A lot of Peloton in the news lately. Is there anyone that owns a Peloton machine that can comment on what they like and dislike about Peloton? Have you guys noticed a decline in the product, software, classes?
I have a family member that owns one and I've tried it a few times recently. The bike hardware is very good, the instructor content is very good, the software is decent. No noticeable decline in software or content.
Overall cost compares pretty well to a gym, PT, or class subscriptions esp if you live in an expensive area.
It does feel like a potentially valuable company that is just being run badly, but also could face competition. It also does feel like a company that could work well within a larger fitness or content company.
Likes:
- It's soooooo easy to just get on it and ride. One of the core tenets of habit-building is to make a habit easy to do. I can't imagine an easier way to exercise than sitting on a bike that's a few feet from my bed.
- The classes are all high quality. The instructors are charismatic and varied. There are a lot of them and they all have their own personal style. You can find the 2-3 that work for you or hop around. I only actively dislike 1 or 2, but I get why others could like them.
- The classes extend beyond the bike. I like taking their stretching classes and my wife takes a strength class nearly every day.
- The powerzone classes are great and a perfect example of something that can't easily be reproduced by competition that doesn't fully integrate hardware, software, and content.
- People complain about the subscription cost, but $40 a month is less than the ~$100 a month we were spending on 2 memberships to the only gym in a 15-minute driving radius to my house.
Dislikes:
- Delivery was a NIGHTMARE. Just absolutely terrible. It'd take me 30 minutes to type all the pain we went through for delivery.
- Literally nothing else.
> Have you guys noticed a decline in the product, software, classes?
Nope, not at all. In fact, they recently added some boxing stuff which is a new class type for them.
TLDR: I love my Bike+ as does my partner. It's well worth the monthly fee (and this document seems to imply that its too cheap!). Is the bike itself worth £2250? Probably not in theory but it is to me.
Further elaboration: The tech is interesting. It's very polished but there is SO much room for additional reporting, functionality etc. I have actually played abit with the unofficial API and theres lots of data available.
One and only one data point: the handle allowing the chair to move forward and back broke 2 months ago, about 6 months out of warranty. (Great for my partner, who now has exclusive use of the bike in her position… not so good for me.)
Support originally wanted to charge me $250 for replacement and service. A few YouTubes and a second call, the service person admitted that a $5 part would probably do the trick.
It’s taken two full months from that support call to get the shipping notification on that part.
Other than that, though - my experience with the bike and classes has been positive.
I'm a satisfied customer - one of my favorite products. Based on that I would assume there's a solid business here. Did the valuation get too far from fundamentals - I dunno and I don't care as long as they stay in business.
Overall cost compares pretty well to a gym, PT, or class subscriptions esp if you live in an expensive area.
It does feel like a potentially valuable company that is just being run badly, but also could face competition. It also does feel like a company that could work well within a larger fitness or content company.