially when it comes to something like a chair that you as a human will sit in, why would you want to ask AI for recommendations? Not to have too strong a "pick me, choose me" vibe, but I'm a chair reviewer who's been testing them for over three years now, and I don't know why anyone would want recommendations from an ass-less entity on the internet. So, as an experiment, I opened Gemini and asked it the following prompt:

"I'm looking for a new gaming chair this Prime Day, and I have a budget of $500. Which three would you recommend?"

A few seconds passed, and it then recommended the following products (spoilers: I do not recommend you shop for these ones, so read on to find my alternatives, and tap the "view details" button to get more of my thoughts on each of Gemini's suggestions).

I really thought I'd have an advantage over AI in this specific recommendation arena thanks to my human body and experience sitting in chairs my whole life, but it seems Gemini can't even stick to a strictly defined pricing prompt, because on two out of the three recommendations it's given, the price exceeds $500 by some margin - more than a Prime Day discount will remedy, anyway.

To be fair, its suggestions aren't awful chairs. The Secretlab Titan Evo is a great, sturdy option with loads of scope to upgrade it with the brand's add-ons. It's a chair I'd recommend, but not during Prime Day, seeing as Secretlab's availability and pricing at Amazon isn't ideal. We've also reviewed the Razer Iskur V2X and the AndaSeat Kaiser 4, but these aren't the ones to look out for on Prime Day to make sure your money goes as far as possible.

So overall, that's three recommendations that I would not stand behind (let alone sit on this Prime Day). As someone who has actually parked themselves in a plethora of gaming chairs and kept a close eye on the market for years, here's what I'd suggest that comes in well under a $500 budget while securing the most features for your money. Again, hit the "view details" button to get a more in-depth analysis of each one.

I'd go with the Fractal Refine if you spend long hours at a desk for both work and play. I'd classify it as a hybrid ergonomic-gaming chair. In other words, it blends office chair and gaming chair designs to give you the best of both worlds. There's a smaller amount of cushioning, but its taller shape makes that okay because it inspires you to sit up straighter. More, you can change the seat depth so you sink further into it to relax, but you still make the most of the lumbar support. Its armrests are some of the best for gaming I've come across.

I'd buy the Corsair TC500 Luxe either if you want a more comfortable chair overall that's mainly for gaming, or if you are a larger hooman bean. The armrests on the TC500 Luxe are set a little wider than I'd like, and if you're not a bit broader or taller, chances are this will cause a slouch in your posture, which won't be good for you in the long run.

I'd opt for the Boulies Master Series if you want a mix of premium features and a sleek look for remote working. I'd say of all of my recommendations, the Master is the most likely to see the lowest price during Prime Day, so this might also be a really great choice for those on a tighter budget.

Again, Gemini didn't give terrible recommendations for chairs overall, and I'd absolutely suggest you look at the Razer Iskur V2 X in particular, since it's one of the best budget options on the shelves. Now that the NewGen model is arriving, the original (which is still worth buying) is getting even cheaper.

But this experiment just shows you're going to be far better off reading up on the best Prime Day gaming deals when you check out content from actual humans. AI has its uses, I'm sure, but when it comes to recommending products, it's much more reliable to take advice from people with hands-on time with those products. In other words, using AI to help you shop during seasonal sales will often not find you the best deals or value for money. It's probably not that much quicker, either.

Annoyingly, two of my go-to value chair recommendations are showing pretty poor availability the week before Prime Day, so I haven't included them as my official alternatives. They are the Eureka Ergonomic Python II and the AndaSeat Novis. Both of these offer excellent build quality, comfort, and prices, so I've attached a widget below for you to keep track of the best offers on them in your area. I know, I'm so helpful.

James Bond has always been known for using the latest tech, driving the coolest cars, and wearing the most stylish tux, but thanks to 007 First Light giving us a bit more freedom to explore his world in depth, we now know what gaming chair he's kicking back in at his desk.

To the surprise of absolutely no one, James Bond sits in one of the most stylish, highly-coveted, and pricey chairs that actually exists in our world, the Herman Miller Embody. You can see the chair in the spy's bedroom during the game's opening hours, when he first moves into the Bayswater apartment with fellow agents Cressida and Monroe.

In fairness, it's not really clear whether or not Bond would have actually picked this seat for himself, or if it just came with the flat provided to him by MI6. If it's the latter, maybe this is a special edition Herman Miller Embody that's been modified inside Q-Lab to have even more futuristic spy features? An ejector seat function, perhaps? It's unclear - maybe the chair features again later in the game, but since I'm still early on in the story, I'll need to keep playing to find out.

In all honesty, as a gaming chair reviewer, the Embody immediately caught my eye during this scene, but I was surprised to see it rendered in such detail. Every tiny bit of the backrest is recreated faithfully - I wonder if one of the environment artists at IO Interactive sits on one themselves. Or maybe Herman Miller paid to be featured - what brand wouldn't want to be known as James Bond's chair of choice? Alternatively, it could be the developers making comment on the gaming chair market - it certainly made me laugh that Bond would sit in such a luxurious chair that costs well over $1,000 since he's known for driving expensive cars from Aston Martin.

That might be sad news if you were hoping to sit in James Bond's desk chair in real life, but the Embody has been haunting the entire desk chair market for years thanks to its alluring design, overwhelmingly positive reviews, and high price.

We originally reviewed the Herman Miller Embody back in 2022, and we were very pleased with its ergonomics, comfort level, generous warranty, and sleek design. Since then, it's sat on our best gaming chair buying guide, but has always been the most expensive option we'd recommend.

Back in our original review, my good friend Rob Dwiar said, "For me, the Embody has taught me that investing in ergonomics is a seriously worthwhile endeavour if you can do it, and it has made me rethink my entire gaming setup. It could just be all the gaming chair that you'll ever, ever need." On the other hand, he rightfully had lots of reservations about its price, and how, for the same money, you could buy multiple Secretlab chairs, which is even truer today with the arrival of the Secretlab Atlas, which I'm currently testing.

Shockingly, for its price, the Embody doesn't come with a headrest as standard, but the brand has made one available for purchase as an add-on. Ongoing support has been good for the Embody, as the company has also made new colorways available, and discounts do arrive every so often to make it a bit more approachable.

Want to ogle some more extremely pricey gaming hardware? Take a look at the best gaming PCs, the best gaming laptops, and the best gaming handhelds.

I recently had the chance to visit Secretlab's HQ ahead of the launch of its latest chair, the Atlas. I, like many, have been known to criticize the firmness of this brand's cushioning in the past. The Secretlab Titan Evo is a popular product, but it's never been my pick for the best gaming chair because while it has unreal build quality, it can feel a little too solid to sit in for my liking. So when I first got to sit down in the Atlas, I could feel Secretlab employees perched, eager to know if I thought that was an issue with their new passion project.

I'm sure that'll be the question on a lot of shoppers' minds at the moment. Secretlab's chairs are pricey, and the Atlas offers a reprieve from that with a lighter price tag that starts from $499 in the US and £399 in the UK. If the Titan Evo's price puts it out of reach for folks who otherwise would love a chair from this brand, the Atlas might finally be the one for them. But the question remains: is it as firm as people have said the Titan Evo is?

I've been sitting in the Secretlab Atlas for around four days now, on top of my experience trying it out in Singapore at the company's reveal event. And while it isn't designed for gaming, and certainly isn't targeting gamers in its marketing, its pedigree comes from a brand that undeniably has gaming at its heart. Secretlab's two co-founders met and became friends through video games; a massive proportion of its 4,000,000 customer base will all be from a gaming background, courtesy of Esports and officially licensed video game liveries for its products.

The Atlas might not want to be good for gaming, but it might just end up as my preferred Secretlab chair for gamers once my testing is said and done.

In other words, it may well be better than the Titan Evo.

Firmness - Is less more?

Okay, enough stalling. Is the Secretlab Atlas too firm?

I'd love to give you a straight-up answer, but I'm not sure it's as simple as that. The Secretlab Atlas uses the brand's same homegrown upholstery and cushioning as the Titan Evo, but it's a much lighter-feeling product that takes a really different approach to supporting your posture. It's also not trying to be a gaming chair; it's a productivity seat that puts ergonomics in more of a spotlight than add-ons and colorways.

So there's definitely a firmness to the Atlas, but because it's taking a different approach, that isn't such a bad thing. To answer this properly, I need to talk about mesh chairs and the Fractal Refine.

For years now, gaming chair brands have been trying to sneak their way into more offices and homes by going after a different niche in the gaming chair market: ergonomics. So much of the time, these end up being mesh chairs with very little cushioning, loads of clicky adjustable panels, and a massive price tag. With pretty much all of them, you feel like you're paying more for less of a product, because while mesh is "breathable", it's really just a net that'll support your bodyweight.

Regardless, these chairs get by despite a lack of cushioning. I'm not the biggest fan of mesh chairs, but it's plenty comfortable in a seat base or backrest, and it does inspire you to sit up straighter and make your posture self-supporting because there's not as much there to relax into.

In my opinion, the best chair to take the design philosophy of those lighterweight, more slender ergonomic chairs and turn it toward gaming is the Fractal Refine. It can be had with mesh upholstery, or with a fabric one, and in either case you get a much lighter degree of cushioning, but because its design is inspiring you to sit up straighter and mind your posture instead of sinking into it for hours on end, it works, and works really well. It takes less cushioning with this kind of design to keep you comfortable.

The Secretlab Atlas reminds me of the Fractal Refine in so many ways, because it takes a very similar approach. Its backrest is taller, slimmer, and arguably more minimalist. It even has a similar feature set to the Secretlab Atlas, including seat depth adjustment and, more relevantly, a narrower amount of cushioning.

I haven't gotten the measuring tape out or cut into the Atlas to know this for sure, but compared to the thicker backrest of the Titan Evo, it feels as though Secretlab has opted for a slightly thinner layer of cushioning on the Atlas. With a taller shape, an integrated lumbar curve, and a lower seatbase to inspire more ergonomic posture in your lower body, the cushioning in the Atlas doesn't feel as firm as previous Secretlab chairs. I still need to shift around at points, but the seat base and backrest both feel a lot more comfortable than the Titan Evo.

Less might just be more.

For reference, I'm testing the Atlas in its Dune+ colorway, which means I do have the Nanogen cushioning and upholstery - ie, the comfier version. That said, I tested the Secretlab Titan Evo NanoGen Edition, and it didn't feel this welcoming to sink into.

I don't know for sure if this is the case, but the Titan Evo is a heavy, sturdy bastard of a chair. It will last a lifetime because this brand's build quality is second-to-none, but at times I feel that bleeds into the sitting experience because while the cushioning could be less firm, the frame feels like it has zero give, and that might just add to the "too firm" allegations.

The build quality of the Atlas is still great, but its parts felt a lot lighter when I was assembling it, and I wonder whether this is playing a part.

The move from 4D to 3D

One of the strongest first impressions I have from my initial stint sitting in the Atlas is that its armrests are great. In many ways, they fix some of the biggest woes I've had with a lot of gaming chair armrests in recent times.

To adjust them, you don't need to push loads of buttons or release some catches. They have a lever on the outsides to move them up and down, but to rotate or move them back and forward, you just push them, and they click into position. But where other armrests click out of position far too easily, the ones on the Atlas actually take some oomph to adjust. They're yet to fall out of position from me applying pressure to them, and I hope that remains the case as my testing goes on.

I hate to say it, because the armrest surface and cushioning feel really comfortable and plush, but I do think Secretlab has fumbled slightly by dropping down from 4D armrests on the Titan Evo to 3D ones on the Atlas. If there was one adjustment I think these could really use, it's the ability to be narrower, and that's the dimension that's missing.

Yes, they can rotate to make the width problem less of a bugbear, but when sitting naturally at my desk, the points of my elbows are only just landing on the armrests; they're in no position to be fully supportive without me slumping into the chair.

When I was at the Secretlab HQ for the reveal of the Atlas, Ergonomics Specialist Dr Lindsey Migliore, a PMR Physician, Founder of GamerDoc, and a Secretlab Ergonomics Advisory Board Member, talked about the 90, 90, 90 rule - the importance of having 90-degree angles for your knees, hips, and elbows while sitting at a desk. With wider-set armrests, the Atlas risks the same issue as the Corsair TC500 Luxe in that, to properly use the armrests and achieve that 90-degree angle in my elbows, I need to pull them out from the sides of my body, creating a slouching position in my chest and hampering the ergonomics of the chair.

I need to keep testing to see if this is the case in a longer-term sense, or whether I'm still adjusting to a new chair, but it could be a bigger issue with the design of the Atlas. If the armrests were capable of going a fraction narrower and a fraction higher, they'd be perfect.

My road leads into the desert

It was one of the first things I thought about the Atlas when Secretlab pulled back the curtain on it; the Dune colorway is one of the best-looking designs this brand has ever produced. Yes, it sucks that the Atlas doesn't have compatibility with the massive library of Secretlab designs and officially licensed colorways available for the Titan Evo, but if you're able to grab one of the Dune designs of this chair, I think it just about makes up for it.

Not only is it a beautiful texture that's in its element in a home office, but it has a neutralizing effect on the theme of a room that manages to bring all of the interior design together. In other words, its caramel/beige/sandy hue has a way of blending into black, white, or wood-colored setups like mine. It somehow blends between all of these tones, and it just looks priceless.

The other Secretlab colorways look good too; the Atlas is a bold new aesthetic for the brand, so it's an immediately eye-catching chair in any color. But the Dune version has a way of complementing the design so that any harsher angles and clearer outline lines are almost absorbed, creating a much softer and more calming effect on your eye.

As someone who has placed many a gaming chair in their home workspace over the years, this is probably one of the best-looking I've had the privilege of welcoming in.

The price seems right

I still have a lot of testing to do before I'm ready to give the Secretlab Atlas a final review score, but I'm actually really excited to do that testing.

I like to sit in a gaming chair for around a month before reviewing one because I like to give it time for it to cause aches and pains, or relief. I like to see how the build quality stands up to a longer period of testing than other reviewers typically give, but that sometimes means by the end of week one or two, I'm dreading the remainder of the time with a seat because I can already recognise its flaws.

The Atlas is great to sit in so far, and for once with a Secretlab product, I feel excited that I don't have the cloud of a higher price tag making it even harder to recommend. This is a more affordable Secretlab chair than I've tested previously, and so far, I actually like it better than the more expensive ones.

Will that be the case in a few weeks time? Who knows, but right now it's one I'd tell you to keep on your shortlist while you search around for a new place to sit.

See also the best gaming desk, the best console gaming chair, and the best gaming PC.

Today, Secretlab has unveiled its first new desk chair since the Titan Evo in 2022. While it's been iterating on the Titan Evo ever since with new models and colorways that have made it a staple of the gaming chair market, Secretlab hasn't chosen to expand out into a new SKU in years. But now, as lines in the desk chair market start to blur between gaming and ergonomic options, Secretlab is choosing to launch the Atlas.

The Secretlab Atlas pulls back slightly from the expansive set of features offered by the Titan Evo for a much more focused and distilled chair design. The result is a lighter chair that puts your ergonomics and posture front and center, and a synchronous tilt recline system the main appeal. Where the Titan Evo is a tried and tested gaming chair that's ergonomic, the Atlas is an ergonomic productivity chair with a very different feel. But it may end up being more accessible to players who haven't been able to afford a Titan Evo until now.

"The traditional task chair hasn’t changed for decades, and isn’t built for the way we actually work today", says Vincent Sin, Head of Product Development & Industrial Design at Secretlab".

"Static posture is the enemy of prolonged focus, yet most chairs still lock you in a single position. With Secretlab ATLAS, we’re taking the best of Secretlab and bringing it to support task sitting. We’ve applied a decade of ergonomic design and material expertise to create a chair that supports the entire rhythm of your day — not just the hours spent upright in focus mode, but also the essential periods of rest in between.”

This desire to cater to more than one sitting position certainly tracks with the rest of the market, as floating backrests have become more commonplace - the epitome being the LiberNovo Omni, which has a fully dynamic backrest. Interestingly, Secretlab hasn't given in to this trend, instead opting for a design that integrates a non-adjustable lumbar curve into a fixed backrest.

Secretlab's alternative doesn't look to support your posture with a chair that moves around with you as you shuffle in your seat; instead, it deems the best way for you to maintain focus throughout the day to be allowing you to rest and take short breaks. The answer? "Focus" and "Rest" modes built into the chair.

The Atlas has a refined reclining mechanism that Secretlab is calling a "Synchronous Tilt Mechanism". There's a full range of 120° of recline, but for every 2° the backrest tilts, the seatbase tilts by 1°. Supported by an adjustable tilt force control, this means the armrests, backrest, and seatbase all recline without losing the ergonomic setup of the chair.

There aren't set reclining levels, because by adding more tilt force resistance, you also find you'll only be able to recline back to certain levels while also relaxing into it. It's a clever way to implement ergonomics while relaxing, and tilt tension has been an under-utilized feature on lots of chairs I've tested because it feels like product designers never know what to do with it.

Compared to many of the office and ergonomic chair rivals in the market, Secretlab's new option may feel a bit limited. These chairs, like the AutoFull G7, often combine mesh backing with loads of clicky panels that are all adjustable in various dimensions, but that hasn't been the approach with the Atlas. The Re-Curve backrest integrates lumbar support into its design to ensure you're always getting the most out of it while sitting.

As per usual, Secretlab has done a bunch of ergonomics research backed by an independent Ergonomics Advisory Board, United States Ergonomics, and other experts to find the best curve to suit all sorts of body shapes based on how people sit. While I'm sure the brand has integrated this research into its product design super effectively, I always have my reservations about a one-size-fits-all approach because everyone's body is different and I don't think it's possible to cater to every somatotype with one fixed design. Nonetheless, a Regular and Large size of the Atlas may provide some scope for you.

The Tilt Force Adjustor has four separate levels, which go hand in hand with an adjustable seat depth so you can sink deeper into the Atlas and still benefit from lumbar support - a similar approach to the Fractal Refine. Down from 4D armrests on the Titan Evo, the Atlas has 3D armrests that adjust up and down, forward and back, and can rotate - there's no moving them to be narrower or wider though.

This feels like a fresh start for Secretlab as it branches out into a brand-new product range, but my concern is that this may defeat the appeal of opting for one of this brand's products. A lot of people are drawn to Secretlab's Titan Evo because of its wider ecosystem of add-ons and colorways, and with a newer, bolder design, those things won't be compatible with the Atlas.

As of launch, Secretlab tells me that none of the Titan Evo's add-ons and attachments are compatible with Atlas, meaning the armrest tops, the limited edition Skins, the licensed colorways, and the recliner are all limited to the Titan Evo models. The Atlas does have a magnetic head pillow like its older sibling, but for now, that's all. I'd be surprised (knowing Secretlab's ongoing support for its products) if we didn't see any add-ons and accessories for it in the future, but for now, it's worth knowing the chair is a standalone within the Secretlab ecosystem before you buy.

The bigger blow here for some folks may be that the massive selection of colorways for the Titan Evo will not translate over to the Atlas, with only some standard Secretlab colorways and upholsteries available at the time of writing. The Atlas is available in Classic Black or Moon colorways with NEO Hybrid Leatherette, or in Softweave Plus Fabric in Black, Cookies & Cream, or my personal favorite, Dune - a sandy-colored beige which looks really classy and neutral in a home office.

Alternatively, if you're willing to spend a little more, the Atlas is also available with NanoFoam Composite, used in the Secretlab Titan Evo NanoGen Edition. This version comes in Nanogen Leather upholstery in Pure Black+ or Pure White+, or with Softweave+NanoFoam Composite in Black+ and Dune+.

The good news is that with a lighter feature set and compatibility suite than the Titan Evo, there's also a lighter price tag - something I've always felt could be better when it comes to this brand's products. The Secretlab Atlas will start at $499 in the US and £399 in the UK - which is some ~$200 cheaper than the Titan Evo, depending on what colorway and add-ons you get with it. The Secretlab Atlas Premium Range will start at $699 in the US and £599 in the UK - again, offering a lot of value over the brand's more expensive limited edition or NanoGen options.

I'm already testing out the Atlas in preparation for my review, but I've only been testing it for a few days so far, so I'm not ready to give my full thoughts. For my early impressions, you can check back soon to read more about why I think it might actually be a better gaming chair than its Titan Evo sibling.

To read more on Secretlab, check out the best gaming desks, the best standing desks, and the best console gaming chair.

I was walking around the Computex show floor this morning when I suddenly came across a range of gaming chairs I hadn't seen before. That doesn't happen all that often with me, since reviewing them regularly means I tend to hear about any new names that enter the space. The folks manning the relatively small booth welcomed me in, and since I'd probably already passed my step count for the day, I happily accepted their invitation and sat down.

The brand is called MarsRhino, and you probably haven't heard of it either because it's a Taiwanese company that doesn't distribute to other regions yet. But having taken a lengthy look at its range of gaming furniture, I sincerely hope that's about to change, because there are innovations here that deserve recognition from the wider market.

First off, they have a solid selection of both ergonomic mesh chairs and cushioned gaming chairs with floating backrests. Here's the interesting part, though: unlike the million and one freely adjusting clicky annoyances currently occupying the shelves, these are all electric.

Yes, electric gaming chairs are becoming a bit of a repetitive theme at the moment, but there isn't anything gimmicky about the ones MarsRhino had to show off. Instead of fiddling around with umpteen different controls and never knowing which lever under your bum controls what adjustable aspect of the chair you're sitting on, MarsRhino has simplified things to an easy electric control panel.

In fact, the latest, flashiest chair in the booth even has a remote control, which might seem stupid at first, but honestly would simplify chair controls even further. The staff at the booth told me that their chair batteries typically last a month, unless you're adjusting constantly and, while I was sitting down, one staff member even switched on a lumbar stretching program - eat that LiberNovo Omni.

Beyond electric frills, I must say that I'm a massive fan of the comfort level each MarsRhino chair has. They reminded me of the late great Boulies Ninja Pro, as each one had a perforated leatherette upholstery that was breathable, but also felt nice and plush to sit down in. Meanwhile, the floating backrest did a great job of supporting my lumbar, in fact - a better job than the Razer Iskur V2 NewGen I've just been testing.

Some of them used magnetic headrests, but one chair I was shown used a clever locking mechanism that allowed the head cushion to "float" just like the lumbar support. In other words, it would extend out from the backrest while still being fixed to it and then pivot and tilt as I moved my head. There's some real mileage to that as a headrest design philosophy, and it might be a way for traditional gaming chairs to compete with fully dynamic options like the aforementioned LiberNovo Omni.

MarsRhino even makes a one-seater gaming couch, which is ideal for living room players looking for the best console gaming chair. This is a niche of the chair market that's been slowly disappearing in recent times, but MarsRhino has managed to make something that looks like a Lazyboy that'd blend right into any living room.

When I'd seen all the chairs MarsRhino had brought to Computex, I was asked if I also reviewed desks. I was then pointed over to what was perhaps the most ingenious product the brand had on the show floor, a height-adjusting desk that also tilted forward and back.

When you first think about this, you may think it's a disaster waiting to happen; I know I certainly did when I saw the desktop tilting towards me. Surely, all the hardware, displays, peripherals, and work you have on your desk will slide off and crash to the floor? Perhaps, but with a fully magnetic surface and a very easy-to-use control panel, you'll have more confidence. Clever magnetic panels can also sit atop desk accessories to ensure nothing light slides off. Obviously, a monitor arm mount is going to be pivotal here, but I just love the concept of it.

There are serious practical uses for this. One thing I hate about reclining in a gaming chair is that when you tilt yourself back, you ruin the viewing angle, eye-height, and armrest level for your desk and monitor. Your arms now have restricted circulation as your forearms press into the corner of a desktop; your focus on the game you're playing will be limited because you're not in the ideal visual spot for your monitor. But with a desk that can tilt toward you, reclining and having the optimal experience is still possible.

Ingenious design - when I saw it, I wondered how no one had thought of it before. I mean, maybe they have, but they don't want people to lose thousands of dollars' worth of gaming hardware from it falling off their desk.

The other use for this is that when you put a height-adjusting desk in standing mode, getting the angles right for your eyes and wrists again becomes a difficulty. I know for me, if I'm in standing mode with my Fezibo L-Shaped Desk, I'll start to experience discomfort with my wrists as I type because although it might be set to the right for my eyes, my arms have to overadjust to reach the keyboard in the same way. Again, the ability to tilt the worktop toward you fixes that completely, and actually might encourage you to use the standing mode on your desk every once in a while - we all know the novelty wears off quickly.

I'm totally won over by this brand's wares. There are some really simple innovations that even the most inventive names in the space, like Secretlab, don't have answers for. I'm told that MarsRhino is currently seeking distribution partners in the US and EU markets to expand its serviced regions, and so I sincerely hope its presence at Computex this week helps that. If not, hey, any readers interested in MarsRhino products, please follow them on socials to keep up to date, or hound your local retailer CEO to start stocking these innovative chairs and desks pronto.

Perfecting your desk setup? You should know about the best gaming PCs, the best gaming monitors, and the best gaming laptops.

It’s always felt as though Elgato is a brand that knows its audience and what they need, sometimes even before they knew they needed it. That approach has seen it steadily grow its range of creator-focused gear from the iconic Stream Deck to microphones, lighting, cameras, and capture cards. There are plenty of creators who rely on Elgato across their setup, so when it announced a chair in 2025, it felt like a left-field, yet logical decision.

The Elgato Embrace isn’t just for creators, though. It’s an ergonomic chair designed for anyone who spends hours at their desk, whether that’s gaming, creating content, or simply working. That premise is familiar enough, and at $499.99 / £499 it’s priced in a pretty familiar way too. That number puts it squarely in the midfield of the best gaming chairs. It’s easy to spend more, but it’s easy to spend a fair bit less, too.

So what makes this chair interesting is how Elgato pitches it. The initial launch took aim at gaming chairs, their pricing, and their setup process, while being pretty bold in directly calling out other brands at the same time. I’ve got no problem with self-confidence, but you need to be ready to back it up if you’re going to come out talking the talk. So the question, then, is whether the Elgato Embrace is ready to walk the walk in a very competitive desk chair market. Is this self-branded “Studio Chair” really that different from what’s already here?

Design & Assembly

I’ve put together more than my fair share of gaming chairs at all points across the budget spectrum. It’s hardly my favorite activity, but it’s never been a source of impending dread either. It’s only a chair, after all; they’re really not that hard to put together.

In its launch of the Embrace, Elgato went full TV shopping network with its portrayal of the ‘normal’ experience and made a point of highlighting how simple the Embrace was in comparison. In fairness, Elgato does leave you with a very simple building process, though I’m not sure it’s that much easier than any modern gaming chair, just quicker to get done. The main improvement is not needing to attach the seat cushion to the base yourself; that comes pre-attached and saves a chunk of the hex key work. Instead, you just pop the wheels into the base, perch the seat on the gas cylinder, and slot the backrest on. It genuinely took about two and a half minutes, so points to Elgato for that.

With it put together, the Embrace is exactly what Elgato promised in the looks department. It's a clean, understated, black office chair. It’s a grown-up’s seat that, dare I say, is almost a little bit boring and certainly quite generic looking; whether that’s for better or worse is a matter of taste. The only Elgato branding sits discreetly on the back of the headrest, which means it looks equally at home on a Twitch stream or a Teams call. It only comes in one color for now, which is a shame but not a problem, and only in one size, which is a shame and slightly more of a problem for some prospective sitters.

It may look like an adult chair from a distance and in marketing materials, but up close, it’s an awkward teenager when it comes to build quality. With the exception of the main seat unit, this is an entirely plastic chair. That’s not necessarily an issue as there's no creaking or obvious flex, but it lacks any premium feel with no real payback. It’s like it doesn’t know what it wants to be. When I’ve seen other brands opt for plastic components, it’s been in the name of cost-saving on their budget lines, and that makes sense. Here, it has the vibe of a chair that's been designed with sustainability in mind but without actually making any specific claims.

Features

The Elgato Embrace comes with the full set of ergonomic adjustments you’d expect to see on a premium chair: seat height, seat depth, lumbar support, a five-step recline system, 4D armrests, and a detachable headrest.

The mesh backrest is breathable and flexible, with a material that feels noticeably softer and less scratchy than some other mesh options I’ve tested before. If you're someone who runs hot during longer sessions or works under studio lights, it does its job perfectly well. Lumbar support is adjustable for both height and depth, and while I’ve never been one for aggressive lumbar support, the Embrace’s is a decent showing. I just wish the vertical adjustment range went a little higher. I’m about 180cm (5’11) and at its highest point, I would have still liked to go a little further; taller users may struggle to get the lumbar positioned exactly where they need it.

The five-step recline uses a tilt limiter rather than a true tilt lock, which is a deliberate ergonomic choice, but it does feel a little prescriptive. You can tighten the resistance so the backrest requires a pretty deliberate lean to move, but you can't dial in a specific angle and fix it there. It’s also worth noting that only the backrest moves, and this is independent of the seat cushion, so your lower half stays where it is regardless, which can be an odd feeling if you’re used to a more traditional tilt.

The included headrest, while fine when you’re reclining, isn't especially useful day-to-day. It's prone to shifting around and can't be completely locked in place, even when you tighten the hex bolts as hard as they'll go. The armrests are a bigger problem. The padding is thin and hard, which is not particularly comfortable on your elbows, but the real frustration is that they simply won't stay put. Height adjustment locks in solidly, no complaints there, but the rotation, forward-backward, and in-out movements have no locking mechanism at all, meaning they shift out of position at the gentlest touch. It's a problem that plagues plenty of chairs at this price (and above), but Elgato has fallen into a common trap with a chair it promised would solve all my annoyances with its rivals.

Performance

After using it as my daily driver for work over the last couple of weeks, I can tell you as far as comfort goes, the Elgato Embrace is entirely adequate without ever being particularly memorable. If you're expecting a plush, welcoming kind of comfort that draws you in, that's not what this chair is. If you’re expecting an incredibly ergonomic experience that’ll solve all your aches and pains, that’s not what this chair is either. I wasn’t disappointed by how it felt to sit on for extended periods, but a bit like its looks, the Embrace is just very standard.

The seat cushion is relatively soft and relatively shallow, too. The foam isn’t particularly dense, with a fast spring-back that leaves it feeling more like a standard mass-produced office chair you'd find in a corporate hot-desking setup than anything particularly premium.

The shape is nice, slightly sculpted but with a flat overall profile and waterfall edge intended to avoid cutting into the back of your legs and promote circulation. It’s a nice change from the aggressively-bucketed seats with high sides that you often find on gaming chairs. The seat is reasonably narrow, however, so larger users should consider other options, and there’s no XL option on offer, I’m afraid, so you’ll need to look elsewhere.

All in all, I don’t have a huge amount of criticism of what the Elgato Embrace is like to use as a studio chair, but it does feel like a chair I’ve sat in hundreds of times before. There’s nothing wrong with that; not every chair needs to be groundbreaking in one way or another, and often brands seem to add features for the sake of saying they’re different. I don’t need built-in air conditioning in my chair, thanks in advance. But the truth is, I came into this expecting more from a chair that had promised so much about shaking up the market and delivering what others haven’t. This is, in essence, a pretty basic mesh office chair trying to cosplay as a premium one.

Should you buy the Elgato Embrace?

The Elgato Embrace is a functional, comfortable-enough ergonomic chair that looks smart on camera and assembles in minutes. If those are your top priorities and you're an Elgato superfan, then there's logic to picking one up. But at $499.99 / £499, the Elgato Embrace has a value problem that it told everyone it was solving. Elgato's entire pitch was about delivering premium, full-featured ergonomic comfort at a more accessible price than the established brands, but what I'm sitting on feels closer to a $250-300 office chair with better branding. The Embrace isn't bad, it's just not $500 good.

In our list of the best gaming chairs, and even outside it, there are better options for one reason or another. Maybe they’re cheaper, maybe they’re more comfortable, maybe they’re a little better executed. The Elgato Embrace is trying to position itself as a premium alternative to both gaming chairs and high-end office chairs, but the build quality, materials, and overall feel don't fully back that up. For a first attempt at furniture from a tech peripherals brand, the Embrace shows promise, but I just wish they’d made a quieter entrance to the market.

How we tested the Elgato Embrace

I used the Elgato Embrace as my primary desk chair for a couple of weeks, using it for a mix of gaming, content, and general productivity. Testing covered extended sessions of four-plus hours at a time, and I paid particular attention to comfort, build quality, and adjustability. I assembled it myself on a carpeted floor and used it with a standard plastic chair mat underneath.

For more details about how we test gaming chairs, take a look at the hardware policy.

There's more where that came from. Check out the best gaming desks, the best standing desks, and the best console gaming chair.

Razer has been in the gaming chair market for a while now, but at the time of writing, it finds itself in a tough spot. Yes, it's facing the same old competition as it always has from the mainstay brands like Secretlab and Herman Miller, but it's the newer, emergent brands and "smaller" names on its flanks that are starting to eat into its market share. Desk chairs, including the best gaming chairs, are in an innovative renaissance right now, and the worst thing a brand can be at a time like that is stagnant.

Razer now has to contend with the likes of LiberNovo and its viral dynamic backrest; it has to deal with AutoFull offering a floating backrest, heating and ventilation, Shiatsu massage features, and 720-degree armrests. Razer has to go up against a million and one ergonomic "office" style chairs that dip into the gaming market, and scrappy brands like Eureka Ergonomic and AndaSeat that try to offer as many features as possible for a more affordable price than you'll find elsewhere. And Razer's answer? Doubling down on the Iskur V2 it came out with over two years ago.

The Razer Iskur V2 NewGen commits the sin of not feeling "new" at all, because while all the other brands duke it out with impressive attributes and innovations, Razer is sticking its hand in the air and shouting, "Hey, remember our chair though?" I certainly do remember the original Iskur V2, as well as its full price tag of $649.99/£649.99, and I'm not sure slapping that sticker back on the "NewGen" version is going to do Razer any favors.

Price

Floating backrests and dynamic lumbar systems are becoming a common theme in the gaming and desk chair market at the moment, and for good reason. It feels as though designers are finally waking up to the fact that adjustability is one thing, but human beings move frequently when they sit down all day, so we need something that can keep up without needing loads of manual adjustments. Razer was one of the first big brands to offer this with the original Razer Iskur V2, which had one of the best lumbar support systems we had come across at the time.

It had an issue, though. It was $649.99/£649.99, which put it at a more expensive cost than the likes of Secretlab (before adding any extras onto the Titan Evo). Even worse, $649 then became a price point to avoid for any smaller brand, so it looked expensive versus newer rivals like the Corsair TC500 Luxe. Eventually, as more innovations started emerging and floating backrests became more commonplace, the Iskur V2 started to look limited compared to something like the AutoFull G7, or indeed the AutoFull M6 Ultra.

I got the impression from covering the gaming chair market in the years following the Iskur V2's release that, while it offered quality, it suffered because of its high price. When a chair starts drifting further and further away from its launch price and into discount aisles more often than not, you get the impression it's struggling to keep up with the competition. Soon enough, I started seeing the Iskur V2 in the discount aisle during Prime Day, Black Friday, and pretty much every other seasonal sale on the calendar. Then, all of a sudden, it was nowhere to be seen - I could barely find stock to recommend it at most of the big e-tailers.

Its cheaper alternative, the Razer Iskur V2 X, meanwhile, seemed to show that the brand was prepared to offer a simpler, more affordable gaming chair than usual, and I had hoped this was a sign of things to come for the inevitable Iskur V3. Lo and behold, the Iskur V2 NewGen was announced at CES 2026. Truth be told, it had Benjamin, our incomparable Tabletop and Merch Editor (who reviewed the original Iskur V2 for us), and me scratching our heads. Costing the same $649 as its predecessor did, its big selling point was a new, more breathable leatherette upholstery and... not much else?

I remember asking Benjamin if he's ever had an issue with the leatherette on the Iskur V2 not being breathable enough. He said no, and he's sat in it since reviewing it. I looked online to see if folks on Reddit had been complaining about temperature control issues in the Iskur V2. I couldn't see anything, so I'm a tad perplexed at this refresh.

Thankfully, Razer isn't charging more for this new model than it did previously. But I can't help but look at this as a way to discontinue the frequently-discounted Iskur V2, bring back the original price, and sell again with the premise of "New".

Design & Features

Because there's no avoiding it, the Iskur V2 NewGen is essentially the exact same chair as the original. In many ways, it feels like an answer to the Secretlab Titan Evo NanoGen Edition. It's essentially the same product, but the emphasis on refreshing it has been through using a new upholstery, a more breathable cushioning setup, and slightly widening the dimensions.

To actually determine what is different about the NewGen model, I've scoured the product pages for both versions of the Iskur V2. The original's hyperflex backrest was called the "World's First 6D adaptive & adjustable lumbar support", while the NewGen model rebrands it to the "World's First Razer Hyperflex Lumbar Support System" - from the descriptions, both do the same thing. Similarly, both chairs are said by Razer to use "Dual-Density, Cold-Cured Foam Seat Cushions", but the new model has a breathable, perforated design. By the looks of it, the seat on the NewGen edition has also been widened slightly both in its shoulder curvature and seatbase.

Of course, the Razer Gen-2 EPU Leather with Cooltouch Technology is the biggest departure, and is apparently 13x more durable than regular PU leather. Elsewhere, all the listed designs and features of both seats are identical.

I do think only adding a new upholstery and some color options (the NewGen edition is available in Black and Green, Black, Quartz, and Light Grey) is a bit of a copout, even if there are other minor changes. But I don't misunderstand that new upholstery can make a big difference to any chair. People don't realize it, but one upholstery versus another can fundamentally alter the comfort and plushness of a seat.

If a leather or a fabric material is put together with too tight a weave, then it won't have the stretch it needs to really bend into the cushioning under your weight. Similarly, if the fabric is too loose, the hard work a brand has done finding the exact cushioning firmness they want will be compromised. Don't use a premium material, or don't use the right amount over each chair section, and it'll fray and damage over time. There's a lot to think about with gaming chair upholstery, so I don't mistake how big a change it can make.

From my experience with the Secretlab Titan Evo NanoGen, I don't feel upholstery alone can make a big enough difference on its own, though. For its NanoGen model, Secretlab went back to the foundations and added a whole new level of cushioning at the same time - and even then, it didn't make a massive difference for me personally. From all the marketing and press material I can see, it doesn't seem as though Razer has added new cushioning to this seat, just made it more breathable.

Carrying over from the original, you get 4D armrests, reactive seat tilt, and 152 degrees of recline.

Assembly

One thing I do have to applaud is Razer's assembly process, not because it's any more streamlined than your average gaming chair, but mainly because of the consolidation of packaging and the unique charm and personality given to the process. Upon first opening the box, you'll be met with a whimsical placard and a pair of nylon gloves. Razer is clearly catering to its audience here with nerdy Thanos references as well as some excellent sitting position warnings. A+ for humour - it's not something I've seen in any other gaming chair assembly process.

Jokes aside, the addition of a pair of gloves actually comes in really handy during the build. They're not going to save your fingers from being crushed, but I have broken skin a couple of times while putting one of these things together. Not only that, they help to keep the chair clean, and your hands free of any oils that might be put on the metalwork for lubrication purposes. Maybe this is something brands like Secretlab should add to their included toolkits.

Assembly was fairly easy, the standard steps of how to build a gaming chair, so not anything to really report here. I did manage to build it myself, but then again, I am a professional, so if you struggle lifting heavy parts, a co-op partner can come in handy.

Performance

In a general sense, the Razer Iskur V2 NewGen is a really decent gaming chair with good build quality and a reasonable level of cushioning. Some chairs struggle to strike a balance between support and comfort, and the jury's still well and truly out on what is too firm and too soft - because every brand in the market has different ideas.

The Iskur V2 NewGen feels comfortable to fall into, and in the three or so weeks I tested it, I didn't notice myself with a numb rear end that made me shuffle into new positions often.

In a similar way, I really like the armrests. They have quite a plush surface to them and a really great shape that means your forearms have a flat surface to glide across while using mouse movements. There aren't infinite height adjustments, but I felt I had loads of scope to match up the exact level I needed for my desktop. I'd also like to applaud Razer for sticking to a more traditional 4D armrest system. Each dimension is controlled by a release catch, none of this clicky rotation nonsense, which never fails to fall out of position and infuriate me.

Overall, there's a lot to like about this chair, which is why, for all my reservations about its price and its lack of innovations, I would still recommend it. On the other hand, I do think this is a chair for gamer that's above my height.

There's a bit too much seat depth here for people under 6ft to really benefit from the ergonomics it offers. Don't get me wrong, I love having lots of seat depth and a bit more width to the seatbase, so I have the ability to cross my legs over or shuffle my weight onto one side if need be. But too much depth will start to encourage you outward from the back of the chair, moving your lower back away from where it's supposed to be, and sneakily introducing a slouching position as you sink deeper into it. That then makes the lumbar support less effective, and the chair's ergonomics as a whole suffer a bit.

Again, this is a problem I had as a 5'10 man, so your mileage may vary, but it completely threw the ergonomics Razer was clearly going for out of whack. I couldn't, for the life of me, find a lumbar adjustment that suited my back. Even at its lowest setting, I felt like my spine was being hyperextended. This Iskur V2 NewGen just feels to me like an XL chair that would suit larger frames a bit better.

This is where the price really starts to bother me, because I've tested more affordable gaming chairs, like the Eureka Ergonomic Python II, that offer almost an identical experience to the Iskur V2 (albeit without adjustable lumbar support) and do the entire ergonomic setup better. That chair comes in at half the price of the Iskur V2 NewGen, and has an even more substantial seat cushion, so there's very little excuse to be made for Razer charging as much as it does.

One thing I cannot understand going unchanged from the original Iskur V2, is the headrest. Back when my colleague Ben reviewed it, we raised the point that even back then, neck pillows with wraparound straps were out of date compared to more efficient magnetic ones. While testing the original, the headrest would continually shift out of position, and the new model suffers the same.

In fact, it pinged off the back of the NewGen model so often during testing that I decided the only way to remedy it was to take it off entirely. Without that neck pillow to encourage me to sit upright though, I felt my head falling forward far too often, again encouraging a slouched position.

It's 2026, and magnetic neck pillows are by far becoming the norm for gaming chairs, especially over $400. I cannot fathom why, if it were coming out with a NewGen model, Razer wouldn't look to make this change.

But instead, Razer focused on breathability, and if I'm totally honest, I'm not sure it shows. The leather material used on the NewGen edition feels premium and certainly cooling to the touch, but it isn't a perforated leatherette, which I would think of as a more breathable alternative.

Testing it in my Scottish flat as the temperature rises gently into the Summer months, a "breathable" option shouldn't have too much trouble staying cool. I still felt the backrest trapping heat, hugging my t-shirt, and I'd still have to peel myself away after a long period sitting in it. It really isn't as cooling as I think the brand intended, and I shudder to think how it would fare in countries that actually get warm during Summer.

If I get really nitpicky, it's also a bit infuriating when this leather material squeaks as you move around in the chair. Floating backrests can have this problem as upholstery needs to stand up to the friction of moving parts, but the leather used here is so much louder and doesn't fill me with confidence about longevity - even if Razer claims it's more durable.

Should you buy the Razer Iskur V2 NewGen?

Not at full price, no. I really do not think this is a chair that's worth $649/£649, and I expect Razer is going to find that out again as we see it start to drop in price. It may take a year, it may take a year and a half, but I don't see this almost identical design to the original Iskur V2 performing too well in a market that's moved on from it in many ways.

Further, I'd personally recommend that if you're under 6ft tall, you look at something else. Your mileage and somatotype may vary from mine, but this feels like a gaming chair designed for larger frames.

If you do manage to get it discounted by $100-200, I'd recommend it. There's a really decent chair here, with solid armrests and good cushioning.

How I tested the Razer Iskur V2 NewGen

I used the latest Razer Iskur as my chair for daily work and play for about three weeks before coming to a final verdict in this review. I usually like to test a chair for a full month, but seeing as we've already done longevity tests with the original model, I feel more confident taking less time with the new one.

I sat in it for around 8 hours a day and beyond when I was gaming at my desk on top of a remote working life. I assembled it alone, I configured the backrest and lumbar support in many different ways to get a feel for how it could serve both my and readers' bodies. I compared it against previous versions of the Iskur on specs and price, and compared it closely with my experience of sitting in loads of different types of gaming chairs over years of reviewing them.

For more on how we test gaming chairs, take a look at our hardware policy.

There's a lot of gaming hardware out there. Take a look at the best gaming desk, the best standing desk, and the best console gaming chair.

LiberNovo, the company behind 2025's viral Kickstarter chair, is expanding its offering. Three new versions of its popular Omni chair are set to hit the shelves, catering to distinct portions of the market. Yes, that supposedly includes different budgets too, so if the current best gaming chair is out of your reach, you may now be within swinging distance of affording one.

The first of three new LiberNovo chairs you can pre-order through the company's website is the Omni SE, an "entry level" model (although no prices are available at the time of writing), which gives you the same great dynamic support backrest as the original Omni, but takes out the electronics that supposedly drive up its price. The Omni SE still has adjustable lumbar support, but with a practical screw-driven mechanism.

If you can believe it, LiberNovo is also launching a new "upgraded" model of its chair, called the LiberNovo Omni Pro. And here I was thinking a highly innovative chair that costs around $1,000 is pretty "pro" already. The second of the freshly introduced chair range boasts a centrifugal fan system that ensures ventilation while you're sitting. It must be said, in all the time I've been sitting in the original LiberNovo Omni, I've never had trouble with it blocking in too much heat, but then again, I am based in Scotland.

The LiberNovo Omni Pro will be available in a new colorway as well, thanks to an expansion of the upholstery the brand offers. The Omni Pro will come in the standard Soft-Touch Stretch Olefin material, but an added Soft-Grain Woven Fabric will be introduced along with a Sanish Gabriel Atlantic Fabric. The new colorway will come in the Woven Fabric, which is a super-vibrant green.

Last but certainly not least is the LiberNovo Omni Maxis Series, which redesigns the breadth and scale of the Omni to suit big and tall bodies. This could be a huge addition for gamers in particular, since a larger-set backrest will accommodate a wider range of the market and match up in size with a lot of gaming chair rivals. In fairness, the original Omni does have a fairly narrow, one-size-fits-all backrest width for how dynamic it is. The Maxis has a wider backrest and a deeper seat, not to mention larger backrest slats to better support larger frames.

The Maxis actually opens up a new range within a range for LiberNovo. There's the Maxis Electric, which is the equivalent of the original LiberNovo Omni, then the Maxis Manual, a larger set version without electronics (supposedly for a more affordable cost), then the Maxis Airflow, which comes with the Omni Pro's fan system. The Maxis chairs will be available in the original Soft-Touch Stretch Olefin Fabrics, or the new Danish Gabriel Atlantic Fabric, both in either Black or white/grey.

“Following the strong response to our original Omni chair, expanding our lineup was a natural nextstep,” said Alex Yan, Founder & CEO at LiberNovo. “With the Maxis Series we’re addressing a critical gap in the market—bringing high-performance ergonomic design to users who have traditionally been underserved. Across the entire range, our goal remains the same: to help people sit better and live better.”

Regardless of the model you choose, LiberNovo chairs will now come with five set recline levels, as opposed to the four on the original. It's unconfirmed at this point whether or not the original Omni will now ship with the expanded range of recline levels, or it will stick with the four it's always had.

Annoyingly, despite these new chairs being available for pre-order, no prices for them have been published. The brand is running an early bird offer, which means paying a refundable deposit of $10 that unlocks up to $30 in savings on the chair of your choice. Deposit holders who complete a purchase by July 31st will receive a one-year extended warranty.

The new chair range officially launches on June 16, and if I'm honest, I'm not a fan at all of how these pre-orders are being handled. Yes, the deposit isn't big, and it's refundable, but not publishing prices of the new products before accepting pre-orders isn't very consumer-friendly. I assume this is some way of gauging demand so the brand can get a jump on production demands, but even so, if prices are too high for people after the fact, there might be lots of backing out, and thus, inventory left over.

Either way, knowing a price is pretty common practice with any online purchase, especially one like a new, premium desk chair.

What's more, I'm not sure offering an extended warranty to some early adopters is the right way to go about things. The original LiberNovo Omni has reviewed very well, but the biggest and most common concerns with it stem from warranty worries, so I don't think offering some customers more security than others is very fair from a brand that's still in its first full year in the consumer market.

Given the pricing fluctuations and Kickstarter uncertainty around the cost of the first Omni, I would have really appreciated some up-front transparency on how much each new chair will cost if I were shopping for the new models today. I sincerely hope the "entry-level" Omni SE actually comes with an "entry-level" price point that's in line with the rest of the gaming/ergonomic/office chair market. Around $500 is a decent entry point for a good chair these days, and even that is a lot for most customers.

While LiberNovo is doing innovative things with dynamic backrest support, its build quality is a bit more suspect than other brands in the space, with a fair bit of plastics used. It'd be amazing to get to recommend the ergonomics this brand offers to a more affordable subset of the market, so let's hope the pricing for this model is fair.

Since reviewing the original LiberNovo Omni, it's been my mainstay chair thanks to its awesome versatility and comfort. No other chair I've tested has the ability to move with me throughout the day, and although it's extremely expensive, it's undeniably the best chair I've tested. I'll be keen to see how the new models land.

For more, take a look at the best gaming desks, the best standing desks, and the best console gaming chairs.

Last year, my social media feeds seemed to ignite with targeted ads and forum posts about a gaming chair that was going viral on Kickstarter. Beyond the gimmicky headline of "this chair has a bionic backrest", the spotlights that were shone on this chair ended up being more than warranted. In my over three years of reviewing the best gaming chairs, I've never found one that's better than the LiberNovo Omni.

But like other absolute luxury chairs before it from brands like Herman Miller, it is horrifically expensive. For reassurance, let me tell you that you do not need to spend around a $1,000 to get a great gaming seat, but it's hard to put a price on the innovation, design, and serene comfort the Omni can give you. Well... I say that, but Amazon is trying to put a lower price on those things as we speak.

There's an important buzzword you'll discover if you go shopping for a new chair, and it's "ergonomics". A lot of gaming chairs try to be ergonomic, and some base their entire design around it, but it feels like few of them understand it as a concept like LiberNovo does.

Ergonomics is about applying physiology to the design of products. A controller can be ergonomic because it fits comfortably within the shape of your hands without you needing to adjust and strain yourself to meet it. A chair can be ergonomic because it allows you to sit comfortably while maintaining healthy spine posture. But here's the issue that LiberNovo worked out - we don't just sit in one position all day long. We move, we're restless, we fidget and shift our weight around, and while a few chairs with floating lumbar support have tried to figure that issue out, none have succeeded like the LiberNovo Omni.

The entire backrest is made up of agile support rows that line up with your spine, which means they all move independently and can sync up with your back as it moves. The backrest also has a very high-tech lumbar stretch program built into it, so you can recline all the way back and get what feels like a full 5-minute lumbar decompression - free of a trip to the chiropractor.

What's really made the difference for me when it comes to the Omni are two features in particular. The first is an amazing group of reclining settings.

When you recline in most desk-based gaming chairs, you'll throw the whole thing out of whack. Your armrests won't be level with your desk anymore; you'll need to adjust your lumbar support or your cushions to suit your new sitting position. The view you have of your screen will be completely opposed to the ergonomics your chair is shooting for. That isn't the case with the LiberNovo Omni.

When you recline back in this chair, the intuitive design keeps everything about your healthy, upright position in alignment. Even if your head is now at a slightly lower level, you don't have to crank your neck up the way to keep your eyes on your game. Because the backrest moves with you, there's little to no adjustment needed from you to maintain good posture; it happens as you lean back into a more relaxed position. Even the armrests manage to maintain the exact level you set them to in the upright position.

Gone are the days when I was reluctant to recline in a gaming chair and felt like I was missing the laid-back comfort of the couch. When I'm gaming at my desk, I feel just as comfortable as I would on the sofa.

The other thing I absolutely love about this chair is its cushioning. A lot of chairs follow the school of thought that for it to properly support your body, it needs to be firmer, but that often comes at the expense of comfort. I think there's merit to that, because if you sit for too long in a really plush sofa, you might feel a bit stiff, you might struggle to get up, and long-term, it's probably not going to do wonders for your body.

But LiberNovo made allowances here. The frame of the Omni is sturdy, the cushioning isn't massively thick, and the build quality is solid. With the shape of it complementing the human body, and with freely moving parts that adapt to you, it means the cushioning can be softer and more comfortable. It's a dreamlike mix of plush cushioning and epic posture support.

Annoyingly, a chair this good isn't going to be affordable for everyone. There are absolutely alternatives that give similar design points for less cash, like the brilliant Fractal Refine, but if you can stretch to this Kickstarter sensation from 2025, I can't recommend it more strongly.

For more on gaming hardware, check out the best gaming PCs, the best VR headsets, and the best PC controllers.

I'm going to say it; Corsair's gaming chairs are really underrated. Two of my favorite go-to recommendations are made by this brand, which may be surprising since Corsair is known for its PC components, not its seats. But as Amazon's big UK Spring Sale kicks off, Corsair is leading the charge with some of the best gaming chair deals I've seen so far in 2026.

First off, our favorite budget gaming chair, the Corsair TC100 Relaxed, is back down to its record-low price of £149 at Amazon (despite its dull price being £199). If you're on the hunt for something a bit more premium, the Corsair TC500 Luxe, the brand's flagship chair, is down to £379.99, which is actually an even deeper saving than the one above. It has a full price of £499.99, so this is the type of discount you only ever see a few times throughout the year.

But which one is right for you? Let's kick things off with the budget-friendly option. The TC100 Relaxed might be dubbed a "budget" gaming chair, but don't let that fool you. Compared to other chairs under £250, this one packs in a lot of build quality, cushioning, and adjustability. You don't get 4D armrests, but they will move up and down and to either side to meet the level of your desk.

Its current deal price is available in both the fabric Black and Grey colorways, but either will give you an upholstery that looks quite understated. The silhouette of the TC100 Relaxed definitely feels appropriate for a gaming setup, but it's not overtly going to disrupt the feng shui of a living room either.

The biggest pitfalls of this chair? Well, it is a budget option, which means you're going to miss out on some of the perks of pricier models. You get a lumbar and neck/head cushion as added bonuses, but those pale in comparison to adjustable lumbar support that's integrated into more expensive seats. Case in point, the neck cushion especially, is particularly hard, and during testing, I actually took mine off because it felt like my head was being pushed out of alignment with the rest of the seat.

But if that's a problem for you, and you want a bit more of a premium feel, why not check out the TC500 Luxe?

The TC500 Luxe's armrests are more easily adjusted, so much so that they actually click in and out of position without locking mechanisms - but that's besides the point. This chair does have integrated lumbar support, and you can use some twisty wheels on the side of it to move it up, down, back, and forward to suit the curve of your spine.

Where you'd notice a marked step up in quality is with this chair's neck pillow, because it actually feels like a beautifully plush neck cushion, and it magnetically snaps onto the chair's headrest. No annoying straps to loop through, no rigid support that makes you feel as though your head is being pushed forward.

I'm also a huge fan of how this chair looks. It's got three colorways, but it looks as though only two are available at Amazon right now. Either way, you have a choice between grey and white, and either will come in this luxurious leatherette-fabric hybrid. The best way I can describe it is a more malleable suede material, but it feels really comfortable to sit in an really great for temperature control.

The real design perk of the TC500 Luxe comes from its width. I'd actually argue the armrests are a little too far apart for my liking, but the seatbase being so wide means you can cross your legs or switch up your position in lots of ways and still benefit from that plush cushioning.

If you're trying to upgrade more of your setup, you might also want to read about the best gaming desks, the best standing desks, and the best microphones for streaming and gaming.

Cut to January of 2025; it's CES time, and my jaw is just about on the floor. Razer has just revealed that it's launching a budget-friendly gaming chair. I thought that was some kind of (very) early April Fool's joke at the time. Razer's gaming chairs have always been great, but the thought of a budget-friendly one sounds a bit impossible for a brand known for "Razer tax".

But a little more than a year on, the Iskur V2 X is actually even better value than what I thought was a joke price. This chair hasn't seen its MSRP of $299 since before the start of the year, and although it enjoyed a prolonged period down at $249, it's sitting at $269.99 at Amazon currently. For a budget product from a premium brand, I didn't expect that we'd see discounts on this regularly, but with a prolonged absence of that $300 full price, it's becoming one of the easiest entry-level recommendations in the gaming chair market.

Sometimes, a bit of gaming hardware never sitting at its original price is a sign of poor sales, a dodgy product, or a troublesome market. Other times, like now, I think it has less to do with the quality of the product and how it's being received, and more to do with how the competition is faring. See, little did Razer know back in January of 2025, but AndaSeat was also launching a budget-friendly gaming chair that matched up very well against the Razer Iskur V2 X.

The AndaSeat Novice doesn't have the kind of marketing and exposure that a name like Razer does, but that brand's budget throne has a full price of $249 ($50 less than Razer's). It's also seen frequent discounts since launch, down to $229 at AndaSeat, like it is currently.

I'm not so sure Razer is basing its pricing solely on one brand's rival product, but I wouldn't be surprised if it's keeping its eye on competitors because these are both really worthwhile chairs for the money if you're a gamer looking for a new place to sit without splashing out big bucks for a flagship.

Whatever the reason, Razer's budget gaming chair asks even less of your wallet now than it did back then. If I were you, I'd enjoy that continued discount while it lasts because it was announced at CES this year that a new model of the V2 X will appear at some point with updated upholstery that will help to keep it cool as a refreshed version of the Iskur V2 also hits the shelves. That model will likely cling to its MSRP, and the current stock of original chairs will probably disappear.

For its budget price, the Razer Iskur V2 X lacks the adjustable lumbar support and floating backrest of the full-fat Razer Iskur V2, but it still has a lot of features worth considering versus budget brands' level of quality.

For a chair of this price, it has integrated lumbar support, which isn't all that common. No, you won't be able to adjust it, but it's built into the design of the seat as opposed to being an awkward and clunky cushion that doesn't really do as much as it promises.

Elsehwere, you'll get 2D armrests, generous recline for the money, and Razer's premium look and design work.

If you're looking to spruce up your gaming space, check out the best gaming desks, the best standing desks, and the best gaming PCs.

I have not been blessed with one of the best gaming chairs for the last few years. Instead, I've been making do with a $100 Amazon-job with ripped armrests, a flat cushion, and a seat base that was far, far too wide. After a few too many evenings with aching across my shoulders, I realized my posture needed to change fast, and the cradle I was sitting in for hours every day wasn't going to help matters.

Here's my problem. When I have too much space to sit on a chair, I tend to cross my legs and squish - frog style. If the backrest doesn't support my slightly-forward posture, I naturally make things worse by hunching and crunching my neck. In other words, I'm a chiropractor's dream and worst nightmare. That's why I knew I needed a gaming chair with a floating backrest. Enter the Autofull M6 Ultra.

Gaming chairs are great and all, but they're generally made for a wider, taller body type. That leaves me with an empty space behind me that forces my shoulders to hunch as I type. If that's a familiar sensation, I'd seriously recommend looking into a gaming chair with a floating backrest.

Since I've completed my Autofull M6 Ultra 2.0 review, I've noticed myself relaxing back into the lumbar cushion a lot more than usual. The lumbar support of my old gaming chair never quite hit my actual back, forcing me forwards a lot more. Being able to pull that cushion outwards means I can still keep my cross-legged ways while holding my shoulders level and my spine straight. The 'floating' part also means that the rest follows me as I move. When I'm a proper grown-up, with my feet on the ground, everything is aligned just right.

It's not just Autofull playing in this space, either. The GamesRadar+ team isn't left wanting for gaming chairs with floating back rests. There are three more that we recommend on the daily.

Eureka Ergonomic Python II

The Eureka Ergonomic Python II comes in considerably cheaper than the Autofull M6 Ultra II, but still offers a floating backrest with dynamic lumbar support. While it's not quite as adjustable as Autofull's fully retractable system or Razer's rollable dials, you're still getting extra roaming support for your back.

I wouldn't recommend this model to those having the same issue as me. If you're too small for your gaming chair, I'd still opt for a set of cushions with a floating back that can push out into the seat depth. However, if it's the dynamic movement you're after, this is the best value on the market right now.

A fabric design keeps those temperatures down, and Duncan loved the comfort on offer in our Eureka Ergonomic Python II review. Just be warned that there's no headrest here, and those arm supports look a little backwards.

Autofull G7

The Autofull G7 offers a different take on the floating back support of the M6 Ultra. This is a full mesh chair for ultimate breathability, but it offers a lumbar belt across the lower back that cradles rather than pushes as you sit. It's a spring-loaded system designed to follow your back around while still providing additional customization in the way its sides fold out and how far up the chair it sits. There's no option to push the lumbar support further into the depth of the chair, though.

In our Autofull G7 review, Duncan was particularly appreciative of that seemingly endless adjustability, with fantastic arm rests (and plenty of action in them) and general ergonomics throughout. The G7 also manages two rare feats; it offers an actually comfortable mesh seat base and garnered praise for its footrest (that's difficult to do).

Razer Iskur V2

The Razer Iskur V2 has a spec sheet that reads like an older version of the Autofull M6 Ultra 2.0, just without the heating and cooling features. The V2 benefits from a similar adjustable lumbar support system, complete with a scroll dial on the side, that can move up, down, as well as inward and outward. That means you're still getting that floating back support when sitting forward in the chair.

Ben took on our Razer Iskur V2 review and still uses this set of cushions to this day. Yes, it's a little more expensive than the competition; that's Razer tax for you. Its premium build and subtle design have helped it stay afloat against the rest of the market, though.

It's worth noting that you lose the additional headrest adjustment of the Autofull M6 Ultra here. This noggin cushion is simply strapped onto the back.

Should you buy a gaming chair with a floating back rest?

It should be obvious by now that my personal recommendation for anyone with a smaller body type would be to opt for a floating back rest. In the last few months, I've noticed how the empty space previously sitting between myself and my chair forced me into unnatural and spinally horrendous positions. Since being able to keep my lower back firmly in place, I'm fidgeting less and noticing less of a strain across my shoulders and neck.

Aside from my personal experience, though, gaming chairs with floating back rests provide greater ergonomic support for your whole body. Every time you move out of the optimal position in a regular gaming chair, you're essentially asking different parts of your body to take an unnatural strain. When your chair can adjust to meet you where you're sitting, while dynamically moving with you as you shift, that stress is removed.

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We're also hunting down all the best console gaming chairs and the best pink gaming chairs for those after something a little brighter. Or, check out the best gaming desks for a full setup refresh.

The latest Secretlab collection is here, and this time, it gives Pokémon fans something to swoon over. The new collection of gaming chairs from the brand gives you the choice between three iconic Pokémon to adorn the Titan Evo. Of course, the first is Pikachu, but you can also pick between a Gengar and an Eevee Edition.

Despite most Secretlab collections making a play on existing upholsteries from the brand, the Secretlab Pokémon collection uses microsuede and velour for a special texture and look. Secretlab says this is to convey the soft and plush feel of the original characters. As you might expect, these chairs don't come cheap, starting at $684 / £549 at Secretlab.

Along with a central depiction of each Pokémon, I think my favorite detail of each chair comes on the sides of the backrest. Each one has line art illustrations of evolutions, expressions, and poses from the Pokémon it represents. This is classic Secretlab collab work, because you do really get a feel for attention to detail with each one.

"Much like some of the biggest Pokémon fans today, I also grew up with the franchise", says Irene Tee, Senior Product Graphic Designer at Secretlab. "That’s why we wanted this chair collection to speak to the inner child in all of us, while still being elevated with craftsmanship that would appeal to our now grown-up selves.

"Every detail you see is an intentional decision made to achieve this — from using materials like velour to emulate the softness of each Pokémon to weaving their most iconic colors into a gradient effect,” she said.

As you'll see above, Secretlab actually teased the collection (rather unstubtly, if I may say so) on social media a few days ago, and the commented reactions spanned from many a Pikachu GIF to an aptly put, "Ooo a new pokemon thing I won't be able to afford and watch millions of others enjoy😍".

Another nice touch with the design of this collection is that each Pokémon's Pokédex number is displayed on the backrest, giving those catch-em-all fans a smaller reference to nod to. Speaking of which, the press information I've received doesn't make any mention of these designs being made available as a part of the brand's Skins collection, so if you were hoping to add one of these designs to your current Titan Evo, you may need to wait for now. I've reached out to Secretlab for confirmation on this.

It's worth noting that, besides the looks and specialized upholstery, you're not getting any special features that the regular Titan Evo doesn't have. These designs aren't for the Evo Lite or the Secretlab Titan Evo Nanogen either, so that's something to consider if you want either the entry-level or high-end model of Secretlab's iconic chair.

The Pokémon collection is available now, joining the litany of other Secretlab officially licensed collaborations like Warhammer 40K, Dragon Ball Z, Monster Hunter, Cyberpunk 2077, Game of Thrones, to name a few.

For more on Secretlab, check out the best gaming desks, the best standing desks, and the best console gaming chairs.

Floating backrests have been one of the emerging trends in the gaming chair market for the last few years, and I'm grateful. See, our human bodies are horribly inefficient at staying in any one position for too long. Honestly, when you think about it, sitting down is actually a pretty arduous process because we're constantly shuffling positions to avoid a numb rear end, back ache, or some other ailment from the simple act of staying still. Crossing one leg under the other for a bit? Hope you're happy to move again in 20 minutes when circulation to your leg gets cut off.

Try as we might to combat this problem, gaming chairs, couches, and armchairs can still fall short because they don't cater to more than one sitting position. In many ways, trying to cater to as many sitting positions as possible is the goal of any ergonomic, adjustable gaming chair these days, but floating backrests are one of the latest quick fixes.

However, because a floating backrest that moves with you throughout the day feels like a novel concept, brands are charging a premium for it. Eureka Ergonomic isn't, and one of the reasons I love this chair is that it offers excellent value for money. $349.99 / £349 is a steal compared to Razer, AutoFull, or LiberNovo, all of whom charge from $699 up to $1,000 for their equivalents.

Design & Features

The Eureka Ergonomic Python II definitely follows the conventional shape of a gaming chair. There's the outline of a traditional racer-style backrest, complete with deep cuts around its borders. Where the shape differs from convention is by having a more pronounced concave shape, particularly in the upper half of its backrest.

This is maybe my first major red flag from the Python II in terms of its ergonomics, because a harsher bend in the way will naturally encourage your shoulders to slouch forward, and your upper body to cave into your chest. That's sort of the opposite of what you want from a posture-supporting gaming chair, and you can see how much of a contrast there is here versus something like the Fractal Refine, or the LiberNovo Omni.

It may not look like it from marketing images, but another way this chair stands out is by having a much thicker seat cushion than other gaming chairs. I know a big concern for a close friend of mine is that a gaming chair is only as good as the lifespan of its cushions. As soon as they start to wear down or lose their shape after long-term use, there are very few ways of making them feel new again. I have so much confidence in this seat cushion that it'll hold its shape and comfort for a long time, simply due to how substantial it is.

The Python II is available in three colors. I've chosen the Gray model to test, which I wouldn't normally, but I think this one has some really lovely, lighter tones to it, with blue accents here and there that give it some personality. This is a really low-profile design for a gaming seat too, which means it'd fit perfectly in a work-from-home office and not draw too much attention. The Python II is also available in a Blue color, which is really more of a dark grey with a few blue highlights. Similarly, the Red version is more of a grey/black with a couple of red stripes.

The Python II is only available with fabric upholstery, which might seem like a limitation, but I actually think this is one of those rare occasions when a chair wouldn't really suit having PU leather - for reasons I'll come to.

In terms of features, you're also looking at 4D armrests and all the usual tilt, recline, and height adjustment you'd expect from a desk chair. Perhaps the biggest draw here is the floating backrest that gives you what Eureka claims is 4D adjustable lumbar support. I think calling this adjustable lumbar support is a bit of a stretch, personally. Unlike the Razer Iskur V2, the Python II's backrest doesn't have a set of scroll wheels on its side you can use to set the shape, depth, and angle of the floating backrest. Instead, the Python II's lumbar support is set to a standard depth, and when you sit in the chair, it pivots in all sorts of angles to move with your body.

Assembly

Thanks to a fairly traditional design, the Python II has a bog-standard assembly process as far as gaming chairs go. You can follow the simple steps of how to build a gaming chair, and nothing will really let you down compared to any other desk chair you may have assembled before. Everything came neatly packaged, there were handy instructions and tools, and compared to rival products, I didn't feel like an irresponsible amount of packaging was being used.

The only snag that I fell prey to was one of the final steps of the process, which asks you to put some thin bolts through the side brackets, into the sides of your chair, and cover up the otherwise messy bolts that secure the backrest to the seat.

These bolts just didn't reach far enough through the brackets and into the chair's fabric to be helpful. The plastic grooves in the brackets didn't hold either, resulting in the bolt pushing through the bracket and falling out. What's more, the plastic brackets don't fit well either. There's nothing here to click them into place and secure them down like there is on the Secretlab Titan Evo NanoGen Edition, and with bolts that aren't fit for purpose, they hang off the sides. This is a real shame since it's the only thing that gives away this chair's price point; the rest of the product is designed so well, and with really sturdy build quality that you'd expect from a much more expensive seat.

Performance

Overall, I really like the floating backrest on the Python II. I really would have liked some adjustability, because I think a one-size-fits-all approach very seldom works - especially when you're making a chair that should try its best to cater to all sorts of somatotypes. But if you're on a budget and you do want a dynamic backrest, I've yet to see many priced as reasonably as this. My lower back does feel supported in this chair even without the adjustability, and it makes me think Razer missed a trick.

The Iskur V2 made a name for itself with its floating backrest that you could adjust, but the more affordable version, the Razer Iskur V2 X, almost felt like it didn't share the same DNA because it just had a standard backrest. Maybe a non-adjustable, pivoting backrest like this would have been a better budget option that would have kept the Iskur V2's identity consistent. In that respect, Eureka has Razer beat.

I think there's something to be said for backrests that pivot and slide around as you move your body. Some, like the AutoFull G7, arguably take this a step too far with spring-loaded lumbar support that can feel a bit intrusive. But combined with a generously wide seat cushion that doesn't have raised borders along the side, you have a chair that caters to loads of sitting positions and doesn't miss out on the posture support while doing so. I can cross one leg under the other, I can cross both my legs up onto the seat, or just lean over to one side of the Python II, and I still benefit from lumbar support. I can even, rather unrealistically, rotate a bit diagonally, and the Python II's backrest rolls with me.

There's great movement with this chair's backrest, although that movement can sometimes welcome some unwanted movement from the fabric components rubbing together. This is exactly why I don't think a leather version of this chair would work. Although the friction isn't too bad, there's enough noise while moving the backrest panel around that I think a leather model would be even louder.

Despite my admiration of the lower half of the Python II's backrest, I'm not the biggest fan of the upper half. As I described in the design and features section, the shoulders curve in just a bit too much for my liking. About a week or so into testing this chair, I started to experience a strange tightness in my chest (which shouldn't raise alarm bells; it definitely wasn't a heart thing). It was a stiffness in my pectoral muscles, and lo and behold, straightening my upper back and stretching more regularly fixed it.

I really do think this is a backrest shape that encourages slouching, so I wouldn't be surprised if other people who have bought this chair have experienced a similar thing. No matter how supported your lumbar is, caving in your upper back and slumping your shoulders forward is not a healthy position to sit in at length. As much as I like the design of this chair, I'd really like to see a Python III that doesn't have such an aggressive curve shape.

I can't lie, I do feel a bit short-changed by the upper half of the backrest too. For how substantial the cushioning on the seat is, the higher part of the Python II's backrest is devoid of any cushioning. This is especially true of the top part, because when you drop your head back onto it, you feel a distinct lack of any neck support. I'd have loved to see a magnetic headrest that feels as soft as the Corsair TC500 Luxe - I'm still not sure any gaming chair headrest has topped that one in terms of comfort.

The armrests on the Python II have good adjustability for the money you pay. You won't get the overkill 7D armrests you would from a more expensive AutoFull product, but you do get armrests that actually lock into the position you want them in. That's not all too common in gaming chairs today, and it's a feature I still think is really worth having if you're like me and prefer to keep them in one set position most of the time.

My only issue with the armrests is their shape. They seem back to front to me, because the front of them has a raised lip, which makes matching up their height with the surface of your desktop way more difficult. Plus, depending on how you grip your mouse, this raised section can work against your forearm muscles and generally be a bit jarring. The back of the armrests is much wider and flatter, which would work better at the front end in my opinion. I've checked more than once, and this isn't a case of my putting the armrests on the wrong way round - their control buttons are sitting in the right place too. It seems more than anything like a bizarre design choice, but it's one that may deter competitive players, despite many a marketing photo showing Esports athletes using the Python II.

Should you buy the Eureka Ergonomic Python II?

Despite its upper backrest issues, I'm a big fan of the Python II. It offers some excellent features for its cost, and it shows that there's still a lot of merit in a traditional gaming chair design if one can move with the times. Compared to other chairs, this one offers excellent value for money, especially when you square up the other floating backrest thrones with one another. Compared to the $699+ cost that other brands are charging, Eureka is putting them all to shame.

I'd highly recommend this chair to anyone who finds themselves shuffling around their position regularly, or to anyone who is worried about other chairs' cushioning wearing down in a hurry. After my month of testing the Python II, it feels as new to sit in now as it did out of the box. I'd just strongly recommend that anyone who buys this seat pay special attention to keeping their upper body supported while sitting in it, because there's definitely encouragement to slouch here.

How I tested the Eureka Ergonomic Python II

I integrated the Python II into my gaming and remote working setup for a month before writing this review and coming to a verdict. During that time, I sat on it for around 8+ hours daily, with the exception of over the Christmas break. I also sat on the LiberNovo Omni during the testing period, giving me more points of comparison over the features and build quality of Eureka's chair.

For more on how we test gaming chairs, take a look at the full-length GamesRadar+ hardware policy.

Looking to spruce up your gaming setup? Check out the best console gaming chairs, the best gaming desks, and the best VR headsets.

Herman Miller, the brand at the top of everyone's gaming chair wishlist, has just launched two new colorways for its highly coveted Embody gaming chair in the UK. US shoppers have had access to these versions for a while now, but before then, it's been a while since we saw the brand offer new support for one of its flagship products.

Originally launched in 2020, the Logitech Embody has long been known as the chair that everyone wants, but few can afford. It was already available in a few colors, namely its iconic Cyan (black and blue), all-Black, Amethyst (white and purple), and Galaxy (white and Alpine green). Herman Miller has now released stock of the Ignite colorway (white and solar orange), and Nova (navy blue and deep purple).

Of course, these new versions of the Embody wear the throne's ludicrously high price tag. Buying at Herman Miller's full price right now will set you back £1,715 in the UK, which is, if no one minds me saying, a stupid amount of money to spend on a chair.

Nonetheless, this particular one has a lot of prestige, and while I haven't tried it personally, our reviews of both the Herman Miller Embody and its more affordable cousin, the Herman Miller Vantum, both speak as highly of them as any other review will.

In the US, these "new" colorways actually launched back in October of 2025, but on the brand's online store for Stateside shoppers, things work a little differently. You can choose the frame and upholstery color separately there, whereas UK customers are locked to preset matches of the two.

For UK shoppers, these new colors finally arriving may be a blessing and a curse. US folks had access to them throughout the brand's Black Friday sale and had the opportunity to grab one at a discount. That sale is now over, so it may be a long old wait until November 2026 before those prices return.

Herman Miller isn't the only brand at the high-end ergonomic level anymore though. The LiberNovo Omni arguably stole a lot of this brand's spotlight last year as a new, dynamic, ultra-ergonomic chair. Just to fuel competition, the Omni is also priced around a Grand too, so it seems like a natural rival going forward.

While I sit on the LiberNovo Omni as my daily working and gaming chair, and I certainly see the appeal of these high-end desk chairs and their ergonomics, it's my duty to tell you that you no longer need to spend this much money for great chair features. The market has undoubtedly expanded since the Embody first arrived, and most gaming chairs will give you decent posture support, comfort, and adjustability for as little as $249 / £249 these days.

Looking to check out other premium gaming hardware? Take a look at the best gaming PCs, the best gaming TVs, and the best 4K gaming monitors.

At points during my two months of testing with the Autofull M6 Ultra 2.0, I couldn't help but feel like the gaming chair was made for me. I've been on the hunt for a new seat ever since my $100 Amazon-job started disintegrating, but I've been coming up against the same problems in every one I find.

Here are my issues: I sit quite close to a standing desk, with the height fairly low, which means armrests often knock against the lip of the desk rather than sitting comfortably around it. At 5ft 5, I'm also not broad enough to make the most of the majority of gaming chairs' armrest widths. On top of that, I sit like an absolute goblin. I'm talking crossed legs, hunched shoulders, and a spinal curve that I know I'm going to be paying for later in life. I game like a taco, and nobody's stepped in to help until now.

The Autfull M6 Ultra 2.0 accommodates all that and more, with the basic comfort and build quality all accounted for and its own fancy features on top. The chair is listed at $999.99, but checking back frequently through my testing, it's usually sitting at around $600 - $800, putting it directly in the firing line of some of the best gaming chairs on the market. All things considered, it's earned its place on this battlefield.

Assembly

In its box, the Autofull M6 Ultra 2.0 is a two-person job to manoeuvre, but I managed to assemble the whole thing solo. The process is pretty standard and supported by a large instructional poster and accompanying video. There are a few inconsistencies between the two, and some diagrams are less than obvious, but this is still a simple screw the right bits in the right places job. With a few back and forths around the instructions, the whole setup took me just over an hour.

Design

There are just two colorway options available, unlike the SecretLab Titan Evo that's been tied to just about every game, anime, and nerdy franchise under the sun at this point. The Autofull M6 Ultra 2.0 comes in either black and gold or white and blue. While I was keen to test the latter, I ended up with the former. I'm still happy, the glowing gold accents are minimal and add an extra dimension to the heavy black form factor rather than overtaking the design altogether.

That color is applied to a nicely pliable PU leather, perforated for additional thermal regulation (and those cooling fans we'll get into later). While some may prefer a fabric option, the leather keeps its shape while staying malleable, with no signs of cracking or fading over the last two months. The base itself feels incredibly sturdy to boot, and with a max weight of 396lbs it certainly should be. The M6 Ultra 2.0 has the highest possible carry weight of any gaming chair in our top recommendations right now, even squeaking ahead of SecretLab.

Taking my goblin form to the chair for the first time, I immediately appreciated how the seat base doesn't feature high bolster sides. This is a much flatter seat shape than you'll find elsewhere on the market, which won't be to everyone's tastes. However, sitting cross-legged is far more comfortable without harsh edges digging in, and the lack of additional crevices makes crumb-management so much easier.

The only area giving me cause for concern right now are the armrests. There's some give to the harder construction here, but the surface is already looking a little scuffed after some time spent under a desk top. It's minor, but the slightly raised edge is starting to show very small signs of wearing away where the arm has been moved in and out from under the desk, something to note if that's how you keep your setup.

Features

The Autofull M6 Ultra 2.0 sits right at the top of the brand's hierarchy. That means it gets all the juicy features of everything below it, while improving on the dynamic lumbar support at the same time. To run through the laundry list here, you're getting both heating and cooling, lumbar and seat cushion massage, armrests that move in every way physics currently knows about, auto-adjusting lumbar tracking, a height and depth adjustable head cushion, and a 160 degree recline with an integrated footrest.

On a good day (and that's been most days since I started testing), you're paying between $600 and $700 for all that kit - if you're going for a feature-heavy chair the Autofull M6 Ultra easily outpaces the $549 Fractal Refine and Razer Iskur V2 thanks to all of its electronic extras.

The Iskur, for example, holds onto a $649.99 MSRP, offers a similar spring-loaded lumbar support with 4D arm rests (dropping a couple of adjustment options). You do lose the integrated headrest, though, as well as the heating and cooling options.

It's the latter that could seal the deal, especially if you tend to run warm during longer sessions. A USB-A cable does need to be plugged into your system (or a separate power source) to run, but it snakes out the back of the chair and can be housed in a small pocket if needed.

I didn't opt for a portable battery and, with my setup on the left side of the desk, needed to disconnect the cable every time I needed to stand up. It grew a little annoying, but this is specific to my setup design and can easily be negated. I'll definitely be looking into a small portable charger further down the line.

Everything is controlled via a small rubberized panel on the right side of the seat cushion. Both the heating and cooling operated on three settings, as do the vibrating seat cushions and lumbar pillow.

Performance

I've been sitting in the Autofull M6 Ultra 2.0 for a couple of months now, as both a human and a goblin. Finally, I'm able to sit cross-legged without losing all lumbar support. Those chiropractors are onto something; sitting with correct posture is vastly superior, but I no longer feel like my back is being abandoned when I want to hunch up.

The main padding felt a little firm when I first sat on it, but it's grown on me over the last few weeks. It's supportive without allowing me to sink too far, but I never felt numb or uncomfortable during longer work or play sessions.

I was also impressed with how well the mechanics of those massage and thermal systems are obscured within the seat itself. There's some generous padding over these parts, with just one ever-so-slightly harder spot near the centre of the cushion. I felt it maybe twice during my entire testing period, and even then, I barely noticed it; it never detracted from the comfort of the seat itself.

The lumbar cushion has a surprising amount of adjustable depth, and snaps back into position easily as well. Its dynamic support is also smooth, usually moving downwards to accommodate my position on the chair. There were times, though, when I would have preferred to manually set and keep this height. That's where Razer's integrated settings could come in handy. As it is, I sometimes feel like I'm supporting the chair as much as it's supporting me.

Onto the heating and cooling itself, the feather in Autofull's cap. I've been running the M6 Ultra 2.0 in winter, so the fans took a little break, save for a few dedicated testing sessions. The cushions are quick to warm, though lose their heat fairly quickly once the setting is switched off. At full whack, things can get seriously toasty - too warm for a longer period of time. I found a happy medium by heating the seat up to the highest setting before switching down a notch.

The cooling setting is pretty remarkable. Those fans provide a surprising amount of cold air as soon as they're switched on, without sounding like the whole chair is about to take off. The initial effect is immediate but takes around ten seconds to reach its full potential.

The massage function is ok. It's not a true massage cushion, with no rolling parts protruding. Instead, it works through a series of vibrating pulses running through the cushion and backrest. That's comforting, but not necessarily massaging. If you're specifically looking for a gaming chair with this feature baked in, I'd look elsewhere.

Finally, I have a love/hate relationship with the armrests. Being able to swing them into any position I need has been a godsend. I'm able to actually sit with my arms in a natural position at my side, rather than having to squish to one side or extend my shoulders unnaturally to find them. However, that adjustability could be fine-tuned.

As they are, the arms are particularly prone to being pushed out of position when getting in and out of the chair, or even moving the seat around. A little extra tension under each setting would keep the chair perfectly positioned session to session, whereas I'm often readjusting every time.

Up top, we've got a head cushion that remains mercifully locked in place. Like the main seat, this plump fella is a little firmer than others, but still allows for particularly sturdy support. Autofull's added a little extra sparkle here as well, with full depth control and winged sides that envelope the head nicely.

Should you buy the Autofull M6 Ultra 2.0?

I've been impressed with the Autofull M6 Ultra 2.0 in my time with it so far. While that MSRP is listed a little higher than some, it's frequently on sale for a far more competitive rate considering its comfort, build quality, and features. The value is certainly there, but whether it's right for you remains a different question.

If you're going for lumbar support, armrest adjustment, and thermal controls, it's a go-to recommendation from me, provided that MSRP has been cut down to size. I'd also recommend the M6 Ultra to anyone with a narrower frame who struggles to fill out the broader gaming chairs on the market.

Those hunting down a chair purely for its massage features will do better elsewhere, while those just after a simple set of cushions won't need to pay for the extra features on offer here.

How I tested the Autofull M6 Ultra 2.0

I used the Autofull M6 Ultra 2.0 as my only gaming chair for a period of two months. I primarily tested in an upright position, though spent a few weekends at a full recline. I used the chair with both heating and cooling functions running, and blasted the massage feature for at least one week's use. For more information on how we test gaming chairs, check out the full GamesRadar+ Hardware Policy.

We're also rounding up the best console gaming chairs as well as the best gaming desks for more setup inspiration. Or check out the best gaming monitors for an extra refresh.

Razer has announced a refresh of its flagship gaming chair at CES 2026 today. The aptly named Razer Iskur V2 "NewGen" carries over the same design philosophy, dynamic lumbar support system, and signature Razer look, but updates what is one of our favorite gaming chairs with a few new perks.

Namely, the NewGen model will now feature more breathable Gen-2 EPU leather with CoolTouch technology. Perhaps a less niche update is that the chair will now come in more colorways, which will let you match it to your setup. There's the classic Black and Green, a plain Black option, Quarts (a grey/white model), and a pink one.

Razer also says it's upgrading the NewGen Razer Iskur V2 with Dual-Density Cold-Cured Foam in its seat cushion. The original model has similar high-density foam cushioning, but more of an emphasis has been placed on breathability here, which goes hand in hand with the upgraded synthetic leather upholstery.

The upside is that these upgrades don't (exactly) cause a hike in price. The NewGen Iskur V2 will be available for the same $649 price tag as the original, which will most likely amount to the same UK price of around £599 too. While it is nice that the 2026 edition won't cost more, as someone who keeps their finger on the pulse of the gaming chair market and reviews plenty of them, I can't help but notice that this refresh comes at a convenient time for Razer to continue charging MSRP just as more dynamic backrest chairs are entering the spotlight.

In recent times, I've noticed the Iskur V2's price drop more and more regularly. In 2025, its price at Amazon dropped to a new low twice, taking it to a dramatically low $399 over Prime Day in July and in mid-September. As nice as this discount was, I did think it was strangely deep at the time. With not too many feature upgrades to speak of in the newly announced model, I do wonder if this is an attempt to keep up with the competition of Secretlab's Titan Evo NanoGen Edition, as well as the novelty of other premium chairs like the LiberNovo Omni.

Thankfully, last year, Razer did ship a more budget-friendly version of this chair called the Razer Iskur V2 X, which is also benefiting (somewhat) from this NewGen upgrade. An updated model of the X will also be available, giving you the CoolTouch tech and three of the same colorways (no pink this time). You will need to spend slightly more on this though, as last year's model only cost $299, and this year's will set you back $349.

We're big fans of both the Razer Iskur V2 chairs, with the original still being the throne of choice for our Tabletop and Merch Editor, who awarded it 4.5 stars. Upon asking, the incomparable Benjamin Abbott told me that while the original version isn't super breathable due to the synthetic leather, he hasn't thought of the temperature control being too much of an issue for him personally, which may tell you all you need to know about the NewGen versions.

We awarded the Original X model with 4 stars, and we like that it brings a lot of great features to a much more affordable price point, although it is flanked slightly by the AndaSeat Novis, which also launched last year.

For more refinements to your gaming setup, check out the best console gaming chair, the best gaming desk, and the best 4K gaming monitor.

After my ginger cat destroyed my previous desk chair, I knew I needed an upgrade to something that would be big enough to comfortably fit him on my lap as I worked. The Boulies Master Rex gets not only my seal of approval, but his too. Although not a traditional-looking gaming chair, it wouldn't look out of place in your home gaming setup. In fact, it's a great chair for long gaming sessions when you're no longer in your prime and need that bit of extra support on your back and knees.

Buying a new chair is always a daunting task. They're not the cheapest addition to your gaming or work set-up, and with so many options on the market, it's easy to get lost and overspend. We here at GamesRadar+ have a comprehensive list of the best gaming chairs, which is a great place to start.

The Boulies Master Rex is an updated version of the Boulise Master Series that we reviewed just over a year ago, and at $479.99/£409.99 is still a fair sight cheaper than some other chairs out there right now. To make things even better, Boulies frequently runs discounts on its chairs, making this one even more affordable. That said, the Rex model will add more to your checkout price since it builds upon the already-great Master Series with an integrated footrest. So is it actually worth the extra money?

Assembly

I was a little daunted when I saw just how big the box was that the build process for the Boulies Master Rex was going to be a bit of a struggle, especially as someone who has never actually built a chair like this before.

As a beginner, I found the process of building the chair fairly simple, and it didn't give me too much grief in the end. I did end up following a video tutorial supplied by Boulies on their YouTube channel, which I highly recommend if you're a beginner chair builder like myself. I'm a visual learner, so I found actually watching someone build it took away the stress for me, so I definitely appreciate Boulies adding a video tutorial. In the video, they do showcase using power tools to speed up the process, but I went in with only the tools supplied to me in the box, which were an M6 and M8 Allen key.

It's worth noting that the footrest came as a separate part and slots into the base of the chair. It's easily locked into place with two rubber rings, so this piece is easily removable if you end up not liking the addition.Everything slotted together with relative ease, the only real parts I struggled with being the screws on the base and arms, which had to go through the layers of Water Repellent Fabric, and the screw which finished off the side covers. I often found my screws would either not align properly, or struggled to go in due to those several layers of fabric getting in the way of the threading, but with a bit of patience, it all slotted together well in the end.

I do think people who have built desk chairs like this at least once before would have probably finished the build much quicker than I did. However, as a newbie to the process I can say the instructions were clear and concise, and I only got confused right at the end when I accidentally installed the right side cover on the left side.

Design & Features

The design of the Boulies Master Rex is nearly identical to the original Boulies Master Series, but with the addition of a fancy new footrest. This is a common theme in the gaming chair market right now, as in the last few years, traditional gaming chair brands like Secretlab and now Boulies have been trying to meet their mesh, ergonomic competition in the middle, and supply ways for customers to kick back when they’re gaming at a desk.

Boulies has gone about things in its own way though. Like the AutoFull G7, the Master Rex features an extendable footrest that folds out from the bottom of the chair, but it isn’t a 1:1 match with Secretlab’s ergonomic recliner add-on, for example. You won’t be able to buy a footrest separately and add one to an existing Boulies Master Series chair, which may or may not be a frustration for loyal customers who’ll now need to pay for a whole new seat should they want to put their feet up.

The options available to you should suit most people's tastes if you're looking for a simple but classy-looking desk chair. You can either get it in Ultraflex PU or Water Repellent Fabric, and since my cat seems to get great joy out of destroying PU chairs, I opted for the Water Repellent Fabric in Como. The fabric is really soft and quite cosy. In the month I've had it, the fabric hasn't bobbled at all and still looks to be in very good condition.

Overall, the design of the chair is sleek and stylish, and it definitely works as both a gaming chair and a professional-looking office chair. Other than that, the Master Rex shares the same features you’ll find detailed in our review of the original, so for a full rundown on the integrated lumbar support, recline features, armrests, and more, give that a read.

Performance

The wide seat base is great for people like me who sit cross-legged as they work. I don't find that I feel squeezed into the seat when I sit like this, but I am only 5'2, so people who are taller may struggle a bit if you prefer unconventional seating positions.

The integrated lumbar support is a nice touch, as I often find the removable lumbar support cushions that come with other chairs (like my old DXRacer) always look a little cheap and would never stay where you want them to. Integrated lumbar support like you’ll find on the Secretlab Titan Evo NanoGen Edition or the Fractal Refine, keeps the whole design simple and sophisticated, without crowding it with unnecessary pillows. The Boulies Master chairs do come with a head cushion, which I found stays on well whenever I feel the need to use it.

The lumbar support has a lot of adjustment available, so I'm pretty sure it could fit most people’s needs. As someone with joint issues, I have to change my support options sometimes daily, and the handy knobs on the sides of the backrest make this really easy. You can make it as subtle or hard as you want, and the range of height options is varied.

The armrests are easily adjustable with a flappy paddle design on the sides, with the addition of a chrome button on the inside, which lets you turn them to an angle that suits your needs. Although I do appreciate a 'locking' system to turn the armrests to a different angle, I often found that if they're at an angle, the button doesn't actually lock the armrest in place. Sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn't. This isn't a deal breaker for me, however, as I usually keep it in the default parallel position.

My one gripe with the chair comes down to the new addition of a footrest. Although it is very nice to have one, it does feel a bit flimsy to me. This is a manual footrest, meaning you have to reach under the chair to pull it out and then flip the cushion the right way around. Because of this, I do find it tends to wobble a bit. It's also only on one axis, meaning you can't adjust the height, so hopefully you like having your legs out straight all the time. I personally don't, so I actually avoided using the footrest most of the time.

Should you buy the Boulies Master Rex?

If you're looking for a well-rounded and sleek-looking desk chair, I can't recommend the Boulies Master Rex enough. It's comfortable sitting in for hours at a time, and the built-in adjustable lumbar support is the main selling point of this chair for me.

The armrest buttons and slightly wobbly footrest aren't a deal breaker at all, and there isn't anything that was glaringly wrong with this chair. It's a well-rounded chair and the most comfortable gaming/office chair I have ever had.

Although the footrest is nice to have, I would recommend getting the slightly cheaper Boulies Master Series chair if you're not too bothered about having that addition. As I mentioned, I personally don't end up using it most of the time, but I know a lot of friends who would really appreciate one.

How we tested the Boulies Master Rex

I tested the Boulies Master Rex for just over a month before this review was written. I assembled it myself in around 40 minutes, and found it perfectly easy to lift and build without assistance. I sat in the chair for long hours at a time during the day during remote working hours, and gaming during the evening.

For more on how we test gaming chairs, take a look at our full hardware policy.

Looking to revamp your gaming setup? Check out the best console gaming chairs, the best gaming TVs, and the best 4K gaming monitor.

If you've finally got the gaming chair you've been dreaming of, you may stress slightly when you realise that all of that fancy lumbar support, beautifully dense cushioning, and clever adjustability doesn't just fall into place when the box arrives on your doorstep. For that reason, you may be wondering how to build a gaming chair in the first place.

I have good news for you, as someone who reviews gaming chairs and has assembled plenty of them solo. Building a gaming chair really isn't massively difficult, and although each brand has its own quirks that'll make each chair slightly different in its step-by-step instructions, they all follow the same basic outline.

The first tip I'd give you is to give yourself plenty of room. While a chair won't take up loads of space when it's assembled, unpacking the box will make you realise that you need a bit more space than you think to lay things out and organise. Some chairs come with all the tools you need, and others don't, so if you have an Allen key, it might be worth digging it out since most chairs fix together using them. Also, make sure you seek out your own chair's instructions, whether they're a printed booklet or a QR code that sends you to an instructional video. After that, it'll be all about following these basic steps.

Step 1: Wheels

Without fail, the first step in any gaming chair assembly will always be sorting the castors and the wheelbase. This is because, for the most part, gaming chairs are built from the bottom up.

This part is pretty easy, and usually, it involves the first bits of gaming chair you find in the top of your box.

You're looking for the part that looks like a five-pointed star. Sometimes it has some cardboard coverings over its legs, but for the most part, it'll be easy to spot. The wheels for your chair will usually come in a smaller box tucked in one of the sides of the larger packaging.

All you need to do here is take the wheels and wheelbase out of the box and lay them down in front of you on the floor. I like to grab a seat on the floor for this job because it'll make stabilizing things a bit easier.

Flip the wheelbase upside down, so the legs are pointing up toward you. Then, grab each wheel and push its metal side into a leg of the wheelbase. You don't need any tools for this; you just need to push and give each wheel a wiggle until it clicks fully into place.

You'll know that each wheel is fully installed when you can no longer see any of the wheels' metal stems, or when you can't easily pull them back out again. Once each leg of the wheelbase has a wheel in it, flip the whole thing back upright.

Step 2: Gas pipe

You'll notice a central hole in the middle of your wheelbase. This is where the gas piston will go.

Again, this part of your chair will likely be in a smaller box within your packaging. Careful when handling it though, because often it comes out of the box with some kind of oil on it.

Sometimes, it's conveniently packed in with your chair's wheels. This step in the process won't take very long, but it will need you to adhere to your instructions to make sure you get it right because you only really get one shot at this.

All you're going to do is make sure your pipe is facing the right way up, then drop it into that central hole in your wheelbase. If successful, you won't be able to pull the pipe back out because it will lock into place.

Again, have a look at your chair to make sure you're getting this right. Usually, the tinner part of the pipe with a small button-looking part of plastic will be facing up the way.

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Step 3: Seat base (and maybe armrests)

This is the part of the assembly process where things will start to splinter depending on your seat and its make.

Some chairs come with their armrests pre-attached, and others don't, so if yours doesn't, this step might require you to first find the bolts and armrests and fix them to the bottom of your seatbase. The only pro tip I'd advise here is that you sometimes get multiple fixing holes on the bottom of a seat that will let you set the armrests to a wider or narrower position. These can be handy to know about later if you find your armrests aren't working for you.

After that's taken care of, you'll likely need to attach the rest of the tilt and recline fixing system to the bottom of your chair. This is easy and will almost always be done with four larger screws you find in your packaging. The only thing to be wary of is referring to your instructions to make sure you put the mounting bracket on the right way around. You don't want your chair to tilt forward instead of reclining back. Assembly instructions will almost always have a diagram or two to refer to here.

The other thing you may need to do during this step is attach some of the recline lever systems, but again, refer to your instructions to know for sure.

Once the seatbase is unwrapped and has its fixings in place, you can then lift it up, and you'll have the fun job of dropping it down onto the gas pipe and wheelbase we assembled earlier. Since gaming chairs tend to pivot, you don't generally need to worry about which way round you're putting it in.

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Step 4: The backrest

Depending on what type of chair you've bought, this step can differ. For the most part, you'll probably now see two metal brackets sticking out from the backsides of your seat cushion. Sometimes these are covered in a protective cardboard. These are what you'll use to bolt on your backrest, so you'll probably want to fetch that bit from the box and unwrap it now.

You'll probably need two screws on either side which will thread through the metal bracket, into a similarly shaped metal bracket that's already attached to your seat's backrest, and into the actual skeleton of your chair's backrest.

My pro tip here is to use the law of equal pressure. From experience, it can be a bit of a nightmare matching up all of the holes because by this point, the chair is standing upright and gravity is working against you.

To make life easier, put in a screw from one side, tighten it about halfway, then head over to the other side, put a screw in the corresponding hole on that side, and tighten it an equal amount. The backrest should then be set in the right position and will hold itself up while you wrestle the other bolts in and tighten them all the way.

Some chairs then come with plastic covers for these metal brackets. These are simple to install, just make sure you've got the correct side panel (they're often shaped differently for left and right), and then slap them on until they click over the bracket. You'll then need to find some thinner screws that will fix them in place, and they'll usually come with some plastic covers to put over them to keep up the chair's aesthetic.

Step 5: The headrest

Last, but certainly not least, is your headrest. If you've bought an ergonomic mesh chair, you'll probably need to find this in the big box your chair arrived in, and then bolt it to your backrest using some small screws.

If you have a more conventional gaming chair, this might be an easy head cushion deal, which you either strap on around the top of the backrest, or it attaches magnetically and all you need to do is slap it on.

Technically, that should do it for your gaming assembly, but there's one more step I'd recommend before we start gaming.

• Back to the top

Step 6: Ergonomics setup

One of the reasons you probably bought a new chair in the first place because you wanted better posture support and ergonomics, and I think an important part of any gaming chair build is getting it set up for your body once it's all assembled together.

For this, you'll want to use the various adjustability settings your chair has. I'd recommend setting the armrests so they match up exactly with the height of your desk surface. Not only will this help you with aiming if you use a mouse, but it'll also ensure your new chair is integrated into your existing setup.

Your arms should be as close to right angles as possible, because this will encourage your spine to be straight. The middle of your monitor should be at a natural eye level.

If you have a chair with adjustable lumbar support, you'll want to play about with this so that while sitting in that position, your lower back feels supported - imagine an almost S-shaped curve in your back while adjusting this. When your spine feels straight, your lower back should almost feel a little further forward.

It's also worth noting that you probably won't be able to adjust your lumbar support while putting weight on it, so to make sure you don't break anything, make sure you take your weight off the backrest while adjusting it all.

You can also play around with recline levels and the tilting mechanism to make sure your chair works for the angle of your screen, and a footrest if you have one.

Your head should feel in line with the rest of your spine, like there's a string coming out the top of it and pulling it ever so slightly upwards toward the ceiling. Feel free to configure your neck pillow or headrest to a point where that feels supported and comfortable.

Refining the other parts of your setup? Take a look at the best gaming PCs, the best PC controller, and the best microphones for streaming and gaming.

I've never dreamed of owning a sports car, but sitting in my Noblechairs Legend, I suddenly get the appeal of those plush leather interiors. Comfy enough to keep midday numbness at bay yet still firm and ergonomic to correct my admittedly poor posture, this matte black beast is surely the envy of the best gaming chairs as far as aesthetics and functionality are concerned – as long as you don't want something pillowy soft enough to sink into like a giant cloud. Which would be bad for your spine, anyway, so it's just as well that the Legend occupies the snazzy sweet spot between ergonomic efficiency and cozy comfort.

Noblechairs Legend is the brand's latest model, combining the sleek tapered-back design of the Icon TX with the latest premium chair tech. I'm talking breathable faux leather upholstery, treated cold foam cushioning, adjustable armrests, lumbar support, and strong yet silent casters, no matter what's beneath them. I just wish it had a little more consideration for the vertically challenged among us. I really don't need a seat back that's tall enough to go on big rides at the theme park all by itself.

The high-tech faux leather variant I tested is priced at $629 US / £399.95 a pop (the Starfield variant is on sale for UK shoppers at £100 off right now), with the fabric Legend TX coming in at a more pocket-friendly $569 US / £349. That makes it easier to recommend to our UK and EU readers than our friends in the United States, but considering that the Secretlab Titan Evo is even more expensive, it's actually one of the more moderately-priced options out there for an excellent gaming throne.

Assembly

I'll be honest: I balked at the 30kg box when my deliveryman deposited it at my front door. But thankfully, after carefully flipping and pivoting the beast up four flights of stairs (note: please get someone to help you with this part) and finally opening it, I was relieved to see a short four-page pamphlet of assembly instructions.

Noblechairs recommends two people to build the Legend, but as is custom for us at GamesRadar+, I took the task on by myself. Thankfully, the instructions are incredibly clear and simple to follow, comprising only 12 steps, so the whole process took me just under an hour to set it up solo with the help of the allen key included.

The Noblechairs Legend seatbase comes attached to one of the armrests, making it by far the heaviest and most unwieldy piece in the whole kit. Attaching the loose arm was easy enough, as was slotting everything onto the hydraulic mechanism once I'd fitted it into the base and attached the wheels to the casters. By this point, I was feeling pretty proud of myself – but then I was faced with attaching the seat back itself.

I saw two short, flat metal plates attached to the back of the seat, one loose and one locked at a diagonal. There was a handle just below the locked one with a huge warning sticker slapped on it, alerting me to the fact that this is the recliner mechanism and would snap forward sharply once pulled. This made me nervous, as I am rather fond of my extremities.

It took me a few minutes of puzzled instructions-studying to work out that I had to completely remove a safety screw from the handle mechanism once I'd attached the seat back to the metal plates. This released the recliner to allow for adjusting the position of the seat back – and yes, it snaps forward something ferocious. Again, it's not that this overall process was hard or confusing, but it's a good thing I am a fan of reading the fine print because I could envision a version of events wherein I lose an eyeball or two for my crimes.

Design & Features

As far as design fundamentals, the Noblechairs Legend is hard to beat on aesthetics. It comes in three fabric variants: high-tech faux leather, regular faux leather, or a grayish fabric. I chose the first, and I don't regret the decision at all.

My chair is very easy on the eyes, sleek yet strong despite taking up a fair bit of room in my home office. Think of it as a souped-up take on the Noblechairs Icon, but with extra luxuries. I'm especially fond of how the armrest tops are made of a firm yet soft, textured rubbery plastic that doesn't catch on shirt sleeves. They can be raised, lowered, and pushed out horizontally too, so fans of a 4D adjustable armrest setup will have a lot to love here.

I mentioned in my verdict that I'm a little on the smaller side at 5"5 (on a good day), so being confronted with the beautiful yet much too tall Noblechairs Legend backrest confirmed my suspicions: I'm a whole head too short to rest my noggin on the tapered headrest. I can't even use my complementary neck pillow, since my head sits so far down the seat that the elastic straps do not fit around this wider part of the seat to clip together at the back. It's a bummer, but at least the memory foam lumbar pillow fits perfectly and complements the internal ergonomic back supports, adjustable using a dial on the right side of the seat back.

The seat itself goes up very, very high. High enough that I can't touch the floor, in fact, so I keep it at its lowest setting for optimal comfort. The heavy-duty casters and frame can take up to 150kg, but the high-density cold foam helps distribute weight evenly and avoid the fabric stretching or sagging over time.

Performance

I've been using the Noblechairs Legend now for just under two months, and it looks and feels good as new. As someone who spends a lot of time sitting and typing (or sitting and playing games) all day, I'd consider this fairly heavy usage.

The only adjustment I've had to make was when my partner's dad tightened up one of the screws connecting the left armrest to the seat about a month after I built it. It was loose enough to rattle side to side, he pointed out, though I hadn't really noticed it at all up until that moment. This tells me it was probably something I neglected to do at the time of building rather than it having loosened over time, so that's a strike against me, not the chair.

In the comfort department, I really can't rate Noblechairs Legend high enough. No numb bum even after extended periods of sitting, no breakages, squeaks, or cracked fabric, and no nasty accidents with the incredibly snappy recliner mechanism either. I do still brace myself for impact when moving it up and down, but now that the chair is attached to those scary metal plates, it's very easy to lock myself into precisely the right spot.

While the seatback itself is catered to those of a longer, taller spine, I'm pleased to report that the adjustable lumbar support (and the included memory foam pillow) makes it easy to achieve good posture. After two months of use I can already feel myself more inclined to actually sit back into my seat instead of twisting my legs up into weird little pretzel knots. It even means that my head can just reach the headrest when I'm sitting up straight, which is further incentive to give into the Noblechair Legend's vertebrate-first design.

Should you buy the Noblechairs Legend?

If you're over 5"9 and want to play the best PC games like you're driving a Ferrari, I say the Noblechairs Legend is one to consider. This brand is certainly not lying about the premium factor, and next to similarly luxurious chairs like Secretlab Titan Evo Nanogen, the price tag is far kinder on the average UK wallet at £399.

That said, fellow short kings and queens might want to look elsewhere. It's unfortunate that Noblechairs discontinued the smaller Epic Compact model before I could test it out, and despite how much I'm loving my new Legend, I do sometimes feel a little silly in my big, giant throne. But I mean, what's that saying about crying in a sports car instead of crying in the shower?

How I tested the Noblechairs Legend

I assembled the Noblechairs Legend by myself, following the instruction booklet closely to evaluate my experience building it. I compared my time closely with other gaming chairs GamesRadar+ has put together. I then used the chair every day for work, gaming, and lounging for over two months before this review was written. In that time, I’ve fiddled with the adjustment features of the seat and adopted many sitting positions, and can safely say this chunky beast can handle all my restless ADHD fidgeting without fuss.

For more on how we test gaming chairs, check out the full GamesRadar+ Hardware Policy.

Looking to spruce up your gaming setup? Take a look at the best gaming PCs, the best gaming PCs in the UK, and the best gaming handheld.

With Cyber Monday discounts winding down, it's time to make sure you've picked up every holiday deal you wanted. New monitor? Check. Upgraded GPU? Check. Gaming chair? That's next.

Unlike certain types of product, gaming chairs are sometimes sold only by their manufacturer, so there's a possibility that you'll miss the great discounts just by browsing on Amazon, Target or Walmart's websites. But that's where I come in. I've scoured the web for discounts on all of the options in our round-up of the best gaming chairs, to find you all the lowest prices.

Some chairs aren't discounted and others are sold out, so I've skipped those, but you can still find six amazing Cyber Monday gaming chair deals below. Some are massive price reductions on premium options, and others are moderate discounts in cheaper options. There are even discounts on themed chairs over at Secretlab, so you don't have to settle for boring options.

• See all Cyber Monday deals at Amazon
• AndaSeat Novis | $249 $219 at Andaseat
• Herman Miller Vantum | $930 $697.50 at Herman Miller

Find more discounts with our Black Friday gaming chairs guide, and there are other discounts in our Cyber Monday gaming deals piece. You can also check up on our recommendations with our round-up of the best gaming chairs.

Black Friday deals have arrived, and they're hitting the best gaming chairs hard. I was skimming through all the offers on Friday when I noticed that two of my absolute favorite gaming chairs are both heavily discounted, and if I were buying today, I'd have a tough job choosing between them.

The Fractal Refine and the Corsair TC500 Luxe are two of the best gaming chairs money can buy right now, and as someone who has sat in both for months at a time, I think I can help you determine which one is right for you. As great and as versatile as they both are, I think these two Black Friday gaming chair deals cater to different needs and body shapes.

I'd actually recommend both the Fractal Refine and the Corsair TC500 Luxe at their full prices. Compared to rivals like the ones on offer in Black Friday Secretlab deals, both of these chairs actually present phenomenal value for money. You get a lot of the same adjustability and features as you would with a premium brand like Secretlab, but with a better level of cushioning, in my opinion.

You could be drawn to either chair because of their unique design. Neither looks immediately like a gaming seat in the traditional sense, even if it's clear that both of them are desk chairs. Fractal took a more minimalist, slender approach with the Refine that completely ignores the racing-style seat shape of most gaming chairs. Corsair's TC500 Luxe looks almost like an antique leather armchair you'd find in a very fancy library.

Straight off the bat, I'd recommend these chairs to different people thanks to their designs. I think the Fractal Refine lends itself to someone with a narrower build, or anyone who tends to sit upright in their chair. The Corsair option has a wider seatbase, and its armrests are farther apart (even at their narrowest setting), so I think that suits someone with a broader build, or those who like to switch positions and cross their legs frequently.

If you're buying a new chair due to back pain, and you want something that will help improve your posture, I'd opt for the Fractal Refine. It has, quite frankly, a sublime blend of ergonomics, adjustability, and comfort. It's got a thin layer of cushioning or a mesh back option, which allows for comfort, but its minimalist approach means it's really just supporting your spine into a healthy position. If you have a chair that's too plush, you can lose that posture support, but if it's too aggressive in keeping your spine aligned, you lose comfort. Fractal nailed that ratio for me, and the adjustable seat depth in particular is something I think lends itself to promoting good posture while also being able to shift your weight around from time to time.

Meanwhile, Corsair has an excellent level of cushioning that's springy and almost never left me with a numb tailbone. If you've tried a Secretlab chair and you think it was a little too firm, I think Corsair is the alternative you'll like. It still has ergonomics and adjustability - like with its integrated lumbar support, you can move around with scroll wheels. Its wider seat just means you can lounge in it a bit more and benefit from comfort in longer sessions, and it's clear to me that was a priority of this seat from a design standpoint.

Truth be told, both chairs are seeing fantastic discounts for Black Friday this year. I think these gaming thrones are good enough that no matter which you buy, you'll appreciate them, but hopefully, some of what I've said here has helped you determine which you might prefer in the long run.

• Fractal Refine: $399 at Amazon
• Corsair TC500 Luxe: $424 at Amazon
• AndaSeat Novis: $218 at Amazon

There are more discounts to be claimed. Check out the best Black Friday gaming PC deals, Black Friday Meta Quest deals, and Black Friday VR headset deals.

The LiberNovo Omni is the breakout desk chair of 2025. This is a market that's often dominated by big brands and established names, so it's been nothing short of amazing to see a scrappy Kickstarter project come out of nowhere, securing ~$9.4 million in crowdfunding. I strongly believe gaming chairs that use electronics, whether it's for heating, cooling, massaging, or otherwise, are usually a massive gimmick. But when I saw this chair's bionic backrest that moves around with you, my interest was well and truly piqued.

I first saw LiberNovo's Kickstarter page back in June, right when its campaign was about to launch. A week or two passed, and then another. Kickstarter goal after Kickstarter goal came and went, and this innovative chair from a new company in Hong Kong kept securing more funding. It became clear that, beyond a hypetrain of excitement for the Omni's clever design going viral, people were screaming out for chairs that do things differently from the status quo.

I've sat in enough gaming chairs by now to know that innovation in this space usually ends up being one of two things. Either it's a total gimmick that really isn't worth the hype it earns, or it's a trendsetter that will likely be imitated by all other brands from that point on. The LiberNovo Omni is almost certainly going to be the latter, because its innovations and fresh approaches to ergonomics make it easily the best desk chair I've ever sat in.

Design

A lot of gaming chair brands will tell you they care deeply about ergonomics. LiberNovo seems to be one of few brands that actively follows through on that though, or at least, is willing to innovate on it to any meaningful degree. The Omni was founded on the idea that, apparently, we as humans change our posture 13 times per hour, and desk chairs so far have been designed for us to sit in just one position.

In a nutshell, ergonomics is the application of physiological and psychological principles when designing products. With controllers, for instance, it's mostly about designing comfortable grips that complement the natural shape of your hands so the chances of repetitive strain injuries or carpal tunnel syndrome decrease. In gaming chairs, ergonomics should promote healthy posture and overall well-being while sitting.

From reviewing a lot of gaming chairs, I can tell you that while a lot of them try to implement ergonomics, this can often come at the expense of comfort. That's because chairs like the AutoFull G7 have clever lumbar support systems, but they often go a little too aggressive in invasively trying to correct your sitting position. The same is true of the Secretlab Titan Evo NanoGen; it may have a firmer level of cushioning to promote healthy posture, but that means it's much more likely to give you a numb rear end, which will cause you to shift out of its one ergonomic sitting position it wants you in at all times.

The LiberNovo Omni has a stubborn unwillingness to let ergonomics stand in the way of its level of comfort. It's also very upfront about what sitting ergonomically actually means. In the box, you'll get a user manual and a four-step alignment guide that both go into detail on how you should set up your chair to actually get the best out of it, which I don't think I've seen from other brands.

Right away, just from looking at this chair, you can see it's taking a different approach. The traditional racing car-style seat is gone. Even an office chair's separated mesh back panels aren't here. The Omni has a central spinal column that runs from the bottom of the seatbase up to the headrest. Its backrest has individualized horizontal panels that move independently from one another, almost mimicking vertebrae that match up with your spine. The backrest is only fixed in its middle to the central spinal column, allowing it to twist from side to side as you shift your weight.

This creates the Omni's signature appeal, a dynamic backrest support system that means no matter how many times you shift your posture per hour, you get the full benefit of the chair's ergonomics.

Features

Perhaps my favorite feature that goes hand in hand with this design philosophy is what LiberNovo calls "Dynamic Screen Alignment", or "Seamless Sync". The Omni has four distinct levels of recline (105°, 120°, 135°, 160°) and while you might complain that it doesn't have free recline like a lot of chairs do, this allows that spinal column to keep your head, neck, arms, and back in line with the screen you're almost certainly looking at, relative to the position they're in when you're upright. Other chairs lose this, so when you recline, you end up holding your neck at an awkward angle to still get the best view of your display, and your arms will almost never stay level with your desk, either.

There's adjustable, motor-controlled lumbar support, and when you recline all the way back to 160°, there's an OmniStretch Massage feature. This 5-minute program delivers a yoga cat-cow-like stretch that decompresses your lower back, leaving your spine feeling lengthened. There's no rumbly massage from a chair one of your grandparents might have bought to correct their back pain, there's no janky massage gun vibrations, just a healthy and relaxing stretch that feels really beneficial.

While a lot of gaming chairs take a firmer approach to cushioning, the Omni features what LiberNovo calls the industry's first hydrophilic sponge, which goes a step past memory foam in terms of its breathability. The seatbase integrates different levels of hardness in its cushioning: a soft front to make it more comfortable on your legs, and a slightly firmer level at the rear to support your bones. The armrests have a 20mm thick foam and a leather-like skin texture to their surface, which hasn't ever irritated my skin or caused discomfort.

On top of these features, you'll also find some standard desk chair adjustables. The armrests can move in 4D, there are height adjustments, seat depth adjustment when you recline, and backrest pressure adjustment.

Assembly

With such an innovative and let's face it, complicated design to this chair, I was very worried that the assembly process would be a nightmare.

To my surprise, for the most part, it followed the same pattern as a lot of standard gaming chairs, but any differences due to motorized parts and USB wiring (to connect the backrest to the battery; this is not a device you'll need to plug in) are communicated clearly through the instructional video on LiberNovo's YouTube channel.

I was surprised by how well packaged the chair was in terms of making it easy to assemble. This brand has taken care to have the most complicated parts of assembly done before shipping, which means fixing parts together is really the only job you need to do. It helps too that all of the central bits of the chair are pretty lightweight and easy to maneuver by yourself.

The only part of the assembly that I thought was really annoying and way more difficult than the instruction video made out, was attaching the small hook-catches that fix the backrest to the spinal column. You need to hook both the top and bottom catches onto small metal bars, but the angle to do so feels super awkward. These plastic catches are maybe the only part of the chair's build quality that doesn't feel premium, so there was a lot of worry that I'd be breaking a pivotal aspect of this very expensive chair if I pressed too hard.

All in all, the Omni has a surprisingly streamlined build process. I was disappointed not to get any safety gloves in my box though, despite the video's promise. Keep this in mind if you want to roleplay as Mickey Mouse while assembling.

Performance

From the outside, it'd be easy to see this chair and think it was filled to the brim with gimmicks. A fresh approach to ergonomics, a dynamic backrest, a stretch massage feature, a big emphasis on recline, and a new-fangled type of cushioning. A lot of these features are things I usually shrug at in gaming chairs because I've been burned by a lot of them turning out to be gimmicks before. Not here, though.

Like no other chair I've sat in, the Omni keeps you feeling supported no matter what position you sit in. What I really love is that even when you recline, the ergonomics of the chair stay completely intact because of that dynamic screen alignment. Despite being a little further away from my monitor, my head and neck still feel in line and at a healthy angle toward my screen when I'm reclined. My arms stay level with my desk without the need for annoying adjustments.

Being honest, while recline features are nice, I always feel as though they aren't actually viable for gaming at a desk. On the contrary, I look forward to reclined gaming in this chair, because tilting back actually feels like I'm getting posture support and a way to relax without messing up my gameplay in FPS titles. Having this option helps to make gaming feel distinct compared to sitting upright for work, taking away desk fatigue after a long day of working from home.

The cushioning on the Omni is something else. My biggest concern with this chair before assembly was that it could have the best, bionic, dynamic backrest in the world, but if its cushioning was too firm, it's not somewhere I'd want to sit every day. What I was met with was a thinner layer of cushioning than something like the Corsair TC500 Luxe, but it was even more beautifully plush than the now-discontinued Boulies Ninja Pro. Covered in soft fabric, it has a really welcoming feel to it that's amazing to sit in for longer periods of time.

Another "gimmick" of this chair might have been the OmniStretch massage. "Massaging" features in gaming chairs usually seem like a way to hike up costs for very little actual reward that consumers will probably use a handful of times. I get a surprising amount of use out this feature of the Omni though. I'm someone who loves mindfulness, but I'm rubbish at fitting a meditation into my daily routine. With a super relaxing stretch program built into this chair, I found a new excuse to take a breathing space at the end of a workday. With the rise and fall of the stretch creating deep breathing sensations anyway, it seemed like a perfect fit. This is absolutely something I'd invest in the companion footrest for though, since I'm not sure how well it would work without one.

Battery life is really impressive, which is a total joy to say for a gaming chair. I've used the 5-minute stretch programme plenty of times in the last two months, and I've never had to recharge. I'm sure if you used this every day, religiously, you might have a different experience, but I'd argue there's no reason to buy a second hot-swappable battery.

Armrests can make or break a gaming chair, in my opinion. For context, LiberNovo actually opted for a design choice I hate: clicky, non-locking armrests. I was worried I'd find this as annoying as I have on other chairs in recent years, but truth be told, you have to apply enough pressure to the Omni's armrests to move them that it's harder to do by accident. If this type of adjustable armrest design is here to stay, I think other brands should take note of how LiberNovo has implemented it.

Anyway, while the armrests could have a slightly plusher cushioning to them, I'm a big fan. They offer a lot of height and width adjustability, and their forward and back movement actually helps when using the recline features. When moving them to be wider or narrower, the entire armrest moves too, not just the top part. I also love that their height can adjust in tiny increments because this means it's much easier to match up with varying desk heights, and not every chair plays nicely with my Fezibo L-Shaped Standing Desk.

The concerns to be aware of

You may have noticed that I'm a big fan of this chair. In truth, it's really hard to fault it, and I make no qualms about the fact that it's probably my favorite chair I've ever tested. I really do believe it's the best chair money can buy right now and thus is worthy of a 5-star review score.

That doesn't, however, mean there aren't a few concerns I think you should be aware of.

This is a brand new company, a brand new product that's absolutely smashed its crowdfunding goals - probably far quicker than its creators expected or intended. We don't have a track record to draw from, we don't have other products from its creators to compare to - which leaves a lot of questions still to be answered.

At the time of writing this, I've asked LiberNovo's PR team a fair few times about increased availability to other retailers, and I haven't been given super clear responses. To the best of my knowledge, there are no plans to make the LiberNovo Omni available at other retailers other than the brand's own website, and at the time of writing, the Kickstarter page is still the only place you can actually hand over money for one. With this product being thrust so far into the spotlight this year, I'd be very, very surprised if there were shady goings on, but it is a little strange to me that a clearer online store hasn't been set up yet.

With a chair that costs this much to buy, there's a lot of money being invested by consumers, so I really do hope that shortcuts aren't going to be made in production to keep up with demand. I'm all for startups making a go of it for themselves, but not releasing a product like this to wider retailers doesn't fill me with much confidence for stock shortages in the foreseeable future.

The chair as a whole has a 5-year warranty, but the electric parts only have a 2-year warranty, which doesn't fill me with a lot of confidence either. Like I've said, this is a brand new product, and we have nothing to look back on and say, "this other chair from this company aged well in terms of wear and tear".

Should you buy the LiberNovo Omni?

Question marks aside, I can't deny that the LiberNovo Omni is easily the best, and highest quality gaming seat I've sat in. The ergonomics are epic, the cushioning is beautifully plush, and even the most gimmicky features feel fantastically implemented.

But I have to level with you. Over $1,000 is a frankly stupid amount to pay for a chair, and that goes for Herman Miller too. The build quality, the innovation, and the technology of the Omni all make it feel worth a massive investment, but when other chairs are doing similar things for far less cash, I struggle to believe it should cost that much.

The Fractal Refine, for example, may not be quite as good as this, but it's half the price and offers most of the same features and a lot of brilliantly innovative ergonomics. Is the Omni better than the Refine, the Titan Evo, or the TC500 Luxe? Absolutely. Is it $500 better? I'm not so sure.

If you can afford it, and you're okay with this brand having no track record to draw from, then I cannot recommend you the LiberNovo Omni more strongly. I'll reiterate again that this is the best gaming chair I've ever reviewed, but you simply do not need to pay this much for a good seat at your desk.

How I tested the LiberNovo Omni

I've sat in the LiberNovo Omni every day for over 2 months before this review was written. Since this is a new brand and I wanted to check longevity more than other seats, I tested for double the length of time I usually do.

In that time, I've tested the Omni's entire feature list. I've used it for upright sitting during work, reclined for gaming and relaxing, and fully reclined for its OmniStretch sequence.

I've compared my experience here with all the previous gaming chairs I've reviewed. For more on how we test gaming chairs, check out the full-length GamesRadar+ Hardware Policy.

Refining your setup? Check out the best gaming PCs, the best gaming desks, and the best console gaming chairs.

If you've ever shopped around for a gaming chair, you'll know that they can be painfully expensive. What's been really nice this year, is seeing bigger players in this market like Razer and AndaSeat launch more affordable gaming chairs that don't completely skimp on features.

The AndaSeat Novis is one of those chairs. It's got a more affordable $249 price tag, which is comfortably under the average $500 or so that these chairs can set you back without trying. Despite that, the level of comfort and number of features it offers makes it still worth buying. We're still a month out from Black Friday gaming chair deals officially beginning, but for some reason, AndaSeat is putting its best foot forward with a sale across its range of gaming seats, and the best bargain might be on the Novis.

Between the AndaSeat Novis and the Razer Iskur V2 X, folks who are in need of a decent gaming or working from home chair on a budget are eating well in 2025. Naturally, these chairs are going to miss a few elements of adjustability compared to the flagship options, but what's really impressive about the Novis in particular is that it still uses premium materials that are used for those pricier thrones.

The Novis is available in premium PVC leather or linen fabric, and either can be found in Ash Grey or Elegant Black. The Razer Iskur V2 X might be a similar product in terms of price, but it's only available in fabric, so leather fans should definitely consider the Novis.

So what exactly does the Novis have to offer in terms of comfort and features, and what do you miss out on compared to more expensive options?

In essence, this is a chair that does the basics really well. The shape is the broad template most gaming chairs go for, there's an ergonomically shaped backrest and a fairly wide, welcoming seatbase. You'll be glad to know that you get the same wheels, gas-tilt mechanism, and sturdy build quality as in the much pricier AndaSeat Kaiser 4. The cushioning is a bit more generous than even more expensive chairs though, which may not come as a surprise seeing as even luxury options like the Secretlab Titan Evo Nanogen go for a firmer approach to cushioning.

What you'll miss out on is adjustability. There's no integrated lumbar support here, and if you want a cushion, you'll need to pay for it separately. Similarly, the armrests go up and down, but they don't have the massive adjustability you might want if you've got your heart set on something like the AutoFull G7.

Overall, this is a great budget gaming chair. Its design is simple and it does the basics really well, meaning you get the comfort and support you'll need thanks to an ergonomic shape and welcoming cushioning, but you don't get the adjustability you may want for long sessions at a desk. If you're working on a smaller budget though, it doesn't get much better than this.

• AndaSeat Novis: $229 at AndaSeat
• Razer Iskur V2 X: $299 at Amazon
• AutoFull G7: $649 at Amazon

For more discounts on all sorts of gaming hardware, follow along as we track the best Black Friday gaming PC deals, Black Friday Meta Quest deals, and Black Friday VR headset deals.

With Black Friday bearing down on us, I shouldn't be surprised to see major discounts on every facet of a great gaming set-up, but I'm still surprised by just how much of a discount our favorite standing desks just saw.

Manufacturer Flexispot is having a flash sale right now, cutting hundreds off some of the best gaming desks and giving you just cause to forget about any Black Friday gaming deals you may have been planning for. These end at the end of the day (October 28), though, so you'd better hurry up if you're tempted!

I'm starting with the cheaper model, the Flexispot E7 Pro, which got five stars in our review. We loved how responsive and smooth the desk-standing motion was, and the various cable management options available, though it would've been nice to see extra storage.

I should note that the above price is for the frame on its own. You can choose the desktop material and while they cost more, between $80 and $1,800 (not a typo), you're still getting that $200 saving on the frame.

We also gave the Flexispot E7 Plus a five-star review, and it's a pricier gaming desk, which you might not be able to gleam from the suffixes alone (how is anyone meant to guess that Plus is better than Pro?).

The Plus is a slightly smaller desk, but it compensates by being able to support a much greater weight, so if you've got a huge PC monitor or way too many desk accessories, it'll be the better pick. It also extends slightly higher, though only by an inch.

Should you buy the Flexispot E7 Pro or Plus?

If you're on the market for a new gaming desk, then it's hard not to recommend these sturdy standing desks. Both of these champions find spots on multiple of our best desk round-ups.

However both of these Flexispot picks are premium options, and if you've been checking Amazon's bargain basement to find something to perch your monitors on, you'll find them a little too expensive.

But if that's you, you'd be remiss not to check out the rest of the Flexispot Mega Sale, which sees older and cheaper alternatives from the company down to even lower prices. Some of the brand's Essential Desks are at around $100 so there are other savings to be had.

As stated, though, the deals end soon (eight hours at the time of writing). So you unfortunately don't have the privilege of spending loads of time pondering, or waiting for Black Friday Secretlab deals to see what the rivals do.

• See more standing desks at Amazon
• Flexispot E7 Pro | $599.99 $399.99 at Flexispot
• Flexispot E7 Plus | $799.99 $499.99 at Flexispot

To find out about our favorite gaming desk, round our SecretLab Magnus Pro review, or you can read our round-up of the best standing desks to see what other options you have. And don't forget to round out your setup with the best gaming chair.

Gaming hardware markets can be very competitive spaces. Loads of brands try to peddle what can often be really similar products but, for the most part, marketing for them all stays pretty cordial. I've been covering gaming hardware for three years now, and I seldom see one brand blatantly name its rivals and try to tear down the competition. Elgato seems to be taking a different approach because it's just thrown a lot of shade at some of the best gaming chairs money can buy.

A few days ago, Elgato unveiled the Embrace, a completely new product from this arm of Corsair. For a brand that usually makes tech, peripherals, and some of the best gear for streaming, it's fun to see it branch out into a new market. However, the Embrace is not a gaming chair, and it seems like Elgato really wants to make that really clear.

"In the mid-2000s, gaming chairs came onto the scene," said Jeff Stegner, Product Manager at Elgato, in an announcement video on the brand's YouTube channel.

"These chairs came in at a premium price point and were extremely popular, and are still sold to this day by a multitude of brands. However, the issue with these chairs is they lack adjustability. You can essentially adjust its height, armrest height, and then you have the recliner on the back, and that's it. And when you're sitting on a chair for hours on end, the lack of adjustability can cause problems with comfort."

I review gaming chairs for a living, and while I can say that that's a true statement for a few, pretty limited and cost-effective seats, it's really not the norm.

Gaming chairs pride themselves on their adjustability these days, and have done so for a while. So, Elgato issuing a blanket statement while showing a clip of someone violently adjusting the recline level on an AndaSeat product definitely made my ears prick up. I'd go so far as to say that the majority of gaming chairs these days include multiple-dimension armrest adjustments, custom lumbar support, with a few flagships even offering seat depth adjustments, and even floating backrests.

"Steggy" continues by noting that, to combat the increasing popularity of office chairs, gaming chair brands have started to include more ergonomic adjustability and high-end features, but says that to get these things, you need to pay over a grand.

As he's saying this, the video cuts to show retail screenshots of the Herman Miller Logitech Embody and the Asus ROG Destrier Ergo chair, two particularly pricey chairs, but two blatant outliers in the market when it comes to price.

This is when I got a bit confused. Elgato's parent company, Corsair, also makes gaming chairs, including the excellent Corsair TC500 Luxe, which offers most of the features Elgato's marketing team says gaming chairs lack - for the price of $500 - which just so happens to be the cost of the new Elgato Embrace.

I can list you plenty of gaming chairs, like the Fractal Refine, the Secretlab Titan Evo, the Boulies Master Series, and the AutoFull G7, that all offer loads of adjustability for around the $500-$700 mark, and if not, they're absolutely under the $1,000-$2,000 price point Elgato is firing shots at.

In fact, one brand the video names and shames is Razer, which charges $699 for its Iskur V2, but put out the Razer Iskur V2 X this year, providing a lot of the same features for just $299. Similarly, AndaSeat, the example in the video of a clunky and non-adjusting gaming chair brand, released the AndaSeat Novis this year, which keeps its cost below $500.

"Our goal with Embrace was to offer a chair with the comfort, features, and manual adjustability of a high-end office chair, but at a much more accessible price point," Stegner says.

The video then goes on to cover what makes Embrace so great compared to all these rival offerings, starting with the assembly process.

Now, I've had to assemble a fair few gaming seats in my job, and I can tell you that they basically all have the same build process, minus a few discrepancies. You put the wheels in the wheelbase, the gas pipe in the wheelbase, connect the seatbase to the bottom, then fix the backrest to the rest of the piece.

Despite Elgato saying other chairs have "laborious" setups, that exact process is precisely what's outlined in the video for building the Elgato Embrace. Thankfully, Elgato does seem to be improving on convention in one way, and that's sustainability. All the plastic packaging most gaming chairs use for wrapping parts of the chair up, or separating tools, has been removed, substituted for cardboard, and recyclable cloth pouches.

When it comes to ergonomics though, I really don't think Elgato's marketing has been fair or accurate to what else is available at this price range.

The Embrace has a mesh back, a non-mesh, cushioned seat, 4D armrests, adjustable lumbar support and seat depth, and five levels of recline. You also get a recline tension twister, so you can determine how much you need to push back to actually get into that reclined position.

Pretty much beat for beat, that means that the Embrace has the exact same list of features that the Fractal Refine does. That chair launched at $549 / $474 and can be frequently found on sale for less. So, I'm left questioning what exactly is so new and accessible about Elgato's "studio" chair.

This is where the real issue lies for me.

A brand outwardly naming and shaming other products and saying they don't do enough is fine, so long as the brand doing so can actually prove it's doing something different. As someone who gets all the press releases and announcements about new gaming chairs and covers this market for a living, Elgato's way of unveiling its own chair seems a tad combative and misleading for consumers.

All the while, it says that its chair isn't a gaming chair, it's a "studio" chair, as if that makes all the comparisons okay.

Either way, this approach of steering into a new market is not a great look for Elgato, especially when its parent brand is one of the only big gaming chair makers that isn't directly shown as a bad example in the video, and yet its products do the same things as everyone it's critiquing.

The Elgato Embrace isn't available to purchase yet, but there is a listing for it at the brand's website. While it's only going to be available in one color at launch, there are hints in the reveal video that more colorways will be available later.

• See all gaming chairs at Amazon
• Fractal Refine: $599.99 at Amazon
• Corsair TC500 Luxe: $518 at Amazon

Want to find some other Elgato gear? Read up on the best capture cards, the best microphones for streaming and gaming, and the best streaming mixers.

My dear gamer friends, are your backs aching after carrying your squad in your favourite multiplayer game? I hate to tell you this, but it's far more likely that the reason for your back pain has to do with your posture and sitting habits, rather than your in-game talents. Regardless of whether you play games on the couch or in one of the best gaming chairs, we all carry tension, we all slouch, we all have sitting habits that aren't the best for us, so what's the solution?

For the last few weeks, I've been trying out a muscle gun (also referred to as a massage gun, or Theragun). As someone who always manages to get knots in their right shoulder and upper back, I've been keen to try one of these out for ages, but since I also make a living reviewing the ergonomics of gaming chairs and talking about healthy posture, I thought this might be a weirdly appropriate accessory for me to test out.

There are loads of brands making these clever massage guns these days, but the one I've been testing is from a company called Homedics. Its Novp+ Mini Massage gun is a smaller, portable device that's as easy to throw in your bag and take on the go as it is to sit on a desk or by the couch for when gaming sessions go from casual to sweaty.

I have to say, this little gun is surprisingly versatile and comes with loads of attachments for different use scenarios and areas of the body. It charges via USB-C and can run for an hour on a single lifespan - although I tend to use mine in shorter stints and it lasts weeks without needing a top-up.

I've used this for long hours at my desk because, even sitting in the fanciest gaming chairs and testing out their posture-supporting features, my body can carry aches and pains from adjusting to them. On top of that, I exercise regularly, so I tend to feel recurring knots from my routine. I'll say right now that I don't think a muscle gun is going to be a cure-all for your aches and pains, but having tested one of them out for around a month now, I think more gamers should be considering them.

Not all are made equal, but the Homedics Novo+ has six different intensity settings that range from a gentle rumble all the way up to a pneumatic drill being pressed into your stiff muscles. This one even has a heated and cooling mode, which is probably more high-tech than most need to go, but it shows you what's out there for a somewhat reasonable price.

The basic principle will be the same regardless of the massage gun you go for. Using percussive therapy, one of these guns will deliver high-frequency vibrations to an area of the body, which will help to relax tight muscle fibres, break down tension, reduce pain, and increase blood flow to promote healing.

The Homedics Novo+ has absolutely helped my muscle knots loosen, and it's helped me to reduce pain I might carry from stiffness and periods of bad posture, but only temporarily, and this is the important part.

It's easy to look at home remedies like massage guns, foam rollers, a new gaming chair, or one of the best standing desks and think they'll be the silver bullet we're all looking for our back aches. I'd say the same is true for all of them:

Buying a new gaming chair like the Autofull G7 with an advanced lumbar support system might help you improve your posture and lead to fewer aches and pains, but it won't "cure" you. Splashing out on a more cushioned chair like the Corsair TC500 Luxe might help you get a numb rear end compared to sitting on something firmer like the Secretlab Titan Evo, but you may find it doesn't improve your posture as much as ergonomic chairs, and you end up with different pains.

In the same way, a muscle gun might help you relieve tension when it's there, but it's not going to prevent it from recurring day-to-day. Is it a really great way of helping? Absolutely, but physiotherapists, chiropractors, and doctors will likely all tell you the same thing that the National Library of Medicine will: exercising and strengthening your muscles so they're more resilient and can support your frame more effectively is going to be the best way to stop those aches and pains from appearing. According to the NHS Inform website, "exercise should not make your existing back pain worse," - which is often the fear.

So are muscle guns a silver bullet for your bad gamer posture? Definitely not. Are they something worth considering if you're a gamer who frequently has aches and pains? Absolutely.

• View all massage guns at Amazon
• Shop for a new gaming chair at Amazon
• AutoFull G7: $669.99 at Amazon

If you want new ways to look out for your posture, check out the best console gaming chairs and the best gaming desks.

Amazon's big Prime Day sale is this week, so there are a lot of deals out there on all sorts of gaming hardware. I'll be honest, as someone who covers these discounts for a living, not all are made equal. Some are phony, some are just okay, but the very occasional few make me do a comedic double-take, refresh the page, and blink hard to make sure I'm reading them right. Today, I've found one of those deals on maybe the best gaming chair there is.

The Fractal Refine is amazing, and one reason I love it is because it comes in mesh, fabric, and, if you can afford it, a luxury Alcantara version. The latter is something I seldom recommend, because for those who don't know, it's a very pricey material that's used in a lot of pro-grade sports cars. The Alcantara-coated Fractal Refine usually costs $949 - hence why I don't recommend it often. Right now, for some reason, it's seeing a 47% price reduction at Amazon that brings it down to $499.99.

I have no idea what's happened here for that price to be a thing, but something doesn't seem right. Even if the Alcantara version of the chair just isn't selling and this is a method of shifting units, surely there's not that much wiggle room in the profit margin? That's almost a half-off price cut, and it brings the Alcantara model down to the same price as the other mesh and fabric colorways of the Fractal Refine.

I have no idea what's going on with this, but it's absolutely something you should make the most of immediately if you're thinking of upgrading your gaming chair. Not only is it an excellent saving you're making, but it's on what I'd deem the best all-round gaming chair there is right now.

So what is it that makes the Refine so special? For me, it's an excellent marriage of ergonomics, design, and comfort. These three pillars are central facets of gaming chair architecture, but seldom do you really get all three in a perfect ratio. Most mesh chairs often focus on ergonomics alone, which means chairs like the AutoFull G7 lack some of the comfort of more traditional chairs.

Seats like the Corsair TC500 Luxe maybe lean more into comfort, which is amazing for longer sessions, but means you do lack some of the posture support and healthy sitting approach of other chairs. If design takes over, you end up with something exceedingly extra like the Asus ROG Destrier Ergo chair.

The Fractal Refine has a stunning look to it, which is slender and minimalist; it has soft curves and blends into an interesting overall shape that looks unique. It blends the ergonomic posture support of a mesh chair, giving you healthy posture as you sit, but it has enough plush cushioning and loads of adjustability to make sure you're comfortable in whatever position you want to sit in.

The Alcantara version is technically the same as the other colorways in terms of features, but for me, it enhances all three of those central pillars further. With the black material swallowing all light like a black hole, it helps the seams of the chair disappear, which gives the Refine an even more alluring look. The comfort is enhanced because the soft and premium-feeling material is much nicer to the touch than fabric or mesh. Ergonomics, to me, feel enhanced because of the futureproofing this hard-wearing material gives you. While mesh or fabric might wear down over time, I have confidence this will be an even better longer-term investment because each session in it feels the same as the out of box experience.

I have no idea how long this deal will last - but if I had to bet, I wouldn't put my money on it staying through the week. If stock lasts, the price sure won't since either someone will realise they put the wrong deal price in, or this was never meant to be discovered by someone like me, who will shout from the rooftops about it. If you're interested in a new place to sit, I'd act quickly.

• View all gaming chairs at Amazon
• Fractal Refine: $499 at Amazon
• Corsair TC500 Luxe: $499 at Amazon

Building your ideal desk setup? Check out the best gaming PCs, the best PC controllers, and the best streaming mixers.

Secretlab is yet again appealing to us anime nerds, with the launch of the brand's first-ever One Piece gaming chair collection.

If you've ever wanted to take the helm of your gaming PC setup while showing off your love for One Piece, this new collection seems like the best way to do it. The officially licensed collection features two stunning new designs for the Secretlab Titan Evo chairs based on Luffy and Zoro, a Secretlab chair skin inspired by Luffy's Gear 5 form, and a memory foam lumbar pillow featuring the iconic Thousand Sunny ship - and it's enough to pull me back into the series.

Secretlab states that their designer for the collection grew up with the One Piece anime, and that's apparent when glancing at the little details.

Monkey D. Luffy's chair naturally features the Straw Hats Jolly Roger just below the headrest, but the gorgeous embroidered straw-patterned stitching on either side of the chair is what stands out the most to me. Its lush gold and red colors give the chair a more sleek look, which is refreshing when anime gaming tech can often look tacky and cheap. I also can't help but be a fan of the inclusion of Luffy's Gomu Gomu no Mi Gum-Gum Fruit on the back of the chair - it's subtle but effective.

The Zoro chair is equally as stylish. Everything on it screams Zoro, from the tiny embroidered beer mug to his three swords on the back. If you look hard enough, you can also spot his earrings and his signature, among other details, throughout the swashbuckling design.

Of course, if you already own a Titan Evo, you don't have to buy a whole new chair to take advantage of this new collection. Secretlab has also launched a chair skin inspired by the white and purple color palette of Luffy's Gear 5 form. It can be slipped onto your existing chair, and at $99, it's monumentally less pricey than the rest of the set.

There's also the Thousand Sunny Memory Foam Lumbar Pillow, which will retail at $69 from Secretlab, which can give your back a bit of extra support while you catch up with the anime series. As the name suggests, it's based around the current ship of the Straw Hat pirate crew, and features the figurehead of the ship against a nautical map pattern.

Secretlab could have easily gone down the route of just slapping the One Piece logo over these chairs and calling it a day, but these are one of the best anime designs I've seen in the brand's entire back catalog.

So good it has me contemplating if it's time to give the series another shot. I'm one of those bozos who was into One Piece manga and anime series many moons ago, but eventually stopped reading (and watching) as it started to get a bit overwhelming. The idea of catching up with 1,140 episodes now does not sound fun, but I'd be lying if these gorgeous chairs and Secretlab accessories weren't giving me the itch to give the series another go.

Now, if only they had a chair inspired by Chopper or even Shirahoshi to match the pink and cozy aesthetics of my office...

You can register your interest for the Secretlab One Piece collection via the official Secretlab online store. When it's ready, the Luffy and Zoro Edition Titan Evo chairs will start at $684; meanwhile, the Luffy Gear 5 skin and the Thousand Sunny Foam Lumbar Pillow will be available from $99 and $69, respectively.

• View One Piece Collection at Secretlab
• View all gaming chairs at Secretlab
• Secretlab Desks: from $679 Secretlab

It took a little while to get used to the AutoFull G7. It's a very unique, quirky gaming seat that feels like nothing else I've sat on in my three years of reviewing the best gaming chairs. In fact, I still feel like I'm getting used to it well over a month after assembling it. Regardless of how unique it feels, it's been growing on me every week of testing.

But here's the thing, I'm not usually a huge fan of "ergonomic" mesh chairs. I understand their breathable appeal, but the ones I've tested in the past have had a higher price than fully cushioned, upholstered alternatives, and it always feels like you're paying more for less of a product. Ergonomics is the upside to these chairs, though. In other words, you're usually going to get better posture support, separate back panelling for your lower and upper back, and often more adjustability.

The AutoFull G7 is supposed to cost $799.99 / £669.99 at full price, although I've seldom seen it above a $599 discount price in the US. If it looks familiar, that's probably because it looks exactly like the Hbada E3 Pro, which you may have seen in targeted social media ads if you've even smelled the idea of getting a new chair lately. Hbada is the sister brand to AutoFull, and so the G7 packs all the same great adjustability while giving gamers a little more personality and color.

Design

I'd usually talk to you about the assembly process first, but I think with this quirky a product, we need to discuss its design before anything else. For me, this chair's design was what led me to it over the umpteen other ergonomic mesh chairs on the shelves at the moment.

The AutoFull G7 and the Hbada E3 Pro both have a clever lumbar support system, which sets them apart. I've been describing it as a lumbar roll cage to friends and co-workers, but it could also be compared to a belt, because it doesn't just support your lower back, it folds around you to cradle your sides too. In three years of reviewing gaming chairs, I've seen a few floating lumbar systems, like the Razer Iskur V2's, but I haven't come across anything that takes such a unique approach to lower back support as the G7 does.

This is, of course, fully adjustable, and you can fold and unfold the sides of the lumbar support to suit your body shape. What I think isn't clear when looking at pictures and videos of this chair is that the lumbar belt doesn't really lock into a fixed position. It's spring-loaded and takes on your weight when you sit back. On one hand, that's great, because no matter how you shift your body throughout a work day or a gaming session, you'll still benefit from lumbar support. On the other hand, it can be a real pain finding a position to rest comfortably in.

Constant pressure being applied to your lumbar so that you're constantly supported? Great. A spring-loaded mechanism digging into your back for your entire remote-working life? Not always the most comfortable.

Interestingly, there is a locking mechanism for this back support, but it only really limits the height it sits at, not the outward position. I'm not sure if this is supposed to act this way, or if it's actually meant to lock into position, and I just got a faulty unit. Either way, it makes the lumbar support an inescapable feature of the chair that you can't really shy away from. Unlike the scrollwheels used on gaming chairs like the Boulies Master Series.

As I've mentioned, AutoFull G7 is a mesh chair, meaning it has a breathable netted fabric instead of padded cushioning and either leather or fabric upholstery. There are two back panels, a neck/headrest, and a footrest. The seatbase has a more elasticated mesh, which is a lot comfier than a lot of other mesh seatbases I've tried. It's fairly narrow, though, which feels exaggerated after my months of sitting in the Corsair TC500 Luxe. I find that I can't really adjust my sitting position in this chair. I can't fold one leg under the other because my foot will take on the full pressure of the seat rim, which is extremely rigid. This is not a chair for people who like to fold their legs or who want a wider base.

Where the G7 differs from the Hbada E3 is in its backplate armour and colorways. The Hbada is an office chair, so it comes in a more muted mesh color that looks white or grey in most lights. The G7 is available in black, white, pink, and purple. Included with all of those variants is a back panel that gives it more of a Gundam, Transformer look. Fittingly, these are magnetically fixed and can be interchanged or removed entirely.

Features

Like a lot of these ergonomic office chairs, the AutoFull G7 is extremely clicky. That is to say that it has loads of parts that you can shove this way or that, sliding them into positions that work for you and the way you're sitting. While I don't really like this type of adjustability and would be much more appeased by some locking levers and switches that keep things in the position I like, I have gotten on well with the G7. Yes, I still declare war on armrests that don't stay in the position you want them in, but since there are so many layers of adjustability on this chair, it's not the worst thing in the world.

The armrests here go way beyond the call of duty. While most chairs just about meet the 4D armrest quota, AutoFull has made 720°, 6D armrests. They can move up and down, front to back, they can tilt forward and back, and they can spin around on two different axes. That's just about as conclusive as you'll get for any gaming chair armrests in this day and age, and I love being able to set them to the exact position, rotation, and width as I want for typing and gaming.

One of my favorite features from the Fractal Refine is back here, too. Adjustable seat depth is an amazing bonus if you like to slouch down a bit and really sink into your chair. That works excellently in the Fractal Refine, but in the AutoFull G7, I really haven't used it all that much because I've found that the lumbar support ends up pulling up the back of my t-shirt and generally just feeling pretty uncomfortable. Still, it is a nice feature that not enough chairs have.

Footrests are becoming more popular in office and gaming chairs, and although I wasn't a huge fan of the Secretlab Ergonomic Recliner for the Titan Evo, I'm a big fan of this one. It has something that Secretlab doesn't have, and that's the ability to slide outwards to accommodate different leg lengths. It's also included by default - no extra cost or assembly needed, and it isn't in the way when it's not in use because it folds away under the seatbase.

I wish the headrest were as intuitive. While it has lots of adjustability, it often feels really awkward to move or rest your head on. For starters, its mesh and awkwardly sized logo that's embroidered on feels like cardboard to lean back on. It can move in 4 dimensions, but I don't ever feel like I'm getting the perfect position, no matter which one I utilize. Lazily applying some pressure to it with the back of your head always tends to yield unintended results as well, and you're never quite sure of how it's actually moved around behind you.

But hey, at least if you're on the taller side of the height scale, you can adjust all three back panels of the G7 to work for you.

Assembly

With all of those moving parts, you can probably understand why the assembly process was a tad complicated. For the most part, it was the same process you'd go through to put together any gaming chair. You start with the wheels and wheelbase, then you fix the backrest to the seatbase and armrests. Except, with so many adjustable parts that click into new positions with nothing locking them into any one angle, lifting and maneuvering any of them becomes a nightmare. I would seriously recommend grabbing a partner to help with this chair's assembly, because heavy lifting when any of the adjustable parts could click a few notches down and trap a finger at a moment's notice gets real dicey, real fast.

It also doesn't help that a few times, the assembly instructions ask you to use an Allen key where there is no room for you to leverage one. For instance, attaching the armrests to the seatbase requires you to spin an Allen key into a hole that is already embedded in the innards of its steel shape. Which means you get about a third of a turn before you have to rest the Allen key and start again. Then, attaching the headrest, you have to navigate some tiny bolts at a really awkward angle where there really isn't much room for an Allen key to work. I actually lost one of the tiny bolts inside the backrest when doing this step.

There is a small screwdriver that comes with the G7, and it's a shame this isn't more widely used in the assembly process, since it might have been easier to twist than an Allen key to spin. In fact, a few extra screws in this chair would have been helpful. The armrests on my testing model feel a bit loose when you put weight on either end of them. I'm referring to the actual armrest tops here, not the long arms that hold them in place. I emailed AutoFull throughout my testing time to see if this was the result of a bad model or just how they were because of the adjustability. They told me to tighten the screws that held the armrests in place, but there aren't any for the armrests other than the ones that fix them to the seatbase.

This is a real shame, and it's not the only instance of the build quality feeling a little cheap at times for what is a pretty costly chair. The mesh material of various panels can often be heard rubbing up against one another, which gives me some worries that they'll be prone to wearing down as time goes on.

Performance

So how do all of these clicky, adjustable, lumbar-supporting features perform in long hours spent at a gaming desk? Well, I personally love how this chair has a Jekyll and Hyde personality to it.

During my first week of testing, I was in the editing stages of making a video essay for my YouTube channel, so after my normal working-from-home routine during the day, I was spending even more hours at the same desk doing all my content creation tasks in the evenings. For work, I'd be sitting in a more ergonomically agreeable position, minding my posture, and doing my best to sit up straight. In the evenings, however, you better believe the footrest was coming out, and it was time to recline. I like that this is a chair for work and play, and all the while, it feels like it's supporting your bodyi's shape.

We do need to talk about the lumbar system, though. It is easily the coolest, and best, but also most bizarre thing about this chair. Like I said toward the top of this review, I still feel like I'm getting used to it. I'll stand up after a few hours at my desk and feel the phantom sensation of the lumbar support pushing into my lower back. It feels like my spine is straighter in these moments, but I can't exactly say it's the most comfortable feeling in the world.

The lumbar belt is a double-edged sword, no doubt about it. With the spring-loaded tension, I do feel like it's doing something for my back, but if you adjust your position at all, or shuffle in the wrong way, it's going to slide upwards and outwards, and suddenly put tension on the wrong part of your back. There have been a few gaming sessions where I haven't realised this was happening, and I'd get up only to have more back pain instead of less.

This is where I'd really have liked a few more locking levers to really nail down the position that works for me. Adjustability is great, but it's good for things to stay still too, please. It doesn't help that I'm still in two minds on whether the locking mechanism for my G7's lumbar support actually works as intended.

A real saving grace of this chair is the armrests, which really benefit from all the adjustability I've talked about. Being able to move to be narrower or wider is a huge quality-of-life bonus after I spent months scowling at the wide-set armrests of the Corsair TC500 Luxe. I'd have liked some more comfortable tops for the G7's armrests, though. There is a spongy texture to them, but not enough to avoid a numb or even sore elbow at times. Thankfully, all that adjustability means you can pivot them around so that your forearms are always resting in their concave shape.

There's one area of this seat that I haven't really touched on, and that's comfort. This is different from ergonomics, which is more about supporting a healthy position for your body. Comfort when it comes to gaming chairs is more about your happiness to slump into one for long hours of gaming with minimal fuss and bother. The AutoFull G7 has great ergonomics, and its seatbase is comfortable thanks to its elasticity. But on the whole, this isn't the most comfortable seat I've tried. After a full day of work in the G7, the couch was screaming pretty loudly at me and seemed really appealing. Yes, the footrest here gives you that feeling of kicking your feet up and relaxing, but the whole package isn't as comfortable as I'd like.

Should you buy the AutoFull G7?

I think if you're looking for a highly adjustable, ergonomic, mesh chair, you'll struggle to find a better one for gaming than the AutoFull G7. The Hbada E3 Pro has seemingly become really popular due to its clever ergonomics, and I can see why. The AutoFull G7 takes that same adjustability and unique lumbar system and puts a gaming spin on them. This is absolutely a chair that will help to improve your posture, and I can see it being a big hit with folks who want to alleviate lower back pain. That said, if your pain is severe, proceed with caution; the spring-loaded tension of this chair is like those corrective leg braces Forrest Gump wears as a child. It does the trick, but it can feel pretty invasive.

Compared to a lot of ergonomic chairs like the ones made by Herman Miller, the AutoFull G7 has a reasonable price, although this is one I'd suggest waiting to pull the trigger on until it's discounted under $600. I don't think the build quality is good enough to warrant a $700+ price tag compared to other options I've sat in.

How I tested the AutoFull G7

I sat in the AutoFull G7 every day for work and play for a little over a month before this review was written. In that time, I used its many adjustability features and assessed how they were impacting my posture, body, and comfort level.

I compared my experience using this chair closely with my time in other gaming chairs, as well as other mesh offerings that cater to an ergonomic market. I was provided with a sample from AutoFull for this review, and I emailed them about the issue of the loose armrests while testing.

For more on how we test gaming chairs, take a look at the full GamesRadar+ Hardware Policy.

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Every week, I look for the best cheap gaming chair deals, and it's never an easy job. Mostly, that's because cheap gaming chairs don't really exist, and particularly if you want the features these seats are known for, you're hardly ever going to find them for less than £200.

That means that you're often at the mercy of deals, discounts, seasonal sales, and lucky timing if you're shopping for one of the best gaming chairs. The first one I always check the price on is the Corsair TC100 Relaxed because I truly believe this is the perfect gaming chair for those players. I feel like I've discovered a miracle though, because although this chair gets frequent discounts down to £199, it's suddenly fallen to £159.99 at Corsair, and I've never seen it priced so low.

Annoyingly, this discount hasn't been replicated by Corsair's US store, so it's only our UK readers who are going to be able to make the most of this offer. In fact, Stateside, I'd say this is actually a bad time to seek out the Corsair TC100 Relaxed since its price is seeing a big spike at Amazon to above its launch price.

Regardless, I'd recommend the TC100 Relaxed to any UK reader who is looking to get themselves a more comfortable, more supportive chair to sit in for work and gaming time, without breaking the bank. For a budget chair, there are loads of features here, and having sat in it for months before I wrote my review, I can say there's plenty of comfort to be had.

Along with all the swivelling, adjusting, height changing, and reclining you'd expect from an office chair these days, you also get some 2D armrests, which is a big perk for this price range. I think armrests are one of the most underappreciated and important parts of a gaming chair, especially for PC gamers. Think about it, your elbows need to be at the right height to line up with your desk so that you can comfortably and accurately use your mouse and keyboard. This means getting them at the right height and width for you, and the TC100 Relaxed does a great job of that.

There's no integrated lumbar support here, but you do get a lumbar cushion and a neck cushion to help you find the comfortable position you want. The neck cushion was a tad stiff for my liking, but the lower back cushioning did a great job of straightening my spine while I was sat at my desk for work.

For more chilled out gaming sessions though, I was able to cross my legs thanks to Corsair's wide seatbase. This is one of the few brands that really leans into offering a wider seat, and I really appreciate that Corsair even allows it in its cheaper offering here.

The one thing Corsair's seat is lacking is some color. It's available in a grey or black colorway with either a leatherette or fabric upholstery. But unlike a lot of more pricey gaming chairs, there's no option to personalise and add some color to your setup, which is a shame. Still, the fabric version I tested made up for that lack of color with a soft touch and more comfortable cushioning than a lot of chairs at this price point will give you.

Gaming chair deals for US readers:

• Corsair TC500 Luxe: $521 at Amazon
• Boulies Master Series: $369 at Amazon
• View all gaming chairs at Amazon

Looking to polish up that desk space? Check out the best gaming PCs, the best gaming monitors, and the best PC controller.

GT Omega is a brand that has, in the last few years, really established itself in the gaming chair market. Thanks to its wide range that spans from racing sim seats to their PRO Series gaming chairs, it’s now a force to be reckoned with if you’re looking for a place to sit without parting with all your savings. Reasonable pricing helps to make them eye-catching, but what really caught my eye with the GT Omega Pro Series Gen 2.0 was its stunning shade of pink.

As someone who has always considered himself primarily a console gamer, one of the major factors that deterred me from the vast world of PC gaming was the idea of sitting at a desk. I had convinced myself that nothing could be more comfortable than sinking into the couch; if I was to take the leap, then I needed something just as comfy. One pro of a desk chair though? The fact that you can personalize it to you and your setup. I’m not sure how guests would feel about a bright pink couch in my living room, but one of the best pink gaming chairs is much more fetching.

The GT Omega Pro Series Gen 2.0 aims to provide that comfort and dash of color you might want in your setup. Coming in at $362.43/£189.95 it looks to, (particularly in the UK), undercut a lot of the best gaming chair competition. But does it have all the features to compete with a stacked market and finally scoop me off my sofa?

Assembly

The GT Omega Pro Series Gen 2.0 was a breeze to build. The instructions are straightforward and easy to follow, with the actual process of building it being very simple - I found it about as easy to build as the Razer Iskur V2 X. Additionally I felt very patriotic as the cardboard box it arrived in had ‘DESIGNED IN SCOTLAND’ proudly on the side, and as a Scottish man this caused a reflex action where I broke out into a rendition of Flower of Scotland and then 500 Miles.

GT Omega supplies you with all the tools you’ll need inside the box, which means I now have an extra Allen Key added to my collection. As long as you follow the instructions and don’t do a classic Dad move at Christmas by throwing them away, I have faith you’ll also find it easy to put together.

In total, I would estimate that if you follow the guide that comes with the chair, you’ll be seated and gaming within 30 minutes. Having actually timed myself, I know that it took me 22 minutes and 26 seconds to have it assembled and an additional 4 minutes to load up Grand Theft Auto V and be driving around Los Santos.

It is worth noting that I built the chair by myself; this could be a quicker job if split between two people - although, with too many cooks, who knows. The process was fairly easy. The individual parts were light enough to put together on my own, and it all simply clicked into place. I always find attaching the wheels to the base of the chair very satisfying, and it was no different here, just slide them into the slots and you’ve got your base setup. The easy setup continued as I used the Allen Key provided to attach the backrest to the seat. This was just a matter of screwing them together nice and tight - this is the same for the armrests. The only area that I found a little bit challenging on my own was getting the seat attached to the base. Trying to line it up with the pipe was a bit of a struggle, but I got there after a couple of attempts.

Design

The first thing you notice about the design of this particular GT Omega Pro Series Gen 2.0 is the pink fabric. It is an absolutely stunning color that really stands out in the market. So many pink gaming chairs only offer that shade in one or two parts, but this is a truly bold, pink chair all over. After years of having a basic black office chair, or more recently, the Boulies Elite Series or Razer Iskur V2 X, it is a nice change of pace to have something that looks like it has some personality.

If you’re more Oppenheimer than Barbie, then that’s okay. The Pro Series Gen 2.0 also comes in ‘Jet-Black’ and ‘Clouded-Grey’ color schemes. It also comes in a leather upholstery in a black colorway, although that’s currently out of stock at the time of writing. However, I can safely say that the ‘Rose-Pink’ fabric option is absolutely the best choice. It feels really nice to the touch, and each colorway still manages to look distinct.

Aside from the options of which material and which color you’d like your chair to be, that is it. Granted, you can add additional separate purchases like a floor pad or additional cushioning for your armrests, but these are not essential and are just extra purchases that you can buy at any time.

Features

The Pro Series Gen 2.0 sports most of the key features you’d expect from the best gaming chairs on the market. You have your standard adjustable height, allowing you to fine-tune the seat to your desired height. Additionally, you’re able to recline up to a full 180 degrees, not that I am sure you’d ever need to go that far back, but it’s nice to have on the off chance you want to take a nap at your desk in between gaming sessions.

One of my favourite aspects of the Pro Series Gen 2.0 is the adjustable armrests. Not only can their height be adjusted, but you can also move them forward or back to meet your position, and they can be rotated too. 3D armrests, then, so not quite the 4D ones you might see from higher-end models, but they give the Corsair TC500 Luxe a run for its money.

When I said “most of the key features of a high-end gaming chair”, one of the main ones the Pro Series Gen 2 is missing is integrated lumbar support. Thankfully, it has the go-to substitute for this. While the lumbar support isn’t built into the chair like the Razer Iskur V2 X, which I found to be comfortable but a little hard to get used to, GT Omega instead supplies you with both a lumbar cushion and a neck cushion.

Performance

After a very easy assembly, I was into the games in no time. Like a large portion of gamers shopping for a new seat, I have an office job. This means I’m sitting at a desk 9-5, five days a week, so essentially what I’m saying is “I know what uncomfortable feels like.” This, along with my preference for console couch gaming has led me to neglect the PC gaming landscape as I don’t want an uncomfortable experience when I get home. The GT Omega Pro Series Gen 2.0 helped change that perspective for me.

While you don’t “sink” into the seat as much as your conventional couch, the Pro Series Gen 2.0 has a very comfortable seat cushion that gives enough squish to satisfy, while also staying firm to provide you with support. Their website describes it as “high-end cold moulded foam,” and it does feel very premium. What exactly is “cold moulded foam”? Well, it is foam cushioning that has a layer of skin on its edges, which stops air from escaping, allowing it to hold its shape for longer.

I’ve mentioned before in my review of the Razer Iskur V2 X that I enjoy a harder seat, and honestly, this was the perfect blend of both for me. At times, it felt like I was sinking into it, while there were times I felt propped up by it. I have confidence that people who like both soft and hard cushioning will find comfort in the Pro Series Gen 2.0.

That same praise extends to the backrest, as it felt really comfortable to relax into. Now, remember when I said it gets a half-tick for lumbar support? Well, while the additions of the cushions were nice - occasionally you’ll see companies charging extra for these to be included - I didn’t find the lumbar support cushion to be particularly comfortable. So, while I usually look for lumbar support in a gaming chair, the experience was actually better without it on the Pro Series Gen 2.0.

I enjoyed the neck pillow for the most part. However, I did find it rather annoying every time I moved. The default position for it between the gaps on the backrest meant that it fell much lower on my upper back than on my neck. Perhaps the seat is designed for someone smaller than me? I’m exactly 6’ tall, so smaller people may find it a better fit. I did get around this by hooking it around the top of the headrest but I was constantly worried that the clip was being stretched too much and it would ping off.

Should you buy the GT Omega Pro Series Gen 2.0?

Admittedly, pink is one of my favourite colors, and the GT Omega Pro Series Gen 2.0 is one of the nicest-looking chairs if you’re of the same opinion. It has a very sleek look and, while the pink is bright, it isn’t off-putting or garish. So, if you’re in the market for a pink gaming chair, then absolutely I would recommend the Pro Series Gen 2.0 - it also helps that it won’t cause you to go into shock when you see the cost of one leave your account.

Similarly, if you’re looking for a gaming chair that will give you enough comfort for those long gaming sessions at your PC, then the Pro Series Gen 2.0 does the job. Although it is worth remembering that it doesn’t come with built-in lumbar support, which many of the best gaming chairs have integrated now without the use of clunky cushions.

I mentioned earlier that I am exactly 6’ tall, while the seat is perfectly comfortable for me, I do think that anyone bigger than me may find it a little bit small. If you’re in that 5’2” to 6’2” range, then this will be perfect for you.

When it comes to price, I do acknowledge that it is a much better deal in the UK than it is in the US. While it is practically a steal in the UK at £189.95, you may be able to find a better chair in the US at a similar price point or even cheaper - for example, the Boulies Elite Series, which is only $10 more expensive and is considered our ‘Best First Gaming Chair’.

How we tested the GT Omega Pro Series Gen 2.0?

I spent 3 weeks with the GT Omega Pro Series Gen 2.0 as my primary gaming seat and office chair at home. I regularly spent sessions of up to 6 hours sitting in the Pro Series gen 2.0 and performed a range of tasks, including writing, gaming, and Twitch streaming.

For more on how we test gaming chairs, check out the full GamesRadar+ Hardware Policy.

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If there's one thing that the LiberNovo Omni's Kickstarter campaign has taught me, it's that people really aren't satisfied with the current designs of office and gaming chairs. This newly invented, ergonomic, posture-supporting chair had an original goal of $49,000, and with 38 days still to go in its campaign, it's already surpassed $3,000,000 worth of crowdfunding.

How has that happened, I hear you ask? The LiberNovo Omni has garnered a lot of attention of late as the first-ever chair with a dynamic backrest support system. In short, the backrest adapts to you as you move around in it, supporting the natural curvature of your spine no matter if you're reclining, sitting upright, or changing your seat position. I've seen plenty of chairs with floating lumbar systems, in fact, I'm testing one right now, but a fully dynamic backrest is definitely a first in my book.

The LiberNovo's Bionic FlexFit Backrest has been created with ergonomics in mind, so much so that Chiropractors have given their endorsements. As you'll see from images of the chair, it features horizontal strips that mimic the vertebrae that make up your spine. On top of that, the Omni has electric support that, in theory, aligns with your back shape and supports it even when you change position, without the need to mess around with lumbar scroll wheels.

Most gaming chairs feature some kind of lumbar support, but there are few that cater to the fact that people's sitting position is constantly changing, so even the adjustable lumbar support in the Secretlab Titan Evo, or the Corsair TC500 Luxe will only really help your posture if you manage to sit in the exact same position while using them. The Fractal Refine is one of the few chairs I've tested that makes lumbar support a bit more adaptive thanks to its changeable seat depth.

I must say, when a gaming or office chair starts talking about massage features, I start to see red flags, mainly because this feels like a gimmick designed to capitalize on back-pained shoppers. The LiberNovo Omni does have massaging features, but it isn't trying to be your gran's rumbly massage chair that shakes her dentures out of her mouth. The Omni's motorized features have been inspired by the yoga cat-cow stretch, which helps to loosen up your lower back.

Some of you may be worrying about those electric features since having a chair you plug in does not sound ideal - it certainly doesn't to me. Thankfully, LiberNovo has designed a hot-swappable battery that slots in and out of the seatbase, meaning you can take it away, charge it wherever is convenient, and slot it back into the Omni when you need to use it. The Kickstarter page says it takes 3.5 hours to charge, and that will provide 30 days of power.

As you might expect if you're familiar with gaming chairs these days, the LiberNovo Omni features 4D armrests that you can line up with your desk height and the angle your arms sit at. What's interesting is that although most chairs have free recline features, the Omni has four set reclining positions - my guess is that to maintain that ergonomic s-shape in the backrest, they have to control the angles a bit more than usual.

You still have plenty of time to pledge your support to the LiberNovo Omni, which is available in black and white. The project only launched on Kickstarter on June 24, and in just six days, it had already achieved a stretch goal for surpassing $1,900,000. Now, with $3,000,000 in the rear view mirror, supporters can claim lots of added extras and accessories with their chair purchase, like an eco-friendly bag, a sleeping mask, a coffee cup, and more. There also seems to be a few bundles available that get you the chair along with its partnering footrest, so if you know you're going to be reclining in the Omni, that might be the option for you.

I'm told I'm on a review list for LiberNovo's upcoming seat, and I can't wait to try it for myself. The Kickstarter page says that chairs will start shipping in July, and local deliveries will begin right after the campaign ends.

Not convinced? Check out some of my favorites gaming chairs:

There's more gaming furniture out there. Check out the best console gaming chairs, the best gaming desk, and the best standing desk.

Shopping for a gaming chair sort of sucks. It's not like you can head to your local shop, try one out, and see which suits you and your body best. They're also stupidly expensive, which means you're eyeballing a potentially $500+ purchase. Big sales events like Prime Day flip the script slightly because a lot of the best gaming chairs come down in price.

I'm going to level with you. Forget all the other gaming chairs you've been looking at so far this summer. Forget Secretlab's multitude of colorways, forget Herman Miller's ludicrous prices, and ignore all those unknown brands at Amazon that are promising comfort for less than $100. The only gaming chair you need to know about in this year's Prime Day sales is Fractal Design's, which is down to $484 at Amazon. This deal has gotten even better throughout the week, too, since it was at $499 for most of the event. If you've been holding off, now is the time to pull the trigger.

For context, I review gaming chairs, and have done so for just shy of three years now. In that time, I've tried multiple Secretlab offerings, extremely extra-looking ergonomic mesh chairs that promise to heal your back pain, and umpteen different value options. I still haven't found a gaming chair that's as well-rounded as the Fractal Refine, especially for its pretty reasonable price.

Whether you're looking for a therapeutic, posture-mending seat for your work-from-home setup or you're in need of a throne to conquer online leaderboards from in your favorite game, the Fractal Refine is the best thing on the market, in my opinion. It's just under a year old now, and I've been waiting to see its price drop since launch, just so I can write about it again.

For those who don't know, Fractal Design is a Swedish brand that usually focuses on PC cases, fans, and other PC building products. In a lot of ways, its entry into the gaming chair market is totally out of left field and feels like a statement of frustration with what else is available, just as much as it does an expansion of its product portfolio.

But what's so great about it? I think its adjustability is one of its best traits. Yes, a lot of gaming chairs are adjustable (that's sort of one of their biggest selling points), but the Refine has adjustable lumbar support in its backrest, as well as a seatbase that slides forward so when you shift positions, the posture support shifts with you. You can see from its tall, slimline shape that it's doing things a bit differently than a lot of gaming chairs, which opt for a very traditional racer-style shape. This is why Fractal's ergonomics really feel distinct - the chair's shape guides your spine into a healthier position, which will do wonders for your wellbeing if you spend long hours at a desk.

The Refine comes in both mesh and fabric upholsteries (for the same price), which is a massive win since a lot of chair manufacturers separate these into different models and charge extra for the mesh version. Although that means the backrest cushioning on the fabric options is a little more minimalist, I don't think the Refine suffers for it. There's enough cushioning to be comfortable, but the slimline approach encourages you to sit up straight under your own power, which is exactly how posture support should work.

As silly as this might sound, I swear the armrests of the Fractal Refine genuinely helped my mouse aim in PC games. They have a fantastic shape, a plush surface, and a wide range of movement, so you can level them perfectly with your desk.

So why do I recommend this so strongly over the likes of a Secretlab seat? First of all, comfort is a big factor. I've tried both the fabric Secretlab Titan Evo and the more plush Secretlab Titan Evo Nanogen Edition, and I don't find either of them to be plush enough. Secretlab says that a firmer chair is better for you, but my body thanked me for sitting in the Fractal Refine far more than it did either of those Secretlab options. What's more, the plush seatbase cushioning on the Refine didn't give me a numb rear end like Secreltab's products did.

Finally, I can't ignore the price argument either. Secretlab and Herman Miller, which I'd classify as the Fractal Refine's biggest rivals, both charge even higher prices for their seats, and arguably for fewer (if not the same number of) features. Fractal Design hasn't stepped into the gaming chair realm before now, and charging a fairly reasonable $499 for its excellent seat feels like it's showing that it knows there's a lot of price over-inflating happening in the market.

There's more where that came from

• Gaming chairs: View all deals at Amazon
• Gaming Desks: Prime Day deals starting at $75.99
• Cable management: Neater setups starting from $5.93

For more on Amazon's big summer discounts, take a look at some Prime Day PC deals, Prime Day Meta Quest deals, and Prime Day PS5 deals.

Razer has just dropped the prices on some of its best gaming chairs, and these discounts are particularly heavy. Between a brand new record-low price on the Razer Iskur V2 and a 10% discount on the Razer Enki, things are looking cheaper than ever right now.

The headline deal is on that Iskur, though. The chair, highly regarded and Duncan's favorite for lumbar support in particular, has shifted $250 from its lofty $649.99 MSRP ahead of Prime Day. That means you'll find it available for just $399.99 at Razer this weekend. Considering I've never seen this model drop below $449.99 in the past (and even that was a rare offer), this is a must-see.

That's not all, though. Those after something a little cheaper will want to take a look at the Razer Enki X. This chair starts life at $399.99, but has been dropped by $50 this weekend. It has been a little cheaper before, hitting $299.99 back in December last year, but this is as cheap as it's been in 2025 so far - and Razer currently has the best price on the web.

Which Razer gaming chair should you buy?

The Razer Iskur V2 is our favorite gaming chair for lumbar support overall, but it also comes with its own nifty tricks. 4D arm rests make for a far more versatile seated position, and a bolstered EPU-grade synthetic leather makes for a stylish look overall. The latter is shared by the newer Enki X, but you're dropping that extra spin in your arm rests, reverting back to a more traditional 2D movement.

Both options offer 152-degree decline and are suitable for up to 299lbs of weight. On the surface then, aside from the fact that the Iskur features a slightly more premium aesthetic in its accents and stitching, these two chairs are fairly similar.

Why pay the extra $50 for the Iskur V2 in today's sale? It all comes back to those ergonomics. The Iskur features an extensive set of customization tools for its inbuilt lumbar support. That cushioning system can extend in and out, up and down, and side to side. Ben noticed a massive improvement in posture and comfort after personalizing these three-degrees of movement when reviewing the Iskur V2.

I often do away with additional lumbar support cushions entirely. They never seem to fit just right, but Razer's solution could well be the answer to those woes. If you want to invest a little more in your spine, today's discount could well be your ticket in.

• View the full sale at Razer
• Razer Iskur V2: $649.99 $399.99 at Razer
• Razer Enki X: $399.99 $349.99 at Razer

We're also hunting down all the best console gaming chairs as well as the best gaming desks and best standing desks for more setup options.

As I've slowly switched over to PC for my gaming time in the last few years, I've become one of those annoying friends who keeps recommending that my console-gaming friends all do the same. For a lot of them, I hear the same issues. PC gaming is expensive, it can mean more time fiddling with settings, it's "less practical", all those valid queries you might be feeling too.

By far, the gripe I hear the most is that when people clock off from working a full-time desk job, the last thing they want to do is stay sitting at a desk for their free time. This is probably the PC gaming gripe I relate to most. Even if you have one of the best gaming chairs, shooting for a decent work/life balance is still important, and sitting back down at your desk after work isn't ideal.

So allow me to introduce you to the thing that's totally ended that problem for me. The Couchmaster Cycon3 is the best way to turn your couch into a perfect PC gaming space. If I really break it down, yes, it is just a set of memory foam cushions and a carbon fibre worktop that also happens to be a USB hub. It really isn't anything overly complicated, so when you consider its $199 price, you may be a little taken aback.

If I'm totally honest with you, I'm not so sure this thing should be that expensive either, but I think it does prove its worth thanks to some massive practicality. This thing turns your couch into a gaming desk, with room to connect your mouse, keyboard, and any other smaller gadgets you might like to have at your disposal while playing on PC. There are six USB 3.0 ports overall, with an additional USB-C slot on the top too. So is it expensive? Yes. Is it also a pretty great way to solve this specific problem? Absolutely.

If the price is a big turn-off for you, there are a couple of cheaper variants you could consider. For instance, it's not designed for gaming, but the CYBOT does essentially the same thing for laptop users, and it costs a reduced $160 / £129 at Amazon. The CYWORX has a wooden worktop that looks a little shorter, but again, it does the same thing for a little cheaper. It costs $154 / £129 at Amazon as well. The CYBOSS, again, has even larger dimensions, and it'll set you back a middling $184 / £149 at Amazon.

I actually have the slightly older Couchmaster Cycon2, which doesn't have the RGB array on its worktop, but has the same kind of connectivity. It sadly looks like it's been discontinued now for the newer model, but the memory foam cushions you get with any model of the Couchmaster are excellent. So many gaming chairs miss the mark with armrests, but these feel so comfortable to sink your elbows into. The desktop comes with a mouse mat included as well, which means one less thing to think about when setting up a new gaming space.

The underside of the worktop opens up on either side, and it's in these small slots that you can plug in your USB devices. There are helpful cable management winders in these compartments too, which then feed your cables up onto the top of the workspace, allowing you to have lots of free mouse movement and agency to move your various accessories around.

Sure, building a TV PC gaming setup might be a whole other thing to think about if you've already got an established gaming desk space. However, it can be just as viable these days. It took me ages to save up for a TV that has the same 4K 144Hz specs as my gaming monitor, but I cannot tell you how worth it it's been making that investment. Depending on what I'm playing and what mood I'm in for an evening's gaming session, I can play at my desk or on my couch. Without the Cycon over my lap, that option to kick back on my couch just wouldn't be there. If you have the money to throw at the problem, I can't recommend it more.

Need to spend that kind of money on PC parts instead? Make sure you're getting the best deal by checking out the best graphics cards, the best RAM for gaming, and the best CPU for gaming.

AndaSeat is one of those growing challenger brands in the gaming chair space, but it’s hardly a newcomer. With nearly 20 years’ experience and an established range of seats, its offerings have previously always been geared towards the upper end and mid-range of the market. The AndaSeat Novis flips that trend and pulls back on bells and whistles in the name of cost-cutting. Starting at just $199 in the US, this is best described as an attempt at an entry-level gaming chair for the masses.

There’s no shortage of choice when it comes to picking a new gaming chair. From size and shape to feature set and perhaps most importantly, budget, there’s seemingly a combo for everyone. Our list of the best gaming chairs is proof of that, but AndaSeat is following the path of Razer in 2025 in trying to cater to the more affordable end of the pricing scale.

I’ve sat on plenty of gaming chairs lately that cost twice as much as the AndaSeat Novis, so the question I’m asking myself is a simple one. Are gaming chairs getting too complicated and too expensive, and is there value in keeping things simple?

Assembly

The AndaSeat Novis might be a budget offering, but the unboxing experience was almost identical to the far more expensive AndaSeat Kaiser 4. It’s a far cry from the impressively slick Secretlab Titan Evo’s packaging and build, but its no-frills box with plenty of plain packing materials gets the job done well enough. All the parts and tools you’ll need are included, along with a simple instruction booklet, but realistically, there are few enough parts here that you probably shouldn’t need to look at that anyway. Wheels on the bottom, seat on the top - you’ve got this.

I tackled the build solo and went from boxed to seated in around 15 minutes without any major hiccups. Unsurprisingly, the slot-in side support bracket is notably absent, and while this does make things a little fiddlier, if it meant trimming a little more off the price, then I can live without it for the one-time use it offered. Also missing is either a head or separate back cushion. Again, this isn’t a surprise, and for me personally, it’s not a huge loss either, but it’s something to be aware of.

Design & Features

With it put together, it’s safe to say the vibe of the AndaSeat Novis is about as quintessentially “gaming chair” as you can get. It’s almost like the starter mold that all other gaming seats are formed from. Available in two sizes and just two colours, the Novis features a wide, flat bucket seat with a slightly contoured back cushion, and honestly, that’s about it on the design front. Like the Razer Iskur V2 X, you miss out on adjustable lumbar support because of the lower price, and the armrests simply go up and down instead of playing hokey pokey like so many you see these days.

Interestingly, despite being nearly a third of the price, there are a lot of shared components between the AndaSeat Novis and the Kaiser 4. I’ve been testing both the linen fabric and PVC leather variants of the Novis, and both upholstery materials are the same as the brand’s more expensive chairs. The wheels are the same too, as are the gas lift and tilt mechanisms. This chair may be missing a few aforementioned features, but you aren’t being skimped on when it comes to the basics, which is rather nice to see.

Little changes in the overall shape of the AndaSeat Novis between the L and XL variants; there are minor sculpting differences, but not enough to notice unless they’re placed side by side. The size change is also not too drastic. Primarily, you gain width with the XL variant as the backrest and ground-to-seat measurements increase by just a couple of cm each. Interestingly, the L variant’s five-point star base is a thick molded plastic, while the XL variant is given the same metal base as other AndaSeat chairs. Both are black and appear similar from a distance. I also didn’t notice a difference in stability or manoeuvrability when using the two chairs day to day, though that nylon base does make the Novis L a couple of kilos lighter.

Performance

If I’m being honest, I didn’t come into this review with the highest of hopes or expectations. My experience with the (apparently) more premium AndaSeat Kaiser 4 wasn’t a brilliant one, so before jumping into the Novis, I was a little nervous about what the brand’s budget offering would be like. These concerns quickly faded because AndaSeat’s least expensive chair may well be its most comfortable.

The AndaSeat Novis is the chair equivalent of the KISS philosophy: get the basics right and you’re most of the way to a winner. For a chair, that’s comfort, stability, and support, and fair play to the Novis because it does a wonderful job of the lot. Comfort was an immediate tick. The cold-cure foam seat cushion is considerably softer and welcoming than both the main seat cushion of AndaSeat’s other chairs, but also their main rivals’ offerings too. Premium options like the Secretlab Titan Evo or Boulies Master Series, for example, have aggressively firm seats that take a fair bit of adjustment to learn to love. I felt like I sat ‘on’ those other chairs, but I sat ‘in’ the AndaSeat Novis and I far preferred it. Whether this softer cushion is as good for my spine, I don’t know. I’m a writer, not a chiropractor. But as an experienced fan of sitting comfortably, I can tell you I wish the Titan Evo’s seat cushion was more like the Novis’.

The large back cushion may lack any adjustability, and you’ll need to pay an extra $39 for a lumbar pillow add-on, but I found it was nicely shaped and felt just right for extended use. I’ve never been one for aggressive lumbar support bulges, so the gentle curves of the AndaSeat Novis struck a nice balance between comfort and ergonomics. This was the first area I noticed what felt like a slight drop in build quality, however. While the fabric L-size Novis I was testing was fine, the PVC leather upholstery of the XL variant felt like it was wrongly sized. It didn’t tightly hug the contour of the back cushion and instead seemed to be stretched across the main face of the chair. It left me feeling almost like I was leaning back into a shallow trampoline, and although this may have just been a quirk of my particular unit, it was definitely a little less comfortable as a result.

Beyond this oddity, the rest of the AndaSeat Novis’ hardware did exactly what I needed it to without flare or fuss. The steel frame across both sizes felt robust and never creaked. The gas lift was exactly what you’d expect, with a slightly modest but decent enough 10cm of adjustment. After a few recent disastrous experiences (I’m looking at you, Kaiser 4), the Novis’ armrests are mercifully only single-D. I just don’t need my armrests to be 18D or whatever ridiculous number brands are itching to climb to. Instead, the AndaSeat Novis’ generously sized, slightly squishy rubber armrests go up and down; that’s it. To be honest, that’s all I needed them to do. They’re comfortable, stable, stay firmly in place under load, and can be adjusted in quite fine increments up to 7cm. They do everything I need and they do it well.

While the AndaSeat Novis does offer the same standard tilt and lean controls as every other gaming chair I’ve tested, they were a little too resistant for my liking. The chair came out of the box with the under-seat knob set to its firmest setting, but even after spending the best part of probably 30 seconds twisting this to its minimum level, I still felt I had to push back pretty hard into the Novis to be able to lean. I’m a man who enjoys a frequent recline to ponder the many meanings of life, or indeed how to best word a sentence about 6D armrests, so this quickly became an irritation and a source of disappointment. It seems like a minor thing to get hung up on, but realistically, this is probably what’s stopping me from sticking with the Novis as my daily driver over other far more expensive options. Admittedly, it may loosen up over time, but after a couple of weeks of testing things didn’t seem to change much, if at all, and I’m not sure they’d ever get to where I’d like them.

Should you buy the AndaSeat Novis?

I can see the AndaSeat Novis being a total crowd pleaser. This is a gaming chair that ticks so many boxes and covers all the important bases. The cushion is softer and more comfortable than many others, the upholstery and frame hardware are still just as good as more premium chairs, and its price is eye-catchingly accessible. AndaSeat has stripped things back, stopped trying to show off with features nobody really needs or wants, and has nailed it as a result.

Obviously, it’s not perfect, and there are a few figurative rough edges here and there. You’re also missing out on some of the more detailed posture and positioning features (and a few Dimensions of armrest adjustment). But if all you need is a comfortable place to park yourself for a few hours of work or gaming, then the AndaSeat Novis is going to be hard to beat for this price. As far as competition goes, this might be the best budget gaming chair on the market in 2025.

How we tested the AndaSeat Novis

I used the AndaSeat Novis gaming chair as my daily driver for both gaming and general office productivity for a couple of weeks. In this time, I tested both the L and XL variants, in the fabric and PVC leather upholstery, respectively. Throughout testing, I occasionally switched back to the Boulies Master Series and Secretlab Titan Evo to compare experiences.

For more on how we test gaming chairs, take a look at the full GamesRadar+ Hardware Policy.

Creating your dream desk setup? Check out the best gaming PCs, the best mouse pads for gaming, and the best gaming desks.

Memorial Day brings with it a slew of gaming hardware discounts, but it's also one of the few times throughout the year that you can count on premium chair brand Secretlab running a sale on its furniture. As always with this website's seasonal discount offerings, though, it can be rather tricky to see which chairs are actually discounted by the time you get to the final checkout button.

Memorial Day has brought back Secretlab's claim that you can get up to $100 off its signature Titan Evo chair, but as ever, that's only the case for a select few skins and only on the small versions of those select chairs. There are plenty of Secretlab Titan Evos included in the Memorial Day sale that don't get the full discount, but most of them aren't close to the full one hundred. For my money, those looking to save as much cash as possible will want to know about the House Lannister version. It's one of two regular-sized Titan Evos that's available with the $100 discount, which brings it to $564 (was $664). If you're not so worried about the full discount, and you're just trying to get one of the most recent designs a little cheaper, I'd be seeking out the Goku version, which is seeing a discount from $684 down to $634 at Secretlab.

Secretlab does make some of the most popular and best gaming chairs around, but it also makes some of the most expensive when all is said and done. The real challenge of getting a proper discount on a Secretlab chair during its seasonal sales is getting to the end of the checkout process and still having the same chair you clicked on originally - without any cost-adding extras lumped in.

The full list of chairs that are available with the $100 off discount is listed below. Again, be warned that the $100 discount is only available on some of these if you opt for the small size. To make things easier, I've put the letter "S" in brackets next to the ones that only get the discount in that size. Otherwise, these designs and more can be found with partial discounts in the regular size. To browse the full Secretlab Memorial Day sale, click the linked text.

• AHRI (S) | $664 $564 at Secretlab
• Akali (S) | $664 $564 at Secretlab
• Team Liquid | $664 $564 at Secretlab
• Team Secret (S) | $664 $564 at Secretlab
• Viego (S) | $664 $564 at Secretlab
• The Flash (S) | $664 $564 at Secretlab
• Tracer (S) | $664 $564 at Secretlab
• K/DA POP STARS (S) | $664 $564 at Secretlab
• K/DA ALL OUT (S) | $664 $564 at Secretlab
• House Lannister | $664 $564 at Secretlab

Should you buy the Secretlab Titan Evo?

As you can see just from the discounted wares, one of the biggest reasons for buying the Secretlab Titan Evo is for the rather ludicrous levels of design choices you have when shopping for them. There are tasteful designs for all sorts of nerdy franchises, so the true benefit of Secretlab is being able to pick the one that you stan the most. Can't decide on just one? The clever zip-up skins the Secretlab wizards cooked up let you remodel for a versatile feel. There are also lots of upholstery options, although you may not get as much choice on that aspect if you're trying to secure a discount.

Personally, I wouldn't recommend the Secretlab Titan Evo for its comfort level, unless you're opting for the newer (and pricier) Secretlab Titan Evo Nanogen Edition. This manufacturer cares about posture support and ergonomics, but it leaves a bit to be desired in terms of cushioning. Of course, the build quality and solid shape of the Titan Evo do mean you can sit on it for hours of work and play and not really complain, but the seat cushion in particular isn't the comfiest, so if you prefer a softer seat, maybe look to another brand.

As you may have sussed out from the rest of this article, the final factor that I'd be hesitant to recommend Secretlab for is its price. Yes, if you go to the likes of Herman Miller, you can find more expensive chairs than this. But since Secretlab is one of the most popular chair makers out there, a lot of people don't realise they can get a lot of the same features (and sometimes more) from cheaper options.

If you've already tried a Secretlab seat, you don't need me to tell you if it's for you or not. For a lot of folks, these are simply unbeatable chairs, so if you're shopping around for one, make the most of the lower prices while you can.

Need a PC to play in that new chair of yours? Check out the best gaming PCs, the best CPUs for gaming, and the best RAM for gaming.

Boulies has just released its latest gaming chair, and the EP300 looks set to take on the luxury ergonomic market. With an introductory discount taking the launch price down to $299, Boulies is making a strong statement about the lofty prices of high-end chairs.

If you shop around for the most premium ergonomic gaming chairs on the market, you'll probably land at the feet of one brand, and one brand only. Herman Miller makes some beautifully elegant and comfortable seats, but its high price tags make it the holy grail manufacturer everyone wishes they could afford.

Boulies, on the other hand, makes some of the best gaming chairs on the affordable end of the spectrum. That's not to say it makes cheap seats that don't last, but this brand has a knack for taking premium features from rival chair makers and cramming them into a much cheaper package. That definitely seems like the aim of its latest model.

Compared to the regular asking price of a Herman Miller chair, the $369 / £289 price of the EP300 feels like a blessing from the gaming furniture gods. The Herman Miller Embody costs more than a grand, and even the more affordable Herman Miller Vantum is still upwards of $750. Looking at the EP300 from a design standpoint, it has very similar ergonomic spinal curvature to the latter.

From first glance, I really love the look of this chair, and not just for its familiar design. In fact, when you look even closer at its features, it reminds me of another epic gaming throne, the Fractal Refine.

The EP300, just like the Refine, comes in both mesh and fabric upholstery options, which is such a great change from what a lot of gaming chairs do - separate their fabric and mesh options into totally different price points, often forcing people to pay more for the breathable mesh option. While I wish there was more than one colorway of the new EP300, the black Padded Mesh or Black Mesh versions look sleek in their own right.

The EP300 has also changeable seat depth, again, like the Fractal Refine. Boulies says this is to cater to different body types, but what I liked about it with Fractal's seat was that I could still benefit from the ergonomic backrest and posture support while sinking deeper into a more relaxed position.

Herman Miller fans in particular might be envious of the headrest on the EP300, since Embody owners need to buy their headrest separately, and this one takes a leaf out of the book of a lot of office chairs since it can adjust to the angle and position you want to rest it in.

Interestingly, there's no adjustable lumbar support here, which could end up being a flaw. Instead of the four-way adjustable padding found on chairs like the Corsair TC500 Luxe and the Secretlab Titan Evo NanoGen Edition, the EP300 utilizes a spinal curve to its backrest that naturally provides lumbar support. The backrest has three height adjustment settings, so you can match that spinal shape to your body shape. Elsewhere, we have the tilting, reclining, rocking, and swiveling you'd expect from a desk chair, with a recline range of 90-109 degrees.

I'm most eager to try out the armrests. While I do like the armrests found across the other Boulies chairs, like the Boulies Elite and Boulies Master Series, I do think an ergonomic chair like this calls for a more premium set of pads for your elbows to lean on. The armrests of the EP300 can be adjusted in height, depth (forward and backwards), and their pivoting angle. I personally hope they feature a button that locks them into position, though, since one of my pet peeves with gaming chairs lately is armrests that slide around when you don't want them to.

Creating a desk setup for the first time? Check out the best gaming PCs, the best gaming monitors, and the best mouse pads

I usually tell people to put a pause on their gaming chair shopping trips until a big seasonal sales event like Memorial Day, Prime Day, or Black Friday. My reasoning is pretty simple; gaming chairs are a sometimes stupidly expensive bit of furniture to buy, and they don't often go on offer outwith these big sales. We're just under two weeks out from Memorial Day, though, and I'm scrapping that advice.

Right now, three of my favorite chairs are all discounted, and with the prices they're at, I don't see any reason to wait for later this month. Kicking things off is a seat that's perfect for anyone buying their first one, or anyone who just doesn't have the budget for some of the bigger names. The Corsair TC100 Relaxed is going for $188.99 at Amazon right now, and even for our favorite budget chair, that's one hell of a bargain.

Next up is its mid-range sibling, the Corsair TC500 Luxe. This also appears on our best gaming chair list, but the Shadow (black) model is currently rocking a $75 discount, bringing it to just $424.99 at Amazon. Lastly, for those looking for the last word in lumbar support, the Razer Iskur V2 is down to $617.99 at Amazon, reduced from its hefty $649 price.

For more on gaming furniture, check out the best console gaming chairs, the best pink gaming chairs, and the best gaming desks.

Razer has just announced its latest gaming chair accessory, with the $229.99 / £199.99 Razer Clio looking to add surround sound audio straight to your headrest.

I'm going to level with you, surround sound systems, as cool as they are, are a bit of a hassle for most setups. Placing speakers in front of you is easy enough since you're generally going to be pointing yourself and your furniture at a screen which sits on a surface of some kind, or is tucked up against a wall. But speakers behind you? That's a bit more of a faff to organise, depending on your room layout.

I'm sure you've also wished there was an easier way to get spatial audio without opting for a headset that's going to wreak havoc on your eardrums if used in every single session. Well, it turns out the folks at Razer have thought about this exact problem, and their solution is to mount those surround speakers to the headrest of your best gaming chair.

Acting as a standalone speaker, Razer Clio can put surround sound-like audio into your lugs on its own thanks to its unique shape and placement behind your head, but it can also be paired with existing front speakers through Synapse 4 software.

As you might guess, it's essentially a wireless Bluetooth speaker, but it can connect to a PC or console using Razer's HyperSpeed Wireless technology (presumably with a USB dongle). Razer quotes it to have a 14-hour battery life, which isn't bad for a speaker.

I can't lie, as quirky and new as this product is, it does seem a wee bit more viable than some of Razer's other inventions. Not that a haptic feedback backrest isn't a cool idea, just hard to imagine being widely used by your everyday Fortnite player.

Clio does seem to have the 3D audio chops for this era of gaming, though. Like a lot of Razer's audio products, it has certification through THX Spatial Audio, and its design as a set of dual near-field speakers means that it'll deliver powerful audio, but might not be as disruptive if you usually play with speakers in a home with other people having to listen to it. Two 43mm full-range drivers will give some of the best PC speakers a run for their money.

However, as someone who reviews and sits in a lot of different gaming and office chairs, I do have some questions about compatibility. Chairs and headrests come in all sorts of shapes and sizes, so just how will Clio play with chairs not made by Razer?

Well, Team Sneki claims that with adjustable nylon straps, Razer Clio is going to be compatible with most high-end gaming chairs. In fairness, this is how most neck cushions attached to gaming thrones before magnetic ones game along. Either way, try telling that to Herman Miller Embody owners who famously get a little triggered by not having a neckrest included in their chair's asking price.

If pairing is done through Synapse 4, I also have a few questions about how this would pair up with an existing set of speakers that were made by another brand.

I don't know many speakers that can talk with Synpase if they aren't made by Razer, so it sure seems like this is going to be able to sync up with an existing Razer sound system like the Nommo speakers, or one of the manufacturer's soundbars. Only time will tell, however, and maybe outward compatibility will be a feature Razer tries to integrate.

As many questions as I might have about Clio, there is one caveat that Razer itself has brought to light. As part of its sustainability mission, Clio has been designed to work with any USB to USB-C cable, and as such, there won't be one in the box when you buy this product. I'm all for sustainable packaging when it comes to gaming hardware, but for a $229 asking price, that might rub some people up the wrong way.

We're also rounding up all the best gaming desks and the best computer speakers, or check out the best gaming headsets for a more traditional experience.

As the gaming chair market has expanded, manufacturers have been exploring all sorts of quirks to help you relax in them. Most gaming chairs end up looking pretty similar to the competition that already exists, but occasionally, you'll find the odd chair that really stands out from the crowd. There are chairs with mesh backs, chairs that are beanbags, foldable gaming chairs, seats with floating backrests, and yes, even gaming couches and beds.

By far, though, the ones I get asked about most often are chairs with heated massage features, because boy, don't they sound nice. Who doesn't want a gaming chair that heats your body up in the winter and massages all your aches away while you work from home? That sounds like the best gaming chair imaginable, doesn't it?

Well, pardon the pun, but I'm not sure these chairs can "back up" their allure. While they sound nice on paper, I usually disappoint people by telling them that these chairs often aren't worth the extra money you pay for them. Gaming chairs are expensive enough, but that's only the beginning of the problem with heated backrests and massaging gaming chairs. So please, before you take the leap, allow me, your friendly neighbourhood chair reviewer, to talk you back down from the ledge. Here's why I'd argue against buying a massaging gaming chair.

Price

I know I literally just said it, but gaming chairs are already an expensive item to invest in. Not only that, but shopping for one feels very high-risk. It's not like you can take a trip down to the local gaming chair shop and park yourself in all the different types to try them out and see which suits you best. A lot of the time, you're sinking a small fortune (around $500 for a decent chair with lots of features) into something you'll have no idea you'll like.

Brands like Secretlab and Herman Miller charge a premium for their seats, and it's easy to come away from them having spent upwards of $700. Mid-range brands that still make great chairs are brands like Fractal Design, Boulies, Corsair, and AndaSeat. Even then, you're still parting with between $300-$500 to sit down in their products. Sure, there are the entry-level options that lie around the $200-300 mark, but my guess is that if you're looking for an all-singing, all-dancing massage chair, you won't be interested in compromising to one of the cheapest ones out there that only give you the bare bones.

Massaging gaming chairs can come from either end of the spectrum. Sometimes, from that upper echelon, and in the case of the Mavix M9, the massaging features add extra cost to an already pricey seat. Massaging/heated chairs from Mavix and DXRacer can cost you anywhere from $600-$800. That's a whole lot of money to part with for one extra feature. On the opposite end of the spectrum, you've got options from Elfordson, which are a lot more affordable, but their chairs don't have the strongest user reviews. No matter how much pain your back is in, I really don't see a chair being the solution.

They won't help your pain as much as you think

One of the biggest reasons people are drawn to massage chairs is that they have back pain complaints. Let me tell you, as someone who's been reviewing gaming chairs for the better part of three years, that this is a great reason to invest in one. Since I was a teenager, I've always carried stress in my back and shoulders, and one of the big ways I evaluate each gaming throne is by seeing how it helps or hinders that pain.

Posture support is an amazing feature of gaming chairs, but I'm going to burst your bubble right now. Posture support is just that - it's support, it's not a cure for your back pain.

Massage features are the exact same. Even if you hired a professional massage therapist to give you a bi-weekly rubdown, their help would only go so far. According to HealthPartners, the number one cause of chronic back pain is muscle atrophy - as in, muscles deteriorating so they can't properly support your spine, ligaments, and body weight. In fact, according to the NHS, the University of California, WebMD, Johns Hopkins Medicine, and pretty much any physiotherapy website I can see all argue that muscle deterioration comes before improper posture, genetics, or chronic conditions, and that exercise is the thing that will help you overcome your pain.

Now, don't get me wrong, a solid, posture-enhancing chair is absolutely going to aid you in your quest against back pain as well, but it isn't going to be a cure-all, nor an easy way out. Without speaking too broadly because your back pain might be due to a specific trauma or condition I don't know about, strengthening your back is going to be the long-term way to improve things for you.

The realities of massage chairs

What's more, gaming chairs with massage features aren't really designed to cater to your specific back issues. You might have a specific point of pain, or a different somatotype (body build) from the people these chairs were designed around, so it's not like they can specifically target your area of discomfort.

Plus, have you ever tried a proper, non-gaming massage chair? I'm pretty sure at some point we've all sat in one of those giant coin-slot massage chairs you can find in shopping malls, at cinemas, or sometimes theme parks. Alternatively, maybe you have a grandparent or older relative who has a massage chair at home. If you have tried one, you'll know that these armchairs don't exactly "massage" you; they make you feel like you've been repeatedly hit by a truck, often worsening whatever pain you have.

Gaming chairs that have heated massage features, like the Mavix M7, don't go that far. Their motors aren't as powerful, and don't actually span the entire backrest, they mainly focus on a small portion of your lower back. When our news editor Ali reviewed that chair, he really enjoyed it, but did come away feeling as though the Elemax features are a luxury that don't necessarily warrant the extra money you pay.

Ali also noted that the practicalities of owning a heating, massaging chair aren't all that great. You'll need to plug it in to either charge it or power it when it's working. If you're worried about your energy bills already, thanks to a full gaming PC setup and all the tech you use on a daily basis (and constantly surging energy prices), this is going to be an extra expense for you. Plus, if you don't have a spare plug socket near where you sit, that'll be an inconvenience. Extra electrical parts also make for a trickier (and heavier) assembly process, which I know from assembling the Fezibo Triple Motor L-Shaped Standing Desk.

A regular gaming chair with great lumbar support will be just as good for you

While I wouldn't necessarily recommend that you fork out extra money on a gaming chair with massage features, there are plenty of chairs out there that give you great lumbar support that I would recommend investing in.

For starters, there's the go-to choice of the Razer Iskur V2, which, although pricey, does have a partially floating backrest that lets you customize its lumbar support to suit you and the positions you like to sit in.

Then there are ergonomic options like the Fractal Refine, which is our current pick for best overall gaming chair. It, like a lot of other chairs, has lumbar support you can customise both in its height and depth, and its mesh cosmetic options ensure the rest of your spine is supported in a healthy way. The best thing about the Fractal Refine's lumbar support, though, is that it has a secondary seat depth for when you want to sink into the chair a little deeper. This ensures that while you take a more relaxed and reclined position, your lumbar and spinal column are still being supported by the chair's ergonomic design.

If you're okay with something a bit more traditional in terms of gaming chair design, why not opt for the Corsair TC500 Luxe, the Secretlab Titan Evo, or the Boulies Master Series? All three of these feature adjustable lumbar support along with other features. While they won't heat you up or rub you down, they will give you everything you need to start conquering your back issues.

For more on gaming furniture, check out the best console gaming chairs, the best pink gaming chairs, and the best gaming desks.

Dune Awakening's system requirements were published just before the weekend, but eagle-eyed spec-scourers may have noticed a familiar Sneki logo popping up. Developer Funcom not only confirmed that the MMORPG will skip early access for a full launch when it hits the airwaves on May 20, but that it will support Razer's Sensa HD haptics straight out the gate. That means developer-coded haptic sensations running via either the Razer Freyja seat cushion (an add-on for the best gaming chairs) or Razer Kraken V4 Pro headset.

That makes it the most recent title added to Razer's roster of Sensa HD compatible games, joining Final Fantasy XVI, Frostpunk 2, Star Wars Outlaws and more. It also comes shortly after Razer announced Simhub integration with its Sensa-enabled gadgets, giving racing fans the feedback they've been asking for since these devices launched late last year.

Exactly how Dune Awakening uses Razer Sensa HD haptics remains to be seen. The tech is usually reserved for smaller in-game moments - different spells have their own unique feels in Hogwarts Legacy, while Final Fantasy will translate your sword attacks in similar ways.

So far, Dune Awakening has promised us bazookas, ornithopters, rifles, buggies, and jetpacks - all solid contenders for specific in-game haptic responses. There are certainly plenty of in-game opportunities to use these motors but, having reviewed both the Freyja and Kraken, Razer needs to make sure these experiences are powerful and distinct.

Sure, it's great to feel the jolt of a specific spell as you wander through Hogwarts - but after a certain amount of time they do tend to blend into one experience and there are larger cut-scene and gameplay moments that benefit more from audio-to-haptic features. Switching Sensa HD on means you're sacrificing the vibrations of larger musical swells or explosions, if they're not coded into their own haptic settings.

Razer has recently been digging into its racing audience with its Simhub partnership, so I'm hopeful the tech will take advantage of the various terrain and vehicle opportunities afforded by Dune Awakening in May. Imagine feeling that sand crunching under your wheels or the rev of Holtzman Engines across six individually tuned motors. That's the kind of immersion Razer and Funcom could be playing with here.

Dune Awakening pre-orders are now available on PC, and Razer's Sensa HD gadgets are currently on sale as well.

We're also hunting down all the best gaming headsets and the best gaming desks, or if you're after a new system, check out the best gaming PCs on the market.

I've been reviewing gaming chairs for long enough to see various design trends come and go. Mesh chairs with vastly inflated prices arrived a little while back, for example. Floating backrests have been poking their heads in the door, and reclining footrests are another example of an innovative feature one brand goes for, then the rest of the market immediately follows.

None of them have enraged me like the latest mainstay trend though, because it's an undeniable step backward for any gaming chair, and yet it's showing up all over the place. I am of course talking about freely rotating armrests that have no locking mechanism to keep them in a desired position. Don't get me wrong, being able to adjust the best gaming chairs to the position and shape you want to sit in is one of the reasons they're worth investing in, but they also need to stay in the position you want them in. Allow me to explain.

A lot of gaming chairs stand out against office chair rivals because of their 4D armrests. These are armrests that can be adjusted on four different axes. Usually, they can slide forward and back, side to side, they can rotate, and you can adjust their heights. When you first sit in a gaming chair with these high-end armrests, you may have a brief moment of confusion as you work out how you adjust them in each direction. Until recently, there are almost always buttons, levers, or small catching mechanisms that release each dimension. That might sound tricky to grasp, but for how often I actually adjust my armrests, it's never really bothered me.

What more recent models have been doing is removing the rotating catch on armrests so that all you need to do to twist them around is apply some light pressure in either direction.

To be frank, this sucks. It means that, depending on how you're sitting, or what part of the armrests you put weight on, they can pivot away from you, making you feel and look extremely silly. At best, this is a minor inconvenience that you'll encounter maybe once every few days, but at worst, it drives you insane because every time you go to stand up and use the armrests to push yourself upward, the armrests spin out and leave you seconds away from a slapstick comedy stunt.

I first noticed this on the Fractal Refine, which, despite its annoying armrests, currently holds our top spot for best overall gaming chair right now. Luckily, its armrests are pretty great otherwise. They have a fantastic shape and size to them, they're wide enough that your forearms have plenty of room to slide around when you're doing big mouse flicks, and they feel nice and cushioned for your elbows. The freely rotating armrests are a minor flaw in this instance, then, but I didn't realize that I was going to start seeing them popping up from other brands.

Putting my slightly exaggerated ranting to one side for a moment, I do actually worry that these types of rotating armrests could cause some folks a nasty injury. Standing up is bad enough, but what about the people who use gaming chair armrests to carefully lower themselves down into a chair? If all your weight is relying on armrest stability, and they then spin out, it's a recipe for disaster.

The Corsair TX500 Luxe and the new Razer Iskur V2 X are two more recent examples of gaming chairs that have this feature, and I cannot understand who's deciding it's a great thing to have. I get that mobile gaming is a constantly overlooked market, and the emergence of so many handheld gaming PCs means people need more rotation in their armrests, but would it be so much to ask for a button to press when you actually want them to move?

I'm pretty particular about my chair positioning. I like knowing that whenever I sit down, my backrest, lumbar support, and armrests are in the position I've set them up to be in, and another problem with unlocked rotation is that my armrests are constantly in the wrong place which leaves me feeling uncomfortable and even a little stressed out. That's probably my just-right OCD talking, but I'm sure I'm not the only one who gets annoyed by it.

The Secretlab Titan Evo Nanogen Edition is not my favorite gaming chair, but at least that brand gets armrest adjustments right. It has buttons and catches for all of its dimensions, and once you've adjusted them once, it's pretty easy to remember which button does what. Then again, Secretlab's armrests aren't perfect either - they click into set positions rather than freely moving and locking in where you want them.

Boulies may be on the firmer end of the scale with its armrest cushioning, but if you grab the Boulies Elite Series or the more expensive Boulies Master Series, you'll get buttons and catching mechanisms to keep them in the positions you want. I don't know about you, but it seems like a basic requirement to me.

If this seems like a trivial thing for me to write over 800 words about, I don't blame you for thinking so. But armrests are a very underestimated part of a gaming chair, especially if you use one to sit at a desk and play on a gaming PC. They can actually have a huge impact on your ergonomic sitting position - one of the cornerstones around which gaming chairs are designed. Have them too far apart and you create a slouch. Position them too high and you'll give yourself back tension. Make them too narrow or too firm, and you'll inhibit your mouse aim or give yourself sore elbows.

Gaming chairs are expensive, and sometimes needlessly so. I hope this isn't a trend that sticks around, because if I was paying the often silly prices of these gaming chairs, I'd be livid that such basic design flaws were making their way into a finished product.

Looking for other gaming hardware? Check out the best pink gaming chairs, the best console gaming chairs, and the best gaming desks.

When I was in my teens, Razer was the brand that you wanted plastered on all your gaming tech and accessories. Unfortunately, it was all a little bit too expensive for me then. That is exactly why the Razer Iskur V2 X is appealing to me at the ripe old age of 26.

The whole appeal of the brand-new Razer Iskur V2 X is that it delivers all of the best features you’d expect from one of the best gaming chairs but at a much more accessible and appealing price point. This is something that directly speaks to and excites me. For just $299/£299 Razer is offering something that competes with its sibling that costs almost twice as much, the Razer Iskur V2.

For years I ignored what I sat on while gaming so that I could afford to buy more games instead. That was until recently when I realized that my knees and back would thank me later in life if I decided to invest in a chair that would help me take care of them. That’s exactly why we liked the Razer Iskur V2 to begin with, so does the budget model live up to the same standards?

Assembly

I was pleasantly surprised at just how easy the Razer Iskur V2 X was to assemble. To be perfectly honest I started to get suspicious of myself. “What have I missed?” I began to ask myself. Will the seat just collapse under me because I have forgotten something? I can proudly say this hasn’t happened, and the V2 X just has a breezy building process.

The seat comes with a very helpful and informative instructions sheet that walks you through the assembly step-by-step. It really couldn’t have been clearer and I was able to swiftly have it built and ready to jump into a round of Call of Duty Black Ops Zombies in around 20 to 30 minutes - it’s worth noting that I constructed the chair by myself so it may be quicker with two people.

I really enjoyed the addition of an included Allen key that was much easier to use than your standard one. This was a nice touch that meant that I didn’t have to scramble in drawers searching for my Allen keys that only come out once in a blue moon.

Design

What I really appreciate about the Razer Iskur V2 X is the fact it’s quite ‘no-nonsense.’ Taking a look at Razer’s website prior to my chair arriving, I wanted to check out all the possible combinations and customization options. I was surprised to see that there weren’t any. Now, this may sound like a negative at first but to me it was a selling point as I didn’t have to weigh lots of options and configurations, the chair simply comes as it is with all the baked-in features that Razer is offering.

And ‘what are those features?’ I hear you shouting at your screen right now - calm down. Well, Razer is offering only one color option for the Iskur V2 X model, Black/Green. I’m a big fan of the color scheme as it can really fit any setup and looks professional enough to be used in a work setting. The Black/Green design is a multi-layered fabric that, while $350 cheaper than the leather Iskur V2, still gives off a premium feel to the touch. Razer touts this as a more breathable and cool material for those longer gaming sessions.

Features

The Iskur V2 X also proudly features built-in lumbar support, something which I really appreciate and look for in any gaming chair since I began an office-based 9-5 job. To cut some corners and keep the price down Razer has not utilized the ‘6D lumbar support’ which is part of the more expensive line, but it does a pretty good job for a significantly cheaper price. Unlike more premium options like the Boulies Master Series, the Corsair TC500 Luxe, or the Secretlab Titan Evo Nanogen Edition, this lumbar support is non-adjustable and sits in a fixed curve.

The other key difference compared to the more expensive Iskur V2 is that it features 2D armrests rather than 4D. This doesn’t mean they’re flat like Paper Mario, rather it means that instead of going this way, that way, forward and backwards (over the Irish Sea) they just move up, down, and can rotate at an angle.

Speaking of angles, I was impressed that the Iskur V2 X still retains the 152-degree recline of the more premium model for any of you who like to really relax when gaming - be honest, you can’t be comfortable sitting completely reclined. Razer has actually expanded the seat base to 545mm on the Iskur V2 X compared to the V2 meaning that you’ve got more room to play with if you find yourself sitting in various positions

Performance

Thankfully my assembly was masterfully done and my first time sitting in the Razer Iskur V2 X didn’t result in me crashing and burning, rather I was met with something much more comfortable. I spend the majority of my time sitting down in an office chair at work, most recently the Boulies Elite Series gaming chair, so I want to have a comfortable experience when I get home to game too and the Iskur V2 X gives me just that… to an extent.

Now, I am someone who enjoys quite a firm seat. In fact, this extends to a lot of things in my life - careful now - as my pillow is basically a brick, for example. So, I was happy to discover that the foam cushioning of the Iskur V2 X didn’t simply slump or sag under my weight when sat on. It remained firm but still left me feeling cushioned. Essentially it doesn’t get uncomfortable to sit in it for long periods of time, but still provides the firmness I like.

The chair remains comfortable to an extent though, and that’s because the backrest didn’t have the best of both worlds as the cushion did. While it didn’t become uncomfortable over long periods of time, I found it particularly hard to get used to the built-in lumbar support. This is a feature that I was excited about prior to sitting in the chair itself but found myself getting a little annoyed at over time. I am used to the Bouiles Elite Series gaming chair, a chair that targets a similar price and consumer, and I think that it provided me with a more comfortable experience when it comes to lumbar support. Yes, the Iskur V2 X is supportive in that regard and it is comfortable for the majority of the time, the fact that I am unable to adjust it means that it was never quite right for how I wanted to sit. On the flip side of this maybe it has improved my posture as I am now trying to properly align with the shape of the chair. Does that one-size-fits-all support work for everyone’s body type though? It’s a little tricky to say.

The 2D armrests were comfortable and adjustable meaning I was able to bring them to the exact height I needed them to be at any given time. However, due to the fact that they rotate without a button or lever-pull means I would occasionally put too much weight on them and they would spin a little. This is a trend we’re noticing with a few gaming chairs here at GamesRadar+, with even our top pick, the Fractal Refine, succumbing to this feature’s annoyance. I’d have liked to see a locking feature to ensure they remained in my desired position, please.

Unfortunately, the Iskur V2 X doesn’t come with additional support cushions and I did find myself attaching a spare one I had lying around the house for my neck during those longer gaming or work-from-home sessions. You are able to buy one separately from Razer if you want something more official, though.

Should you buy the Razer Iskur V2 X?

If you were to ask teenage me if I would want a Razer Iskur V2 X I would have immediately jumped at the chance because of the name associated with it. Now as an older, hopefully wiser man I am able to look past just the premium brand name and appreciate the product itself. I am glad to say that the Iskur V2 X would live up to the hype my teenage self would have had. Especially thanks to its more affordable price than most of the big-name gaming chairs out there.

If you’re looking for a gaming chair that has built-in lumbar support, a comfortable seat, and a professional and sleek look then you can’t go wrong with the Iskur V2 X. It is a solid chair that delivers on what it promises; premium features but at a less than premium price. However, the Razer Iskur V2 original model is the choice for anyone who can stomach its price. Just be thankful it’s seeing discounts more often now.

How we tested the Razer Iskur V2 X

To extensively test the Razer Iskur V2 X I really put it through its paces with extended periods of sitting. I used it for both work and gaming purposes for a 2-3 week period before writing up this review, and would frequently spend up to 8 hours a day sitting down in it. I assembled the chair on my own, using the instructions provided.

For more on how we test gaming chairs, check out our full hardware policy.

On the hunt for more gaming furniture? Check out the best pink gaming chairs, the best console gaming chairs, and the best gaming desks.

From a basic wheel clamped precariously to the edge of a coffee table, right through to a rig Max Verstappen would be proud of, every sim racing setup is different and there’s a combo for everyone. While they may vary in size and budget, a common name across them all is Playseat. With 20 years of experience, the brand offers everything from simple folding options like the Challenge X right through to full-size rigs costing thousands.

The new Playseat Formula Instinct F1 Edition sits somewhere in the middle of the field. At $599/£519 this rigid, fixed-position racing seat is a sign you’re taking sim racing seriously. This is a best gaming chair contender for those who spend more time on the virtual tracks than in any other genre, but it could just be versatile enough to be a mainstay of any console setup.

Inspired and officially licensed by Formula 1 it’s an eye-catching option, but with plenty of alternatives around, including Playseat’s own Trophy Logitech G Edition, is it the one to go for?

Assembly

While it takes a massive team of engineers to construct an F1 car, you’ll need to put together the Formula Instinct F1 Edition yourself. Thankfully Playseat has kept things as simple as possible. Arriving fully flat packed it’s remarkable how few individual pieces make up this racing seat and going step-by-step through the easy-to-follow instruction booklet I was able to construct it on my own in about an hour.

I did face a couple of hiccups courtesy of a particularly stubborn connection that just wouldn’t budge, but I imagine this was more a tolerance quirk of my unit rather than a major design flaw. You’ll find all of the required bolts and tools in the box along with a pair of white fabric gloves if you’re feeling particularly fancy.

Design

Playseat is a familiar co-pilot for me, I’ve tested a number of its seats in the past and the excellent Playseat Trophy has been my daily driver over the last 12 months. While the Playseat Formula Instinct F1 Edition is a similar concept, it follows a noticeably different design language. The Trophy is flowing and almost organic in style with rounded edges and a soft flexible seat. The Formula Instinct is almost industrial in comparison with a hard-shell seat and angular metal frame.

Build quality is excellent, not that you’d expect anything less from a $599 cockpit made by a brand with Playseat’s reputation. The metal construction gives this racing seat a noticeably solid and sturdy feel with a slightly textured finish on the main frame and glossy white highlights to break things up. It’s certainly not as sleek as the Playseat Trophy but with a few flourishes of strikingly red F1 branding it’s smart enough to look at.

Interestingly, despite being larger according to the spec sheets, the Formula Instinct felt smaller and less commanding in my room than the Playseat Trophy. I don’t have an explanation for this except vibes, the seat itself on both cockpits is a relatively similar size and shape but there was a definite visual difference. Maybe it’s just an optical illusion. Optical illusions don’t apply when it comes to footprint though and the size of the Playseat Formula Instinct shouldn’t be underestimated. This isn’t a compact, living room-friendly option like the Playseat Challenge - this is a full-size rig that realistically needs a dedicated gaming space.

I also quickly discovered that with just four small rubber feet, it’s not particularly carpet-friendly either. These are the only points of contact with the ground and bearing the full brunt of the weight were quick to leave alarming marks in my medium-pile carpet. I could see this causing permanent damage in the long run so I ended up grabbing some furniture sliders to place underneath each foot to spread the load. These were cheap enough to grab online so not a major issue but it’d be nice to see Playseat include something similar in the box to screw to the bottom.

Features

The Playseat Formula Instinct F1 Edition includes a fixed, molded seat and while the bucket shape is deep and welcoming, it’s also my only disappointment when it comes to build quality. Playseat might give them funky ‘Modufoam’ branding in an attempt to jazz them up, but the cushions seem out of place and generic compared to the rest of the seat. They do the job, but the back panel in particular feels thin and while the base seat is a little thicker and nicely sculpted, it all just seems like basic foam. They’re not uncomfortable, they’re just entirely unremarkable and I was expecting more.

More so than other sim racing seats I’ve tested, the Formula Instinct is wonderfully customizable. Everywhere you look there seems to be another way to dial it in to your liking. From the angle of the pedal tray to the height of the headrest cushion, it’s up to you how you want it and I played around for almost an hour making little tweaks here and there. It was surprising just how much of a difference small changes would make to the overall feel and I’d definitely recommend investing some time to really understand the impact changing each part makes. At a quick count, I found no less than eight different points of adjustment, some allowing for detailed fine-tuning with others delivering broader changes moving between a range of fixed positions.

On the whole, each of these adjustments was simple to make, though I felt like some mechanisms were stronger than others. The main crossbar that supports your best racing wheel features the jazzily named ‘X-Adapt quick release adjustment system’ while others are more basic and use a thumb screw or hex bolt. I have no major complaints about any of the choices Playseat has made here and I’m sure simplifying in a few places would have helped keep costs from spiraling, though a little spot to store the required hex keys would have been a nice touch and saved future searches I’m sure I’ll have to make.

Annoyingly the most common adjustment you’ll probably want to make is also the most awkward to do. Just like an F1 driver’s seat fitting is the first step of their journey in a new car, sliding the Formula Instinct’s seat back and forth is the main starting point for sim racers and the first thing you’ll want to change if a new player is hopping behind the wheel. Playseat has improved things from the Trophy which needed multiple hex bolts to be removed and the Formula Instinct now just needs four knobs to be loosened. This is great, but with these undone actually sliding the seat itself was stiff and more difficult than it needed to be. It may loosen over time as it wears or perhaps just needed a little squirt of WD-40, but a more assisted or at least less resistive solution would have been very welcome.

Performance

Jumping into F1 24 any pent-up tension from the build process or frustrations over underwhelming foam instantly vanished into the rearview mirror because out on track the Playseat Formula Instinct is lovely to use. I’ve spent a lot of time (pretty poorly) racing F1 cars in the Playseat Trophy over the last few months so it was surprising how different the experience in the Formula Instinct was. Playseat’s marketing boasts an ‘authentic F1 racing position’ and while I’ve never set foot in a Formula One car and can’t say whether that’s true, what I can say is it’s a noticeably different driving position to the Playseat Trophy and Challenge. It’s also by far the easiest of the bunch to climb in and out of. The cockpit feels far more open with fewer places to bang your knees and fewer ways to lose your dignity trying to clamber out of it.

While much of my racing is generally done with the compact MOZA R12 wheelbase, I thought I’d stress test the Playseat Formula Instinct with the beefiest wheel I had available, the Logitech G Pro Racing Wheel and Pedals. Not only does that generate 11Nm of torque through its direct drive motor, but it’s also an absolute beast of a thing that weighs 8.5kg and has a hefty overbite that makes it noticeably front-heavy. I figure if the Formula Instinct can handle this, it’ll handle pretty much any wheel - and it handled it with ease.

No matter how much the force feedback shuddered and how quickly I whipped the wheel around tight corners the Playseat Formula Instinct kept it locked in. The X-Adapt clamp system does a wonderful job of not allowing any give or loosening and the wheel remained in exactly the same position at the end of 70 laps as it did when the lights went out. Perhaps more importantly, so did I in the Formula Instinct’s rigid bucket seat. The fixed position means this is a very different experience than with Playseat’s other mid-range chairs and while I’m a fan of the Playseat Trophy’s hammock approach that gives and moves with you, there’s definitely a more professional vibe that comes from this more static seat.

By far the least elegant component of the Playseat Formula Instinct is the pedal tray but it’s a textbook example of function over form. Just like the wheel platform I had no trouble lining up the aggressively large Logitech G Pro Pedal base but it’s a far fiddlier and more frustrating affair. Admittedly this is probably on me, so a word of advice; don’t try to mount the pedals with the Formula Instinct on its feet - tip it on its side or you’ll be there for twice as long as you need to be. Pedals attached - and my bright papaya McLaren out on track, however, the pedal tray was capable of withstanding serious strain. With exposed bracing arms on either side the Formula Instinct certainly looks far less slick than the Trophy’s all-in-one system, but they’re mighty effective as even when slamming the G Pro’s 100kg load cell brake pedal down the Formula Instinct never budged. The braces also allow for a greater and more granular range of positions than other Playseat racing chairs too, complimenting F1-inspired seating position well with a tray that can reach some pretty extreme angles.

Should you buy the Playseat Formula Instinct F1 Edition?

There’s a lot to like about the Playseat Formula Instinct F1 Edition, this is a racing seat that ticks just about every box for the right kind of gamer with the right kind of setup. Build quality is noticeably strong, it’s deeply customizable, and most importantly it’s a joy to race in. For $599/£519 you get a lot of rig for your money and the Formula Instinct stacks up well against the rest of the field as a result.

I’m not sure it’s as universal a rig as some of Playseat’s other options though. The Playseat Trophy Logitech G Edition is sleeker and less harsh on carpets while the Playseat Challenge X is cheaper and considerably more living room-friendly. One isn’t necessarily better than the others though, just better suited for different situations. If you have a dedicated racing space and you don’t mind sacrificing some aesthetics for a little extra adjustability, or if you like the fact it has an F1 logo on the side, then go for the Formula Instinct. It’s a great rig and unlikely to disappoint.

How we tested the Playseat Formula Instinct F1 Edition

The Playseat Formula Instinct became the center of my sim racing setup for a few weeks, paired with both the MOZA R12 and Logitech G Pro Racing Wheel. I supplied my own furniture sliders as the racing seat was tested solely on carpet however this did not impact the performance of the unit. I completed a number of races and general driving sessions in EA F1 24, Forza Horizon 5, and Forza Motorsport, along with some dedicated stress testing.

For more on how we test the latest gaming chairs, have a read of our hardware policy.

If you're still trying to narrow down your choices of the best console gaming chairs, take a look at our handy guide. If you're in need of a wheel to mount to a Playseat cockpit chair, check out the best PS5 steering wheels and the best Xbox steering wheels.

Flagship gaming chairs don't come cheap, and if you shop with the biggest, most well-known brands you'll quickly realize that. The names "Herman Miller", "Secretlab", and even "Razer" automatically bring $600+ price tags to mind, and if you opt for the flagship seats from those manufacturers, you dip into seriously expensive territory.

Corsair may be better known for its gaming PC components than its furniture, but if there's one well-established gaming hardware brand right now that's making flagship gaming chair features more accessible, that's the one. I just reviewed Corsair's TC500 Luxe - in fact, I'm still parked in it right now - and despite only having a $499.99 price tag, it's seeing a near $100 discount at Amazon which brings it down to $404.20.

This $95 price cut only applies to the Sherwood green model, but both the Frost (white) and Shadow (grey) variants are going for $424.99 at the moment. I'm honestly surprised to see this chair get such a deep price cut this February. First of all, this isn't the time of year I expect to see big chunks of cash coming off any of the best gaming chairs. Secondly, this chair only launched late in 2024, so for it to already have more than a $50 discount is pretty good going.

Should you buy the Corsair TC500 Luxe?

You may be wondering why I'd argue that the Corsair TC500 Luxe isn't for everyone. To begin with, just take a look at it. It doesn't exactly fit in with the crowd of quite samey, racing seat-shaped, RGB-reflecting gaming chairs from specialist brands. It doesn't even go down the route of minimalist Swedish design that makes the Fractal Refine stand out. This is a chair that resembles a classy leather reading lounger more than it does a gaming throne. It's like what you'd expect a bond villain to swivel around in while ominously expecting you.

I'd argue this seat walks the line between something that has all the gaming features you want for desk setup or console gaming while looking safe for work at the same time, which is a tricky balance to get right. The Boulies Master Series manages that too, and either chair will give you a more distinct look than the Secretlab Titan Evo, which is so popular that it's immediately recognizable.

The TC500 Luxe is plenty comfortable and strikes another great balance between comfort and firmness for posture correction. It's got integrated lumbar support and a beautiful head pillow that feels softer than any other I've tested. It has a wide seat base to cater to lots of different sitting positions and body shapes. But there's another reason I'd argue this chair isn't for everyone. Its armrests are both excellent and terrible.

The innovative "omniflex" design Corsair has gone for with this chair is great. It allows you to sink weight into your elbows without a rigid armrest putting pressure on them or trapping a nerve. But for some reason, even when you move them to their narrowest setting, the armrests are far too far apart. It's a glaring issue a lot of reviewers have noted, and it's a massive shame. I, for one, have come to terms with it, and I'm still using the TC500 Luxe as my everyday chair at the moment because it doesn't ruin the experience. But this is a flaw I can't understand how it got all the way into final production - especially when the rest of the seat is so well thought-out.

So, is the Corsair TC500 Luxe for you? If it is, I wouldn't wait around for its discount to disappear.

Looking to beef up your gaming setup this year? Check out the best gaming PCs, the best VR headsets, and the best PC controller.