I was a bit of an Aeron skeptic until my current job, where everyone is given an Aeron. Even the secretary. And they're in most of the conference rooms as well.

I spent about 10 minutes figuring out how to adjust it. The result is I simply do not feel fatigued nearly as quickly. I can go through a 9-hour day and not feel stiff, not need to constantly shift around, and not feel like I'm running on fumes around 2 or 3PM.

The other thing is most of the chairs at the office are now 7 to 10 years old. None have been repaired, or needed repairs. From what I've heard, it's realistic to expect 12 years out of one of these chairs before something might go wrong, and even then, Herman Miller will make things right.

Wow, MrFoof. EVEN the secretary? That's awesome. Because you know, secretaries aren't nearly as valid as people as the rest of you or anything. WTH?

Sorry, I don't mean to be mean but really, that sort of thing is just ridiculous. I used to work secretarial jobs myself and believe me, we need a comfortable chair just as much as you do.

Having said that, $900 for a CHAIR? Really?

I've had one of those Pottery Barn desk chairs. They may look stylish, but it has literally ruined my back over the course of my graduate school career. I wouldn't say that's one of the options selected for ergonomics.

Er, secretaries probably need comfortable chairs more than those whose jobs allow them to get up and move around during the day (yes, our office has Aeron chairs). Also, we secretaries and/or legal/executive/administrative assistants, office managers are not air-headed coffee getters; we are more likely to be college educated, highly-skilled, administrative professionals that are a valued part of our organization's team. (Stepping off my soap box...)

As with most things, when purchasing office equipment, you get what you pay for. If you want things to work well and last, you get the best you can afford the first time -- or end up doing so eventually (when your bargain breaks).

I was simply pointing out that they weren't limiting nice things to only certain people. No one has an office - not even the owners. Everyone has an Aeron. Everyone has a setup by Knoll that's the same size. Everyone has 5 weeks vacation to start. This is a contrast from where most people work, where only the higher-ups get pampered.

You're the ones that put words in my mouth.

I'm with Kinki on this one, secretaries usually spend all day in their chairs. They need a good chair more than the executive who is up and down all day! Anyone who sits for more than about five hours a day better pick comfort first, style second or they could spend a lifetime with back pain. That said, the Aeron is old school and there's a lot more out there that are considerably more comfortable. I'm surprised you missed style AND comfort icons like the Humanscale Freedom Chair and the Ergohuman Chair ME7ERG. These ergonomic chairs are popular for both comfort and style.

Amen Mr. Foof.
Lighten up people.
That said, the C&B Ripple chair is definitely on my home office wish list.

MrFoof, where do you work? I need an office like that. ALL the chairs in our office are crappy/broken/really old with no padding. My back and neck are shot at the end of the day (and I am still in my 20s).

oh mr foof, i don't think there's any way around it - you got called out. deal with it!

that said, the aeron chair is worth every penny - may not be pretty, but it saved my back!

Aeron chairs are so stinking ugly! The first one by CB looks really nice, though :)

Love my Hille Supporto chairs - thirty years old and still going strong!

i've wanted an aeron chair since the summer i worked in a plastics factory making aeron parts... though that was a dozen years ago and i still think $900 is too much to spend on a chair.

I worked for a non profit relay service and they had about 100 Aeron chairs. There was an entire storage room full of extras. Those chairs were incredibly comfortable and allowed me to work 10 hour days without an aching back.

My office now has these horrible, horrible cheap chairs. You can adjust but for some reason you are either too high or too low from the desk to be comfortable. So I choose to sit too low and there is a ton of pressure being put on my lower back.

Mr. Foof while I did not necessarily assume you were diminishing secretaries in your comment, the intent could go either way. It's very easy to see that comment as a slight even if the intention was not. With that said...

The Aeron chair really is the comfiest best thing around. I worked at an office where everyone was issued one as well and we had knoll cubicles! But no 5 weeks vacation. That sounds like europe!

-anna
chateausavoie.com

Appreciate the chair line up! Would love if you guys sat in these chairs and offered your take too.

Here's my experience...

#3. CB chair: saw this busted at the store from the thin wood back flexing too much..

#8. West Elm chair: Kept sliding forward

Planning to go with the BUBBLE CHAIR at CB2. $199, leather, and gets 4-star reviews: http://www.cb2.com/family.aspx?c=302&f=5624

everyone in my office also gets an aeron. EVEN the secretaries. even the bosses. even the interns.

and you can laugh at the price tag, but people, it is worth every penny. so comfortable.

and i don't think they are nearly as ugly as lots of other office type things can be/are.

ps. lighten up about the secretary comment PC soldiers.

I am a photo teacher who grades many darkroom prints many hours a week. The first year, my back and shoulders ached all year. I tried a variety of more ergonomically sound options. Last year, I finally committed to getting a used Aeron (for half the price of a new one). It makes grading for hours comfortable. I had no back or shoulder problems last year. On a sidenote, my students love sitting in it and I was advised by our administrative assistants to take it home so someone else doesn't claim it over the summer. It lives in my studio in the summer. It's worth every penny I paid for it.

As far as I'm concerned there are really only two options on this list. The Aeron and the Ripple. Not to say that the others aren't great chairs, but not for long periods of time sitting at a desk. I can barely finish a meal in the emeco chair let alone a paper. The Arne Jacobsen knock off from restoration hardware is a fantastic "interpretaion" but is hardly a task chair.

the C B ripple is, of course, a copy of herman miller's management chair (an eames design). granted a lot cheaper (and perhaps even preferred by some), but it might be kind to give a nod to the original design/designer... but it seems AT has already covered this one.

If you sit in the generally-accepted "correct" position all day, then I agree that the Aeron is a great choice. However, I shift around and use different positions throughout the day. After all, moving and changing positions is also considered ergonomically beneficial.

Don't expect to stretch your legs out in front of you with the Aeron. Not comfortably anyway. While the leading edge is rounded down and backed by a cushioned part, it's nonetheless a hard piece of plastic that can dig into the backs of your thighs. It certainly digs into mine.

I prefer one of the more recent designs; I think it's called the Embody. The leading edge of the chair is a piece of stretched fabric supported at the sides but not at the front. As long as the material doesn't lose its elasticity and start to sag, it perfectly solves the problem of the hard plastic edge, because there is no edge.

I honestly haven't sat in any of these chairs (mostly because I could find something better to do with up to $900 dollars!) but the Aeron looks uncomfortable to me. It seems like a chair you'd have to sit in the "perfect and correct" way that society rules and I would rather shift around some and stretch my muscles which is MUCH better for you than sitting in one position all day.

@MrFoof - having worked as an admin who got a sh*t chair while the higher-ups (who were barely in the office) had Aeron chairs, I fully understand your meaning--though I also understand the bristling at the poor wording. ;)

I've been pretty busy the last few weeks, so I haven't caught much of this "Inside Man" thing, but for me the whole implication that desk chairs are a masculine topic is kind of off. Am I missing something?

I love the Aeron chairs! My office has them for everyone, and in different sizes from small to large so that you can find one that fits your body well.

This is probably the most sedentary job I've ever had to date, and and am extremely glad for the chair. I don't care what it looks like, this is flat out the most comfortable chair ever. I can sit up or tilt back, and do, half the time without realizing it. The chair moves with me so that I'm always supported, always comfortable.

My husband works at the computer at home 12-14 hours a day. He used the Raynor Ergohuman High-back Mesh Chair ME7ERG for about 2.5 years. The chair felt very comfortable at first, but slowly over the course of the years, he felt that the chair seat was cutting the blood circulation from his legs - the back of his thighs especially would get numb and painful after a while. He is 5' 9" and 150 lbs so he wasn’t overweight for the chair.

2 months ago, he switched to the Gaiam Balance Ball chair. His masseuse had a Gaiam chair in his salon, and he tested it out there. He liked it almost immediately upon sitting on it and said it was such a relief sitting in that chair. You can bounce on it and move on it, and I suppose those little movements help the circulation. When you assemble the chair, you have to be careful to fit the back portion of the chair the correct way, or it may feel like it leans back and doesn't give any support. We did not realize we had fitted it incorrectly at first cos it looks the same from both sides (I’m explaining this very badly, I know).

We also bought a frame-only version of the GeekDesk and an Ikea Numerar countertop (birch, 73 1/4" x 39 3/8") which we fixed onto the frame and use as the desk top. We both like the GeekDesk very much – having the flexibility to work on the computer while standing feels great.

I have a Raynor Ergohuman High-back Leather Chair LE9ERG that I’m still using and I prefer it to the Balance Ball chair. The Raynor chair still feels ok for me because I don’t sit long hours continuously on it - I get up and cook and garden etc. I understand 2 months is too short a period to give an accurate picture of the Gaiam chair, especially since with the GeekDesk, he is sitting less and standing up more when he is working, but I thought I'd just share our experience using it.

I love Aeron chairs. We have crap chairs in our office and I would kill for an Aeron. One thing I love about them is they come in three different sizes - as a petite person, I would like to have a chair that is sized properly for me, not just a big chair lowered to my height!

That said, C&B's Ripple chair is really pretty - and much more affordable.

I like the Copenhagen chair - I've never been able to get comfortable in an office chair, despite trying many chairs, and many seat adjustments, they just don't offer me the right support.

I've heard a few good things about the Aeron from other designers, and it seems to be very popular, but it looks like forces the 'correct' posture and might be a bit hard on my lower back. I'd certainly give it try though :)

the aeron is the only comfortable chair in this list. the others will hurt your lower back! i have tested a lot of chairs and even though the ones without support are "pretty," they are impractical for people who work on a computer all day.