Humanscale Freedom Headrest Chair - Wave

I have a bad back and, because of my occupation, I must spend a great deal of time working at my desktop computer. This chair is the best I have found for offering firm and comfortable back support in a simple manner. The adjustments are easy to make and allow for a variety of useful positions. I definitely recommend the headrest for those moments when a person wants to lean back and think.

I started having issues with nerve pain sitting in desk chairs, and my doctor told me to seek out a premium desk chair that's highly ergonomic. I went through quite a few top end chairs, including the entire Herman Miller line, but they all put pressure on the area on the back of my legs that was at issue.I finally tried out this chair, in December 2017, and fell in love. It's so comfortable and supportive, unlike any other chair I've tried.Unfortunately, the premium price tag does not align with the chair's construction and customer support.Since purchasing this chair, I've had to make the following repairs:1. Replacing each the left and right arm rest after they snapped off (they're held together by plastic in the back, which can break over time from using the arm rests) -- relatively easy, if frustrating repair.2. Replacing the entire lower arm assembly, as the arm rests would no longer stay secured, and would always fall down no matter what I did. This one was supposed to be performed by a technician, but due to the COVID pandemic, the best they could do is send me the parts and let me figure it out. I'll note there is basically no service manual or guide for this repair, so I had to take the chair apart and guess everything on my own. This ended up taking ~3 hours for me to figure it all out.3. The carrying arm on the back, also made of plastic, snapped off on one side. Given the amount of work it took to repair the chair for #2, and how long it takes to get a reply from customer support (see below), I'm going to leave it and probably superglue it for now.So yeah, the construction of the chair leaves a lot to be desired for a chair that costs >$1,000.The other problem has been each time I've needed to reach out to Humanscale to get support. Both times contacting them via email, it has taken me weeks to get a reply back, and then weeks longer to receive the parts. While it's great this chair has a very long warranty, it's totally unacceptable for this slow response time for a chair that costs so much. The one time, I contacted their social media team on Twitter, and even after they promised a response from customer support, it took weeks and further outreach by me to hear back -- and when I tried to follow up with Twitter support, they stopped responding.In short, it's been a decidedly mixed bag for me with this chair. Yes, it's comfortable, and I'm able to sit in it for hours at a time to get work done without pain or discomfort. But man, at this price tag, you'd expect the chair to hold together for more than 2.5 years (and certainly not have 4 different parts break in that timeframe) -- and, when it did fail, you'd expect extremely responsive and helpful support.

The old ones are better and It's not the same chair anymore. We had a few dozen of these chairs in the office and most people use to love them, however it seems the new ones are of lower quality ..Too many of the components have changed1. The armrests are not as thick or as comfortable2. Armrest no-longer move sideways3. The foam on the seats are not as sturdy4. Many of the base components are now plastic, not metal5. The seat and head cushion cloth is of lower gradeThey company now seems focused on trying to save a couple dollars on quality while still asking a premium price. Very disappointed in these guys.

I purchased the Chair as a Christmas gift for my Son, who thought this chair would be the best for use with his computer setup. It didn't work for him. He could not get a comfortable reclining position to work at his desk and computer. It was either sit up straight or lay-back all the way with NO control for an in-between position. The lumbar, height, and headrest adjustments worked fine though.I am returning the chair for reimbursement now. I tried for days to get the chair apart so I could send it back but it has taken from 1-2-12 to 1-11-12 to be able to return it, presuming I can get a shipper. I could not get the chair apart so I could get it into the box for shipping. I was told that it had to be shipped in the "box" or it couldn't be returned. I called one of the sellers & tried to find out how to get it into the box. That took several days to find someone there to get the instructions. Then four days more of that was a problem (for me). My computer couldn't match with my son's computer so he had the information-printers & instructions-tranfered from my wife's computer to be printed to my printer. (And my son had to re-set my new computer so it would work right. He is a "programmer".)After everything else I had to remove the base-wheels & cylinder-apart. That took more days because what they showed & printed was not exactly what was needed. I got a ballpeen hammer- it looked like a 12 oz one-& tried to get it apart for half a day. Then I got a 16oz hammer & used that. The next day I got a 24oz ballpoint hammer & that did it-after about 2 hrs. (That was the only way it would come apart. And it isn't looking as good as it was. But I tried. And I used to be a tool & die maker.)