When it comes to sports seats, most of them are upholstered with some kind of leather (bonded, PU, Genuine etc.). However, recently, mesh has started to rise to become an option, as seen in DXRacer’s AIR Chair for example. This begs the question, when it comes to mesh vs leather, is there a compelling reason to choose one over the other in a gaming chair?
In this article we will look at the real pros and cons of each upholstery to help you make an informed decision.
The Beauty of Leather Sports Seats
There is a reason why until recently, leather was the only upholstery used for gaming chairs.
The reason?
Sports seats are modeled closely after the seats found inside luxury cars. Apart from the curved lines and side bolsters that hug the driver, the upholstery used in these seats has always been leather, usually genuine leather. Therefore, sports seats have always chosen leather as their cover and to match the seat of a racing car as much as possible.
There are several advantages of leather as upholstery for gaming (or office) chairs:
- Easy to Clean: Most gaming chairs use PU (synthetic) leather these days, which is much easier to clean than plastic. Spilled food or drinks on the seat? Just take a towel and wipe it off quickly. This makes the leather on the gaming seats much cheaper and newer.
- Plush living experience: Unlike the mesh sports seats, the leather ones stay full inside, which creates a comfortable sitting experience against the mesh on your bottom and back after a while.
- Glamorous Aesthetics: When it comes to printing designs on PU leather, the sky is the limit. This means that you are more likely to find your favorite gaming chair in style in a leather gaming chair as opposed to a mesh one. Secretalab gaming chairs for example come with some of the most creative, jaw-dropping exteriors due to their use of leather upholstery.
- Budget Friendly: Unless we are talking about genuine leather, bonded leather and PU are both very cheap to manufacture. This is directly reflected in the cost of leather sports seats, some of which cost less than $100 as a result.
- Eco Friendly: Nowadays, most PU leather fabrics are 100% synthetic, which means they do not contain animal products (so no animal testing). Be sure to check with the manufacturer in question if in doubt.
The beauty of Mesh Gaming chairs
Not to panic, let’s take a look at mesh gaming chairs now, and why you might want to consider this upholstery for your next gaming chair.
- Upper Breathing: This is hands down the biggest benefit mesh brings to the table – improved breathability. I didn’t appreciate the difference it makes until recently when I returned to Asia. Under temperatures of 37 degrees, sitting on a PU leather seat quickly became unbearable as all parts of my body began to stick to the seat. In the mesh gaming chair (DXRacer AIR), I was cool as a cucumber.
- Keeping it Clean Made Easy: Of all the air pockets, the mesh like upholstery is the easiest to keep clean. Small food crumbs, dust, and particles such as dead skin usually end up on the floor with mesh upholstery and not stuck somewhere in the crevice of a leather seat for example. From a hygienic point of view, mesh is generally superior to all other materials.
- Easy to Maintain Good Posture: With well-defined contours, mesh sports seats make it easier to maintain the correct sitting position compared to their leather counterparts. Not bound by the racing car design language found in the leather seats are the “stupid” outer cushions and the restraining seats with sideboards. Instead, mesh sports chairs are more likely to resemble ergonomic office chairs, usually with an adjustable headrest, seat cushion, and dedicated lumbar support. So, if the ergonomics of the chair are very important to you, you are more likely to find what you are looking for in a mesh gaming chair.
Disadvantages of Leather Sports Seats
Although the skin has a lot going for it, the following are some negatives to keep in mind:
- It does not breathe: I already mentioned this when talking about mesh, but the downside of PU leather gaming chairs is the lack of breathability. This is due to the synthetic material of the plastic which has no pores at all. If you tend to sweat easily or live in a hot climate, this downside can be hard to ignore, as our editor Michelle found out when reviewing the Autofull gaming chair.
- Non Hypoallergenic – PU leather is generally not hypoallergenic, which means that if you have sensitive skin or allergies, you may have a negative reaction in contact with synthetic materials. This is exacerbated by the fact that some PU leathers are treated with harsh chemicals that leave a bad smell, especially during the first few days or weeks after assembling the seat.
- Wears and Breaks Easily- Each PU leather upholstery is different, but generally, the cheap ones will start to wear after a few years, including discoloration and even perforation. This is very common in inexpensive gaming chairs. For high-end sports chairs like Secretalab, PU leather materials can be almost as strong as real leather.
Cons of Mesh Gaming Chairs
Mesh sports chairs also come with their drawbacks, but the biggest ones are:
- You can feel the scratch: This is a very common complaint with mesh as upholstery. Depending on the material used to weave the net, it can feel scratchy on bare skin. This is something I noticed on the DXRacer AIR for example. However, in Neuechair, the mesh material was more refined. So again, it depends on the specific material used to create the mesh structure.
- A mesh seat can begin to deteriorate over time – Another potential problem with mesh is the possibility that the seat will deteriorate slightly over time as the mesh structure begins to expand and weaken. Once that happens, it can be difficult to replace a damaged mesh seat on your own. The problem is more likely to occur in cheap seats. As far as we know with the Quantum pro 9000, we haven’t seen any degradation even after 12 months.
- Limited in style – Let’s face it, one of the reasons why you should get a gaming chair is probably the stylish style and eye-catching color scheme. The right aesthetic can really enhance the overall decor of your gaming station setup. Of course, with mesh sports seats, you will be very limited in this. DXRacer AIR aside, most of the slatted gaming chairs currently on the market look like any normal office chair. The upholstery is usually black or white, and the frame and base are mono-colored as well. It’s so exciting!
Mesh vs Leather Gaming Chairs, Which Should You Choose?
After comparing the two in depth, in the end, I think leather sports seats are currently the better choice for most people. It comes with a plethora of options, budget-friendly price points, and the ease of maintenance that PU leather brings.
The two main situations where I would choose a mesh gaming chair are when I need excellent breathability or ergonomics. Mesh gaming chairs can provide superior back and neck support in the form of dedicated neck rests and lumbar support, something leather gaming chairs often do with a few extra cushions.