Even if you don’t know what an Aeron is, you’ve seen one (I’ll guarantee it). It’s THE chair synonymous with the dot com boom of the late nineties. As an internet start up, your employees HAD to be perching on Aerons. Why? They’re officially sexy.
Of course, as many of these companies went under (probably because they blew all their money on chairs), herds of Aerons were sold off, and became accessible to the common man. They’re easy to pick up second hand (think eBay) but are they worth the money? Let’s find out….
Would I buy one?
Yes. In fact I did…………… Then I sent it back 🙂
I got my spanking new chrome Aeron (yes, I bought a new one) and was delighted. It’s a sexy bit of kit, there’s no denying it. Everyone who saw it commented on it, to be honest that was nice. However, the love affair was short lived. For £900, I expected perfection. I’d hoped it would be akin to nestling on the fluffiest of clouds. In reality, I got a noisy, uncomfortable, chrome covered torture device. It’s fairly comfortable, but not as comfortable as it looks, and certainly not as comfortable as it should be for the price.
For me, it was the noise which drove me mad. Reclining caused the chair to emit what can only be classed as a farting noise. Seriously?!!! Combined with creaks, squeaks and groans, we had a complete gamut of annoying sounds.
I do a lot of audio recording, and the chair had to be kept perfectly still. The amount of takes I had to redo because an audible fart featured on the recording was ridiculous. After two visits from an engineer with a can of silicone spray, then a new replacement, I’d had enough. I mic’d up the chair with my finest condenser mics (that was a sight to see), and sent the recording to the company who sold it to me. To be fair, there was no argument, they simply picked up the chair and refunded the money. They’d probably had enough of the loon who was sending in recordings of a farting chair.
Personally, I think the current model Aerons are inferior to the models produced in the late 90’s. My brother owns one that is silent as the wind, and operates perfectly 15 years on. It’s still not the most comfortable chair in the world, but it’s definitely not the most annoying.
What’s worth your hard earned cash?
For me, there’s only one choice. Kinnarps (pronounced Shinnarps). They do a range of models, but they tend to be a little harder to pick up on eBay etc. Almost everything is adjustable, and they’re incredibly comfortable. You can adjust height/angle/depth/reach of the arms, back height, seat pan depth, tilt resistance and lock the chair recline in any position. It totally outclasses the Aeron in the comfort stakes. There’s no sizing issues to contend with. The chair is so adjustable, it’s going to fit you no matter how tall/short you are.
They’re not sexy; in fact they look like almost any other office chair. However, if you’re the kind of person who can accept function over form, you’ll be sitting pretty while your friends in Aerons are at the chiropractor.
So, after a ramble/rant we’re back to the original question. Are Aerons worth the money?
New? Nope.
Second Hand? Possibly. Pick up a 90’s model and you’re probably okay.