Before the advent of contactless payments, and just taking my phone with me to the shops, I always kept my wallet in the back pocket of my jeans. It was just the most convenient place to stash it, though with receipts always inexplicably finding themselves jammed into its leather folds it would always get ever more obtrusive when sat down.
It’s something brought to mind now I’m sat in the DXRacer AIR Mesh (opens in new tab) gaming chair, because it feels like I’ve got two overstuffed wallets stuck in each butt cheek pocket of my jeans, so uncomfortable is it to sit on for anything more than 5 minutes at a time.
I don’t like the overly padded, oversized look of most modern gaming chairs. They’re way too bulky and just take up far too much precious space in my home setup. That’s why I was so taken with the Mavix M9 (opens in new tab) despite the overall shipping nightmare that ended up with me having to jury rig a functional chair from the four bust ones it shipped me after I had a minor issue with the original review seat. But it’s also why I thought the AIR Mesh chair might be something I could get behind.
It’s a completely mesh chair, using stretched mesh fabric to provide the cushioning for your derriere and spine, with a little solid plastic lumbar support thrown in for good measure.
And I really, really hate it.
That’s not something I say lightly, either. The chairs in the PC Gamer office are nothing to write home about, but the instant I finish writing this review I’m shipping the chair downstairs to IT and switching back to one of the unpleasantly stained seats still hanging around my desk.
Judging by the images on its site it’s mostly for anime-esque pink-haired ladies in knee-high boots
There’s a solid plastic frame around the outside of it which holds the mesh fabric taut. It’s thick and doesn’t seem to have been designed for a gentleman with, to put it mildly, a larger form. It presses in around my love handles like a thick unbidden pair of hands, and is just as unwelcome. But it’s where the frame narrows under the buttocks that is the most uncomfortable part.
In fact, I’m finding it so nasty to sit in that right now I find myself perched on the front edge of the seat to give my back and butt a bit of relief. That’s not a good place to be when you’re hoping a chair might be able to support you throughout a long gaming session.
And it’s not great that I’ve had to spend so much time talking about butts and buttocks.
I also find the headrest a bit weird, too. It’s nice and squishy, but where it looks like you might be able to attach it to different points on the backrest to get a wider range of adjustments you actually can’t.
Now, I am physically at the limit of what DXRacer is touting as the max load for its gaming chairs, fat nerd that I am, but I’m not at the maximum height. A quick look at the recommended dimensions, however, and it’s starting to become clear that this is not a chair built for me. DXRacer recommends the AIR Mesh for 5’9″ folk, and judging by the images on its site it’s mostly for anime-esque pink-haired ladies in knee-high boots.
Did I mention the AIR Mesh was $499? Probably not, as no matter what it costs I wouldn’t be recommending people even go as far as to check out its product pages. However, if you do end up on the DXRacer site you will find a glowing recommendation attributed to PC Gamer. Though actually it’s a quote from an advertisement piece (opens in new tab) it paid for before we had a chance to check out the chair ourselves. Fun, eh?
There are two things I do like about the DXRacer AIR Mesh, however: the arm rests are quite nice. They’re comfortable and the four dimensional adjustments are precise and effective. But that’s not going to be enough to stop me pushing it down the stairs and telling IT where they can pick it up from.
Maybe if you’re a 5’9″ catgirl from DXRacer’s influencer department the AIR Mesh will support you in all the right places. But as a grown-ass man, with an ass that has definitely grown far too much, this is absolutely not a chair for me.