Reviews
Review: X-Chair X3 – the $1,000 office chair I never knew I needed
It’s X-pensive and X-cellent.
Just a heads up, if you buy something through our links, we may get a small share of the sale. It’s one of the ways we keep the lights on here. Click here for more.
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We write lots of content about working from home here at KnowTechie, partly because we’re a distributed team that all works from their own home offices. Whether we’re talking about accessories to make your work area more productive or staving off existential dread with more pixels, we’re always striving to offer you choices in how you outfit your working space.
Sure, we love the high-tech electronic gizmos, but the real star of your home office should be your chair. It should be supportive, ergonomic, and have some level of adjustability to fit your body’s unique needs.
We’re looking at an office chair on the premium end of the spectrum today, the X3 ATR Mgmt Chair from X-Chair. That’s the tier that usually graces the C-suite, so if it’s good enough for them, it’s good enough for your home office, right?
What’s the X-Chair X3 all about?
A chair’s a chair, right? Except when it’s wrong. The wrong chair will give you a lifetime of backache, so it’s always a bad investment. For a chair you’re using all day, every day, you need something a bit better than the standard chair.
Things like lumbar support are essential, and X-Chair’s DVL system is spring-tensioned to give just the amount of support you need. No more futzing with handles to tension or adjust, just sit back and let it do all the work.
Oh, and in case you were wondering why the lumbar section has buttons on it? That’s an optional $159 insert called ELEMAX, that has two intensities of vibrating massage, with pulse and variable vibration; one-touch heating to 55c that automatically turns off 15 minutes after use, and two fans to blow cooling air into your back, perfect for those hot days. Oh, and it’s rechargeable, from USB (cable and wall wart included).
It’s got a 40-degree recline, which cleverly keeps you in balance all the way back. The dampening can be adjusted to your weight/liking, and keeping it unlocked is a great way to keep moving during the day even if you can’t stand up.
That’s not all that’s adjustable though. The headrest pivots and adjusts in height, the backrest can be adjusted a few inches, the armrests move in any direction you’d expect an armrest to do, and the seat depth can also be adjusted a couple of inches. Unless you’re wildly tall, this is the chair for you. Oh, and if you’re on the shorter side, X-Chair has a smaller range, with very similar features.
Even the fabric helps you stay energized and comfortable all day, with springy, woven nylon that’s almost hammock-like in how well it supports your weight. I’m pretty hard on my furniture, but the fabric on this is still as pristine as the day it arrived.
So, is the X-Chair X-ceptional?
I’ve been using the X-Chair for a couple of months now, long enough for any issues in manufacturing or materials to show themselves. Apart from getting my tshirt stuck in the gap formed by the floating lumbar support, the X3 has been x-cepetional.
Gone are the restless legs that I used to get every night when I curled up into bed. Gone too, are the lower backaches that have plagued me since my early 20’s. Now I’m not saying this chair is everything to do with that, but it’s gone a huge way to keeping me sitting in a posture-friendly position, which has given my back and muscles the time to sort themselves out.
I’ve always had issues with office chairs not fitting properly. Either the seat isn’t supportive enough, or too firm, or is too long or too short for my short-ish thighs relative to my height. All of the adjustability of the X3 has allowed me to adjust it to just how I need it, and I can change minor details throughout the day.
The other thing is, I really have to spend a beat to talk about the SciFloat reclining tech. It’s phenomenal. Really. It’s the first reclining system that I’ve been able to lean back on, with complete confidence in it not putting me on my butt on the floor. I’m not a light man, in the upper 200’s, and it kept me balanced even at the full forty-degree recline. What a champ.
Should you buy the X-Chair X3?
If you’re an office worker, whether that office is company-owned or it’s in your home, X-Chair should be on your list for consideration. The construction is what you’d expect from this price bracket, with beautifully polished metal, hard-wearing fabrics, and just exudes class.
It is expensive, clocking in at over $1,000, but then you do get what you pay for, and you should be comfortably able to use the X-Chair for years of keyboard-mashing.
You only have one back, take care of it. Oh, one last thing, if you’re on the taller side, skip the headrest – it’ll only reach your shoulders.
Editors’ Recommendations:
- Review: ErgoChair 2 vs. Aeron Chair – Which ergonomic chair is the best?
- Review: Secretlab TITAN 2020 – your butt and back will thank you
- Review: Autonomous ErgoChair 2
- Review: Andaseat Throne – the most comfortable gaming chair, period.
Just a heads up, if you buy something through our links, we may get a small share of the sale. It’s one of the ways we keep the lights on here. Click here for more.