The Omni looks nice. It’s a step up from your average office chair design, with a bit of class and a design language on the backrest that resembles the spine-like look of the Herman Miller Embody. It comes in Midnight Black or Space Gray (creative names), and my unit is the latter. The company says the Omni can support people up to 300 pounds.
I don’t think I’ve sat on an office chair with softer padding than the Omni. The multi-density sponge cushion material of the seat and backrest is plush without feeling like you’re sinking in, because it isn’t super thick. It’s very comfortable, and the softness of the material is still what surprises me the most about the Omni after sitting on it for weeks.
It’ll be interesting to see how the fabric holds up after more than a year of use. So far, it still looks great after close to a month of sitting, though it likes to collect hair. It’s hard to gauge breathability as we’re now in the cooler months, but my back feels a little warm after a few hours on the chair. If you’re in a hot environment, you’ll likely feel sweaty. It’s not as bad as the vegan leather-covered foam on most gaming chairs, but it won’t offer the breathability of a true mesh.
The armrests aren’t much to write home about—you can move them up or down, forward and back, and angle them inward or outward. You can’t push them toward or away from your body like on the Embody, but this is standard for a chair at this price (which is $1,099 MSRP, though the company seems to have a persistent sale of $848). I appreciate that the arms don’t easily shift or slide around, which is a common problem with many chairs. The armrest itself isn’t too hard, and the material feels fairly durable.
A Battery-Powered Chair
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Photograph: Julian Chokkattu
The Bionic FlexFit Backrest is the Omni’s highlight, which uses the battery-powered ErgoPulse Motor System for configuration. It’s essentially a motorized way to ensure the backrest lines up perfectly against your back; no need to fiddle around with an awkward lumbar support. There are three buttons on the left armrest. The front two shift the backrest support up or down, and the third is a spinal massage function, which I’ll address later.
