[skalpelis]

If anything, the chair is worth it because of the warranty - imagine buying a 100$ POS chair every year and compare it with the cost of an Aeron over 12 years (at least twelve, but it's likely to last more).

However, the 12-year warranty is only for structural parts. If I recall correctly, the mesh had only a 5-year warranty.

[silencio]

This chair discussion and zed shaw's recent RSI discussion led me to looking at buying a new chair since my current one is giving me problems. I've settled on the Mirra, since I prefer it to an Aeron and I've found some reasonable deals for various colors of lightly used Mirra chairs on sites like ebay, craigslist, etc.

I'm sure a lot of others here looking to buy a chair are thinking of going the same route I am. Be aware that there is one major caveat emptor to buying a secondhand chair: Herman Miller's 12 year warranty only applies to the original purchaser that obtained the product from HM or an authorized reseller. Humanscale, Steelcase, Knoll, HON, and pretty much every other major task chair manufacturer has a similar warranty, and none of them will let you transfer the warranty AFAIK. Experiences with obtaining warranty service for secondhand Aerons and other chairs seems to vary, but please factor in the possibility that you may not be able to obtain service into the long-term cost of buying a used chair. If a trivial-over-12-years cost difference will give you peace of mind, go for it. Research a reseller before you buy anything from them. And so on.

If you weren't aware of this already, well, you can use it now to negotiate a lower price ;)

(Speaking of warranties, Costco sells some Herman Miller chairs as a legitimate authorized reseller. You can get the HM warranty and Costco's legendary return policy together that way, should anything with your chair go horribly wrong.)

[mechanical_fish]

I believe that is right. Don't juggle knives while standing near your Aeron.