Today, Secretlab has unveiled its first new desk chair since the Titan Evo in 2022. While it’s been iterating on the Titan Evo ever since with new models and colorways that have made it a staple of the gaming chair market, Secretlab hasn’t chosen to expand out into a new SKU in years. But now, as lines in the desk chair market start to blur between gaming and ergonomic options, Secretlab is choosing to launch the Atlas.
The Secretlab Atlas pulls back slightly from the expansive set of features offered by the Titan Evo for a much more focused and distilled chair design. The result is a lighter chair that puts your ergonomics and posture front and center, and a synchronous tilt recline system the main appeal. Where the Titan Evo is a tried and tested gaming chair that’s ergonomic, the Atlas is an ergonomic productivity chair with a very different feel. But it may end up being more accessible to players who haven’t been able to afford a Titan Evo until now.
“The traditional task chair hasn’t changed for decades, and isn’t built for the way we actually work today”, says Vincent Sin, Head of Product Development & Industrial Design at Secretlab”.
“Static posture is the enemy of prolonged focus, yet most chairs still lock you in a single position. With Secretlab ATLAS, we’re taking the best of Secretlab and bringing it to support task sitting. We’ve applied a decade of ergonomic design and material expertise to create a chair that supports the entire rhythm of your day — not just the hours spent upright in focus mode, but also the essential periods of rest in between.”
This desire to cater to more than one sitting position certainly tracks with the rest of the market, as floating backrests have become more commonplace in the market – the epitome being the LiberNovo Omni, which has a fully dynamic backrest. Interestingly, Secretlab hasn’t given in to this trend, instead opting for a design that integrates a non-adjustable lumbar curve into a fixed backrest.
Secretlab’s alternative doesn’t look to support your posture with a chair that moves around with you as you shuffle in your seat; instead, it deems the best way for you to maintain focus throughout the day to be allowing you to rest and take short breaks. The answer? “Focus” and “Rest” modes built into the chair.
The Atlas has a refined reclining mechanism that Secreltab is calling a “Synchronous Tilt Mechanism”. There’s a full range of 120° of recline, but for every 2° the backrest tilts, the seatbase tilts by 1°. Supported by an adjustable tilt force control, this means the armrests, backrest, and seatbase all recline without losing the ergonomic setup of the chair.
There aren’t set reclining levels, because by adding more tilt force resistance, you also find you’ll only be able to recline back to certain levels while also relaxing into it. It’s a clever way to implement ergonomics while relaxing, and tilt tension has been an under-utilized feature on lots of chairs I’ve tested because it feels like product designers never know what to do with it.
Compared to many of the office and ergonomic chair rivals in the market, Secretlab’s new option may feel a bit limited. These chairs, like the AutoFull G7, often combine mesh backing with loads of clicky panels that are all adjustable in various dimensions, but that hasn’t been the approach with the Atlas. The Re-Curve backrest integrates lumbar support into its design to ensure you’re always getting the most out of it while sitting.
As per usual, Secretlab has done a bunch of ergonomics research backed by an independent Ergonomics Advisory Board, United States Ergonomics, and other experts to find the best curve to suit all sorts of body shapes based on how people sit. While I’m sure the brand has integrated this research into its product design super effectively, I always have my reservations about a one-size-fits-all approach because everyone’s body is different and I don’t think it’s possible to cater to every somatotype with one fixed design. Nonetheless, a Regular and Large size of the Atlas may provide some scope for you.
The Tilt Force Adjustor has four separate levels, which go hand in hand with an adjustable seat depth so you can sink deeper into the Atlas and still benefit from lumbar support – a similar approach to the Fractal Refine. Down from 4D armrests on the Titan Evo, the Atlas has 3D armrests that adjust up and down, forward and back, and can rotate – there’s no moving them to be narrower or wider though.
This feels like a fresh start for Secretlab as it branches out into a brand-new product range, but my concern is that this may defeat the appeal of opting for one of this brand’s products. A lot of people are drawn to Secretlab’s Titan Evo because of its wider ecosystem of add-ons and colorways, and with a newer, bolder design, those things won’t be compatible with the Atlas.
As of launch, Secretlab tells me that none of the Titan Evo’s add-ons and attachments are compatible with Atlas, meaning the armrest tops, the limited edition Skins, the licensed colorways, and the recliner are all limited to the Titan Evo models. The Atlas does have a magnetic head pillow like its older sibling, but for now, that’s all. I’d be surprised (knowing Secretlab’s ongoing support for its products) if we didn’t see any add-ons and accessories for it in the future, but for now, it’s worth knowing the chair is a standalone within the Secretlab ecosystem before you buy.
The bigger blow here for some folks may be that the massive selection of colorways for the Titan Evo will not translate over to the Atlas, with only some standard Secretlab colorways and upholsteries available at the time of writing. The Atlas is available in Classic Black or Moon colorways with NEO Hybrid Leatherette, or in Softweave Plus Fabric in Black, Cookies & Cream, or my personal favorite, Dune – a sandy-colored beige which looks really classy and neutral in a home office.
Alternatively, if you’re willing to spend a little more, the Atlas is also available with NanoFoam Composite, used in the Secretlab Titan Evo NanoGen Edition. This version comes in Nanogen Leather upholstery in Pure Black+ or Pure White+, or with Softweave+NanoFoam Composite in Black+ and Dune+.
The good news is that with a lighter feature set and compatibility suite than the Titan Evo, there’s also a lighter price tag – something I’ve always felt could be better when it comes to this brand’s products. The Secretlab Atlas will start at $499 in the US and £399 in the UK – which is some ~$200 cheaper than the Titan Evo, depending on what colorway and add-ons you get with it. The Secretlab Atlas Premium Range will start at $699 in the US and £599 in the UK – again, offering a lot of value over the brand’s more expensive limited edition or NanoGen options.
I’m already testing out the Atlas in preparation for my review, but I’ve only been testing it for a few days so far, so I’m not ready to give my full thoughts. For my early impressions, you can check back soon to read more about why I think it might actually be a better gaming chair than its Titan Evo sibling.
To read more on Secretlab, check out the best gaming desks, the best standing desks, and the best console gaming chair.
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