Introduction

Here at The Tech Buyer’s Guru, we’ve reviewed a whole lot of PC peripherals, but there’s one category of desktop accessory we’ve used every day since the very beginning, but never reviewed: the humble desk chair. Then again, desk chairs aren’t all that humble, if you consider how much some of them sell for! We’ve used a number of the ultra-premium designer chairs out there, and none have impressed us all that much, so having another crack at reinventing the wheel actually sounds like a good thing to us.

Thankfully, over the past few years, a number of gaming product manufacturers have jumped into the market, and all we can say is the more competition, the better. While products marketed at “gamers” aren’t necessarily always the best value, you can’t get much more expensive than “designer” desk chairs, so there’s nowhere to go but down (in price, that is!).

And that brings us to Corsair’s new T2 Road Warrior Gaming Chair, which Corsair announced at CES 2018 in January. Because we were on hand to witness the unveiling, Corsair was kind enough to pass along one of the very first samples off the production line. Read on to see whether Corsair pulls off another big win!

Special thanks to Corsair for providing a sample of the T2 Road Warrior Gaming Chair in Black/White for review.

Description, Features & Assembly

We thought the best way to review the features of the chair, as well as the assembly process, was to put it on video. You can see an overview of all of the chair’s features below, and even see us build the entire thing in timelapse!

Just two clarifications to what we discuss in the video. First, while the majority of the chair is clad in a synthetic vinyl material as we mentioned, the seat and lower back surfaces are in fact real perforated leather, which provides a luxurious feel and better breathability. Second, the armrest movement is marketed as “4D”, not “3D” as mentioned in the video. We think references to a fourth dimension are just a little bit silly, but what they’re getting at is that the armrests move up/down, side-to-side, back-and-forth, and even swivel – that’s your “fourth” dimension!

All right, now that you’ve seen how this chair looks once assembled, let’s get into how it works!

Performance

Over a week of testing, we found that the T2 truly excels when it comes to its most important role: giving the PC user a comfortable perch! We loved the range of adjustability, as well as the the option to lock the seat base or keep it in rocking mode. Depending on our mood and how focused we were on work, one or the other was preferable. The key to long-term comfort, however, was the adjustable back cusion, which Corsair does better than anybody else. The reason is three-fold: the microfiber material that keeps you from sliding, the simple yet elegant height adjustment, and the perfect “D” shape that really conforms to the lumbar area of the back.

Adjustments were very easy to make, with the exception of the armrest swivel and side-to-side movements, which felt very notchy. Since these probably are something you’ll set once and leave, we aren’t to concerned about it. We never got overwhelmed with the knobs and handles, as is so easy to do with some of the premium chairs out there that really go overboard with control options to the point of distraction.

Another nice “gaming” feature of the T2 Road Warrior are the inline skating-style wheels. Unlike the casters used on most chairs, these high-performance wheels really move smoothly, although they’ll be better on a hard surface than on carpet, where they tend to adhere a bit more due to their rubber-like qualities.

There are just two thing we’d ask Corsair to do in its next revision, and they shouldn’t be too hard: we prefer the dual racing stripes of the original T1 to the single racing stripe of the T2, and we also prefer the more tapered front edge of the T1’s seat cushion, as the T2 tended to put a bit too much pressure on the thighs right where the bolster drops off. Other than that, this is a clear improvement, and likely the best gaming chair you’ll find, regardless of price.

Conclusion

Overall, we think Corsair has taken a good concept and made it even better with its second crack at marketing a gaming chair. While the T1 Race chair nailed the styling element, we think the T2 is a better overall product. With a more robust metal base, a higher weight limit, and a lockable tilting seat base, it’s truly a full-featured chair. But the biggest innovation the T1 Race offered remains, and that is the adjustable sliding backrest. Given this reviewer’s history of lower back pain, we know that a proper ergonomic position really demands a lumbar bolster. Even the most expensive designer task chairs completely miss this, which continues to amaze us. And while you can add a lumbar support to any chair using a third-party product, they are notoriously generic looking (often resembling something that you’d see in a hospital!), and fall off on a regular basis. Corsair’s awesome sliding backrest is shaped perfectly, and simply won’t slip. We love it!

One last thing we should mention is that the vast majority of desk chairs on the market are sourcing their base mechanisms from the same manufacturer – all you have to do is look at the shape and placement of the handles and knobs to see that. So what really distinguishes any chair, including the T2, is the styling, materials, added features, and customer support. Corsair gets all of this just right.

The Corsair T2 Road Warrior is now available for $399.99 from Amazon.