Trillo Pro office chair in test: cheap - and also good?
13.5.2022
Translation: machine translated
An office chair with only one lever, but which is considerably more expensive than one from the Swedish furniture discounter - can that be a good product? I have tested it and come to a clear buy recommendation.
In the home office, I need a proper chair. By "right" I don't mean a gaming chair, but one that ideally makes me sit healthily and also cuts a good figure itself in the home office. My colleague Pia has recently tested a whole range of models - for example, the inexpensive "to swift" stool, the rather expensive "Futu Mesh " chair, or the luxury "Capisco" chair, which became her favorite with its equestrian seat. Under my rear are mid-range models. Solid, not quite as exciting. But that's exactly why I find them interesting. You don't have to take out a small loan for these chairs and you can still do something good for your back. The Stilo ES from Dauphin is my favorite so far. One price range cheaper is the Trillo Pro from Profim on the road. The company provided me with the chair for a few weeks.
Assembly and first impression
Four screws, the gas pressure spring, a base with castors, seat and backrest - that's it. I had to assemble the Trillo Pro from only eight parts. This can even be done without instructions, if you want. The Allen key for the four screws is included. I don't need any other tools.
My test copy is covered with gray-checkered fabric, the rest is kept in matte black. The parts are made of hard plastic molded into soft shapes, which has a pleasant surface: slightly roughened, but still flattering to hands. By the way, the chair is made in Poland, where the company Profim, founded in 1991, has its headquarters and manufacturing. That should help the manufacturer on the subject of availability if the worldwide delivery problems persist. After assembly, which is completed in ten minutes, the Trillo Pro is immediately pleasing: this chair cuts a fine figure.
Functionality
The Trillo Pro is not a chair that flaunts levers. In fact, there's only one under the seat. The one for height adjustment. I don't have to and can't adjust anything else. So I can concentrate entirely on ensuring that my lower and upper legs form a right angle. That works well for me and my slightly over 1.90 meter body length. I can adjust the seat height by 13 centimeters, up to a seat height of 50 centimeters. By comparison, a dining room chair is about 45 centimeters.
The backrest gives way when I lean against it hard. If I don't, it supports my back and helps me maintain a posture that is easy on my spine. Office chair designers call this kind of feature "synchronous mechanism with automatic spring force adjustment." If the dynamics bother me, I can prevent the tilt by using the secret function of the lever under the seat. If I push it toward the center, the backrest locks into place. The armrests are mounted on the backrest. If I lean back hard to relax, the armrests do the same. They are only a little over 20 centimeters long and seven centimeters wide, which is perfectly adequate. Most of the time, my forearms rest on the table anyway.
A not entirely harmless construction is the lower end of the backrest. When leaning back, the plastic closes the gap to the upholstery of the seat. Fingers can easily be crushed here. Lookin' at you, you one- to two-and-a-half-year-olds looking for discoveries in the home office!
Material and care
Profim offers a small range of gray tones for the Trillo Pro's fabric cover. In addition, there are blues, reds, greens, and beiges for those with the courage for color. The fabric is made entirely of the synthetic fiber polyester, which gives it good durability. In my roughly four-week test, there was no wear on the gray, neither discoloration of my pants nor any kind of pilling. On the Martindale scale, which defines abrasion resistance, the fabric still has a score of 100,000, which is more than is considered a requirement in cafes or on buses. It is also Oekotex Standard 100 certified. That's not yet cradle-to-cradle, but at least it's not bad.
The plastic, which holds the upholstery in shell form, and the turnstile are grateful cleaning objects. Whether it's a microfiber cloth or a slightly damp rag - whatever needs to be wiped away can be wiped off.
Conclusion: no frills - and that's a good thing
The Trillo Pro is the perfect model for you if you want to sit on a reasonably crafted and attractively designed chair. I liked the subtle design, and the shape of the sweepingly defined armrests are echoed in the height-adjustment lever. The backrest has a certain elegance thanks to its different material thickness and because it does not directly connect to the seat, but ends above it. Today, I would even dare to order it with a colored fabric and not play it safe with gray. The successful design deserves this courage.
I am positively surprised by the seating comfort. With so few adjustment options, I was skeptical at first whether I would find the right seating position. But in principle, the Trillo Pro has taken the decisions away from me. I can rely on the backrest being made to fit a normal average back, even without a seven-position adjustable lumbar support mechanism. However, you are ultimately responsible for the dynamic sitting recommended by orthopedists on the Trillo Pro. There are no bouncing seat surfaces to take care of this, as is the case with more expensive models.
In the end, the search for an office chair is also a question of price. The Trillo Pro costs around half less than my previous test favorite, the Dauphin Stilo ES. Is it also half the price? Sure, it offers fewer features that really appealed to me as a rather tall man. But if you're willing to forgo bells and whistles like adjustable seats or armrests that you can slide in four directions, the Trillo Pro is without question a good choice. It will get you through your home office days in style.
Do you have any questions about the chair we tested? Feel free to post them in the comments - I'll be happy to answer them.
Martin Jungfer
Head of Content
Martin.Jungfer@digitecgalaxus.chJournalist since 1997. Stopovers in Franconia (or the Franken region), Lake Constance, Obwalden, Nidwalden and Zurich. Father since 2014. Expert in editorial organisation and motivation. Focus on sustainability, home office tools, beautiful things for the home, creative toys and sports equipment.
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