Discover what makes treadmill consoles and other cardio machine consoles easy to use. Also: New technology capabilities to know.
Buying cardio equipment is a lot like buying a car. It’s a major purchase people make once every several years.
The market changes a lot between buys. With sales of home fitness equipment up by triple-digit percentages since the onset of COVID 19, there are more new or first-time shoppers than ever. Perhaps you’re one. If so, we’re here to help you make sense of the marketplace.
Just as today’s cars have more technology, treadmill consoles are now capable of things that were unheard of even five years ago. To get the most for your money, your buying process should involve three steps:
A good console gets you into your workout quickly.
How to Tell at a Glance if a Console is Good
Why focus so much on the console? While the ‘ride’ underfoot certainly matters, the console is where all of your mental interaction with the machine takes place. It’s what greets you every time you step onto a cardio machine, be it a treadmill, bike, elliptical or arc trainer. And consoles vary greatly from manufacturer to manufacturer.
A good console gets you into your workout quickly, connects to your devices without hassle, and — if you ever get bored — is capable of keeping you engaged.
To meet its many requirements, a console control board ought to have a clear visual hierarchy, where:
Finally, don’t forget about the reading rack, which nowadays usually doubles as a smartphone holder.
Are You Not Entertained?
Now that we’ve discussed what must be on a console control board, let’s examine your options for how that information can be presented. Broadly speaking, you have three categories of options. In order of increasing entertainment value, they are:
Another key thing to consider: accessibility. The larger the display area is on a unit, the bigger its messages can be presented. Bigger sizes let the unit say more (helpful for maintenance situations or software updates) and for use of larger font sizes.
Get Yourself Connected: Today’s Must-Have Fitness Technology
More exercisers are using more devices in more ways than ever before.
More exercisers are using more devices in more ways than ever before. In fact, sales of bluetooth headsets grew by 200% during 2019, with Apple AirPods alone selling 60 million units within that category.
About 14 million more people purchased a smartwatch during the first quarter of 2020. And remember, those numbers are pre-COVID. It’s easy to see why wearable devices is the number one trend influencing fitness for four of the past six years, according to the American College of Sports Medicine.
Where 20 years ago people might roll up on a treadmill with a heart rate monitor if anything, today’s trainees come equipped with a smartwatch and a killer set of headphones — and all of them are wireless. To meet the needs of those many devices (and different brands of device makers), a console needs to offer an alphabet soup of connectivity, including:
What Else Makes a Console Good?
The last thing you want after you’ve invested a four-figure sum into a new cardio machine is to be hit with a repair bill. A good warranty provides peace of mind and protection against faulty manufacturing.
There are several different components covered under a warranty, so be sure to inquire about each of the following:
But Wait, what’s the Difference Between Commercial Treadmill Consoles vs Home Gyms?
Broadly speaking, the treadmill console won’t be much different between a unit meant for home fitness vs. commercial fitness use. The main difference is in durability.
Commercial units include heftier shocks and other reinforced parts to handle the all-day pounding they receive from differently sized people. Your typical at-home treadmill, which might get used for an hour or two per day, doesn’t need to be so heavy-duty.
Options for home use also include folding treadmills, which help you save floorspace around the house.
5 Questions Every Cardio Console Buyer Should Ask
What’s the console’s boot up time? No one likes waiting. A unit shouldn’t take longer than six seconds to turn on and be ready to roll.
What’s included standard? Some cardio equipment manufacturers woo you with low prices on a ‘base’ treadmill console but then upsell you with added features.
What happens if something goes wrong? Get crystal clarity on what’s covered under the warranty, and what support the manufacturer provides if problems occur. You don’t want to navigate through difficult menus to read obscure error codes and research part numbers, so find out how they’ll help you. Also ask: will the console require software updates and if so, how easy or challenging will they be?
What type of workout experience do I want? Consider how much entertainment value or additional content you want. Would you like to be able to watch movies or stream workouts? If so, a LCD touchscreen unit is the way to go. If you prefer to just hammer off the miles to just the sound of the engine (or your headphones), then an LED will do you fine.
What devices does it work with? Make sure the answer you hear includes the options you need, whether that be Bluetooth®, Apple® GymKit, ANT+, Garmin or Polar.