I’m someone who likes his tech and toys. If possible, I’ll spend that extra bit of money for the unlocked processor or the monitor with the higher refresh rate (not to mention the occasional statuette). But I’ve often neglected the most intimate item of the office space: the seating beneath me. After all, isn’t a chair just a chair? It’s a prejudice that was recently challenged by the Singapore-based Secretlab, a gaming chair company now bringing its products Stateside. They provided us with their latest and greatest, the TITAN; and after spending more than a week in its embrace, my back and behind are thankful to having my biases proven wrong.
The TITAN earns its name for its size and how it can accommodate taller and wider individuals (up to 6.40 feet and 286 pounds with a seating width of 21.26 inches), but what elevates the chair – no pun intended – is the range of features that allowed me to personalize the experience to my exact needs. Before we dive into those specifics, let’s discuss what it’s like to put the TITAN together.
Assembling the TITAN is a relatively standard affair compared to other office or gaming chairs. The wheels and hydraulic piston attach to a base, the backrest is joined with the seat via screws, and so forth. It’s nothing at all difficult, but the TITAN is quite heavy and requires a bit of force to align certain parts. I recommend having a family member or friend nearby to offer help. You can put it together on your own, though my own attempt to do so ended in a few curses. Thankfully, there was no need to curse the instructions. Secretlab’s guide is a thick, large pamphlet full of actual colored pictures and readable English. They’ve even have a well-made YouTube video that you can follow through the entire assembly process.
Once upright, the TITAN wouldn’t look out of place inside a muscle car. The sides of the backrest curve forward and flare outward, moving from its base to the top. The upholstery is black polyurethane leather, but gold, silver, and red stitching add another layer of refinement to the TITAN’s attractive appearance. The red lines follow the outer edges while company and product names and logos are attractively embossed in gold and silver on the back, front, and seating of the chair. Altogether, the TITAN is a rather commanding presence.
The polyurethane is quite resilient to the elements, too. I was concerned the PU leather would require special care, but Secretlab touts its waterproof material only needs wiping with a damp cloth every now and again. The armrests and wheels are covered in polyurethane, as well, which keeps the former soft and the latter from scuffing up your floors.
As previously mentioned, the TITAN is more than just a sleek-looking chair. I quickly fell in love with all that I could do with it, beyond the usual multi-functional tilt and height mechanisms. The most obvious feature is the reclining backrest. Pulling a lever and applying a little force can bring the backrest to a position that in a pinch wouldn’t be uncomfortable to sleep in. But the backrest has more options than just reclining. A dial along the right side adjusts the chair’s inbuilt lumbar support. Turning it clockwise increases the curvature and firmness of the lower backrest. I appreciated this a lot more than shoving a loose pillow behind me. My only complaint is that the dial can be hard to reach while sitting in a neutral position, though admittedly there are few other places it could be go.
The arm rests are equally adjustable. Secretlab dubs them 4D, or four directional. Three buttons allow for movement up and down, forward and back, and side to side. A little push and pull angles them. If they’re still not quite at the right width, they can be unscrewed from the bottom, moved, and reattached. The benefits are obvious and welcome. And if you’ve got cats that love to take over your damn property the moment you move away, being able to drop the armrests so the chair can slide cleanly under a desk is a victory for mankind.
So what’s it like to actually sit in the TITAN for extended periods? And how does it compare to the thick fabric office chair it’s battling to replace? I’ve always been a fan of fabric. Leather chairs more often than not wear down, tear, and expose flesh and bone to the hard metal underneath. I was nervous the TITAN’s polyurethane leather, foam, and harder arm rests would be too firm a difference I wouldn’t enjoy it. Those fears were ultimately unwarranted. I can’t imagine going back to any other chair but this one.
For starters, the backrest’s solid form and aforementioned recliner and lumbar support features make a huge difference to overall comfort. Fabric is soft and inviting, yes, but it was all too easy to slouch in my previous chair. The TITAN has kept me upright and my spine well supported to the point where it’s lessened my usual aches.
Your head and neck aren’t without support, either. Included in the box is a pillow that can strap to the top of the backrest. It’s fairly thick and plushy. It can’t move down too far because of the curvature of the upper chair, but it’s a nice addition nonetheless that’s been a further help keeping myself planted straight.
The foam underneath the polyurethane leather is molded and cold-cured. It’s created using the process shared by automobile seating. The foam and thus chair are supposed to be more durable as a result, and I found little reason to argue. It shouldn’t compress much with age, unlike the cheap leather chairs I’ve bought in the past. That doesn’t mean the TITAN is hard. The foam and leather are soft and comfortable while maintaining a solid resistance. In fact, the chair almost melts away from thought due to how well it fits the shape of my body. There’s little to no fidgeting or leaning to be had. Everything just feels right.
I thought it couldn’t get any better than my fabric chair. I had it in my mind that the high claims about gaming or expensive office chairs were exaggerated, despite how frequently said chairs appear in the videos of streamers. I’m happy to have been mistaken. The Secretlab TITAN is the best I’ve sat in. Soft, resilient, customizable, and absolutely wonderful for my back, it’s easily replacing what came before it. Better yet, it will be launching this February at a competitive price of $359. If you’re in the market for a new chair, the Secretlab TITAN is a hearty recommendation. Your back will surely thank you.
You can purchase one directly from Secretlab.
Disclosure: Secretlab sent us a chair for review purposes.
