Nordictrack SE9i vs Assault airbike
This is a comparison between the Nordictrack SE9i elliptical and the Assault airbike Follow the links for more details.
Overview and review of the Assault airbike
The Assault Airbike comes in at $699 - $999. In this article you will learn more about the product itself, its Pros and cons and alternatives you might want to consider. This article has originally been published in the overview "Which conditioning equipment to buy from Rogue".
Overview of the Assault airbike
The
Assault Airbike has been given an overhaul to live up to the highest standards of athletes. The company in charge is LifeCORE fitness in California, even though this
bike is not built in the US. The
assault bike comes with the following specifications:
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Color Black
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Weight 99LB
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Length 50.9”
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Width 23.3”
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Height 48.4”
Airbikes work with the resistance of the air and give you a challenging full body workout. The faster you pedal the higher the resistance becomes. These are a great alternative for your home gym to treadmills and ellipticals as they take up less space and provide a better workout if it is burned calories you are after.
Pros of the Assault Airbike
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Sturdy design
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Band propelled
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Long years of experience
The
assault air bike is heavy and has a sturdy steel frame. This prevents swaying during the ride compared to other models form the past. The weight of your
Airbike is a good indicator whether it has been built thoroughly or whether the vendor took some shortcuts.
Compared to older models the
Assault air bike has the advantage of being band propelled. Older models were chain propelled which lead to more noise. This is becoming more and more of an industry standard and is therefore not as much of a differentiator than it used to be.
With Assault you are buying into a range of products of a healthy company which has been around for years. This company is very likely here to stay and won’t go anywhere.
Cons of the Assault Airbike
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Specificity
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Not the newest design
The first one goes for all Airbikes. While they provide a great workout to get you in sweat it is not specific to most sports. Treadmills and normal bikes score better in this regard. If you are outfitting a gym for an elite athlete you will also need to get treadmills.
The
Assault bike design is solid, but not the newest one of the market. My hunch is that
Assault is good at looking at the market and then outsourcing the production cost effectively to China, but I might be wrong. The Assault bike was a copy of the
Schwinn and the Assault air runner is a copy of the
TrueForm runner.
Alternatives to the Assault Airbike
If you like the design of the
Assault bike and the company you can also take it a step up by opting for the elite. The elite comes with an even heavier frame and newer computer to match the highest of standards.
Concept 2 provides a solid range of cardiovascular machines with their rowers,
skiergs, and
bikes. If you just want a regular
bike for spinning classes or to save some space their bike is an alternative.
The
Rogue echo bike is Rogue's take on the Airbike market. Manufactured in Columbus Ohio this machine is the no-nonsense approach to Airbikes and currently the best value for money option on the market.
Summary for the Assault Airbike
An
assault air bike is a solid machine which you can add to your arsenal. If the design is to your liking and fits your overall gym go for this one. If you don’t care about these things you might want an interesting alternative in the
Rogue Echo bike.
Further reading
This is a review of the Nordictrack SE9i model. You will learn about the specifics, pros, cons, and alternatives of this elliptical to make a decision. This article was originally published in "Which elliptical to get from Nordictrack".
The
SE9i elliptical is the flagship rear-drive elliptical from Nordictrack. Its main features are a 7-inch touch screen, 18-flywheel, and 10% incline. The full list of features includes:
Compared to the rest of the Nordictrack portfolio the
SE9i is relatively cheap, even though it is the most expensive rear-drive elliptical in stock. Compared to the lower cost
SE7i it has the advantage of the 7-inch touch screen.
For buying something rather low tier from a vendor the price is still pretty high. If you want to save money, go all the way and get a machine that has been stripped of most things and focuses on the essentials. Otherwise, go for a different vendor or fitness machine where you can acquire the top tier products for $2000.
The
Rogue echo bike at $700 is, in my opinion, one of the strongest contestants for the best home gym workout machine. It is compact, affordable and packs a punch.