Summary
Very comfy, but pricey.
I’m no stranger to achy shoulders, a tense lower back, and even sciatic nerve pain. While a lot of this is due to my poor posture, some of it is caused by the chair I spend hours in while working. After testing outOdinLake’s Ergo Plus 743, a lot of that discomfort is gone, or at least minimized.
This particular chair from OdinLake retails for $999, and I’ve had the pleasure of testing it out for about a month and a half. In that time, I’ve found plenty of things to love about the Ergo Plus 743, most notably its lumbar support and adjustable features. While there are a few things I wish I could change, they certainly aren’t dealbreakers. But without further ado, let’s jump into this!
Build Quality & Setup
Unboxing the Ergo Plus 743 and piecing it together was a simple process, albeit taxing on the old muscles. When put together, the chair weighs about 60 pounds, which I love because it usually translates to sturdy pieces and solid construction. In this case, much of the chair’s weight comes from its aluminum alloy frame.
The next biggest component in the chair’s construction is elastic, premium mesh, followed by a few plastic pieces, like the arms and control handles for adjustments. The actual adjustments are controlled by a wire mechanism, which makes it easy to fine-tune the chair to your preferred settings without bending over.
I had my husband help me put the chair together, and I think it would’ve been much harder by myself. There was nothing complicated about the instructions, but there were a few steps—like attaching the chair back to the base—where it was easier for one of us to hold something in place while the other person fastened it with screws.
Also, along with the tools and allen wrench with a helpful handle, OdinLake also sent a pair of thin, stretchy gloves to protect your hands from the grease on the gas lift piece in the chair’s base. I have tiny hands, so the gloves fit perfectly, but because of its stretchy material, I was curious how well they would fit on my husband’s larger hands. While the gloves clearly didn’t fit correctly—causing a webbing look between the fingers—he said they were comfortable enough to handle the gas lift piece and then take them off.
Comfort & Design
The black mesh covering the chair is incredibly durable, but it’s not very comfy to bare skin. I tend to sit criss cross in every chair I sit in, and sitting like that doesn’t feel great in this chair. It leaves my bare ankles dry and sore, and it gets worse the longer I sit like that. That said, I know that this is not the most ergonomic way to sit, so maybe this’ll indirectly help me sit properly and ultimately help out my knees, back, and shoulders. Plus, compared to other cushiony mesh chairs I’ve owned, the mesh on this chair seems a lot easier to clean.
Then, the armrests don’t lock in place, but I wish they did. There are multiple ways to adjust the armrests, which I’ll get into below, but there’s no way to lock them once you have them where you want them. In this testing process, I learned that I typically grab an armrest for support when I sit down. This habit of mine is slightly annoying with this chair because the armrest tilts out at an angle, so every time I sat down, I would accidentally move the armrest.
Related:Why It’s Worth Investing in a Good Office Chair
Other than those two minor things, sitting in OdinLake’s Ergo Plus 743 is a pleasant experience. When both of my feet are on the floor—or on the metal base—and I’m up against the chair’s backrest, I can tell how proper my posture is. Theoffice chair I currently usewhile working isn’t a bad chair, but I can certainly tell an ergonomic difference when I switch between my old chair and the Ergo Plus 743.
I love that the chair’s design is made of so many aluminum alloy components because it makes it feel more sturdy when you take a seat. Leaning back in plastic chairs at previous workplaces always felt dubious to me, as if it couldn’t handle the lean and I was going to end up on the floor. However, with OdinLake’s Ergo Plus 743, I have full faith in its construction to handle me leaning back as far as the chair allows.
Adjustability
There’s a lot you can adjust with this chair from OdinLake, and I absolutely love it. The features I most frequently adjust include the lumbar support, the neck piece, and the seat height and depth. Then, I occasionally adjust the reclining action and the armrests. It’s so nice to go from sitting upright while working to a comfortable reclining position while gaming. But here’s absolutely everything you can adjust with the Ergo Plus 743:
There’s also anadjustable footrest that goes with the Ergo Plus 743, but it’s sold separately at $89. I didn’t get a chance to test out the footrest, but I think it’s worth getting if you typically like to recline in your chairs. The footrest’s angle and length can be adjusted.
Ergonomic Features
The term ‘ergonomic’ has become something that many companies attach to their office product because it sells. Many people think that when something is ergonomic, it’s tested or scientifically proven to minimize bodily strain over time. While there’s an element of truth somewhere in there, it’s a stretch. Companies don’t have to go through testing to label their product as ergonomic—some might, but not all do.
When a product has comfort and adjustability at the forefront of its design—like OdinLake’s Ergo Plus 743—I’d consider it to have ergonomic qualities, or features that are formulated to help you work longer and more efficiently. Typically, the companies that offer a truly ergonomic chair to consumers are more pricey because there’s more care, effort, and testing involved. That’s not always the case, but if you see a $50 chair advertising itself as ergonomic, it’s probably not.
Related:Everything You Need for an Ergonomic Office
The Ergo Plus 743 offers support for multiple body types and sitting preferences. All of the possible adjustments I mentioned in the section above make it easy for people to customize the perfect chair experience for them. Anergonomic chairis one that’s comfy to you and supports what you specifically need supported.
This chair has dynamic C-shaped lumbar support that adjusts with your movement, which ensures that you have proper support whether you’re sitting upright or reclining. The shape of the backrest is also designed to support your spine—thoracic, lumbar, and sacral.
Then, the stronger mesh actually supports you, instead of letting you sink down like I’ve experienced in the past. Although a soft padded cushion may feel more comfortable in the beginning, it always seems to deteriorate so quickly. But with this mesh setup, my hips and thighs still feel as supported as they did on day one, which was about a month and a half ago.
Verdict: A Comfy Chair That’s Worth Your Moolah
OdinLake’s Ergo Plus 743 is a pricey office chair, but it’s not nearly as expensive as other leading contenders—like Herman Miller—but offers a lot of the same adjustable features. If you’re someone who spends a lot of time at your desk, whether it’s to work, play games, or both, I think this chair is well worth the investment for the sake of your back, neck, and shoulders.
