Sandberg Commander Gaming Chair RBG Review

It seems I get sent plenty of gaming chairs to check out, but this is the first chair that has RGB lighting. Yes, you read that right RGB lighting on a gaming chair, first, it was peripherals then desks now chairs, whatever will they think of next? So this is the Sandberg Commander Gaming Chair RBG, you can purchase it from the official website for around £210.00, but is it worth it? or is the RGB just a gimmick?

So first off who is Sandberg, as I reckon there is a lot of viewers that simply do not know who they are or not heard about them, so with a quick search of their website I find this.

Sandberg stands for quality and user-friendliness.

If it is important for you that accessories are of high quality and easy to figure out how to use, then choose Sandberg. Our ideology “IT is for everybody” is part of everything we do. Since its inception in 1985, private consumers, institutions and companies have benefited from this simple philosophy. Distributors and dealers appreciate the availability, range, simple procedures and the exceptionally low failure rate. Every year over half a million Sandberg products find their way to users in more than 65 countries.

When you buy Sandberg, you get:

•  A product that is easy to find in most well-stocked computer shops
•  A product that is well described in the majority of online shops with good images and proper descriptions
•  A product that is easy to use without any technical skills
•  A product which is guaranteed against failure by constantly working with quality circles, which ensures efficiency, durability and ease of use of each product
•  A product which is individually and thoroughly tested before being packed
•  A product covered by a 5-year warranty
•  An experience provided by a Danish family business, run by people who love technology that just works

Choosing Sandberg means choosing a safe and conscientious product that meets all applicable regulatory requirements. A product manufactured by subcontractors who are committed to following Sandberg’s Code of Conduct to ensure decent working conditions and reduce the environmental impact of the production and waste disposal.

So now you know something about Sandberg let us move on to Shipping and Sales;

You will not find Sandberg products within a local store as their products are mostly sold online through their website and third-party distributors, but if they did what would you take home just by looking at the box.

On the front, you get the brand and the name of the product along with some specifications which includes the following;

• Max load: 150 kg
• PU leather and breathable fabric – ‘PU leather, or polyurethane leather, is an artificial leather made of thermoplastic polymer used for making furniture or shoes.‘
• Iron frame
• Height adjustable armrest with soft PU surface
• 80 mm Class 4 Gas lift
• Recline and height adjustable
• 1 removable cushion for neck
• 1 removable cushion for back
• 5 legs/wheels
• Seat dimensions : Width 50 cm, depth 53 cm
• Back dimensions: Width 59cm, height 84cm
• Total height 132cm

RBG Light Strips

• 366 Light Modes
• 30 LED Lamp Lights / Meter
• Power 5v / 2A

There is something you must note with one of these chairs, you will need to purchase a Powerbank separately. I ordered a Sandberg Saver Power Bank 20000 here for £29.99.

That’s about it for sales and shipping as there is not much on the other sides to talk about unless you consider one of the sides, that shows you a line drawing of the gaming chair and where the RGB lights are situated and how the RGB lights are controlled.

You will, however, be happy to know that everything is packed away safely and wrapped up so they will not be damaged during delivery and storage, which is great news considering the price we are paying for this chair.

Now let us take a look at each part, first the starbase, which I must say is a rather chunky compared to other starbases I have had the pleasure of using with other gaming chairs. It is differently unique with some aesthetics design with the black plastic sections seen in pic 2 which is at the end of each star-end. There is one thing you can take away from this starbase, there is no chance it will buckle. The wheels are plastic, with a star design, they are just as good as any other wheel that comes with any other gaming chair and allows the chair to roll over any surface.

The Gas Lift is a Class 4 and allows for a total weight of 150kg which is around 23 Stone, to hide the gas lift as it is not very pleasing on the eye we have the Gas Lift housing which all chairs have.

Putting this section together is rather easy and requires little to no explanation, wheels attach the starbase, Gas lift passes through the starbase and Gas lift housing goes over the Gas lift, rather simple.

Then we move onto the seat which requires some construction, which I am going, to be honest here, I found troubling as some screws took some time to grip with there threading. Sometimes even though there was a hole in the leather it did not match the position of the hole to thread the screw in. At one point I paused the video that I was creating for this review, which you can view lower down and went to get a coffee and have some chill time.

After it was built I was pleasantly pleased with its final construction, however, there are limitations to Sandberg’s design choices. The armrests, only offer the ability to move up and down, they are also rather thin for some reason, slimmest I have ever seen. Now Sandberg could have chosen to go with 4D Armrests and offer the gamer a full set of positions which include Left, right, up, down, forward, backward, angle left, angle right and a much wider armrest area.

The Mechanism is basic and does what is on the box, hold the seat and allows the seat to rise and be lowered, there is a Mechanism out there that allows for the seat to rock, however, this is more expensive and might have increased the cost a little more and Sandberg might have to question would it be worth it. Maybe they can add both 4D Armrest and the Rocker Mechanism on a Pro-Grade version of this chair at a later date?

The seat material and its design are top-notch, its PU Leather used on the sides is great and cushions the sides really well and the fabric material used in the centre resembles the same material used on exercise equipment to help with heat dispersion. When I parked my rear end on the chair, there is enough room to allow for a comfortable sitting position.

After the seat has been constructed, you are going to have to attach the backrest, which is normally easy, but due to this seat having RGB lighting its becomes a little tricker. Why do you ask? well, you are going to have to connect up the RGB lighting cable from the backrest to the seat, which is no easy task. Especially when the cable is embedded into the seat and the cable is on the wrong side of the backrest. First I needed to unzip the backseat, which was not easy as there was no zip handle to pull to open or close, then It was rather fiddly to connect the cable to the seat cable, once done all you need to contend with is finding the holes to thread the screws into the sides then place the backrest housing to hide everything.

After you have done all this you can sit back and relax, as all you need to do it put the seat and backrest on the gas lift and you are done.

The design of the backrest its pure PU Leather all over, with great stitching bringing it all together. There is branding above the seat and behind the seat, which allows for viewers to know exactly what you are sitting on and where they can go to find the same chair if they want to grab one for themselves at some point.

Then you can add the Lumbar and neck cushions, which are all PU Leather with branding stitched into them. You can also unzip and remove, replace the cushions if needed, however, I would not recommend washing these in the washing machine, please use a proper leather cleaner.

I know one thing you will be doing once you have built this chair, playing with the RGB lighting so to not spoil it all for you, here is a short video of what you can expect and an image of how everything is controlled, which has plenty of options to play around with, which include animations to static colours.

So what do I think of this chair now it has been built? is it a Gimmick? in a way it is, but I have to admit, its a rather good looking Gimmick which I feel many gamers will enjoy watching in action. You will need a bulky power bank so it will fit comfortably in the pouch under the chair, and maybe even a powerful power bank so it will last some time and you are not always having to charge it every night.

How was it to build? Overview and Final Thoughts

The build was a nightmare, as I found on many occasions I could not thread the screws as I was finding it hard to find the holes, maybe Sandberg should find a way of making this easier. I have found that some chair manufactures have a metal washer around the hole, making it super easy to find and thread the screws. The armrests are outdated compared to what many other chair manufactures are using now, but you also have to consider the price you are paying.

But how did the build go, did I create a Video, I did say I had above and here it is, I have increased the speed as always, but on average it took 16min minus the break for coffee and snack

The armrests and their design, quality, functionality, durability are below what I am used to but they do offer enough for any general gamer, I just wish they were wider and 4D. The backrest tilt can give you the option to sleep if needed, or if you are self-isolating due to CORVID-19. For eSports players taking a power nap this is perfect.

Overall the quality and design are great with features like tilt, RGB Lights, neck and back support is all welcomed. The design flows well, with its approach to esports and gamers in general. The colour scheme being all black with just the branding in white sets up the lighting to be the chairs main focus point.

If Sandberg was to make a Pro-Grade version of this chair, I would go for 4D armrests, Rubber wheels over plastic, a more slim downed starbase, fabric lumbar and neck cushions for longevity, with the option to unzip and chuck in the washing machine and maybe a rocker mechanism to we can chill and rock while we game.

The only core issues I had was threading the screws, which can be done if patient, attaching the RGB Cable, again can be done and the armrests So I can scoring this a 9/10.

You can purchase the gaming chair here if interested for around £210.00

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