Published , by Blake Morse
Published , by Blake Morse
When it comes to figuring whether a gaming or desk chair is up to snuff, I’ve sort of become the de facto guru here at Shacknews. As someone who fits into the (very) big & tall category, I’ve tried a ton of chairs out and assembled even more of them in my lifetime. I’m not ashamed to admit that I’ve beaten and broken several models of chairs on my Goldilocks-like mission to find the one that is the ergonomic equivalent of “just right” porridge. The latest chair to attempt offering me that perfect blend of form and function is AndaSeat’s T-Pro 2 gamer chair. And while it does offer up a well-crafted attempt, it’s unfortunately not just right for me.
The AndaSeat T-Pro 2 arrived needing to be put together as most chairs do. As mentioned earlier, I’ve gotten pretty good at putting these puppies together over the years, and I’d hardly call the process for any of them horribly complex. The T-Pro 2 was no exception to this rule. I was able to get the chair put together in under 20 minutes with no real hassle whatsoever. My one note would be that this is the first time I had to connect the armrests by securing them with bolts that were on the bottom of the seat cushion. My guess is that this was done so folks can decide how wide they want the armrests to be, but I also felt like that means you could end up having to flip over or semi-dismantle the chair if you need to adjust that width.
Overall I felt like the materials used to make the T-Pro 2 were top-notch. The back and seat cushions were comfy yet sturdy and provided supports. The wheels on this chair are probably the smoothest I’ve used as far as rolling around a carpeted floor is concerned and the base was extremely sturdy as well. Even the standard lumbar and neck/headrest pillow were probably the softest and most comfortable I’ve ever felt. I really have to give credit to AndaSeat for having some real top-notch ingredients when it comes to the materials and craftsmanship of their chairs. However, not even the quality of a product can hide the major issue I had with the chair.
You see, as I mentioned previously, I am a big dude. I am big in just about every way a person can be. It means having to buy just about anything that my body needs to use in its big and tall formatting. It can be a major pain in the butt, especially when shopping for things like clothing and furniture. And when something says it’s big and tall, I fully expect that to mean that it’s made for mommy’s little husky boys like me. This is where I particularly take issue with the T-Pro 2.
While it definitely hits the tall mark, it didn’t cut the mustard (or maybe porridge?) in this case. While I could fit in the chair no problem, the armrests didn’t really have a lot of width to them, and that’s with me having bolted them in as far out as they would go. The cushion on the seating also has raised sides that dug into my legs when I would sit on it, making the sturdiness of the materials somewhat of a double-edged sword. My outer thighs were very sore for several days after trying the seat out and that to me is an unfortunate deal-breaker.
If you’re a tall and lanky person, the AndaSeat T-Pro 2 could possibly work for you. Several members of the Shacknews staff have tried out other models and enjoyed them thoroughly. However, I just can’t recommend a chair that caused me physical discomfort from sitting in it. Not quite fitting into things is honestly the most disheartening thing I deal with as someone who’s large and in charge. I also found it strange that while the T-Pro 2 claims to be a big and tall seat, it has less wide space than the Main Gear seat I use on a daily basis. And the Main Gear seat is not marketed as being for big and tall people. A wider seat or taking out the raised sides would have most likely made this seat a no-brainer to recommend, but as it stands now, I’m going to keep having to look for that just right sitting experience.
This review is based on a physical product provided by the manufacturer. The AndaSeat T-Pro 2 is available now for $449.99 on the company's website.