While Secretlab are more known as a PC gaming chair company, we’ve seen an increasing number of Xbox gamers playing at a desk setup (including our very own Sean), so we figured we’d check out some desk gaming chairs to see how they stack up.
First up is the Secretlab Titan Evo. Considered by most PC gamers to be the gold standard when it comes to gaming chairs, and with a slew of accolades to its name — this seemed like the right place to start.
Secretlab has been around since 2014, though they really gained popularity in the last few years and now you can barely watch a YouTube video or Twitch stream without seeing their logo behind the creator. Secretlab was kind enough to send us out a chair to review, and after spending about a month daily driving this thing, I’m happy to report that it lives up to the hype.
Secretlab Titan Evo chair review: Design & build
- Easy to assemble
- Looks fantastic
- Excellent build quality
The Secretlab Titan Evo arrives in the largest box humanity has ever conceived. It’s incredibly well-packaged with loads of foam and protective bags covering all the parts to stop anything getting damaged in shipping. When you open it up, you’ll be greeted by a top cover sheet that also handily contains all the instructions on how to assemble your gaming throne.
Despite the intimidating number of pieces, the Secretlab Titan Evo was reasonably easy to put together thanks to the comprehensive instructions and included toolkit. You need a fair bit of space to work in, and a second person is useful for some of the parts where you have to lift heavy pieces and slot them into place, but I managed it on my own in under an hour.
Once you actually have it built, it’s a thing of beauty. There are loads of designs to choose from, so your mileage may vary on style, but we got the Stealth color option, which is black with red stitching and gold logos. It’s a very sleek and stylish design — understated compared to a lot of gaming chairs out there, but that’s what I love about it. There are plenty of more vibrant designs that look cool too though (There is a Cyberpunk 2077 one with the Samurai logo on the back which looks stunning).
Along with the different colors, there are several different materials to choose from too. The standard is the leatherette (which is what we got), but there are also fabric and real leather options if you prefer. The leatherette is much easier to clean than the fabric, and to my hands feels enough like real leather. Plus you can’t get any color options other than black if you go for the real thing. For my part, I like the basic leatherette — it looks and feels enough like real leather, but without costing you an arm and a leg.
Secretlab Titan Evo chair review: Features & comfort
- Extremely adjustable
- Magnetic headrest & armrests
- Built-in lumbar adjustment is excellent
Sure it looks great, but the Secretlab Titan Evo is a chair, so it’s not worth a damn if it’s not comfortable to sit on. Fortunately, I found it to be very comfortable during my testing.
I was warned ahead of time by Secretlab that these chairs can be a bit firmer than most people are used to with regular gaming chairs. Indeed, other reviewers have pointed out that they found it too firm at first, but adjusted and now they love it. For my part, I settled into the Titan Evo very quickly and it’s easily the most comfortable office/gaming chair I’ve used. Softer foams might feel a little nicer up front, but I know from experience that they fade into nothingness in a few months. Still, the firmer ride isn’t for everyone, so it’s worth bearing in mind.
If you don’t find things to your liking out of the box, there are quite a few levers and dials you can adjust to get it right. On the right side, underneath the seat there is the usual height adjustment level, along with an “ejector seat” looking lever near the base that adjusts the angle of the backrest — it almost goes all the way down to horizontal, so you could sleep in this chair in a pinch (do not sleep in the chair, go to bed). On the left side, you’ll find a toggleable lock that lets you adjust the angle of the base (the bit you sit on) and then lock it into place.
This is Secretlab’s second crack at this design, with the original Titan launching back in 2020 (and the 2018 Omega before that), so they’ve had a lot of time to refine the basics and it shows here. That’s not to say that all they’ve done is iterate — the Evo has a few new features that are well worth talking about, namely the magnetic headrest, adjustable lumbar support, and swappable armrests.
The magnetic headrest is a fantastic addition to the formula. It’s such a simple thing, but it means that you’re free to move it around, or remove it entirely, whenever you want. Likewise, the power of magnets is used with the armrests, so you can replace them if they get damaged, or swap them out for the Technogel alternative that Secretlab offers.
These are supposed to keep you cool using a similar gel that you find in those cool mats that pets sleep on — Secretlab sent us over a set of these and they work, though I’m not sure they’re worth the extra £70 they cost. If you have toasty forearms, maybe look into it, but I think most people will survive just fine with the standard arms rests, which are plenty comfortable. Still, being able to easily replace the armrests is a great feature as I’ve always found they’re the first area to succumb to wear and tear on my other chairs in the past.
Rounding out the trifecta of new features is the adjustable lumbar support. There are dials on both sides of the chair that let you adjust the internal supports within the backrest to help it conform more naturally with your spine. Once I got it dialed in, it made a world of difference during extended gaming sessions.
Secretlab Titan Evo chair review: Price
- Prices start at $519 / £469
- Three-year warranty (extended to five years after social media share)
The Secretlab Titan Evo starts at $519 in the US, and £469 in the UK at Secretlab. You can pick them up on Amazon too, but they cost about $100/£100 more if you go via a third-party retailer. I say “starts at”, because there are a load of different options for you to configure when buying your chair.
Small and regular size chairs cost the same, while the XL chairs cost an extra £80. Something to bear in mind if you’re on the taller or heavier side. After that, there are three different upholstery options to choose from — Hybrid Leatherette is the default, but you can also get SoftWeave fabric or NAPA leather versions too (leather cranks the price up to $999 / £814).
You then have to choose your design. There are some standard color combinations, and then a load of special editions that tie-in with various games, movies, and eSports teams. These designs typically cost anywhere from £50 - £80 more than the standard colors.
Even if you go for the cheapest options though, you’re still paying north of $500 / £400. That’s a lot of money for a gaming chair. Is it worth the money? I think so, but even so, it’s going to be outside the price range of a lot of gamers.
You do get a three-year warranty as standard with your chair, and you can extend that to five years simply by posting a picture of your new chair on social media and then posting a link on the warranty extension page. A nice little bit of free marketing for them, but a five-year warranty is very generous so it’s a win-win.
Should you buy the Secretlab Titan Evo?
If you’re looking for a premium gaming chair for your desk setup, the Secretlab Titan Evo really is the top dog. It’s supremely well built, looks fantastic, has tons of customization options, and most importantly, it’s super comfortable to sit in. You can adjust almost every little detail about your sitting experience to get it just right for you.
It’s expensive though, even by gaming chair standards, so you’re going to have to be willing to pay a premium for all that comfort and style. Still, if you can stomach the price of admission, you won’t find a better gaming chair out there.
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