The ergohuman is the bomb. OfficeDespots had it for $499 high back recently.
I just got the “Eurotech Ergohuman Leather High Back EUR-LE9ERG” for $599 online, thanks to this page. It is awesome, highly recommended. Better than the “ergo” chair I have at work. Feels very solid.
I also recommend the leather over the icky stretchy mesh.
The Aeron chair is not a bad chair, we found that it makes you sit in one position which they consider ergonomic. The problem is, most people that sit all day tend to move around in their chair and the aeron is not easily adjusted. Sure there are lots of knobs and adjustments, it just takes a degree in chair design to be able to operate them! There are many newer designed chairs that focus on natural movement and auto adjusting to the user. I recommend checking out the Liberty or Freedom chairs. The Ergohuman is really nice and costs half the price of the Aeron.
Whatever you do, find a place to try out the chairs first! We bought a pair of Aerons from Home Office Solutions and they surreptitiously charged us $150 to return them. I disagreed with this charge but their supposedly “satisfaction guaranteed” service manager argued with me and said he will go out of business, that ‘intelligent’ people will check their returns page (nicely hidden) ect… However, I phoned in my orders and this was never disclosed to me, wasn’t in any of my email communication or on my receipts. Only when I called to return the Aerons did they casually mention this fee. Their website touts the 100% free shipping, 100% refundable if not satisfied but watch out for those shady junk fees! They were also verrrry slow to issue the refund. 2 weeks went by after the chairs were returned and I had to call the service department who said they were “backlogged”. Avoid doing business with HomeOfficeSolutions.com or any of their 3 online businesses (yep they are all one company): OfficeDesigns.com or UltimateBackstore.com
Some great tips here. I currently have a Herman Miller Mirra chair, and I would say it’s just “OK”, but not great. And, after a year, the fabric on the seat part is starting to tear.
I think this is because I tend to sit all the way up on the front edge of the chair, never leaning into the back at all.
I also dont use the arm rests, in fact they kinda get in the way.
So, in researching a replacement the last few days, I’m starting to feel like I should go with one of these:
http://www.relaxtheback.com/the-swopper-product-6370282-1894
(sorry for a link to a store, the manufacturers site is kinda lame)
Anyone used or know someone who has used one of these?
They seem similar to the exercise ball seating method that a lot of people seem to be adopting lately, but with a better surface, adjustability, and less likelihood of explosion. 
Otherwise, I’m looking at a Steelcase “Think”, without armrests.
I’m sitting in a HumanScale Liberty chair right now… a store called “Design Within Reach” let me borrow it for a day. Last week I borrowed the Herman Miller Cella, and good thing, because that one was painful.
The Liberty is really cool. I mostly agree with the reviewer above, but it’s not the chair for me. I’m a “lean back” kind of guy, and the Liberty isn’t so good for prolonged leaning back. The natural stance of the chair is “lean forward and get your work done”, and when I lean back I tend to go back to far in this chair. There is no spring tension adjustment for the back, and there is no backstop adjustment either. If either (or both!) of these were present I would buy the chair. The gel seat is great, and the mesh back is one of a kind.
My problem isn’t my back, it’s my legs… after sitting too long, it feels like either the nerves or the circulation get disrupted. So none of the mesh bottom chairs are good for me, since the front edge of the mesh seats tends to push up into the back of my leg.
At The Healthy Back Store I sat in Aeron, CXO, Leap, and Zody chairs. At another local store I sat in the ErgoHuman chairs. Right now it’s a three-way-tie between the Zody, the Leap (leather) and ErgoHuman (leather). If you haven’t tried the Zody, you should. It’s way cool. The only reason it’s not first on my list is that I can find the other two for much less.
There are lots of used Leaps on the market but beware… the v2 is nicer than the v1, but very few used v2’s are available yet. (Leap v2 came out 1Q06).
Hope this data dump is of value to someone…
Any recommendations for a person 6’4" and 200lbs?
What is the difference between the Steelcase Leap V1 and V2?
The main differences between Leap v1 and v2 is that the v1 came with a choice of back heights “full” and “low”. In order to simplify v2, they only offer a single height - around in the middle of the previous choices. I have a tall torso so the full or higher back was for me. The v1 also had an extra front lip seat adjustment. So, I looked all over for a v1 and bought that recently. I think the Leaps blow away the Aeron, Humanscale, and all the rest - Iv’e tried many.
A few other differences between the v1 and v2 Leap. i) The armrests on the v2 are much improved. The rubber is softer, and they slide forward/backward, in addition to the other directions. ii) The frame for the back is made of softer, more flexible plastic. I find it more comfortable than the v1, since it has a little more ‘give.’ iii) The control for the hardness of the front tip of the seat cushion is removed. No great loss. iv) It’s restyled overall: looks a bit smaller and thinner, even though the seated dimensions remain the same.
I looked at a used v1 vs. a new v2, and decided the v2 was going to be more comfortable for me…
I just bought the Ergohuman after owning a Herman Miller Aeron, which I never liked. The Ergohuman cradles me, the lumbar support is better, the ability to slide the bottom seat a bit is nice, and so is the headrest. It’s also only $500 online. I wish I had purchased it sooner because now sitting at my desk no longer is painful.
I realize this is probably out of place, but what about a chair mat? I love my chair, but I need a chair mat that works on carpet. Cracking = bad. Also, if would be nice if it wasn’t slick as ice. I don’t want to fly across the room when my foot twitches.
When we were looking for chairs for our startup, we went to Dept of Labor in DC, which has an ergonomics expert on-site, so we could sit in lots of chairs and figure out which ones were best.
Pretty much hands-down the HumanScale Liberty crushed for us. We got a good deal by buying in bulk, including HumanScale’s very sexy and green Task Lamps, which are super cool.
I’m a big fan of HumanScale.
Those look like great chairs. I’m a programmer and my home chair just broke after about 5 years, and it was never perfect, but I got a great deal on it for $120. It’s disheartening to think that to get comfort, I need to spend $500-$1000! That’s quite a bit of cash. You’d think you could get a really good chair for $200 or $250.
Not all developers work from the confines of an office. As a freelancer and contractor, I’ve developed over a myriad of ass-locating devices - from sofas, beds, chairs, bar-stools, hammocks, beach recliners and so forth.
I actually found that being too comfortable is detrimental to productive work, as it makes me sleepy and too relaxed. A good seating arrangement should be good for the back yet not too comfortable as to forget you are working.
My personal issue with office chairs is stability. I’m a relatively heavy guy, with 220ish pounds at 6’2 or so, but by no means do I feel like a morbidly obese monster that can’t expect a chair to hold his weight. Yet, I have destroyed not one, buy three different office chairs in the last five or so years. One broke right through the middle of the seating area. I kept that broken off half to remind me not to buy cheap chairs anymore.
I think a point somewhat missed here is that different bodies are going to fit a chair differently. A lot of people don’t realize that most chairs are rated to only 250lbs (Aeron is rated to 270) but that doesn’t mean someone that size will fit in an average sized seat comfortably. Also a heavier person needs a heavier construction and things like better casters and better mountings for the arms and back post or the chair is going to break down.
The Ergohuman is hard to beat for the price, but there are some amazing contenders out there for good chairs. Frankly if you sit in almost anything in the same price as a loaded Aeron (the basic model doesn’t have enough adjustments for a daily user because you can’t adjust it to fit - you need more than a height adjustment), you’ll find a more comfortable chair. I don’t think I’ve seen a single comparison that Aeron has won.
Other great chairs - The Humanscale chairs - Freedom and Liberty, Neutral Posture, Steelcase’s Leap, The Zody, the Nightengale (Canadian). The most comfortable chairs on the planet (yeah…my opinion but shared by anyone who has sat in one for any length of time) are made by BodyBilt. You get to mix and match the back and seat and options to get a chair that fits YOUR body with the features you want. They make chairs for the very petite, average people, and people up to 700lbs!
Anyway, I work for an ergonomist so I’ve tried pretty much them all. I have a Freedom in the office and a BodyBilt at home (that’s where I put my cash).
Anyhow…just my opinion. I bought my Freedom chair at www.thehumansolution.com. I got a good deal and they were very helpful.
I love my Aeron…wouldn’t trade it for the world. Thankfully I didn’t have to pay for mine though…a startup I worked for many moons ago went bust, and allowed what employees were left to sift through the wreckage and take one item each.
Big Tall? Check out Bodybilt at http://www.ergo4me.com/
After struggling with Office Depot cheapos for years, I finally broke down and bought one. I’m 6’5", work at home and it’s good enough to sit in all day of coding following by an evening of World of Warcraft. Very adjustable as well and I’m quite pleased.