INTRODUCTION

   When we received our very first gaming chair sample back in early 2016 we honestly had no idea that just over a year later gamers from all over the world would be so hooked with them and we're really not exaggerating. We've actually received dozens of emails by many of you asking for more such reviews and telling us that we have some of the most detailed and honest ones around the internet. It goes without saying that we always do our best to deliver accurate, detailed and unibased reviews (as people like us should) but reading it somehow makes the extra effort we dedicate well worth it. That being said we're doing our best to get our hands on every single gaming chair possible and today with us we have the very first gaming chair by our friends over at COUGAR called the ARMOR.

   COUGAR products are designed by COUGAR GERMANY, a professional R&D engineering team and COUGAR is part of the “HEC/COMPUCASE” Group. The unique combination of the world-famous German skills of designing the best products worldwide and HEC/s power and long-time experience to produce the best high quality products created innovative masterpieces in PSU history. The PC upgrading and DIY market is changing rapidly and is growing more and more. Professional user are asking for more than only stable and silent PSU/s, they want efficient and energy saving products without compromises in quality. COUGAR GERMANY created such products! COUGAR GERMANY combines the features of innovation and evolution to create efficient, powerful and unique products like “COUGAR POWER”. The purpose of COUGAR GERMANY is the satisfaction of the customer, reaching it by creating most valuable, advanced products. COUGAR – YOUR POWER!

   Since the ARMOR gaming chair by COUGAR is their very first attempt in this growing market it's currently only available in black and orange (just like their logo) so although that color combination happens to be one of my favorites that obviously comes down to personal taste. Still in terms of features the ARMOR lacks virtually nothing since it's dressed with high-quality breathable PVC faux leather and has a steel frame for both the backrest and the base, class-4 gaslift with support for up to 150Kg (backrest and base included), high-density cold foam padding (COUGAR doesn't give a specific number but after using it for 10 days we think it's roughly 50-55Kg/M3 for the seat and 25-30Kg/M3 for the backrest), 4 directional adjustable armrests (height/position/orientation), removable head and lumbar pillows, 60mm caster wheels, backrest adjustment (up to 180 degrees) and the somewhat classic tilt/rocking and height adjustment mechanism we find with most desk chairs. Design is also a very important aspect of the ARMOR so let's move with our review and take a closer look.

SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

PACKAGING AND CONTENTS

Unlike most gaming chairs COUGAR ships the ARMOR in a cardboard box that has several drawings of the chair printed on it.

Once again the chair inside was packed extremely well (since it made it here in one piece that’s quite obvious).

The neck and lumbar support pillows were at the top along with the 5-star base so these came out first.

I was surprised to see that the 4D armrests were not mounted onto the seat but where placed right beneath the base.

Next we took out the class-4 gaslift with its plastic cover and two plastic side covers.

Once again we see the typical butterfly tilt/rocking and height adjustment mechanism.

All of the screws, spacers and covers are placed inside a small package which also has an Allen/Philips combo key.

The ARMOR uses five 60mm wheels which were next in the box.

The backrest and seat were the two last parts we got out of the box.

ASSEMBLY

If you’ve been following our gaming chair reviews you know that despite what the instruction manuals say we start assembling by attaching the 60mm caster wheels to the 5 star base as seen above.

These wheels are ok for the mid-sized ARMOR gaming chair (a bit larger wouldn’t hurt however).

After that came the class-4 gaslift with its plastic cover.

Worth mentioning is that the 5 star base has special areas where you can rest your feet.

The seat has a total of three green elastic bands for increased support and durability.

In order to attach the two armrests and the butterfly mechanism you will need to use a total of 8 screws as seen above.

To mount the backrest onto the seat you will have to use two Allen screws on each side.

After that you will need to place the plastic covers and the screw taps again as seen above.

With the main body of the chair assembled we only need to place it on the class-4 gaslift.

FINISHED LOOKS

COUGAR has released one of the best looking mid-range models in the market today but as you can clearly tell just by looking at the ARMOR its padding levels are not that great especially when it comes to its backrest.

The company logo is embroidered at the top of the backrest.

Quality is not the best we’ve seen with a gaming chair but it’s actually very good for a mid-end model.

The armrests can be height adjusted from 29.5cm all the way up to 37cm.

Just like with most 4D armrests the top can move forward, backwards, left, right and diagonally to suit your style.

The backrest falls flat 180 degrees so you can easily take a quick nap if needed.

This is how the ARMOR looks with both pillows attached.

The rear of the chair also looks very nice and also has the company name embroidered at the center.

CONCLUSION

   COUGAR is known for their gaming peripherals not only because their looks but also because of their performance and good quality so the ARMOR couldn’t stray too far from that and it hasn’t. Build quality is very good (always for a mid-end gaming chair), it packs pretty much every single feature one would want to see from a gaming chair and thanks to its design and color combination it looks very nice (personal opinion). Still there’s room for improvement and we say this because the level of padding especially on the backrest (a bit more on the seat would also be nice) is not what we’ve been used to from similar chairs and so for large and heavy people the ARMOR may not be the right gaming chair for them (COUGAR recommends the ARMOR for people up to 1.80m tall and 75Kg heavy – still we think they are very conservative with those numbers). That’s not to say the ARMOR is not a comfortable chair because it is, all we’re saying is that it could be even more so we truly hope that the upcoming ARMOR S model improves on that.

   So just how much is COUGAR currently charging for their ARMOR gaming chair? Actually things are very good here too since you can get the ARMOR for just USD249 inside the USA (Amazon.com) and for just 262.55Euros inside the EU (Amazon.de) a price tag which seems fairly balanced for what you’re getting. That being said design and color combination both play a large role in peoples decision but if you like what you see and can afford it we think that the ARMOR gaming chair by COUGAR is a great choice and for that it gets our Golden Award.

PROS

- Good Build Quality (PVC Leather / Steel Frame)
- Design / Color Combination
- Comfortable
- Features (Adjustable Backrest / 4D Adjustable Armrests)
- Removable Neck And Lumbar Pillows
- Current Price (For Some)

CONS

- Backrest Padding
- Single Color Combination