It should go without saying that a chair is an essential part of any gamers setup. Sure, standing tables exist, but ain’t nobody got time for that! No, we want comfort, and we want it now!
Currently, that comfort comes in the form of the Cougar Speeder Ergonomic Gaming Chair, a mesh gaming chair with sleek design elements and reclining features you’d expect from a business-class seat.
At first glance, the Speeder, with its carbon fibre and gunmetal aesthetics, inspired by high-performance vehicles, seems to belong behind an executive’s office desk. However, it was designed with gamers in mind.
Sure, you could do a little work in the chair, like perhaps writing an article or two, but with three-dimensional adjustment on both the head and armrests, back adjustment, lumbar adjustment, and seat adjustment, it’s quite obvious that this chair is made for those who spend hours upon hours in front of their PC screens, gaming.
The breathable Chenille Yarn mesh that covers the chair is also a pleasant upgrade to the leather-like materials we are all used to seeing on our gaming chairs. It allows me to sit on my chair, short pants and all, and not worry about getting my skin ripped off whenever I need to go to the microwave to cook up some two-minute noodles. It’s also 100% less sweaty, and honestly, that alone is more than enough of a selling point for me.
Yet, the Speeder just keeps offering more. Perched just below the seat is a footrest that you can slide out for an even more relaxing experience during those long gaming sessions. Of course, what use would a footrest be if you couldn’t kick back? The Speeder offers three different reclining levels for you to enjoy. At 90 degrees, you’ll be perched upright and ready to work for half an hour before the games start calling. This is when you kick it back to the 115-degree mark and hop into that session of Diablo IV with your mates. Once they’ve logged off for the night, you can kick the Speeder back into “Immersive Nap” mode, which lowers you back to 135 degrees, offering a beach-side relaxation experience, perfect for cosy games or taking that immersive nap.
With all this praise, you might think that the Speeder would be an instant buy, but the truth is the chair might not be for everyone.
While I might be trying to find ways to sneak it off in my car from the office, others at NAG HQ had a few other thoughts on the chair that may resonate with you. Len, who first tried to claim the chair as his, commented that he sometimes felt the material could be a little scratchy on his back. I think the third-degree burns he got from the sun caused the scratchiness, but since then, he has reverted to his old Cougar Armour Evo. Arielle also commented that the chair is firmer than the gaming chairs we’re used to, which I agree with. The Speeder props you up and has very little give on the seat. I tend to find this more comfortable, but I also like to sleep on a harder mattress at night, so this could all boil down to a little personal preference.
This brings me to another pill that may be hard to swallow for some: the price. At almost R8,000 for the Speeder, it is on the higher end of gaming chairs offered in South Africa. While it does come with a host of support, comfort and adjustability features, some may find spending that amount of money on a chair may be a little too much, but when it’s the comfort of your butt in question, is there a cost too great?