Gaming Chairs vs Office Chairs?

“Chairs are underappreciated”- Elon Musk

Chairs are one of mankind’s greatest inventions. Without them, we wouldn’t have been able to innovate and create the gadgets that we have today. 

Our seats are the companions that guide us through our long hours of work, whether it's at dawn when the birds are chirping or dusk when everyone’s fast asleep. We spend around ⅓ of our day sleeping, and for most part of the ⅔ is spent sitting around. Imagine what would happen if we didn’t have chairs. Of course, that would be too drastic to even consider. 

Today, innovation has given rise to more sophisticated, visually appealing and functional chairs. So in this blog today, we’re going to unravel the major differences between these two chairs: Gaming Chairs and Office Chairs.

Gaming Chairs 

In the tradeoff for the creation and marketing of Gaming chairs, the understated design of an office chair is replaced by bright colors, racing stripes, and an overall look-feel that might make the younger generation salivate. As most would say, visual aesthetics is the trade off for functionality. 

Many pundits would argue that despite a lack of seat adjustments or padding in gaming seats compared to a high-end office chair, most gaming chairs are still relatively comfortable. After all, with the rise of competitive high-stakes games in the world of esports, inevitably, gamers are spending hours at a time on the chair — and the last thing they need during an intense gaming session is an uncomfortable experience. Generally speaking, gaming chairs are built with design in mind first, and comfort second — but you should still be able to find highly comfortable gaming chairs if you have a higher budget. 

Office Chairs 

Office chairs on the other hand, stick true to their name. That is intended for Office Workers. Trading aesthetics for ergonomics, they are built for comfort. These seats are assembled with the idea in mind that people have to sit in all day while they work. Because of this, office chairs have a multitude of adjustments to accommodate different body shapes, back pains and heights.

The usual classic look of an office chair is a coated Black from top to bottom, the indication that design is only secondary to functionality. Although that’s not to say that office chairs don’t look good — just that their design is generally aimed more at an office environment, so it may not be as “cool-looking.”

Which Is Better?

Discerning the difference in comfort between the two is a little more difficult. Whether you're a professional or a professional gamer, there's no one-size-fits-all solution to sitting at a desk comfortably for hours on end. 

Ergonomically designed gaming chairs typically have a wide range of comfort-maximizing features, including reclining, lumbar support, adjustable seat height, adjustable arms, and footrests.

Here's Our Opinion and Preference

Ergonomically designed office chairs have mostly the same features – reclining, lumbar support, adjustable seat height, and adjustable arms – though there are a few more features available, we won’t bore you with plenty of facts. Instead, we can suggest that the best pick that's worth every penny of your money would be the local chair brand Alterseat, from Puchong. Their best-seller REVO-101 is the basic entry seat if you’re looking for an affordable, high quality alternative. The higher tier office seat model, DT-330 is part of the executive collection priced at a modest range of RM649.99 to RM699.99.

Things to Consider When Picking Your Seat

Essentially, if you’re deciding on a chair to use at your desk – the occasion you’re going to use it in matters. While they might be similar in comfort and features, but if you're a gamer interested in streaming or taking advantage of built-in audio features, you might want to choose a flashy, racer-style gaming chair with built-in speakers or bluetooth compatibility. However, if you're a professional who participates in video calls or hosts clients from home, a flashy gaming chair might not be the most business-appropriate choice. Whether you work hard, play hard, or both, filter your chair search by the features you want most to find the perfect chair for you.