What can you expect from an office chair that lists for about half the cost of a typical high-priced, high-performance task chair? Plenty if it’s a HON Flexion. Flexion is HON’s latest task chair that has all the adjustability, comfort and customization options as its highest-priced competitors with a price tag that fits right in the middle of the company’s extensive seating lineup.
Is it perfect? Not quite. But after using it for the past few months, we found Flexion to be an excellent choice for projects where the customer demands a high-end office chair, but don’t want to break the bank on seating.
Flexion is the latest in a number of new office chairs from major manufacturers that fit in a lower-priced category rather than the top of the list. At NeoCon, Haworth introduced the Breck office chair that starts at $419. And in recent years Steelcase launched its Series 1 chair that starts at $493. It’s a smart move by the majors to offer lower-cost options as companies spend more on ancillary furniture and less on workstations and task chairs.
But let’s take a look at Flexion, starting at the top and working our way down.
The star of Flexion is the mesh back. The back is wide and the mesh itself is firm, but comfortable and comes in seven different colors. The back frame is supported by a Y-shaped structure that has good stability, but feels as if it is following your back as you move slightly in the chair. There is no separate lumbar support and none offered as an option, but the shape of the back helps support your lower back as you sit. HON has a knack for designing great chair backs that move with the user. Flexion shines when it comes to back comfort.
It is worth noting that Flexion is a firm sit. It is not the kind of task chair that feels like an overstuffed recliner. Instead, it feels more European and firm. Picture the difference between a U.S. luxury automobile seat and one found in a Mercedes Benz or BMW. Flexion feels more like a European car seat, which isn’t surprising since the chair was designed by Deisig Design Studio, the Berlin-based team that has created several chairs for HON. If you like a firm sit, and we definitely do, you’re going to like Flexion.
Let’s move on to the arms. Flexion comes with either fixed arms or armless and we would recommend the armless version over the fixed arms. Fixed arms is a bit of a misnomer since the arms move up and down, but for some reason, the arms feel too far apart — they’re a bit too wide for our taste. While testing, we kept trying to pull the arms closer to our body, but the arm pads are not 4D and you are not able to adjust them. The arm pads themselves are thin, hard and uncomfortable. The adjustment button for the arms is intuitive and easy to use. Still, the fixed arms are the only feature of the Flexion that we dislike.
The seat pan is spacious enough for larger users, but smaller users don’t get “lost” sitting in the chair either. The seat uses a relatively thin, firm cushion that is comfortable for long work sessions. The seat cushion can be covered in myriad HON fabric choices. The clever seat pan design uses a four-point seat suspension system that really works as advertised. It is not a gimmick. When shifting around in the chair, we could feel the suspension system working to support us, almost like shock absorbers on the four corners of a car. It is an excellent suspension system and we would love to see it used on other HON chairs.
The seat height adjustment and tilt lock are all controlled by a single lever that is easily accessible on the right underside of the chair. Pull the lever up to lift or lower the chair and pull the lever out to unlock the tilt mechanism. We found that the tilt is quite firm and even though we like a chair that is mostly upright, Flexion gave us that firm, upright sit with the tilt lock off.
The frame comes in black and two shades of gray. The chair can be ordered with a standard base that matches the frame color or a polished aluminum base for a $119 up charge. While designers can make the chair aesthetically look the way they want through fabric, mesh and frame options, there are few options beyond that. A few different cylinders are offered for tall or short users and multiple caster options are available, but very few upgrades are offered, which is not surprising since the chair is priced at the mid-point of the market.
Flexion is one of those chairs that may not get a lot of attention at furniture shows since its design is not over-the-top and its features are limited. But it is one of those chairs that will sell by the truckload because it is a good, solid choice at a great price.
Other than the arms, Flexion is a great chair, well worth considering for projects where design, price and function are of equal importance.
