Fractal Design Refine Review: Comfortable and Ergonomic Gaming Chair

Fractal design Refine

Expert rating

Pros

• Super ergonomic
• Very convenient
• Many adjustment options
• Customized lumbar support
• Great memory foam neck pillow.
• Nice fabric cover

Cons

• Somewhat old-fashioned look
• Few flowers
• Armrests are too easy to adjust

Our verdict

The Fractal Design Refine may not look like a classic gaming chair, but it’s one of the best chairs we’ve tested. There are no signs of fatigue even after sitting for long periods of time, and the many adjustment options ensure a truly ergonomic sitting experience.

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549 euros

The Refine is the first gaming chair from Fractal Design that, at first glance, looks more like a regular office chair. This is likely intentional, as the Swedish company channels a kind of Scandinavian chic that is already common in many homes. Therefore, the chair is especially suitable for you if you prefer a simple look over colorful logos and RGB lighting.

Further reading: Don’t throw away your gaming chair – upgrade it!

Fractal Design Refine: Design

In our case, the chair looked a little more boring or even old-fashioned, but during the test this hardly bothered us. It’s a shame that the gaming chair is only available in white or black, with the white version looking more like a light gray.

It is much more important that the chair is well made, and that is the case with the Fractal Design Refine. By the way, two versions are available: one with fabric upholstery, the other with mesh (both black and white). However, we recommend the upholstered version over mesh as it is usually better to have a padded surface rather than just a mesh back, especially when sitting for long periods of time.

fractal

Fractal Design Refine: structure, ergonomics and comfort

Putting the fractal design together was relatively easy and could be done alone. As with most chairs, you can already tell how well the product is made. In addition to the seat elements that feel heavy and high quality, the individual seams and screws also fit together very well.

Once the chair is installed, it’s time for adjustment options—and there are many. In addition to the seat height, backrest position and armrests, which can be adjusted in four directions, you can also set the seat depth. This makes the chair suitable for people with both long and short legs.

The height of the neck pillow can also be adjusted to provide perfect head support. On the other hand, there is a swivel wheel at the back of the chair that allows you to adjust the position of the built-in lumbar support. If these two points are positioned correctly, the natural shape of the spine is perfectly maintained.

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Overall we were completely impressed with the ergonomics of the chair. The backrest particularly stands out here, as it is not only ergonomic, but also comfortable and leaves enough room to sit a little more actively than just leaning back.

Thanks to the integrated Synchro-Tilt mechanism, the seat and backrest are always adjusted together, which should prevent the body from falling into an unnatural and uncomfortable position. In testing, we found it to be very reliable.

The memory foam neck pillow is also ideal as it is neither too hard nor too soft and supports the neck much better than many other versions we have tested so far. We also found the Refine to be very comfortable even when sitting for long periods of time.

The only drawback of the chair for us is the armrests. This is because they are too easy to adjust and therefore continue to slide if you accidentally touch them with your hand. They also wobble slightly when you shake them, meaning they don’t feel as high quality as the rest of the chair.

Refining Fractal Design: Conclusion

The Fractal Design Refine is an excellent ergonomic gaming chair that is also suitable for a home office. He is not particularly impressive with his appearance, rather simple and calm. However, the internal qualities – that is, workmanship, ergonomics and comfort – proved convincing across the board in our tests.

Therefore, we can unreservedly recommend this chair as it is not only comfortable, but also suitable for people who have back or neck problems. However, you should pay attention to whether you choose a fabric or mesh version. This is due to the fact that they differ not only in lids, but also slightly in size (see also technical data).

Fractal Design Refinement: Technical Specifications

• Product weight: 25.7 – 25.8 kg
• Maximum load: 125 kg
• Recommended height: 1.65 m – 2.0 m
• Recommended weight: 60 kg – 125 kg
• Material: cold foam, memory foam, plastic, aluminum; cover: either nylon reinforced mesh fabric or woven inorganic Alcantara fabric.
• Seat width: 540 mm (fabric), 550 mm (mesh)
• Seat depth: 460 mm (fabric), 465 mm (mesh)
• Seat width: 435 mm
• Seat height: 475 mm – 595 mm (fabric), 490 mm – 610 mm (mesh)
• Seat depth: 425 mm – 480 mm (fabric), 450 mm – 505 mm (mesh)
• Armrest height: 160 mm – 270 mm (fabric), 145 mm – 255 mm (mesh)
• Distance between armrests: 420 mm – 560 mm (fabric), 430 mm – 560 mm (mesh)
• Armrest depth: adjustable up to 60 mm
• Rollers: Rollers with a diameter of 65 mm without a sleeve made of soft polyurethane.
• Gas pressure spring: 120 mm 4th class
• Mechanism: Synchronized tilt
• Lumbar support height adjustment: 110 mm
• Lumbar support depth adjustment: 20 mm
• Maximum tilt angle: 125° (~130° under load)
• Mechanism tilt function: Donati Speaker
• Backrest to seat angle ratio: 2 to 1
• Headrest height adjustment: 120 mm
• Guarantee: 5 years