The Joel on Software Discussion Group

Is Awful!  There, I said it!

Seriously, I am trying to figure out the appeal of this chair.  Where I currently work, they bought everyone one of these chairs.  But, slowly over time, some of the developer's have traded in "the chair" for some of the cheap 'Office Max/Staples' style chairs that were still floating around.  There has been complaints!  *gasp*  Yes!  Complaints.

I, too, often find it making me uncomfortable.  Is there some type of manual? (I kid, I kid).  Then again, there are a bunch of a little knobby things that I haven't really tried to adjust (I'm lazy).

Plus, sadly, I'm a sloucher.  I think that's the issue with these chairs.  My hypothesis is that you have to sit in these chairs with perfect posture.  If you don't, it hurts your back.  I call them "training chairs".

Discuss!

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"How can you file a worker's comp claim for carpal tunnel against us? We gave you an Aeron!"
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They aren't meant for developing.
The correct posture is to lean back in them and
throw your stock options in the air screaming either:
"I'm rich" ( month 1 of your dot.com)
"Worthless cr**" (month 2 of your dot.com)

I find the Freedom chair to be much more comfortable than the Aeron.  I trialed both and went with the Freedom for my own personal chair.

I sit on a large gym ball. Seriously. All chairs let me lean forward into the standard hunchback-coder position, but the ball forces me to keep my back straight.

Agreed.  I have one and it’s no great thing.  Certainly not worth the cost.
It’s biggest selling point was the ‘weave’ fabric which supposedly keeps your butt cool.  Meh, anyone ever complain their butt was getting too hot in a regular chair?

" Agreed.  I have one and it’s no great thing.  Certainly not worth the cost."

I know some people who haven't been happy with their Aeron either. In some cases those people had bought their chairs used, and so it wasn't the right size for their physique. (You can tell the size, which goes from 1 to 3, by counting the number of dots under the "wing" on the top of the back.) But I know even more people who love their Aerons, and the fact that you don't doesn't make those people delusional. :)

But yeah, it's pricey. If it does work great for you though, I think it's easy to justify the expense when you consider how much time is spent sitting in your office chair each day.

"It’s biggest selling point was the ‘weave’ fabric which supposedly keeps your butt cool. Meh, anyone ever complain their butt was getting too hot in a regular chair?"

Err, yes.

So, to summarize the original post:  "This chair is really uncomfortable but although I'm aware it has a ton of options, I'm too lazy to try to adjust it to be comfortable."

Lest you think I'm an aeron apologist, I chose to buy a mirra over an aeron because for *me* it was the more comfortable chair -- the mirra has a completely different back and different style of adjustable lumbar support.  I sat on an aeron at a former job for a couple of years and never found a way to adjust the lumbar support so it was supporting me but didn't feel like a rock in my back. 

(I also tried the freedom and a number of other high-end chairs before picking the mirra)

I love my Aeron chair and I'm a full time developer. I find it to be extremely comfortable.  I suggest your try adjusting the chair a bit before dismissing it.

I too love my Aeron.  I am fairly large and they make a large size.  Most other chairs were a stuggle to prevent from leaning back no matter how tight I twisted that tension thingy.  The open fabric keeps me nice and cool.

In addition, as I recently discovered, they have one of the best warranties ever.  If anything goes wrong for something like 10 or maybe 11 years, they send someone to you to fix it within days.  They even fixed something I told them I was pretty certain I damaged myself.

Good company.

I have a Nightingale CXO chair w/headreast, which is similar to the Aeron.  (Acutally, I thing Nightingale was sued for patent infringement by Herman Miller for being *too* similar.)

I love it.  It is by far the best chair I've ever had.  At $900 it certainly wasn't cheap, but it is something I use 8+ hours every day so it's well worth it.  I'm a bit taller and broader than your average bear and this things is adustable every which way, which is a big plus.

But if you prefer the $99 Office Depot model, by all means buy one and be happy with your extra $801.  I wish my body was as happy with those as yours is.

+1 for the HumanScale Freedom chair.  I use it 8-10 hours a day, and it's a fantastic chair.  I bought mine at a "Design Within Reach" store where I was able to compare the Freedom and the Aeron side by side.

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So, to summarize the original post:  "This chair is really uncomfortable but although I'm aware it has a ton of options, I'm too lazy to try to adjust it to be comfortable."
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

:)

I was trying to be humorous!

Oh, and the person that 'sits on the ball', you immediately made me think of an episode of The Office from a few week's back where Jim popped Dwight's ball with the scissors.  Good show!