When the Recaro Exo rolled its way into the office, we were on our toes with excitement. What should we expect? What will a premium car-seat manufacturer bring to the gaming chair table? The box was big, the packaging fresh, and as we put it together, something came to mind: the Recaro Exo is the future of gaming chairs.
The thing about the Recaro Exo is that when you think of Recaro, you don’t jump to gaming. You jump to elite sports cars, even airplanes, but not gaming. We have the chair, and we’ve been using it for a few weeks now. It’s time to reveal our thoughts, our feelings, and our review of the Recaro Exo.
This one’s a biggie to unpack (get it?), so we have decided to split our review into two: the construction of the chair and its ergonomics. So this week, we’ll take a look at what we thought of the chair's design, how it was manufactured, and what we liked and disliked aesthetically about the Recaro Exo.
A Home-Made Triumph
Recaro’s chair series is a hand-crafted and highly detailed affair. Recaro has never f**ked around, the company is known for its high-quality products, excellent customer service, and its role in the automotive and aviation industries.
Some of these chairs can reach prices of $2000 due to how sophisticated and professional they are!
So when it came to reviewing the Recaro Exo, we were pleased to see the price was less than half that amount, and yet, the quality is just as premium.
No product is perfect, of course, but we must first jump into the way that the chair was designed and manufactured. It’s interesting, too, so stick with us.
The thing that is the biggest triumph, at least for us, is the sustainable and ethical method Recaro used to put this chair together. The chair is made in Germany, supplied entirely with parts from across Germany and the European Union. This is, as we are sure you know, very unusual for a company of this caliber.
The result is a product that Recaro has assembled almost entirely by themselves. The armrests, upholstery, submarining hill and mechanisms are all specially designed in-house to maximize quality and comfort. All parts that are not developed in-house are sourced locally within the EU and comply with the highest standards.
What's Sustainable Anyway?
But what do we mean when we scream “sustainable” from the rooftops? Well, it’s pretty simple, actually. The chair is entirely made within the European Union, predominantly in Germany, and thus not only is it environmentally sustainable due to reduced transportation costs but is also an ethical purchase.
A purchase of a Recaro chair may be a tad dearer than the competitors but doing so secures jobs in Germany and Europe and does not contribute to poverty and crises in places like the Democratic Republic of Congo, as it doesn’t source resources from Africa and Asia – everything is European!
It is also much better for the environment than most alternatives, with less distance within the supply chain. Recaro Exo provides an innovative product that does things no other gaming chair has done before.
It might sound a bit like we are fanboying over this chair a little bit, but the reality is that we have been using it for a couple of weeks now, and are still shocked by how such a high-quality product can be manufactured locally and ethically like this.
It is certainly a lesson to be learned for other manufacturers across the globe!
A Design for Champions
Recaro has more than a century-long history, manufacturing chairs for elite sports cars and airplanes, so it is not a surprise that this chair is elegant and sophisticated. The shoulders remind us of an Emu standing proud atop a hill in the heart of Australia, surveying its territory. Oh, and mate, that’s a pretty big compliment, those things are magnificent!
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As with most chairs, there are a variety of options when it comes to the color scheme but we got the one lined with a deeper blue and it’s a pretty elegant style. The dark black interior looks classy but also screams “gamer” in a way that tells us that Recaro gets gamers where even established gaming companies have fallen short.
The back plastic is true black (or white, depending on your color choice). By that we mean that it is built with plastic of the same color as its display. Most products feature painted plastic to reduce expenses. The problem with this is that if it gets scratched, it gets ugly as the paint reveals the true color underneath. This problem is fixed with Recaro’s use of actual-colored plastic.
The final piece to the puzzle is the beautifully glossy wheel-base. It is strong and sturdy, shines with crystal reflections (if you keep it wiped down to a polish), and looks professional and high-class. What more could you want from a chair like this? Aluminum was a perfect choice!
This combination of high-strength plastic, home-made upholstery and a beautiful aluminum base creates a product that is not only sustainable and ethical but beautiful as well. Gaming chair manufacturers usually go for cheap and frankly cringey designs – and then charge a premium! It seems that, at least in terms of aesthetics and production, the Recaro Exo is an absolute hit.
Recaro Exo is simply a triumph of seating. A truly German product, produced with locally-sourced ingredients, this elite gaming chair has us stunned with its beautiful design. We absolutely can’t wait to deep-dive into its features and ergonomics in the next part of this review series, so stay tuned!
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