Backforce One Plus Test - Interstuhl's declaration of war on the competition
After the Backforce One saw the light of day in 2019 and was very well received in the world of gaming chairs, Interstuhl is giving us a new model, the Backforce One Plus, at the end of 2020. And as the addition “Plus” suggests, there’s an upgrade here compared to the already successful One.
After a few months of critical observation of the market, the manufacturer seems to have realized pretty quickly what is still missing to make perfection out of the first model. And that with features and a price that are currently unrivaled – a real challenge. What the “Plus” in the new Backforce means for you, you will find out in the next few minutes!
Backforce
Backforce One Plus
Brushed aluminum base, breathable dual-core upholstery, breathable cover mix of faux Alcantara and PU, plastic casters, plastic armrests with faux Alcantara upholstery & cover.
fold-away 5D armrests with upholstery, lockable & adjustable synchronous mechanism (improved rocking mechanism), seat depth and seat tilt adjustment, vertically and horizontally adjustable lumbar support, max. load capacity of 130kg, foams CFC-free, dynamic sitting, armrests with cover in imitation alcantara
Upgrades of the Backforce One Plus in the test
I already wrote in the Backforce One review
“The Backforce One brings some innovations that I have not seen before from any gaming chair.”
In addition to some familiar and useful upgrades to the One Plus in the seating furniture sector, there are also at least 2 upgrades this time that I have not seen before in any gaming chair! What features are hidden behind them and what else is new:
- Vertically & horizontally adjustable lumbar support: No gaming chair I know of has this so far. The previous lumbar supports could only be adjusted horizontally, i.e. in or out.
- Seat tilt adjustment: Another unique feature is that you can tilt the seat forward a few degrees to achieve a more open seat angle between the upper and lower body. More on what this does for you later.
- Seat depth adjustment: The seat depth is adjustable on the Backforce One Plus, so you can now adjust the seating experience even better to your body size.
- "Bead" at the end of the seat is missing: A few buyers of the Backforce One have complained about an elevation at the rear end of the seat. This has now disappeared.
- Folding 5D armrest: In the Backforce One Plus, the armrest is now not only height-adjustable and foldable, we have a decent 5D armrest here.
- Armrest upholstery: For this purpose, the armrest is now upholstered and covered with an Alcantara imitation.
- Larger rollers: The rollers on the One Plus are 65mm instead of 50mm.
In my opinion, it’s not a bad achievement to equip an already successful gamer chair with so many additional functions and not to go completely overboard with the purchase price. As the manufacturer of the Backforce One Plus, Interstuhl shows how flexible and close they are to their customers. This is because the upgrades partly address the most frequently cited points of criticism of the predecessor.
So instead of throwing chairs onto the market without any rhyme or reason, as some other manufacturers do, the concept of the One Plus is quite well thought out and coherent. By the way, if you’re interested in the basic features of a Backforce One, check out my Backforce One review. In this One Plus review, I’ll mainly focus on the new features, so you don’t have to read everything twice. And if you don’t know it yet: Check out my visit to Interstuhl while you’re at it: Manufacturing the Backforce One.
In detail: This is what the new functions of the Backforce One Plus do
Enough about the history and the features in short format. Now let’s take a closer look at what the individual innovations of the Backforce One Plus mean for the chair and your sitting experience on it.
Vertical & horizontal adjustable lumbar support
There are usually 2 types of lumbar support for gamer chairs. In one, cushions are used as a rather inexpensive and not always purposeful lumbar support. With the other, the lumbar support is quite variable adjustable with a rotary wheel.
As a rule, the lumbar support is installed at a fixed point, and the wheel can only be used to adjust the protrusion vertically, i.e. in or out, as it were. However, it would be ideal if the position could also be adjusted in height, as in many cars. The developers of the One Plus also thought of that.
The lumbar support can now be adjusted to the maximum here as described. This is what this wheel is for. When you pull it out, you can adjust the lumbar support vertically by turning the adjusting wheel. This means that you can adjust the curvature of the lower back up or down.
If you push the wheel in, you can adjust the lumbar support horizontally. This means that you increase or decrease the curvature. If you have a more pronounced lordosis or a hollow back, you turn it further out to optimally fill your lordosis and relieve surrounding structures.
Seat tilt adjustment for intervertebral disc relief
The seat tilt adjustment allows you to further open the angle between the upper and lower body by raising the seat in the back or lowering it in the front. Many a person with spinal disc problems recognizes the blessing in this feature and now throws their wedge cushion out on the street after ordering the One Plus.
Because you wouldn’t need that here anymore. By opening the angle between the upper and lower body, the intervertebral disc is relieved and the pelvis is tilted forward. You know the principle behind this from the synchronous mechanism, which also lets you open the angle and allows additional movement.
What I can say about this with my herniated disc: I have had a slight herniated disc since 2020, which I am currently trying to train away. For advice, I went to one of the best physios and injury specialists in the country, Chris Eikelmeier of Strengthfirst. He also advised me, for example, to put the backrest as far back as possible in the car to open up the angle between the upper and lower body. Since then, I’ve almost been lying down in the car, and it feels good!
But again, not every function needs to be used. Test the seat tilt adjustment for a while, give it a chance. I suspect that you will like the function, your spinal disc either way. But if you don’t like the option at all, don’t use it. If a setting doesn’t feel good in the long run, it usually isn’t good.
Seat depth adjustment for larger target group
The seat depth adjustment is a super rare feature for gaming chairs. I’m almost unaware of any manufacturer in the gaming segment that incorporates such mechanics for this feature as well. You can push the seat back and forth with this lever:
This allows you to get closer to the 2-4 finger scale, which says that optimally there is 2 to 4 finger widths of space between the back of the knee and the seat. In my Backforce One Plus test I was able to adjust the seat a little better to my height of 189cm, I have about 1-2cm more seat space.
Smaller gamers can especially benefit. Previously, the seat was about 43.5cm deep, but the Backforce One Plus now allows a narrow 38cm in its shortest setting, which will suit people with shorter legs.
Especially if the chair is used by several gamers of different sizes at home, such a function is useful so that you can adjust your seat to suit you individually, just like in the car.
Elevation at the rear end of the seat optimized away
One or two have complained about the rise or “bulge” (ugly word!) at the rear end of the seat. This has bothered some gamers when they have parked their butts maximum close to the end of the seat. Personally, I never noticed this and only became aware of it with the first reports.
Here, too, Interstuhl has responded to customer feedback and has optimized away the increase. With the new seat depth adjustment, it would probably have bothered me too, but now it’s gone.
Folding 5D armrest with padding & cover
Previously, the armrests were foldable and height-adjustable. In my Backforce One Plus test, I note: That’s history. The armrests are still foldable, but at the same time adjustable in 4 additional directions. So it’s 4D + 1D (foldability) = 5D.
Together with the new removable armrests, the armrests are thus equipped to the maximum. The armrests are padded and covered with the Alcantara imitation that you know from the seat and backrest. This makes the armrests much softer than the normal soft plastic pads.
The armrest upholstery is removable and not fixed. Nevertheless, they sit nice and tight on the armrest. These padded armrests as well as the 5D armrests can be purchased cheaply in the accessories store. ▷ Click here to get to the product.
Rollers upgrade from 50mm to 65mm
The rollers became larger, grew by 15mm compared to the previous rollers. Generally, the larger the rollers, the easier it is to roll. Since the previous rollers were already smooth enough for me, but that should not interest me further.
What I find more interesting here is the visuals: One of my criticisms from the Backforce One test:
The casters are pretty standard and therefore don’t really fit to such an exclusive chair like the Backforce One.
The wheels are now just bigger and slightly different visually, but I think they fit the chair better now. Size wheels always look cooler.
New comfort in the test? This is what has changed in the comfort of the Backforce One Plus
Now, quite a few upgrades have been added and almost all of them also affect the seating comfort. So has the comfort effectively improved, is the Backforce One Plus more comfortable? I was very curious to test the new model, and I have now sat on it for many, many weeks.
When you place both chairs next to each other and sit down from one to the other, you don’t feel any difference at first, at least at first. The upholstery hardness is the same, as is the design. The first impression is the same. However, the first impression is of little value, after all, we want to sit reasonably on the One Plus for hours.
These features have a massive impact on the continuous comfort. I have much more flexibility in the adjustability of the armrests, my forearms and elbows no longer rub around on plastic (but that was never a problem now) and I can adjust the seat to my height better. The seat tilt adjustment really pleases my spinal discs and the lumbar support does the rest to noticeably relieve my back during longer sessions.
So has there been a change in comfort? Yes, and massively so. I find every single one of the upgrades absolutely successful and sensible. In any case, I sit better than on the standard model, where I was already very happy with the seating comfort. Only the now disappeared elevation on the seat surface makes no difference for me personally, but for some others.
Body sizes: Does the One Plus fit you? My experience:
One of the most important issues, does the new Backforce One Plus fit your body proportions? The Plus also has a maximum load capacity of up to 130 kg. As before, there are no relevant side bolsters in the seat area that could restrict legroom.
The now variable seat depth has a small advantage for taller gamers, since 1-2cm more are now possible here, but it offers the biggest advantage for shorter people. Here, a good 6cm of shortening is now possible, which can possibly increase the barely existing distance between the back of the knee and the seat.
Otherwise, nothing has changed on the chair that would affect height suitability. Therefore, I am adjusting my size recommendation from the previous test a bit. Keep in mind, it’s a guideline and an estimate on my part. Depending on your torso length, a few inches more or less may be possible here:
According to my estimation, anyone who is between 152cm and 195cm tall will find room on the Backforce One Plus. At 152cm, you probably won’t be able to get your feet on the floor, but that can’t be avoided with any gaming chair. If you are between 152cm-195cm tall, there is nothing that speaks against buying the Backforce One Plus.
Conclusion: Buy Backforce One Plus? My test summary
I searched and found nothing when I wanted to find something to criticize. I’m sometimes accused of praising all chairs, even though almost every review contains criticism and especially chairs like the Corsair T1, MC Racing or Diablo X Fighter came off really badly – but you don’t see that on the website, because I naturally prefer to use the precious visible space for good chairs than for bad ones. And the Backforce One Plus is one of those good chairs.
- Vertical & horizontal adjustable lumbar support
- Seat tilt adjustment, seat depth adjustment & synchronous mechanism
- Folding 5D armrest with padding & cover
- Larger rollers & optimized seat
- Made in Germany by hand
- 10 years warranty
You have now read the test, and the individual features together with the design form a perfect overall package. However, one important question remains…
Is the Backforce One Plus expensive?
A purchase price may seem daunting at first glance, but at second glance you quickly realize that the chair is more than good value for what it offers. The One Plus is still handmade in Germany. If you’re interested in what that looks like, here’s the report on my visit to the ▷ manufacturing facility.
In addition, the chair is produced in a resource-friendly and environmentally friendly way, is 100% recyclable and has a unique set of features. I had a look around the net trying to find a chair that looks cool, has seat tilt and seat depth adjustment, synchro mechanism, 5D armrests & lumbar support and is made in Germany. I have found chairs with the features, but none for anywhere near under $700. I think the price is absolutely fair for what you get here – an excellent product with a 10 year manufacturer warranty.