I’ve always had something of a love-hate relationship with gaming chairs. A good one can be supremely comfortable, supportive, and meaningfully beneficial to your gaming experience, but they can also be quite ugly at times. Whenever I’ve used a gaming chair, I’ve felt like it was at odds with my broader setup—if you’ve got a carefully curated office or gaming area, the technical, “gamerfied” look of a traditional gaming chair can sometimes be an eyesore. I’m pleased to say that the new Razer Soma Chroma performs this tightrope act better than most of its contemporaries, and has earned its place as my primary chair for the foreseeable future.
Over the past week, I’ve used the Razer Soma Chroma for dozens of hours—gaming, working, reading, and even performing some atypical office chair tasks, like playing the drums. What I’ve found is that the Soma Chroma is exceptionally comfortable in a variety of scenarios, to the point where, if things were slightly different, I would eagerly recommend this chair to anyone who spends significant time at a desk, not just gamers.
And I still might, especially since its $499.99 price tag makes it a smidge more affordable than other leading ergonomic chairs of similar build quality. But the Razer Soma Chroma’s namesake, the “Chroma” LED system that is programmed to dynamically react to certain games, feels like a gimmick that most consumers will view as a cute novelty, but only a very specific demographic will truly appreciate. How much this affects the overall value of the Soma Chroma, if at all, is a nuanced matter, but certainly worth considering if you’re seeking a chair that best fits your needs.
The Razer Soma Chroma Overview: Features, Build Quality, and Design
Razer Soma Chroma Key Specs
- Recommended user height: 5.3-6.6 feet/160-200 centimeters
- Max load: 331 pounds/150 kilograms
- Foam type: Dual-density cold-cured foam seat cushion
- Upholstery: fabric
- Frame: steel
- Approximate recline range: up to 155 degrees
- Power cable: USB Type-C
- Connectivity: Razer HyperSpeed Wireless (2.4 GHz), Bluetooth® LE
After the Razer Soma Chroma arrived at my door and I hauled its heavy, steel-filled box upstairs, I was relieved to find that the rest of the setup process was relatively easy. Its tech integration didn’t lead to any unexpected hiccups: putting the Soma Chroma together is, ultimately, not too different from putting together a more conventional office chair, since Razer smartly limited its external wiring to just one dainty USB-C cable (maybe four or five inches long) peeking out from the lower-left corner of the backrest. It may seem relatively trivial, but the ease with which I constructed the chair and hooked it up to my computer enhanced the overall experience. From the jump, the Soma Chroma feels designed to be as user-friendly and pleasant as possible.
The Soma Chroma connects to PC via either a 2.4 GHz dongle or Bluetooth, similar to other Razer peripherals, but it needs an external power source, hence the aforementioned USB-C cable. For my review, Razer was kind enough to include a USB-C extension cord, which made it possible to hook the chair up to power quite easily, but I can’t help but feel like this extension cord should be included in the Soma Chroma’s base package. Again, the USB-C cable that emerges from the backrest is extremely short, so it’s virtually impossible to plug it in without some sort of extension cord, or a power bank tucked into the zipper of the chair itself, as some of the chair’s marketing recommends. Essentially, it’s impossible to power the Soma Chroma without additional tech accessories that not everyone will have on-hand, which is disappointing.
Along these same lines, the integrated nature of the Soma Chroma’s USB-C cable means that you’re not free to choose which USB you want to use. And if the included USB-C breaks, the replacement process will be much more of a headache than a simple cable swap.
Pivoting away from the Soma Chroma’s RGB functionality for a moment, it’s undeniable that this product is one of Razer’s best yet, at least from an ergonomics perspective. It’s devilishly cozy, striking the perfect balance between plush, indulgent comfort courtesy of its cold-cured seat cushion, and steadfast support thanks to its ergonomic lumbar arch. Its seat conforms to your body, while your body conforms to the backrest, making for near-perfect weight distribution whether you’re sitting upright or leaning all the way back. The adjustable armrests are also great, although taller users may wish they could be raised a bit higher.
The Soma Chroma’s sleek and purposeful ergonomics are mirrored by its restrained and relatively conservative design, which I absolutely love. The chair comes in one color, black, and is tastefully low-profile, notably less flashy than something from Razer’s Iskur line, while still feeling more visually distinct than something like the low-key Razer Fujin.
I only wish that Razer committed a bit more to the Soma Chroma’s scaled-back design by axing or altering one glaring design element: a fist-sized, embossed, bright green Razer logo smack-dab in the middle of the front of the headrest. If this logo were absent or at least less garish (e.g. by being black or dark gray rather than Razer Green), the chair would be more aesthetically consistent, since it’s otherwise more professional-looking. The logo is basically a giant stamp that says “GAMER,” which is fine if you’re into that, but it definitely makes the chair less versatile from an interior design perspective.
Razer’s Chroma Functionality
At its most basic level, “Chroma” is simply Razer’s proprietary dynamic RGB software, controlled via the Razer Chroma application. Seeing such RGB lighting on a chair as opposed to a tower, keyboard, or mouse, is certainly novel, and I appreciate the extra personalization opportunities. The chair’s LEDs can be tweaked to present a variety of different colors and patterns, such as color-cycling, pulsing, and strobing. You can also create your own unique patterns and effects, in the Chroma Studio, which can be genuinely fun.
Even as someone who doesn’t love RGB, I found myself opting to keep the Soma Chroma’s LEDs turned on more often than not. By alternating between different solid colors, I was basically giving the chair alternate accents around the headrest, which offered a nice bit of creative flexibility—if you like experimenting with different furniture and decor configurations, you might get a similar kick out of the Soma Chroma’s customization suite. Unfortunately, the aforementioned headrest logo undermines this a bit, forcing you to consider its particular shade of green in your color combinations. I can’t set the LEDs to red without my office suddenly looking Christmas-themed.
And of course, there’s the chair’s most-touted feature, its dynamic, in-game Chroma integration. Over 300 PC games are compatible with this feature, sending RGB “commands” to the chair that change its colors and patterns in real time. For instance, if you shoot a burst of blue-colored magic in a Chroma-supported game, the LED strips on the chair may pulse blue as well, correlating to the action on screen. The idea is to increase immersion, but I’m not so sure that it’s successful in this respect.
Perhaps the most awkward aspect of this feature has to do with the positioning of the Soma Chroma’s LEDs: they are on the sides of the headrest, and therefore always behind you. I tested the chair on a handful of compatible games, from Frostpunk to Borderlands 4, and I could only really see the lighting effects occasionally, when they would be reflected by my monitor. Otherwise, I would have to turn away from the screen to see them, which, of course, defeats their entire purpose. Even when playing in a dark room, the LEDs never produced enough luminance to create any sort of visible halo or aura effect.
The Razer Soma Chroma Is Quirky, but Ultimately Excellent
The thing about the Soma Chroma’s underwhelming dynamic RGB is that, for a lot of people, there’s really no way to make it work effectively. I happen to have a Razer mouse that’s compatible with Chroma as well, allowing me to see the same dynamic in-game effects, and they just aren’t that exciting. Vibrant, strobing LED accessories aren’t what’s missing from most gaming experiences, and actually, you could argue that they make games less immersive. They quite literally take you out of the game and draw your attention to your real-world surroundings.
All of this means that the shortcomings of the Chroma system, including the truncated USB-C cable, don’t really detract from the chair in any meaningful way, so long as you don’t care too much about Chroma. You can still enjoy its incredible ergonomics, which DO have a noteworthy impact on your gaming experience, with or without the Chroma shenanigans. At the same time, there is definitely a market for the Chroma features—I’m thinking of streamers, content creators, and hardcore RGB enthusiasts—so you could argue that the chair is only improved by their presence. Perhaps Chroma will evolve into something greater over time, but for now, you can rest assured that the Soma Chroma is a rock-solid, reasonably priced ergonomic gaming chair, regardless of its RGB experimentation.
The Razer Soma Chroma is currently available for $499.99 USD on Razer’s website. GameRant was provided a unit for this review.
