Boulies Nubi Office Chair review: A comfortable chair with a trick up its sleeve
As well as being supportive, the Boulies Nubi chair has a standout feature that’s great for laptop workers
Pros
- Comfortable and supportive
- Minimalist design
- Useful tilt-forward mechanism
Cons
- No adjustable lumbar support
There are two chairs to consider in Boulies’ Nubi Series: the regular Nubi and the Nubi Lite. While the latter is a bit stockier and comes with an optional footstool for an additional £80, it’s the standard Nubi that the company sent me to review.
It might look like a bit of a plain Jane, but the Boulies Nubi is a comfortable office chair that remains so throughout an eight-hour working day. At the time of writing I’ve been testing it for over a month and have been particularly won over by the chair’s forward tilt feature, which can be very helpful for posture improvement when working at a laptop. While the Nubi does lack some adjustability in certain areas, it’s still an office chair that I’d be happy to recommend to anyone whose budget can stretch to it.
Boulies Nubi Office Chair review: What do you get for the money?
At its full retail price, the Nubi will set you back £400. It has a cushioned foam seat as well as a soft foam backrest, quite different from the mesh office chairs I’ve become accustomed to reviewing.
You get a decent amount of adjustable features, including the standard gas lift height adjustment, backrest tilt and tilt tension, as well height-adjustable arms. One of the most interesting features, however, is a forward tilt option that tips the seat forward, designed to alleviate pressure on the lower back.
The Nubi office chair comes in a choice of two neutral fabric colours: charcoal and beige. It would be nice to have a few more options, perhaps, but these are smart colours that will look classy in most home office environments.
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Boulies Nubi Office Chair review: What do we like?
The foam padding on the Nubi feels very comfortable and, while it’s not quite as breathable as mesh, I never felt too hot or clammy. The foam padding will retain some heat, though, which is something we noticed when passing the chair between other Expert Reviews team members in the office.
The backrest’s foam layer is a little bit thinner than what you get on the seat, meaning it still provides some cushioning without compromising overall support. I’ll admit I was a little wary of the chair’s lack of adjustable lumbar support, but the curvature of the backrest feels sufficiently supportive and comfortable.
I was also impressed with the chair’s forward tilt feature mentioned above. I’ve seen a similar feature on some of the premium Herman Miller chairs I’ve reviewed, but the difference here is that the seat tilts independently of the backrest. This feature can be particularly useful if you’re working on a laptop. Although it tips you forward only slightly, it prevents you from hunching uncomfortably over your desk, allowing you to maintain a much better posture.
Boulies Nubi Office Chair review: What could be improved?
While I’d like to see a few more colour options, what’s more disappointing was the noticeable lack of some key adjustable features. The armrests felt rather stiff and can only be adjusted by height. There’s also no adjustable lumbar support, which is quite an important feature to have in an office chair, particularly if you suffer from back pain.
While of course there are a lot of things the Nubi does well, and it would be wrong to say that the curved backrest is uncomfortable without the lumbar support, it’s a shame not to have these things on an office chair that costs £400. Even more so because I’ve tested a number of cheaper office chairs that do offer such things as adjustable lumbar support and more complex armrest adjustability.
Boulies Nubi Office Chair review: Should you buy it?
Nevertheless, these qualms won’t stop me from recommending the Boulies Nubi. If you do have £400 to spend on an office chair, it’s a very good mid-range option that myself and a number of my colleagues in the Expert Reviews office found very comfortable. As well as offering a good amount of support, the chair’s forward tilt is an interesting and useful feature.
If you’re wrangling with a smaller budget, I would also consider the Slouch Task One office chair, which is a fantastic option for around £290. You can also check out our roundup of the best office chairs for a wider selection of our tried-and-tested favourites.