Oct 18 2005
Dissing the Aeron chair
Ever since I read Malcolm Gladwell’s book Blink I have wanted a Herman Miller Aeron chair. I am a sucker for this sort of thing. After I read about the design of the OXO Good Grips range of kitchen utensils in Creating Breakthrough Products I had to have a Good Grips potato peeler. Sad, I know, but as soon as someone points out how thoughtful and clever a piece of design work is, the object becomes compelling in a way it wasn’t previously.
It’s viral too. The Aeron chair meme has spread to my colleague Brian, who actually phoned a local supplier to see if they had these pricey chairs in stock. We both read with interest a review of the Aeron chair that was blogged by a web developer in the UK. Seeing that he got his chair on eBay, we then checked out what sort of money they were going for online. This is bordering on fetishism.
So imagine my disappointment when my wife sent me a link to a review that says The Aeron Chair sucks. Worse, the guy provides video evidence to back up his case. It’s one thing to obsess about a toy or gadget, buy it, and then discover that it sucks. But to have your joy stripped away so cruelly, before I have even sat in one of these chairs, is just too much to bear. If anyone knows of any more positive reviews of the Aeron chair that will reinforce my initial prejudice, I’d be happy to hear about them.
