The basic warranty—one year, no labor—is on the chintzy side. You can bolster it for an extra charge, adding one year ($98), two years ($168), or three years ($227). One former Peloton Bike owner told us that, at 5-foot-1, she struggled with fit even after moving the bike’s seat all the way forward. You can find extenders, made by companies unaffiliated with Peloton, that are intended to rectify the issue (we have not tried them).
The Largo features a classic Schwinn cruiser frame and fork with a vintage look that’s perfect for casual around the neighborhood. The single-speed drivetrain is simple to use, while the rear coaster brake provides intuitive stops. Plus, the Largo’s upright riding position and Schwinn quality cruiser spring saddle make this one of the most comfortable rides around.
We tested several bikes with no connectivity that provide a simpler way to ride. The Peloton app can also work with these bikes, but without the live leaderboard and full real-time stats that many Peloton fans love. The Echelon Connect Bike EX-5 operates through your own tablet (set in a tablet holder), which connects the bike to the $39-per-month Echelon Fit app (iOS, Android) over Wi-Fi or via Bluetooth. It has dual-sided pedals, and the display is very similar to the Peloton Bike’s, including a leaderboard.
If your bike has toe cages and you prefer them, consider wearing stiff-soled athletic shoes versus your bounciest trainer, since a stiffer sole will offer more support while you’re in the pedals. One tester, who thought the bike felt and fit fine, pointed out that it had a more “vertical” seated position than other bikes she tried. “It didn’t feel like it was trying to compete with Peloton or other studio bikes,” she noted. “I think it’s for a different consumer.” One difference is the SF-B1805’s generously padded seat, which may take some getting used to if you’re accustomed to cycling in a studio.
On top of that, if the bike isn’t connected to the app and engaged in a class, the resistance isn’t adjustable, and you lose a lot of riding potential. The number of daily live classes is on a par with Peloton’s (and the on-demand library features more than 3,000 on-demand workouts both on and off the bike). But Echelon’s overall app organization isn’t as clean as Peloton’s, and—though the instructors are enthusiastic and some are very solid—the rides, workouts, and trainers can be hit or miss. In our testing, the magnetic resistance adjusted smoothly and was fairly responsive.
The pedal clips, which are Look Delta–compatible, hold the Peloton cycling shoes or other appropriate bike shoes securely. (You need to buy shoes separately.) Over the years, we’ve experienced easy clip-ins and clip-outs, and we’ve also had to work hard to release our shoes from the pedals. During our most recent testing of the Peloton Bike, we ran into an issue with the shoes not clipping into the pedals. A technician was able to quickly fix the problem with a set of new pedals (the company’s troubleshooting advice didn’t work in our case). In our tests, the bike easily connected to the Peloton app, showing real-time cadence, though it doesn’t indicate watts (a measure of power output). Since the IC4’s resistance range doesn’t match directly with Peloton’s, riders have come up with various conversions to help match the resistance numbers.
And Wirecutter has twice now had more than half a dozen bikes simultaneously parked in the office, most recently in the summer of 2022. Along the way, 15 volunteer testers—from indoor-cycling beginners to aficionados who brought their own shoes—have taken some of the bikes for a spin. The water-bottle holders were the nicest among those on bikes in our test pool, sturdily schwinn mountain bike made and positioned conveniently within the handlebars. The seat is a slim racing style, and although it didn’t differ drastically from most of the others we perched on, it wasn’t quite as comfortable initially (but we warmed to it). The Spinning Aero Connected Spinner Bike comes with a cadence sensor, which you attach to the pedal crank (we installed it easily).