Cougar Explore S - Design and Features
If I asked the average gamer to picture a gaming chair, there’s a good chance they would imagine something like the Cougar Explore S. This isn’t a chair that takes many risks but that’s not exactly a bad thing given its affordable price. It follows the same racing bucket seat design of most gaming chairs, including the high back, side bolsters, and cutouts for the cushion straps. It’s available in two color schemes, orange and black. In reality, they’re both orange and black, but the all-black version just uses orange stitching instead of along the sides This budget gaming chair is designed for “mid” sized gamers. It features a steel frame, which is an upgrade from the aluminum chassis found on many cheaper gaming chairs (or particle board if you’re deep into the budget end). This helps to ensure its long-term durability and, in combination with the piston, allows the Explore S to support up to 264 lbs. This is directly in line with the rest of Cougar’s line-up and even slightly more than competing chairs like the Secretlab Omega. That said, this isn’t a chair for big and tall gamers as the side bolsters are angled to hug you into the chair. The center area for your back is only 10-11 inches wide and will quickly become uncomfortable for those trying to squeeze between the bolsters.
Unboxing the chair, I was surprised to find that some of the assembly was already complete right out of the box. Unlike most gaming chairs, the armrests came pre-attached, which shaves off precious minutes of build time. The bolts that attach the tilt-base and backrest also came pre-inserted, so there was no risk of confusing where anything went. Cougar included a basic combo tool with ends for hex and phillips screws, so no tools were needed for assembly. All told, I was able to put the chair together within 15 minutes without help. Pretty basic fair, albeit slightly faster thanks to those pre-assembled armrests. While the chair is priced cheaper than much of the competition, the craftsmanship is impressive. After testing more than a dozen gaming chairs, I’ve developed an eye for the cut corners that often accompany price savings and here there are very few. Instead, Cougar has seemed to lean into a couple of smart trade-offs and invested in the areas that really matter to make this chair punch above its class. This is a very standard gaming chair in its overall design but it’s one that won’t force you to trade comfort and reliability for savings. 
Like most racing seats, the Explore S is trimmed in PVC leather. This can have a tendency to become hot, so I was happy to see that the seat and backrest are dotted with perforations for added breathability. These surfaces are also trimmed in a diamond pattern accented with orange thread to match the bolsters. Orange and black won’t be everyone’s cup of tea – and if you’re eyeing this chair you’ll be stuck with them in one form or another – but it’s a solid look. The quality of the stitching is also very good. In addition to the accent threads and normal seam work, there’s also a big Cougar logo on the headrest. There wasn’t a loose strand to be found anywhere on my sample. The PVC was also nicely taut with few unsightly wrinkles. [poilib element="poll" parameters="id=db38f3e0-de72-45fb-9820-b5cb0b683486"] Underneath that trim is high-density molded foam for the cushioning. This is better for long-term durability as multiple pieces of foam won’t need to be glued together to form different sections of the body. The seat was fairly firm out of the box but wasn’t uncomfortable to sit on. That added density will also make it more resilient to premature softening which can reveal the steel frame. I wasn’t able to test the Explore for more than a couple of weeks, but the cushions are thick enough that the chassis stayed comfortably hidden in the seat itself, and doesn’t seem likely to become a problem in the future, but you can feel it if you press into the seat bolsters. In normal sitting, this isn’t an issue, but if you like to cross your legs like me, you may find that you can feel the frame. 
Like most gaming chairs, it comes with a pair of cushions that are ostensibly for neck and lumbar support but are truly more for aesthetics. The neck pillow is far too firm and is positioned too low out of the box. Even when moved behind the neck, it’s still unusably stiff. The lumbar support is quite a bit better and is much more necessary to sit comfortably over time. The backrest itself is flat and there is no built-in lumbar adjustment outside of the pillow. If you’ve had issues with these movable cushions in the past, the Explore S isn’t going to solve them. 
When it comes to adjustments, the trade-offs finally begin to show. The Explore S uses a simple tilt base. There’s a single lever that can be pressed down to adjust the height or pushed in to lock the rocking motion. There’s also a tensioning knob to adjust the amount of resistance when rocking. Fancier bases, like those found on the Secretlab Omega, often allow users to lock the tilt angle which you can’t do here. It’s a missing feature, but isn’t a major one thanks to the reclineable backrest. The backrest can tilt up to 155-degrees independent of the base using a separate lever on the side. With the tilt unlocked, I was able to tilt back into a full lay. It’s a bit unnerving but the chair didn’t tip, so it’s clearly very stable. That also means you can easily kick back with a controller, even without the angle lock. 
The armrests are also of the “3D” sort instead of the popular “4D” found on more expensive gaming chairs. This means that you can adjust their height, angle, and depth. Width is locked unless you care to crawl under the chair and loosen the bolts to make adjustments. This did make a difference in actual use since I often keep my elbows closer in while typing compared to sitting back with a controller. The surface is also standard fare for gaming chairs, which is to say they’re pretty hard. They’re not plastic, but instead a very dense foam that left my elbows sore after a while. For the money, Cougar did make one upgrade which I found particularly nice. The wheelbase is solid aluminum. Nylon is much more common at this price point and is a common point of failure, especially for gamers that are harder on their gaming chairs. When they break, they can snap, risking a nasty spill and leaving you searching for a new chair. An aluminum base helps to ensure added long-term durability and offers improved stability thanks to its added weight. [widget path="global/page/imagecomparison" parameters="comparisons=%7B%22comparisons%22%3A%5B%7B%22caption%22%3A%22%22%2C%22images%22%3A%5B%7B%22id%22%3A%2260922de1e4b03e1e466014ba%22%2C%22label%22%3A%22%22%7D%2C%7B%22id%22%3A%2260922de7e4b03e1e466014bb%22%2C%22label%22%3A%22%22%7D%5D%7D%5D%7D"]
Cougar Explore S - Performance
In day-to-day use, the Cougar Explore S performed right on par with other, more expensive gaming chairs. It doesn’t feel like a budget chair at all, and I really didn’t miss the tilt lock feature since it’s one I rarely use even in chairs that offer it. For $269, it offers the full “racing chair” experience, for better and worse. The recline ability is a big plus for both gaming and work. When typing out an email or hammering away on a review, I found myself sitting at attention with the back upright. When gaming on a mouse and keyboard, I was able to angle it back a few extra degrees to take on a more relaxed posture. While I’m not one to sleep in my chair, I could have with the Explore. Instead, I used its gratuitous recline when I wanted to put my feet up and lounge with Uncharted 4. The armrests were also adjustable enough to accommodate each of these cases. The lack of width adjustment really wasn’t an issue since the chair is fairly narrow to begin with. When I was typing, I liked that I could move the armrests forward to complement my upright posture. The downside is in their firmness. After a couple of hours, my elbows became sore. They’re an improvement over straight hard plastic but not by much.
The biggest challenge facing the Explore is the same one facing most racing chairs: long-term comfort. The racing seat design isn’t suited to long stretches of sitting and I found my back getting sore in just a few hours of use. The lumbar cushion helps but is no replacement for a truly supportive design on the chair itself. For gaming sessions of a couple of hours, this shouldn’t be an issue, but if you’re looking for a chair to use for a whole workday, the bucket seat design isn’t a great option.
from IGN Reviews https://ift.tt/3tgDWTz
This could be a real lead forward for personal gaming... Revolutionise gaming
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