Introduction
With the rise of the digital worker the past two years, it has definitely given the regular PC workstation an upgrade. Many have no went with sit-stand desk alongside the evolution of the familiar gaming chair. We’ve reached the point that “gaming chair’ is just a description of a look but functionality has remained the same: to provide comfortable seating.
We’ve reviewed many chairs here before but it is rare to see an annual update for a chair and that’s just what we have for this review. We’ve taken a look at the SecretLab Titan 2020 before and noted how the chair is a cut above the rest of the market and is practically perfect. Around that same period we’ve already talked about the just announced SecretLab Titan Evo series. Featuring refinements for their current lineup, the SecretLab Titan Evo 2022 adds some simple quality-of-life features while also improving on their quality.
We’ll be talking about the Secretlab TITAN Evo 2022 (Cookies & Cream Softweave Plus) gaming chair, my thoughts on the updated chair. Read on to find out more!
Features & Specifications
- Foam Type: Secretlab Cold Cure Foam
- Frame Construction: Steel
- Available Upholstery: Secretlab NEO™ Hybrid Leatherette / Secretlab SoftWeave® Plus Fabric / Secretlab NAPA Leather
- Logo Stitching:Â Machine Embroidery
- Head Pillow: Magnetic Head Pillow, Memory Foam with Cooling Gel
- Hydraulic Gas Piston: Class 4
- Wheelbase: Aluminium Alloy (ADC12)
- Caster: PU coated
- Package Size:
- S – 83.5cm (L) x 71.0cm (W) x 38.0cm (H)
- R – 85.0cm (L) x 72.0cm (W) x 38.0cm (H)
- XL – 88.0cm (L) x 78.0cm (W) x 38.0cm (H)
- Weight (Approximate):
- S – 33.5kg
- R – 34.5kg
- XL – 37.5kg
- Warranty: 3-year warranty extendable to 5-year warranty excluding wear and tear. Visit secretlab.co/redeem for more info.
Assembly required. Various designs available.
If you want to get your own SecretLab chair, Secretlab will partcipate in 8.8 Sale for the Philippines, check out the details:
- Sale Period: August 8 to 12
- Promotion: Up to 20% OFF select Secretlab chairs & Free Shipping
Closer Look
Packaging
As listed above in our spec sheet, the SecretLab Titan Evo 2022 chair arrives in various package sizes and weight. Regardless of the size you choose, your chair will arrive disassembled with all parts enclosed in a large box. The box does not have carry handles and is over 30kg in weight so please have some assistance if you cannot carry this amount of weight.
The card board itself is dense and SecretLab lines all the items inside with foam and other shipping protection with the upholstered parts wrapped in durable plastic bags while the metal parts are lined with foam.
SecretLab also ships the gas lift post, caster wheels, tilt handles, covers and replaceable arm rests in their own boxes. SecretLab also includes the tools you will need in one of the boxes so you don’t need to bring your own tool when building the Titan Evo 2022.
Contents
As mentioned, all the parts are shipped and packed with protective materials. The contents are as follows:
- Backrest (wrapped in plastic)
- Seat with CloudSwap arm rests posts (wrapped in plastic, armrests lined with foam)
- Frog base (lined with foam)
- Steel wheel base (wrapped in plastic)
- Caster wheels (boxed)
- Tilt and height adjustment handles (boxed)
- Backrest screws (boxed)
- Magnetic backrest screw covers (boxed)
- Class-4 gas lift post (boxed and wrapped in plastic)
- Magnetic neck pillow (wrapped in plastic)
- Gas lift cover (boxed)
- CloudSwap arm rests (boxed)
- Allen key (boxed)
- Screwdriver (boxed)
Assembly
SecretLab’s instruction is one of the best in the world and is also one of the easiest chairs to build. Their large instruction manual is hard to miss and their instructions are clear and straightforward with photos for easier reference. Directions also dictate the orientation as well as also being indicated in the photo with warning and markings on the actual chair also guiding the user during the build.
Dimensions
The SecretLab Titan Evo 2022 comes in Small, Regular and XL. The Titan Evo 2022 caters to a large number of people and the sizing is just for maximum comfort as the chairs remain the same all throughout the range. For Asian people who are less than 6-feet tall, the Regular size Titan Evo 2022 from SecretLab will do well as both Regular and Small sizes have a lower maximum bottom point to allow people to sit flat on their feet. The Titan Evo 2022 XL has a wider body overall and its minimum height is set higher as well.
The backrest of the SecretLab Titan Evo 2022 will be the major visual distinction when it comes to size. As the size increases, the backrest and seat base grow to accommodate as below (width x height):
- Small – 51cm x 82cm
- Regular – 53cm x 85cm
- XL – 56cm x 89cm
It should be noted that even if you are taller than the Titan Evo 2022, the height adjustment should still give you some flexibility.
The seat base also broadens to accommodate larger individual. Our sample is the XL version and is the widest of all 3 which is rated to accommodate users that are more than 100kg in weight. The Small and Regular Titan Evo 2022 size are able to support up to 130kg while the XL version is rated for up to 180kg.
Arm rest to arm rest width also grow with the increase in seat base and should be a good indicator of how big the chair you need. If you need to lift your arms to match the arm-rest-to-arm-rest length, you may want the smaller chair. The dimensions are as follows for minimum armrest-to-armrest distance:
- Small – 62cm
- Regular – 66cm
- XL – 69.5cm
Adjustments
At the base are two paddles: the one on the right is for height adjustment and the left is for locking the tilt. The center knob on the frog base adjusts the tension on how soft or stiff the lean mechanism is. Softer tilt will make the chair lean back easier on the tilt axis while a stiffer tilt will need your full weight to go further.
The right side features a lean lever which allows the backrest to move back and forth. The SecretLab Titan Evo 2022 supports up to 165* of maximum recline so you relax with ease.
One of the most revolutionary feature from SecretLab on their chairs is their built-in lumbar support. No more extra pillow for your back, you now have true lumbar curved support for your back with the Titan Evo 2022’s adjustable lumbar support which now supports both depth and height adjustment. The right knob adjusts the amount of support while the left knob adjusts the height to perfect match the arch of your spine.
Another little extra from SecretLab besides the height adjustable arm rests is the 4D axis adjustment together with a full removable CloudSwap armrest covers.
Closer Look – Details
Design options
Our review sample is the SoftWeave Plus version and is my personal choice due to its high breathability. This is perfect for warmer climates and it feels great on the skin. The SoftWeave Plus version is an improvement over the older SoftWeave which is also made with high quality but SoftWeave Plus improves on that by making the material stronger. There are currently only two collaboration designs for the SoftWeave Plus edition of the Titan Evo 2022 for Minecraft and the iconic D.Va edition done in pink with all liveries. Other than that, there is a selection of factory designs from SecretLab.
NEO Hybrid Leatherette is the more suitable for people that like the look and feel of leather. SecretLab’s NEO Hybrid Leatherette is highly stain resistant and is very easy to clean. Aside from that, it is also offered in a lot of design options to choose from.
While not readily available, SecretLab does offer the Titan Evo 2022 in NAPA leather. Luxurious, full-grain leather, its basically a SecretLab executive chair.
Overall Build Quality
There’s a lot of metal on the SecretLab Titan Evo 2022 but most of is hidden under the upholstery. The exposed ones are the wheel base, the arm rests and the back rest support which are all made of very high material and are machined to a fine finish with no rough edges with every edge perfectly rolled so no sharp edges protrude.
For the tougher materials like the frog base, the dense material is machined to not have sharp edges as well and all screw holes are lined-up well.
Stitching is exquisite as expected from SecretLab with no stitch out of place out of the box. SecretLab is also brandishing their improved material this year with both SoftWeave Plus and NEO Hybrid Leatherette providing increase in quality and durability while retaining the feature that makes them standout.
Our review sample is the Cookies and Cream SoftWeave Plus edition and features dense weave than the previous SoftWeave material.
Here’s the Titan 2020 (R) and the Titan Evo 2022 (XL) side by side, I barely do maintenance on this chair and as you can see, the Titan 2020 has held up well for a year. With the tougher SoftWeave Plus, I am expecting the chair last just as well if not better.
Arm rests
SecretLab’s standard arm rests get upgrade with hot-swap technology dubbed CloudSwap. The standard arm rests are still made of high-quality material but SecretLab is now also introducing PlushCell and TechnoGel arm rests upgrade kits so you can choose what feel you want for your armrests.
Neck pillow and Lumbar support
Definitely one of the most significant upgrade for SecretLab chairs is the change to go with magnetic neck pillows. Instead of mounting with traditional elastics that loosen over time, the SecretLab Titan Evo 2022 features magnetic pillows which attach to the upper logo part of your backrest to serve as your neck pillow.
Aside from the memory foam, SecretLab’s head pillow also features a cooling gel pad inside which adds that little extra comfort especially on longer gaming sessions.
Seat base, gas lift and roller
From what I can tell, all of SecretLab’s metal materials are done in black. The materials are well-made with no sharp edges and they operate within their promised specification. While I can’t load the maximum capacity of the Titan Evo 2022 XL, I can happily say that it can definitely tolerate its weight capacity without any creaking.
User Experience & Conclusion
SecretLab’s Titan Evo 2022 is a markedly fine improvement over the previous chairs and adds simple yet intuitive quality of life features that were previously missing. In a world saturated by gaming chairs, there’s very little room to improve and while quality has been coming down, there has been little to no development in terms of features when it comes to gaming chairs.
SecretLab’s Titan Evo 2022 is a nice gesture from a company that exclusively devotes its effort in making gaming accessories and while they can linger on subtly changing design and materials, their efforts in going beyond an annual retouch simply gives me confident that SecretLab is still working on news for the future.
There’s little to nitpick about the SecretLab Titan Evo 2022 and if you’re looking for a chair, this is easily one of the most highest quality mainstream chairs you can get your hands on. Excellent ergonomics, integrated lumbar support, extremely superb build quality… what more can you ask for?
SecretLab backs the Titan Evo 2022 with a 3-year warranty and can be extended to 5-years.
For those that are looking to get their own SecretLab chair, Secretlab will partcipate in 8.8 Sale for the Philippines, check out the details:
- Sale Period: August 8 to 12
- Promotion: Up to 20% OFF select Secretlab chairs & Free Shipping
- Store: https://bit.ly/3OxVohm(Shopee) & https://bit.ly/3zPZQUx (Lazada)