Gamers shaking up ergonomics: the new chair from Logitech and Herman Miller
What if the improbable meeting of esthetes and geeks changed the world of ergonomics? This is the question that journalists around the world must have asked themselves when they received the news: the American design company Hermann Miller, a house founded in 1923 and specializing in high-end furniture and office equipment, teamed up with the Swiss company Logitech, specialist in computer peripherals. The finality ? The release of a high-end ergonomic chair for video game players spending hours in front of their screens, sometimes becoming professionals. Initially scheduled to be marketed in July 2020 because of COVID, its price is announced at 1320 euros.
Gamers and ergonomics: a story bound to last
Why ergonomics enter the world of video games ? Simply because playing in front of a screen is getting closer and closer to modern working world,. The world has changed since playing Pac-Man on arcade station. At the end of the 90s, some video game tournaments began to be paid. 20 years later, a real professional e-sports circuit, with its stars earning sums close to those of footballers, crisscrosses the world and the media. Gaming has become a job but also a goal of life for many gamers. They prepare for the competition in the most professional way possible. And since they sit and give their best often for more than ten hours a day, demand and furthermore demand for ergonomics has grown quite quickly. This is confirmed by Peter Kingsley, Marketing Director at Logitech G “We are proud to work with Herman Miller to find new ways to help all gamers perform as well as possible.”
Only a chair to play?
One of the first questions about this chair. Its “adapted to gamers” aspect is not really obvious! It reads “Like all ergonomic seats, it has been specially designed to support the spine and thus ensure posture.” Moreover, its design just looks elegant. And that doesn’t seem to change no matter what activity you do. A boon for a chair that could well exceed its initial sales target and end up in many homes?
An adjustable office chair, an ergonomic seat
This seat is the variation of the Embody, a flagship product of the American designer. While many such chairs feature a mesh backrest that conforms to the shape of the back, the Embody takes it a step further by using BackFit technology, which helps manage pressure and tailor the backrest curvature to suit the back while continuing to maintain it. This is provided by 150 individual support points (also called “pixels”) distributed over the backrest and seat. They are used to provide support while allowing small movements. All of these in order not to disrupt blood flow. Office chair adjustable at will, it offers excellent ergonomic seating.
Even if the two companies have not announced the official release date (which should not be long), it is the gamers but also the experts in ergonomics who are waiting for this first collaboration between the American and Swiss giants. A collaboration unexpected at first glance but which, if you think about it, will certainly call for many more.