Usage and Final Thoughts
I have been using the Tesoro Zone Evolution as my main chair for over a month now, and I have to say that I am much more of a fan now than I was in the beginning. I was of the opinion that these gaming chairs were nothing more than a money grab by companies looking to squeeze more money out of gamers. I can confidently say now that I was wrong. Coming from a chair that had cloth surfaces, I was a bit hesitant to try out a leather-like surface, but I really came to enjoy the seating and back surfaces of the Zone Evolution. The textured patterns found on the center cushion areas look great, and you can’t even feel their pattern when sitting in the chair. Overall I found the cushioning to be soft, yet supportive, and the chair was quite comfortable for long periods of sitting. Tesoro likes to point out that the Zone Evolution features a large seat circumference, which for me isn’t a big concern, but will be a welcome feature for someone larger. I did take full advantage of the wider seating surface by sitting cross-legged, as I tend to do when at my PC, and there was plenty of room for me to sit comfortably in this style. I’m not a big fan of extra pillow padding, but I can definitely appreciate the fact that Tesoro includes an optional lumbar and headrest cushion, each with a memory foam interior.
All of the adjustments available on the Zone Evolution let buyers customize the chair to fit their comfort needs. With the ability to recline flat, the backrest offers all of the movement you could want, and adjusting this angle is as simple as pulling a small lever. The angle can be locked in at any position, and Tesoro does not restrict you to a “notched” system of available angles. I found the factory calibrated tilt spring to be a bit too stiff for my liking, but with a few turns of the adjustment knob, I was able to tilt the entire chair back with ease. Adjusting the arm rests is a simple process as well, and the multiple angles, depths, and heights of the arm rests allowed me to get them set just right for my desk setup. The height of the chair can also be adjusted with a lever beneath the seat, and while there is quite a bit of vertical range available, I do wish the chair was able to sit about an inch or two lower than it can. At 5’10”, I’m not that short, but I found my feet just slightly off the floor when sitting in the chair at its lowest setting. This made turning in the chair and having more control of the tilt function a bit harder than I was used to. That being said, it’s not a deal breaker, and was the only real drawback I noticed with the chair.
Tesoro has a great looking chair with the Zone Evolution, and it really stands out from the crowd with its mono-black color scheme and patterned cushions. I really find the aesthetics of the Zone Evolution to be quite pleasing, and they really give the chair a more mature look compared to some of the other gaming chairs on the market with their bright colors and flashy accents.
The Tesoro Zone Evolution has an MSRP of $269.99, which places it towards the top of the price range of gaming chairs we have looked at, but still well below some of the more popular brands’ offerings. Overall our time with the Tesoro Zone Evolution has been great, and we award it a 9 out of 10 score.
Pros
- Mature looks set it apart from the crowd
- Easy to assemble, and solid final build
- Multiple adjustments allow for lots of customization
- Comfortable cushioning and surface materials
Cons
- Very little height adjustment