Whether you’re someone that’s at a computer for one hour a day or ten, having the right support for your back can be the single most important upgrade for your workstation. As Twitch and Micer streamers have grown in popularity, so too have the brands of chairs that support these talented influencers. AKRacing has been there from the beginning and their line of gaming chairs have typically been colorful and racer-inspired. While the latter is still certainly true, AKRacing has been toning down the bright colors with their line of office series. We recently had the pleasure of trying out the newest AKRacing Obsidian in the office to help consumers decide if going for a top of the line office chair makes a difference when it comes to gaming in comfort.
Being my second chair review for Wccftech, I found myself exploring much of the same criteria as for when I first got hands on the Respawn RSP-205. Being roughly double the price investment as Respawn’s flagship chair, surely there had to be some upgrades to justify the difference. Prospective buyers will be pleased to know that much of what the AKRacing Obsidian offers in its massive box is worth the investment.
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Inside the box for the AKRacing Obsidian office chair are a smaller number of components than the last chair I assembled, in part because much of the armrests and base are pre-assembled for the consumer. Only a handful of screws and metal pieces to slide together are all that keep you from enjoying the Obsidian chair right out of the box. All in all, I spent roughly thirty minutes from unboxing the chair’s various components to attaching the five caster wheels and taking the Obsidian for a test drive. When you’re paying a premium price for a game room upgrade, you want the process to be as efficient as possible.
The entire frame of the AKRacing Obsidian feels sturdy and was something I put to good use while penning all of our post-E3 coverage (and yes, at least one nap in between). The five-wheeled design silently glides across both carpet and hard flooring alike without so much as a squeak. With the pleather carbon fiber weave that upholsters the chair, I tested to see just how easy it was to maintain. Eating curry at your desk is not something I would recommend for someone that isn’t a professional, and while the saucy mess looked impressive against the black woven texture, it was incredibly easy to wipe off and refresh with just a bit of soap and water. The same goes for soda which is a much more common substance to enjoy during late night gaming stretches.
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One of the few negative marks I found for Respawn’s chair was the lack of mobility to the armrests beyond just raising and lowering them. I never knew just how much having a set of 4D armrests mattered until I got my butt in an AKRacing chair. Not only can these bad boys tilt inwards and outwards, but they can also slide forward and backward as well as slide out a few centimeters in either direction. For those with wider frames, having an adjustable set of armrests can aid in comfort.
An underappreciated bonus of the inward angled armrests is being able to keep your arms propped up when you’re playing a handheld game (Switch owners take note!). When you couple that with the Obsidian’s recline and some sort of footrest (AKracing offers a separate smaller footrest for $40, but that’s more so meant to keep your feet from being flat-footed behind a desk), that’s some incredibly comfy portable gaming for longer stretches of time.
The single greatest feature of the AKRacing Obsidian office chair, more than the armrests or ergonomic pillows, is the absurd amount of recline this chair offers. When I first tested it out, I thought I was going to tumble on backward out of the seat from how far back this sucker can go. This imposing piece of the carbon fiber woven tech can go all the way back to a full 180 degrees of reclining action, perfect if all of those Victory Royales tucker you out and a quick siesta is in order.
AKRacing’s Obsidian office chair features a pair of matching pillows that are customary on most gaming chairs these days: one for cradling the head and another that can fit nicely against one’s lower spine. The lumbar pillow was a bit too stiff for my liking and it was difficult to keep it locked in place as the straps would slip downwards overtime, even with the extra little puck that’s supposed to keep them locked in place and felt like a small oversight for a chair of this caliber. On the other hand, I absolutely loved the low profile head pillow that just slips over the top of the chair with no wiggle or excessive padding to push back against the back of the user’s head. It might not be enough to substitute for a proper naptime pillow but it will certainly keep you from getting whiplash when game time gets serious.
Once you strip away the head and back pillows from the AKRacing Obsidian, this impressive office chair could easily go incognito in an office environment without anyone raising questions about your newfound comfort. If you’re in an IT field or otherwise at a desk for eight hours a day, you owe it to yourself to indulge in a comfortable office chair and the Obsidian can fit that role perfectly. And when that 2 PM post-lunch crash kicks in? Recline out of view and take a brief nap in comfort. The AKRacing Obsidian office chair is an epic upgrade that will keep your butt and back happy for years to come whether you’re gaming at home or trying to handle some serious work in the office.
Review unit provided by the publisher. You can purchase the chair via Amazon.
AKRacing’s high-end office chair commands one of the highest price tags for gaming chairs but what you get for that investment is comfort and style that can last for years with the Obsidian, whether you’re working in an office environment or streaming from home.
