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Poll: Best Chair For Desktop Coding?

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Re: Poll: Best Chair For Desktop Coding?

#21

Post by dotBen »

patricklynch wrote: post #15
GiraffeNecktie wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I got my standing desk from Ikea (from the 'As Is" section) for about $100

My standing desk is a set of $60 industrial shelves from CostCo. If all you care about about is functionality, furniture can be pretty cheap. I'm thinking of the Xooglers video where Google's massive line of desks was a series of doors on top of sawhorses.

I think it was Amazon that used doors as desks (apparently some folks still do for the novelty factor)

http://www.adamduvander.com/simple/when-petscom-had-aeron-ch...

Re: Poll: Best Chair For Desktop Coding?

#22

Post by pipeline_tux »

Osmose wrote: post #10
sambeau wrote: post #6

Quite an unbalanced list in terms of cost: Standing $0 Exercise Ball $15 Herman Miller Aeron Chair $1,150

You're forgetting the cost to change your home setup to support standing. Of course, you can go very cheap and use cardboard boxes to hold up your monitor and keyboard.

Mine cost me nothing. I got some wood scraps from a local kitchen factory and built a couple of tables, at the right height, to stand on top of my standard desk.

Re: Poll: Best Chair For Desktop Coding?

#23

Post by drewda »

After going on workers comp. because of all the wrist problems I was having from years of hunching at a computer, I was given a Steelcase Leap. Now I'm like one of those rockstars who demands only X brand of water in their dressing rooms; just a Leap chair for me. It actually makes me want to sit back and sit up straight. Plus, it may lead to a 17.8% increase in productivity [1]. At least that's what the brochure says ;-)

[1] http://www.oneworkplace.com/images/dynamic/case_studies/leap...

Re: Poll: Best Chair For Desktop Coding?

#24

Post by frossie »

I don't think any chair will give you great posture, (though the wrong one will definitely make things worse). You need actual exercise for that.

In case you don't have $$$$ to spend on a high end chair, remember that the reason chairs cost a lot of money is partly so that they can be adjustable to fit almost any one. However, the right cheap chair that fits you also works fine. In other words, go into a store with lots and lots of chairs and sit on them. I found a $150 chair that works great for me, but will undoubtedly be wrong for somebody else. Also remember that the chair is only one part of the ergonomic equation.

Re: Poll: Best Chair For Desktop Coding?

#25

Post by mike_h »

I've owned a few ergo chairs and used each for long periods of time. Here's my take as a 6'2", 185lb male:

- Aeron: be wary of considering this as any ergonomic standard. The mesh is great for air and comfortable on your butt, but the back support is weak and it's not very adjustable. You do need to make sure you get the right size (A, B, C). The PostureFit adapter actually hurt my back when I had it dialed in at all. Sold my Aeron after a month.

- Steelcase Leap: This one is also popular among coders and the first version ("v1" on the net) is actually pretty awesome. I've used it days on end, and realy came to appreciate the reclining support and the many adjustments which help keep things fresh. The v2 isn't as adjustable, and the front of the seat pan dug into my thighs so I sent it back after a few weeks. I've owned two of the v1s for about 6 months and spend 10-60 hours/wk in them.

- Soma Ergo. My top pick of the three. These are so obscure that I don't know if you can even find them outside of the Bay Area; I got lucky and found them back when there was a vendor in Palo Alto (they're made to order in Berkeley, I believe). If you go into a store that sells these, they custom fit each element and you choose from various materials. It comes out to about $1000 for a best-materials seat (this includes some fancy cushion material that is the most forgiving of any I've tred after long long coding sessions). I bought mine in 2006 and it remains my favorite chair. Aeron didn't come close. After sitting on the Leaps, my body always feels relief coming back to this one.

If you're on a budget, the fully-adjustable Patriot that they sell at Office Depot is also pretty good: it's only $200 and I'd take it over an Aeron without hesitation. I used these for about 8 years. Main limitations are that the seat bottom will hurt after long hours and you'll probably want supplemental back support if you're prone to back issues.

Re: Poll: Best Chair For Desktop Coding?

#26

Post by sambeau »

Osmose wrote: post #10
sambeau wrote: post #6

Quite an unbalanced list in terms of cost: Standing $0 Exercise Ball $15 Herman Miller Aeron Chair $1,150

You're forgetting the cost to change your home setup to support standing. Of course, you can go very cheap and use cardboard boxes to hold up your monitor and keyboard.

I wasn't forgetting: I was editing for effect :)

Having said that, how much are four bricks?

Re: Poll: Best Chair For Desktop Coding?

#29

Post by hugh3 »

I sure hope that everyone voting in this poll has extensively tried working on an Ergoman Mesh, a Humanscale Freedom, an Aeron, an exercise ball, nothing, and several other options, or else how are they to know which option is the best?

Me? I have a (goes and looks) Steelcase Rapport. It's definitely better than most of the other (much cheaper) desk chairs I've had over the years, but I can't promise anything about it being the best.

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