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 ( 23 customer reviews )
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46 of 47 found the following review helpful:
 an amazing chair with some serious drawbacksJan 26, 2008
By J. Wombacher
"J. Wombacher"
The good:
1) The backrest does conform to the back in a way no other chair does, it is a remarkable feature that will do wonders for your back. It is, however, very difficult to find the correct setting. I played around with the settings for months before I felt I had the right one.
2) Adjustments are very easy to make, and you don't have to get up and bend over to make any of them. There are numerous adjustments available, and they are simple to figure out. One downside to this is that you will spend a lot of time looking for the right combo.
3) You can lean way back in the chair. The backrest will recline without any tilt in the seat base (which has no tilt option whatsoever). This can relieve the back in a way that few other chairs can. Most other chairs tilt in sync with the backrest, which does nothing to relieve back stress.
4) The armrests are the best of any chair I know of.
5) The lumbar support adjustment is unobtrusive, effective, simple to use, and does not give the chair that weird space-age appearance as in other well-known ergo chairs.
The bad:
1) This chair is HARD HARD HARD on the tush. It is like sitting on a park bench. I weigh 185. My wife is much lighter and doesn't mind it at all, but I cannot sit in it more than two hours per day. I have tried 8 different cushions for sale on the market, none help (if you bottom out, they make no difference). You cannot buy good cushy foam anywhere, don't even bother trying. You'll need so much that it renders the chair pointless.
2) The recline resistance tension works in a way such that the backrest will stick-and-hold in a position based on the amount of pressure you put on it while reclining. It can be adjusted to require more or less pressure to give way. The result is a jerky as opposed to a fluid motion. It takes much getting used to. But once I figured it out, I rather liked it. There is no locking-in-place of the recline position, yet there are five recline-limit-stops. The problem is that the backrest will always push you forward as you lean forward, no matter what setting. Again, this can be viewed as a good feature once you get used to it - it is just very different from most chairs.
53 of 55 found the following review helpful:
 Terrible...at firstJan 21, 2009
By Travis Dockweiler
"tdockweiler"
I've been so sick and tired of cheap chairs. I've tried some from $30 all the way up to nearly $200. All of them were cheap and would break within a year. Back pain was also an issue. I work at home and often I am sitting in a chair for up to 8 hours per day.
I did a few hours of research into chairs and came across this one. Luckily I found a local seller that offered them. A big plus for me is that mine came fully assembled.
The first day was pretty terrible. It was extremely hard to get used to and somewhat painful. After the first few days I actually emailed the company to complain. Recently I even had a friend sit in it and it caused him pain too. Somehow it just takes time to adjust.
After about a week I got used to the chair and it became comfortable.
I love this chair so much that I can't imagine going without it. I've had this chair for over a year and a half and it has never caused my any back pain. The seat is not very soft, but I can sit in it all day with any pain.
Worth noting is that it can take a long time to get the seat perfect. There are so many adjustments and it took me awhile to figure out everything.
I would give this chair five stars, but there is one negative. The armrests will move around a lot. Very rare, but it does happen. It seems like Steelcase would be smart enough to allow them to lock in place. They do not! If you use your hand, you can move the arm rest left and right easily.
I rarely buy anything this expensive ever. $700 for a chair? I must be crazy! To me, I feel it is totally worth it because I don't have to deal with any back pain and having to replace my office chair every year.
I don't really know how long this product will last. I've been using it for 1 1/2 years, so hopefully I can use it for 5 years possibly.
Even if this breaks down in 3, i'll probably still get a replacement. I do think that a lot of the chair uses plastic in some areas, so it's even harder to justify the price of it at first.
My suggestion is to buy this chair and try it out. See if you can get a refund if you don't like it after the first week.
BTW I am 6'4" and own the product and do NOT work for Steelcase or any company selling this! It's perfectly fine for taller people and anyone that weights up to 300lbs.
3/2/2010 UPDATE:
I don't know if anyone actually reads a review of a..chair, but I just wanted to make a quick update for anyone that cares.
The chair is holding up very well. Since i've had it, some screws fell off (couldn't find them) and the back rest kept falling down. I called the place I ordered it from and they came out and fixed it. It was under warranty! They didn't seem to be common bolts/screws so I don't think I would have been able to fix it myself. The chair cost me what seems like a fortune (I'm not rich!) but it's been worth the 75,000 pennies i've spent on it. When my warranty runs out and it eventually breaks i'd probably by another. No I don't work for Steelcase.
When using this chair for up to 10 hours a day I never have any back pain at all. That's the main reason I got it other then having all those cheap chairs constantly falling apart on me every year!
10/2/2011 UPDATE:
Still holding up very well. No problems since last year. Love this chair.
19 of 19 found the following review helpful:
 Do not fear the knobs!Jun 06, 2009
By Gregory Bell
This chair arrives with all the settings torqued down low, closed, and tight. When you first sit down your reaction is going to be "This thing is about as comfortable as a rock!"
But don't worry, you just need to personalize your new seat. Loosen up the back tilt and find the right seat depth that feels most natural.
The most important thing is to move the lumbar height bar to the right position, and loosen up the lumbar flex so it has some give and conforms to your back. Properly adjusted, the lumbar section should accommodate the natural curve of your spine comfortably. Not poke out too strongly, and not allow your back to flatten out too much.
Apart from that it's going to be down to personal preference. I like having the tilt tension tight enough so I can lean back a little while typing but not bottom out all the way back. Of course you can also set the tilt stop, but I like leaving that at click #4 so I can tilt most of the way back if I want to stretch.
Now, as other posters have mentioned, the seat and back cushions are pretty dense. So far it hasn't been uncomfortable for me. But if it bothers me in the future I think a cushion of soft foam sheeting would distribute my weight a little more comfortably.
I find the arm rests brilliant. I wasn't sure how they were going to be able to glide-adjust without feeling cheap, but they seem to have found a way. We'll see how they hold up over the years....
So, should *you* get this super expensive chair? It absolutely depends on your needs. I.e. why are you looking at chairs in this price range? If you are hale and hearty and care more about whether your seat has leather than lumbar, or you mainly want a neat status symbol for your office, then I'd say skip this chair and go for something more ostentatious, plush, and classically designed.
But if you have back problems and have to sit in front of a screen all day to work, then this very customizable chair could make a big difference. I have disc herniation in my lumbar spine, so a properly fitting seat is pretty much the most important thing in my working life.
Here's a good litmus test: Imagine you could have a perfectly fitting, totally comfortable chair *except* the cushions are too hard, and you would have to put a pad on it. What would your reaction be? "What a rip off!" or "Awesome! Foam is cheap". Answer that question for yourself and you will know whether the leap is right for you. (Disclaimer: You may not need foam, it's just a thought experiment)
Seating history: I find aerons uncomfortable. Prior to this leap, I have been using a quality high-back seat from Global, bought circa `98 for the upper $400 range. It was very robustly constructed but it doesn't have nearly the adjustability of the leap-- permanent uncomfortable arm rests and no way to customize the lumbar. But it served me well and I look forward to this leap lasting me at least a decade too :)
16 of 16 found the following review helpful:
Better than AeronFeb 10, 2010
By Jimmy K
I have been using Steelcase Leap chair for past 3 years. Previously, I used Herman Miller Aeron at work. Plus, I tested out Steelcase Think, Herman Miller Mirra and Celle when I shopped for the chair.
Bottomline, Steelcase Leap chair is more comfortable than Aeron. Main difference is that Leap is more flexible and comfortable in many positions, while Aeron is more rigid and you have to sit in a single position.
Comfort: Leap is comfortable when you sit straight up, lean back, or slouch. On the Leap, when you lean back (tilt back) or slouch (I know it is bad to slouch but we all do it to some degree), the seat bottom slides forward with your butt. In addition, the seat back stays in contact with your lower back and still provides support. On the Aeron, the seat back and bottom is always 90 deg to each other. And you have to sit perfectly straight. Even when you lean back, the seat back to seat bottom remain in same angle. And it forces your body to remain in same posture as you try to lean back. Not as comfortable as the Leap. Also, I find the Aeron to be uncomfortable in the lower thigh area, where the front edge of seat is hard plastic and digs into the back of my thighs. The Leap seat front is flexible (but not adjustable) and can bend down.
Fit: I'm 5'10" and 175 lbs. Leap chair has only 1 single size, but it fits me better than Aeron's 3 sizes. The Leap chair's seat size and back height fits me perfectly. On Aeron's size B(medium), seat back is too low and digs into my should blade. On Aeron's size C (large), the seat bottom is way too big for my butt.
Adjustments: Leap and Aeron have similar adjustments: seat height, tilt, tilt tension, tilt limiter, arm-rest height, lumbar support. Couple adjustments I like about the Leap are the tilt limiter and arm-rest. Leap's tilt limiter has 5 stops and it is easy to tell which setting it is at. Aeron's tilt limiter has less stops and harder to control. Also, Leap's arm-rest can move forward/back and sideways. Aeron's arm-rest can only be angled in/out but can not moved forward/back. Leap has seat size adjustment, where the seat can slide forward and back to match the length of users' thigh and butt length. However, I'm 5'10" and the seat is set all the way forward. One thing Leap doesn't have is forward tilt. Although I never used this feature for computer use, but it is available on Aeron and on many less expensive office chairs. Not sure why Leap excluded this feature.
Material: Leap uses cushion, whereas Aeron uses mesh. I prefer the mesh over cushion. Mesh is cooler, comforms to the body, and it seems to be more durable. On the other hand, cushion should be softer than mesh. I say should, because the cushion on Leap is still too hard. It almost feels like the cushion is not thick enough.
Build: This is the biggest negative I find about the Leap. Steelcase needs to improve the build quality for $800+ chair. The seat bottom and arm rest have a small (fraction of inch) free play. They are lose and jiggle back and forth. Leap's tilt is spongy. After you lean back and then lean forward, the seat returns to original position slowly with spongy feel. I don't think Leap uses spring for the tilt mechanism. Also, tilt tension's rotational control on the Leap feels like it is broken. As I rotate it, I cannot tell if it is working or has reached the limit or what. Good thing once I have the right tension set, I don't have to touch it.
12 of 12 found the following review helpful:
An AMAZING Chair!Jan 17, 2009
By T. Mclennan-murray
I had chronic back pain for 5 years in my left shoulder.
I saw doctors, chiropractors, physical therapists, and massage therapists.
None of them could get rid of my problem completely, mostly only giving me temporary relief. I was a victim of "forward posture" syndrome, from working on a computer for the last 5-10 years. What I really needed was a lifestyle change and so I wanted to improve the ergonomics of my work environment.
This chair enables me to lean back while typing comfortably at the keyboard, which allows my shoulders to fall square against the backrest, stopping me from "hunching", and reversing my forward posture. The adjustable lower back lumbar support helps support my lower back, keeping my back feeling wonderful. Forget about "sitting up straight", being reclined takes pressure off your spine and prevents you from hunching. One reviewer called the moving arm pieces "junk", but I call it "brilliant", because it makes typing on a keyboard while reclined very easy. I should also point out that I am 5'9 and 160lbs, so I have not noticed the "stiffness" on the tush that other reviewers have pointed out.
All in all, this is the most configurable, and comfortable chair I have ever sat in, and I tried nearly ever chair before purchasing this one, including the herman miller aeron. If you work on a computer for more than 8 hours a day I'd say this chair is a must have. This chair has helped reverse my back problems and today I am pain free. Bravo Steelcase!
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