Indoor training has undergone a bit of a revival in recent years, gone are the days of staring at a wall in your basement spinning aimlessly; now we are flush with options to guide you through highly targeted workouts and even video games that will keep you entertained as you suffer.
The advent of apps like Zwift, TrainerRoad, The Sufferfest and so many others, has also heralded the dramatic rise of the smart trainer. Using a Bluetooth Smart or ANT+ connection, a Smart Trainer will not only measure your power output, but some can also change the resistance to help you get the most out intervals or simulate virtual changes in topography and road surface.
What to look for in a smart trainer
There are two types of smart trainers these days, wheel-on/tyre driven and direct drive. Just as the names suggest, wheel-on places a roller against your rear tyre to provide resistance while direct-drive uses a cassette connects directly to your bike and is wheel-off.
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The most significant factor in determining which smart trainer is best for you will be how much you're willing to spend, with the wheel-on variety being more budget friendly. Of course, there is a trade-off, however. The wheel-on trainers are usually louder and don’t offer the same accurate power measurement their direct drive cousins do and most direct drive trainers require power calibration before each use, generally in the form of a 'spin down.'
There are of course still 'dumb' trainers which have no electronics which these can be used with most training apps provided you have a power meter or speed and cadence sensors for virtual power. With these, however, you miss out on the interactivity, and as they can't take commands from apps like Zwift and Rouvy they also lose a bit of their entertainment value.
Smart trainers can also offer ERG mode where the trainer will tailor the resistance curve to help you hit your target power. For example, let's say you're riding using TrainerRoad and your target power is 200 watts, ERG mode will provide the right resistance for 200 watts regardless of whether you're pedalling at 60RPM or 150RPM. This means you can focus more on the pedalling and less about shifting, cross chaining and blowing your interval because you got a bit too involved in whatever you were watching on Netflix.
Wheel-on smart trainers
Wahoo Kickr Snap
- Flywheel weight: 10.5lbs / 4.76kg
- Connectivity: ANT+, ANT+ FE-C, and Bluetooth Smart
- Claimed power accuracy: +/- 3-percent
- Max power: 1500-watts
- Max simulated grade: 12-percent
- Price: $599 / £499 / AU$649
- Buy the Wahoo Kickr Snap in the UK
- Buy the Wahoo Kickr Snap in the USA
- Buy the Wahoo Kickr Snap in Australia
Kurt Kinetic Rock and Roll Control
- Flywheel weight: 12lb / 5.4kg
- Connectivity: ANT+ FE-C and Bluetooth
- Claimed power accuracy: +/-3-percent
- Max power: 1800-watts
- Max simulated grade: 10-percent
- Price: $749 / £750 / AU$1349
- Buy the Kurt Kinetic Rock n Roll Control in the UK
- Buy the Kurt Kinetic Rock n Roll Control in the USA
- Buy the Kurt Kinetic Rock n Roll Control in Australia
Tacx Flow Smart
- Flywheel weight: 1.6kg
- Connectivity: ANT+FC-C, Bluetooth Smart
- Claimed power accuracy: +/-5-percent
- Max power: 800-watts
- Max simulated grade: 6-percent
- Price: $396 / £199 / AU$TBC
- Buy the Tacx Flow Smart in the UK
- Buy the Tacx Flow Smart in the USA
- Buy the Tacx Flow Smart in Australia
Cyclops M2
- Flywheel weight: 2.6lbs / 1.2kg
- Connectivity: ANT+ FE-C, Bluetooth
- Claimed power accuracy: +/-5-percent
- Max power: 1500-watts
- Max simulated grade: 15-percent
- Price: $599 / £500/ AU$749
BKool Smart Pro II
- Flywheel weight: N/A
- Connectivity: ANT+ FE-C, Bluetooth Smart
- Claimed power accuracy: N/A
- Max power: 1200-watts
- Max simulated grade: 20-percent
- Price: $589 / £499 / AU$899
- Buy the BKool Smart Pro 2 in the UK
- Buy the BKool Smart Pro 2 in the USA
- Buy the BKool Smart Pro 2 in Australia
Direct drive smart trainers
Wahoo Kickr Core
- Flywheel weight: 12lbs / 5.4kg
- Connectivity: ANT+, ANT+ FE-C, and Bluetooth
- Claimed power accuracy: +/- 2-percent
- Max power: 1800-watts
- Max simulated grade: 16-percent
- Price: $899 / £699 / AU$1199
- Buy the Wahoo Kickr Core in the UK
- Buy the Wahoo Kickr Core in the USA
- Buy the Wahoo Kickr Core in Australia
Kurt Kinetic R1
- Flywheel weight: 30.9lbs / 14kg
- Connectivity: ANT+ FE-C, Bluetooth, USB
- Claimed power accuracy: +/- 3-percent
- Max power: 2000-watts
- Max simulated grade: 20-percent
- Price: $1050 / £999 / AU$1699
- Buy the Kurt Kinetic R1 in the UK
- Buy the Kurt Kinetic R1 in the USA
- Buy the Kurt Kinetic R1 in Australia
Tacx Neo Smart 2
- Flywheel weight: 125kg / 275.8lbs (virtual)
- Connectivity: ANT+ FE-C, Bluetooth
- Claimed power accuracy: +/- 1-percent
- Max power: 2200-watts
- Max simulated grade: 25-percent
- Price: $ / £ / AU$
- Buy the Tacx Neo Smart 2 in the UK
- Buy the Tacx Neo Smart 2 in the USA
- Buy the Tacx Neo Smart 2 in Australia
Cyclops H2
- Flywheel weight: 20lbs / 9kg
- Connectivity: ANT+ FE-C, Bluetooth
- Claimed power accuracy: +/- 2-percent
- Max power: 2000-watts
- Max simulated grade: 20-percent
- Price: $1199 / £1000 / AU$1699
Elite Drivo II
- Flywheel weight: 13.2lbs / 6kg
- Connectivity: ANT+, Bluetooth Smart
- Claimed power accuracy: +/- 0.5-percent
- Max power: 2300-watts
- Max simulated grade: 24-percent
- Price: $1199 / £1199 / AU$1599
You can read more at Cyclingnews.com
via Cyclingnews Latest Interviews and Features http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/10-best-smart-trainers-2019
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