Customer reviews from gaiam.com
Gaiam - Classic Balance Ball® Chair - Ocean
Average customer rating
4.4
(1,237 Reviews)
Rating breakdown 1,237 reviews
5 Stars
810
4 Stars
237
3 Stars
81
2 Stars
50
1 Star
59
90%of customers recommend this product.
(
1,086 out of
1,212)
Customer Reviews for Gaiam - Classic Balance Ball® Chair - Ocean
Customer Rating
4
Very Comfortable
on July 15, 2012
Posted by: CNPH
from Chicago
Verified Purchase:No
I find sitting on the balance ball chair very comfortable and it is good to switch off from a standard office desk chair. It helps my back, my hip and posture. Only downside is that with my current computer desk configuration, it is too low and is not ergonomic for me to type for significant periods of time. If I could change the height of my desk it would be far better.
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting gaiam.com
Customer Rating
1
Who likes this thing?
on April 12, 2011
Posted by: yogadharma
from Colorado
Verified Purchase:No
I tried, I really tried to like this chair. I am a yoga teacher and I thought what a great idea it would be for me to carry all the benefits of yoga (posture, alignment, core focus) to my desk work too. Whew, lots of work on this chair but not much fun! First of all I have a huge issue with the amount of plastic going into this product. Secondly, the return shipping is beyond making sense to return. And finally, I spent more time pulling my stuck thighs off this rubber ball, and trying to remain motionless to keep from tipping over, all the while working to keep the chair from rolling (yes, even with the wheels locked) - that I just decided to go back to my old and comfortable eco-friendly, ergonomically designed desk chair. Sure, you may love this chair - but I highly recommend that you borrow one from a friend first - before you are out lots of $$$ and only have an expensive exercise ball to show for it. Seriously, who likes this thing?
No, I would not recommend this to a friend.
Written by a customer while visiting gaiam.com
Posted by: Stina
from Albuquerque, NM
Verified Purchase:Yes
Got this chair for my office desk. It was easy to set up and is very comfortable.
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting gaiam.com
Posted by: Shelly
from New York
Verified Purchase:Yes
Love the chair 100%. The packaging on arrival was a bit disappointing. Screws and ball plug were just thrown in the bottom of the box. I actually searched for an hour for the plug. It fell out of the box and rolled under the table.
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting gaiam.com
Posted by: art office and meditation
from oregon
Verified Purchase:Yes
Rarely have I sat upon a chair where my hips and knees are so perfectly aligned----also supports a natural lumbar curve. LOVE IT!
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting gaiam.com
Posted by: Pumpkin
from New York
Verified Purchase:Yes
The ball is comfortable to sit on but it's smaller than it appears in the photo. Also, the front wheels roll and the back ones do not, making it necessary to get up and lift the chair to move it.
No, I would not recommend this to a friend.
Written by a customer while visiting gaiam.com
Customer Rating
4
"Active Sitting" for Core Musculature at Work!!!
on June 21, 2011
Posted by: FengShuiASK
from Blacksburg, VA
Verified Purchase:No
As a Physical Therapist, I highly recommend this chair. It works your core muscles throughout the day and makes working at a computer more tolerable. My only recommendation is to build up your time on the ball each week until your improved core strength will allow you to sit on it all day at work. The front casters will accidently lock when hit with your heel, so using some black electrical tape (as recommended by another feedback) will help prevent this. If you are sitting all day, you will develop your core and improve your posture with this chair. I am 5'8" and this chair fits me beautifully! I selected the purple to enhance the wealth (Feng Shui) area of my office. I also have a second therapy ball chair at home for our family computer. The whole family loves it! Happy "Active Sitting" Everyone!!!
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting gaiam.com
Customer Rating
3
A few points to ponder before purchasing
on October 20, 2011
Posted by: Nellie12
from Undisclosed
Verified Purchase:No
I read all of the reviews before purchasing the balance ball chair, and I wanted to add my experience to the mix. The chair is tall. I'm 5'9", and it's a good thing, or I fear it would be too tall for me. The actual height of the top of the ball, in the chair base, is 27" from the floor to the top of the 'seat'. The ball doesn't really squish enough when you sit on it to make a huge difference in that height. It's really too tall to comfortably fit under my keyboard tray at my desk. I did wait about a month to let it stretch out and settle in....and that helped a smidge...but not a lot. In response to the reviews complaining about tail bone and back pain.... It's all in how you sit on the ball. You really have to be tall enough to sit all the way back squarely on the ball....if you sit towards the front you're going to have the tail bone/back pain. Also, you have to really pay attention to your posture (which is the point of the chair!), and to how you hold your legs. You need to keep your legs together and straight in front of you, with your feet flat on the floor, and use your abdominal muscles to hold yourself in place. If you do this correctly, your core muscles should hurt long before your back does. Note: the 'back rest' is not a back rest. You should never touch it. It may come in handy in case of an emergency where you've lost your balance and are falling off the back of the chair....but it is in no way a back rest. I thought the base and back rest were made of substantial enough plastic to withstand any regular use. I'm big on quality and I have no issues with the plastic of both the ball and the base. The one aspect of the chair that is a real bummer: the wheels. They are extremely easy to accidentally lock with your feet. There are locks on all four wheels, and I almost think the darn things lock themselves sometimes! Even when they aren't locking, the wheels simply are terrible. If you are looking to use this in an office environment where you ever have to move your chair at all, you are going to have problems. I use it on a smooth wood floor, and it's pretty sticky and jerky....which is made even more difficult to deal with since you are balancing on the chair. For this reason alone, I wind up not using the chair, and resort to using my old desk chair. I don't know if you can replace the wheels with better ones from the hardware store or not, I haven't tried that....yet. Just getting up from the chair is an issue, because you have to push yourself back to get out from your desk, and it doesn't want to even roll a tiny bit without hanging up somehow. They really need to improve the wheels on this chair, and it would be a great product. All in all, the concept is good, the quality of everything else is great, but the wheels are pretty much a deal breaker.
No, I would not recommend this to a friend.
Written by a customer while visiting gaiam.com