Amseatec Criss Cross Office Chair Review: Just right

Faux leather upholstery is practical. It’s marketed as pet-scratch-resistant, so I intentionally left the chair in my living room for a few days where it would attract the attention of my toddler and my Velcro dog. The material survived without any noticeable scratches, and while I picked up the occasional cider smudge or grease mark, everything was wiped down with a damp cloth. But if given a choice, I would probably choose a more breathable fabric. The skin got a little warm, especially when I was wearing shorts and working in an upstairs corner of my house where the air conditioning would be hard to reach.

Smooth operation

Wide office chairs have a reputation for being a bit awkward. So, when testing this product, I was expecting it to feel flimsy or wobbly after weeks of use, but it held up well.

Assembly took about 20 minutes, and everything was in accordance with the instructions. Most importantly, once they were together, it felt solid. After more than a month of working on it (and routinely climbing into it in ways that the designers of ergonomic office chairs probably never intended), there’s still no wobble or squeak in the frame.

Photo: Nicole Kenning

As I mentioned earlier, the last cross-legged chair I owned didn’t have wheels, which was my biggest pet peeve. The Amseatec rolls just as well as it holds up. It glides smoothly on hard floors without becoming too slippery, but the wheels are also large enough to roll on carpet.

There’s a downside to the whole room that I keep talking about: This is a big chair. At their highest level, the armrests don’t fit neatly under every desk, even with the chair seat fully lowered. Tapping the armrests down a few degrees solved the problem, but they remained too low to comfortably use as actual armrests. This wasn’t an issue with my adjustable-height desk, but if you work at a fixed-height desk, it’s helpful to measure your clearance before committing.

Regardless, I think I’ve found my unicorn office chair. The Amseatec Criss-Cross Chair isn’t perfect, but it gives me enough space to sit however I want, and I found myself leaning back in it after I finished working, which is probably the highest compliment I can give an office chair.

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