Mr Big may have keeled over and died during a Peloton workout. Wags in Billions had a heart attack when he was on his. 2022 hasn’t exactly begun on a peachy note for Peloton, PR-wise, with the two big HBO shows clearly choosing to show the downside of the smart exercise cycle. Heck, even Emily in Paris took a dig at it (though no one thankfully kicked the bucket on the show riding a Peloton).
Peloton is a smart exercise bicycle that took the US by storm during 2020. As gyms all over the country shut down, Peloton offered its users a lot more than just a 45-minute spin workout: it offered them a community. For a stiff monthly fee of $39, Peloton users could access classes via app or the website on the bike’s screen, and workout. They could also compete with each other – a live leaderboard ranks participants from all over – and workout to (licensed) curated music.
When the pandemic began to ebb, so did the demand for Peloton’s products. At the moment, the company has halted production of the bikes not because of purported health hazards but rather due to thinning demand. But even as Peloton’s fame wanes in the US, the smart exercise bicycle industry in India is only heating up.
The third wave of Covid may have well been the push the industry needed in India. Throughout 2020, searches for ‘Peloton alternative in India’ would throw up regular (but expensive) bicycle results. It wasn’t until 2021 that Bengaluru-based tech-fitness startup Tread launched its ambitious Tread One for a whopping Rs 54,000. Even though it was somewhat comical to see it being advertised as ‘India’s answer to Peloton’. Tread One did serve up everything a Peloton does, its blatant chest-beating as a Peloton copy notwithstanding.
Also read: Peloton hits reset with CEO change, job cuts
Tread One has since been acquired by Cult.Fit and at least two other players have entered the smart bicycle space.
Here are the best smart exercise bicycles in India right now
- Cultbike X1
Following its acquisition, Tread One has been rebranded as Cultbike X1. This smart exercise cycle features over a hundred scenic views – from cityscape of Paris to mountainous terrains – to choose from during the ride, and has the option to add seven user profiles. It also features a host of spinning workouts with certified fitness trainers for different difficulty levels.
Since it is a Cult.Fit product, Cultbike X1 also lets you access a lot of other non-spinning workouts. The bike has a 360-degree movable screen, so if you’re not cycling, you can simply turn it around and join a live yoga or strength-and-conditioning session.
There are no subscription fees till March 2023, but given the range of membership programmes Cult.Fit has, it’s safe to assume an annual subscription to the workouts will kick in sooner or later.
At Rs 49,990, Cultbike X1 is one of the most expensive smart exercise bicycles in the market.
- Flexbike+
In direct competition to the Cultbike X1 is Flexbike+. Designed and sold by Flexnest, a Gurugram-based fitness startup, Flexbike+ comes with a 22-inch HD touchscreen display, and offers trainer-led workouts, quite like Cult.Fit.
The Flexbike+ offers a one-year complimentary subscription to Flexnest classes. What is outside of the subscription are 100+ virtual rides across cities around the world.
At Rs 59,990, Flexbike+ may work out to be tad more expensive than Cultbike X1. Given that the latter is part of a large company, makes it more commercially accessible. And unlike the Cultbike X1, Flexbike+ needs to be pre-ordered.
- Flexbike
Flexbike is the budget version of the Flexbike+ but comes at a significant – 45 percent, to be precise – markdown. The Flexbike is essentially the same model, offering the same silent magnetic resistance and smooth ride but sans the touchscreen.
Flexbike offers everything that the + version offers, including a one-year free membership to the Flexnest workouts but to access them you will need to use your personal device like a mobile phone or tablet. This is, in fact, a good thing, especially if you live in a smaller home because it reduces the length of the cycle by a few inches and doesn’t make it look like the piece of equipment is occupying the whole of your room.
The Flexbike is available at Rs 32,999 and will require you to do the installation, which isn’t very complex. Both the Flexbikes are available on the Flexnest site as well as on Amazon.
- OneFitPlus – OFP 1000
The rather clunkily-named OFP 1000 sounds like a throwback to the old days when Terminator updates came with numbers in their name. But the OneFitPlus OFP 1000 remains one of the least expensive smart exercise bicycles in India today.
Since OneFitPlus was acquired by Cult.Fit in December 2021, the bike is available not just on its own site and on Amazon but also on Cult.Fit’s site.
At Rs 16,999, the OFP 1000 may not amount to much – it doesn’t support more than 110 kg – and unlike the rest of the bikes here features an old-school belt mechanism but its acquisition ensures you get free access to Cult.Fit workouts for a year. And isn’t that the whole point of getting a smart bike?
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