In its bid to take a seat at the big children’s table with market leaders like Secretlab and Andaseat, Vertagear has given us a solid and attractive place in the PL4500. With its attractive designs and odor-resistant fabric, there’s no doubt that the PL4500 looks like it should be paying its $489 asking price. However, a hard seat and stiff armrests mean this premium piece can’t compete with the best gaming chairsI
Vertagear PL4500 Specifications:
| Upholstery | PUC synthetic leatherette |
| lean backwards | up to 140 degrees |
| Overall height (with feet) | 51.6 to 54.1 inches (1310 to 1375 mm) |
| Backrest height | 33.3 to 35.8 inches (565 to 845 mm) |
| Backrest width (shoulder height) | 20.8 inches (530mm) |
| Seating Area Width (total) | 21.5 inches (545mm) |
| Seating area Width (point of contact) | 21 inches (535mm) |
| Recommended User Height | Up to 6 ft. 6 inch |
| Recommended weight | Up to 260 pounds |
| Weight | 70 pounds (31.6 kg) |
| Guarantee | 2-10 year limited warranty |
Design of Vertagear PL4500
The Vertagear PL4500 is a large chair for tall people, it measures a whopping 54.1″ long with the height fully extended and approximately 25″ from armrest to armrest. It’s a towering beast with a wide frame that looks deceptively slimmer than it is due to its tapered backrest and dark color scheme. The backrest, seat and base are deep black and the PL4500 can be ordered with side accents in various colors or simply completely stealth black. Our review unit came with white accents on the side. The simple color scheme means that the PL4500 will feel at home in a variety of setups, provided there is room for its massive frame.
With a steel frame over PUC leather (not real leather), the PL4500 is built like a tank – the base is heavy and sturdy with robust castor wheels to match. The overall build quality is top notch and speaks to the PL4500’s positioning as a premium product. The “coffee fiber filling” is also a nice touch with its odor and bacteria-fighting properties. As this also helps with drying, it’s a big plus for those who are clumsy with their drinks and want to spend a little less time maintaining their gaming furniture.
The PL4500 is a robust, great-looking chair that carries its premium status on its sleeve – its presence in a room commands respect without drawing undue attention. For those looking to make a splash, there’s an optional RGB lighting kit that can be ordered with the PL4500 for an extra $249. Unfortunately, our test unit didn’t have this bling, so you’ll have to figure out the effects with us.
Mounting Vertagear PL4500
The Vertagear PL4500 is arguably the easiest to assemble gaming chair I’ve ever come across. Despite the considerable weight, it is remarkably easy to mix up and assemble the parts. I was able to assemble the chair myself in about 35 minutes, so it’s fair to assume that someone more handy than me could do it in less time and not require a second pair of hands.
The included assembly instructions well illustrate the best order of operations to get the job done and the photos ensure there is no guesswork when it comes to the correct orientation of the pieces.
If I have a problem with the mounting process of the PL4500, it is the attachment of the backrest to the seat. The backrest slides on two metal arms that protrude from the seat base. Ideally, this should hold the backrest in place, so tightening the screws needed to secure the backrest is a simple task. Unfortunately, the weight of the backrest can cause the metal supports to misalign, making it difficult to properly align and tighten the screws. This part of the build took up a significant portion of my total assembly time.
Aside from this minor stumbling block, the PL4500 is a breeze to assemble and shouldn’t be a hindrance to even the most clumsy DIYer.
Comfort and customization of Vertagear PL4500
The Vertagear PL4500 provides excellent lower back and neck support with the included memory foam cushions and a faux leather and fabric backrest that gives just the right amount without feeling squishy. Leaning back in this chair was a pleasure for my back.
Unfortunately, the chair itself doesn’t strike the same delicate balance between comfort and support, opting instead for an ultra-firm stiffness that proved uncomfortable to sit in for long periods of time. The contrast is very shocking, almost as if someone decided to take the back and seat cushion from a comfortable office chair and sew them onto a stone bench.
At first I appreciated the firmness of the PL4500’s seat, but over time it turned out to be too much of a good thing. During long gaming sessions in the PL4500 I certainly felt supported, but also angry – it was just bizarre to feel like my back was being hugged while my hindquarters were being punished.
The armrests of the PL4500 also feel stiff and hard. They have a light rubber layer that gives a little, but does little to nothing to alleviate the feeling of overall stiffness. This is fine in small doses, but again, the general feeling of discomfort and fatigue in the areas that should be resting on this surface increases over time. This is a real shame, as the memory foam backrest and lumbar and neck cushions rival any other gaming chair on the market for comfort – it’s a constant reminder of what could have been, an insult that was worse. This is what it feels like to have a broken promise.
The PL4500 has sufficient adjustment options to adapt to your favorite sitting position. The armrests of the PL4500 can be folded in and out, pulled back and forth and adjusted in height.
There are no adjustments for the width of the armrests, but in their standard position they already offer enough space. If you’re looking for more customization in the armrest department, Vertagear makes 4D armrests available with purchase for an additional $20. Given the overall price of the PL4500, it’s somewhat puzzling why this option didn’t come standard. The action on the height adjustment can also be quite stiff at times, almost as if the mechanism is jamming.
The seat of the PL4500 is adjustable in height and the backrest can sit up to 80 degrees forward or recline up to 140 degrees. The levers controlling these functions worked smoothly and didn’t exhibit the same stiffness and stuttering feel of the armrest height adjustment. The backrest can be locked via a lever on the back of the seat.
Bottom Line
The Vertagear PL4500 is a premium priced gaming chair aimed at the tall and tall gamer that offers most of the appointments gamers have come to expect but fails when it comes to the most important fundamental furniture: comfort. The PL4500 checks off many features that are on gamers’ wish lists. Easy assembly? To check. Durable, high-quality construction? To check. Support for reclined and reclining seating positions? To check. Spill and odor resistant fabric upholstery? To check. These are all great things to have and for the price the PL4500 is selling for, gamers shouldn’t expect anything less. Unfortunately none of these features mean much if the seat itself isn’t comfortable to sit in and the PL4500 certainly isn’t.
The biggest problem with the PL4500 is the fact that the seat itself is stiff, hard and uncomfortable. The back and memory foam pillows for lumbar and neck support are excellent – they provide both support and comfort. However, the main seat can be painful to use for extended periods of time due to its extreme stiffness. It’s sad that Vertagear has done so many things right with the PL4500, but has managed to ignore the single most important detail that makes a gaming chair worth owning.
There are other minor annoyances that make the PL4500 hard to recommend when there are so many other options to choose from, such as 4D armrests that come at an extra cost rather than being standard on a unit that costs nearly $500. The RGB lighting add-on is also very expensive, costing a whopping $250 in addition to the already high asking price.
For a fully featured PL4500, gamers are asked to deposit north of $750. When there are options like the Secret Lab Titan and the Razer Iskuru available in the same price range as the base PL4500 with more features and superior comfort, the price tag of the PL4500 seems way too steep, but in the end an uncomfortable chair is a bad price at any price.