After many years, my old gaming chair fell apart during the summer of 2025. In my search for a replacement, I had an offer to test the latest chair in E-WIN's 'Champion Upgraded' series in early November. That whole month was consumed by the madness of Black Friday, so I wasn't able to write a review right away.
However, that actually gave me extra time to stress-test this gaming chair, which led to some important verdicts. At its retail price of $479.99, this chair is hard to recommend as I found it too uncomfortable to sit in for too long, doing a real number on my back, even with the included memory foam cushion.
Is it just a personal issue, and could it be tempting to pick up at a discount? Here's what I think of the E-WIN Champion Upgraded gaming chair.
This review was made possible thanks to a review sample provided by E-WIN. The company had no input nor saw the contents of this review prior to publication.
E-WIN Champion Upgraded: Build quality and assembly
Putting together the E-WIN Champion chair was simple enough. The chair included a set of instructions that was easy to understand, with informative text and photographs, and a set of tools to help the user put it together. No issues there.
Of course, depending on your personal strength and room space, you may need an extra hand to help you assemble the chair, particularly if you have any mobility issues.
For what it's worth, the build quality of its individual parts is solid. It's "Brisa Ultra Premium" PU leather feels pleasing to touch, and its heavy-duty aluminum wheel base is durable enough to withstand my 230lb+ body without crumpling in on itself, no matter how high or low I adjust its seating position with the hydraulic lift
Now, for those wondering, its weight limit is 400lbs, so gamers in my weight range, and even those a little heavier than me, shouldn't have to worry about breaking this chair if they assemble it correctly.
E-WIN Champion Upgraded: Comfort, durability, and features
The E-Win Champion Upgraded Chair has a wide variety of adjustment options to make it more comfortable to your liking. They include its 4D "Integrated Dynamic Lumber Support System", 4D PU padded armrests, a 55° backrest recline, a hydraulic system for seat height, and a 15° "Rocking Mode."
It also includes a magnetic memory foam pillow to rest your head on and a lumbar cushion to add extra comfort for your back. However, after fiddling with its settings, I've found the only genuinely comfortable parts of this chair are its armsets, which line up perfectly with my keyboard, and its memory foam head pillow.
I can't get out of its rocking mode as the lever to adjust the seat tilt stopped working properly after a couple of weeks.
The rest of the chair just feels too stiff, as if I'm pressing my back against a hardwood board that's been covered up with a leather cover. Plus, I can't get out of its rocking mode as the lever to adjust the seat tilt stopped working properly after a couple of weeks.
As a result, it has become too flimsy to sit in comfortably, so I have to sit near the edge of a rickety chair to prevent it from tilting too far back (which seems to be a common issue with E-Win chairs, as pointed out by my colleague, Jez Corden, in his E-WIN Flash XL chair review).
Lastly, the extra lumber pillow included with this seat feels too flat and hollow to support my back, so I had to use one of the pillows I use for sleeping as a makeshift replacement, with mixed success. It's particularly disappointing because our Editor-in-Chief, Daniel Rubino, tested an E-Win Champion Series chair back in 2020 and was quite happy with it.
Unfortunately, I don't share his sentiment for this chair, surprisingly so, since this is supposed to be an 'Upgraded' version. I don't have the same kind of lengthy experience with testing chairs, and my introduction was the excellent Sihoo M57 Full Mesh Breathable Office Chair. Now, this offering from E-WIN makes me miss it greatly.
The extra lumber pillow included with this seat feels too flat and hollow to support my back.
On the other hand, I don't need years of experience to know when a chair gives me discomfort and even physical pain. Sitting on what feels like a hard plank causes severe pain in my lower back, no matter how far back or forward the backrest reclines or what height I adjust the seat to.
Not to mention, I have to sit at uncomfortable angles to compensate for its malfunctioning rocking mode after only a few weeks. It raises concerns about this chair's long-term durability to the point that I'm wondering if the rest of its adjustment features will fall apart soon, too, despite the decent build quality of its separate parts.
E-WIN Champion Upgraded: Should you buy it?
✅ You should buy this if:
- You enjoy padded armrests.
- You need a chair that's easy to assemble.
❌ You should not buy this if:
- You're over the 400lb weight limit.
- You're on a strict budget.
- You have issues with back pain.
The issues I've experienced with this chair mean its $479.99 MSRP makes it too expensive for me to recommend above others. There are far more comfortable gaming chairs out there at much lower prices, like the Razer Enki X or the aforementioned Sihoo M57, so it was already facing fierce competition.
Even if its malfunctioning lever were a one-off issue with my sample, the price would still be too high for me. Overall, I can't score it any higher and suggest saving your money for the best gaming chairs we know for a fact are worth their premium price, like the Secretlab TITAN Evo NanoGen or the Razer Iskur V2.
This chair sadly doesn't feel like much of an upgrade; it's too stiff for long gaming sessions, and its rocking mode became unstable after a few weeks. Forced to sit in uncomfortable positions, I'd find it hard to recommend, even at a sale price.
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