Ultrasport F-Bike, bicycle trainer, home trainer, foldable
Ultrasport F-Bike, bicycle trainer, home trainer, foldable fitness bike, integrated training computer, hand pulse sensors, foldable, 8 resistance levels, ideal for old and young
Space-saving training device with folding function
The Ultrasport F-Bike was awarded byvergleich.org. As a foldable folding fitness bike, the home trainer is the perfect training device for effective home training.
Individual adjustment options
Beginners and advanced riders can adjust the saddle height individually. The wide feet and the non-slip end caps offer additional safety during training.
Farewell to studio fees & annoying travel times
With the fitness products from ULTRASPORT, you save on your monthly payment and are not tied to the opening times of the studios. With the time saved, you can significantly improve your quality of life and are also not exposed to any risk of infection.
 |  |  |  |  |  | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Style | F bike exercise bike | F bike design | F-Bike 150 without backrest | F-Bike 300B With tablet holder | F bike work | F-Bike 400BS with app |
| Item dimensions L x W x H | 80.5 x 43.5 x 112 cm | 80.5 x 43.5 x 112 cm | 80 x 45 x 121cm | 74 x 41 x 111cm | 80.5 x 43.5 x 112 cm | 81 x 43 x 113 cm |
| Colour | Black / Silver | Silver | Navy Blue | Black / Dark Gray | Silver / Black | Dark Gray / Black |
| Material | Stainless steel | Stainless steel | Stainless steel | Stainless steel | Stainless steel | Stainless steel |
| Maximum weight recommendation | 110 kilograms | 110 kilograms | 110 kilograms | 100 kilograms | 100 kilograms | 100 kilograms |
| Power source | Battery operated | Battery operated | Battery operated | Battery operated | Battery operated | Battery operated |
| Batteries included | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Batteries | 2 AA batteries required (included) | 2 AAA batteries required (included) | 2 C batteries required (included) | 2 AAA batteries required (included) | 2 AAA batteries required (included) | 2 AAA batteries required (included) |
| Size: | F-Bike |
| Dimensions: | 80.5 x 43.5 x 112 cm; 15.5 Kilograms |
| Brand: | Ultrasport |
| Model: | 331100000022 |
| Colour: | Black/Silver |
| Batteries Included: | 2 AA batteries required. (included) |
| Manufacture: | Ultrasport |
| Department: | Men |
| Dimensions: | 80.5 x 43.5 x 112 cm; 15.5 Kilograms |
| Size: | F-Bike |
Bought to help with convalescence after major operation, has helped with my recovery, over 1300km registered on odometer and I have no complaints, if you want an exercise bike for gentle exercise to get the oxygen around the body then this would be a good choice, light enough to move around the house if needed.
Perfect for what I wanted. I durable folding bike that has a reasonable range of resistances. The display is simple but enough for what I want – distance heart rate, speed calories etc. Took about 30 mins to assemble by myself. prompt delivery. Saddle a bit uncomfortable after 30mins – may have to adjust but otherwise perfect so far.
Had my old one for nearly 10 years until it eventually fell apart. Did thousands of Kilometers on it. Got into the habit of doing 30/60 mins at a time maybe 2 or 3 times a week in the shed. Certainly made a positive difference for my road cycling. Good price. What’s the point in spending hundreds/thousands of pounds on indoor training? All cycling is is turning a pedal at varying degrees of difficulty which you can do on this. Folds up so takes up minimum space and fairly easy to put together. Just about to buy another one!
This item arrived very quickly with excellent tracking. Assembled on my own! Runs very quietly and smoothly, and has a comfortable saddle and riding position. The only downside is that the crossbar is quite high, so you need to be able to get your leg high enough to go over, or (in my case) dismount to the rear. Overall, very pleased, especially at such a fantastic Black Friday price.
Ensemble time 40 minutes -ok. I am 6foot – knees hit handle bars a bit. Doe’s work for getting you moving – not fancy but fit for purpose if purpose is to get moving.
Seat can be uncomfortable but you get used to it.
Basic functions displayed – speed, distance, time and heart rate etc.
Speed and distance is KM and can’t be changed to miles – hence 4 stars.
Overall it’s a good starter bike – good enough for my father to buy one.
I’m really impressed with this ….
– Easy to assemble, took about 10 minutes. The istructions were pretty clear.
– Build quality seems really good. Amazing for the price really.
– Really sturdy when riding. I was worried that the small footprint would make it a bit wobbly. Not so.
– Folds up brillianty when not being used. Takes a couple of seconds to fold/unfold
– I cant get over how quiet this is. Compared to my old friction wheel bike this is nearly silent. No worries about riding this early in the morning before anyone else wakes up. Its sat on a hard floor, without a mat, too.
– I love the little stand for your phone above the digital display. Perfect height
– The trip computer thing works well enough. Nothing too fancy just the basic stats of your workout. Heart rate monitor is handy to have.
– Handlebars are really soft and tactile. Lovely.
– Seat is ok. No comfort issue for me, but then I may have a bit more padding on me than some 🙂
– Range of effort levels is ok. The 1-8 range seems a bit biased towards the “easy” settings, but overally very good for this type of bike.
For the money, I really could not be happier.
I bought this following a total knee replacement. I am not particularly interested in the calorie counting, pulse etc I just wanted the pedalling movement and this is ideal with eight levels if resistance. I have had exercise bikes over the years and this is certainly the quietest. It is whisper quiet. It is stable in use. If you are a serious health and exercise fanatic the on board computer functions might not be sophisticated enough. It seems that some of the functions are cumulative unless you take the batteries out before each session. But, for my purposes it is ideal.
I bought this late Autumn last year, as the weather was preventing my getting out for my daily walk.
It was among the less expensive excercise bikes available, relatively easy to assemble (just follow the instructions carefully), and is adjustable in height for comfort. It is very stable. I use it for a 15 min work-out when I haven’t been able to go out for a brief walk. My late wife, who was ill at the time was also able to use it just to keep her muscles working (though she did need some help getting on and off.)
The digital read out is a bit confusing and is not really covered in the instructions, but measures time, ‘distance’, calories used, and more; but these come up randomly on the little screen, with no way of just showing one of them for any length of time. That;s my only niggle. I found nothing around this price that compares.
Ive only given ‘easy to fold’ a low score, as it’s faily heavy, but honestly folding it saves very little space so I don’t bother.
I’m glad I bought it.
Easy to assemble, I did it while watching a cartoon film and barely looked at the instructions. It is heavy though so that video with a woman smiling while she lifts it across the floor is comedic as I can guarantee you will not be smiling while moving it. I have to drag mine and let me tell you I grimace.
The handles are comfortable to hold wherever you place your hands but the seat is monstrously hard. Whoever designs these things why can they not make them as soft as a sofa instead of hard like a log. In its favour the seat height is adjustable.
The bike has a monitor for you to check your progress concerning distance travelled, calories burned, pulse rate etc which is handy.
One other issue the bike creaks in places while riding it and has got worse since I started using it even though I have hardly been on it. Loosening the seat screw helped a bit but the whole thing still makes a racket. I now just turn up the volume on the cycling videos I watch to counter the noise.
For the price it is very good, I managed to get it when it was on offer.
Cons: The calorie tracker isn’t accurate, although for this price, I wasn’t expecting it to (I use my Garmin for that). The description says it’s fold away and whilst it does collapse by a short distance, there isn’t a mechanism that keeps it folded up, unless it’s wedged in a small space, it will just open out to its normal working area. Whilst there is a resistance adjuster, this doesn’t alter the distance stated, eg. if I am peddling at highest resistance at a higher rpm (not recorded), I am not covering further distance. I think the distance tracker is the same across all resistance levels.
Conclusion: Study bike that allows you to exercise at home, which ticks most boxes for me, hence the 4 stars. I would recommend this and think it’s value for money. I have also bought a little bike basket to go on the handlebars to have a water bottle, remote control and phone nearby whilst I am using it.
The price has gone up quite a bit since I bought mine six months ago, but with excellent build quality, ease of assembly and the ride experience it’s still good value for money. I searched for a while till I found this – the 110kg load was a factor for me – and it is just as good as claimed in the description. I’m not much good at assembling stuff sometimes, but this was very easy and I did it alone without the need for any “can you give me a hand with this please?” Light enough to lift easily in and out of the corner in the spare room, it’s small enough that I’ve never even bothered to find out whether you can fold it up, but I think you can. Check out the description if you want to do that, but it is unobtrusive with a minimum footprint that won’t get in the way.
The sealed crank unit is smooth, and though I mainly want to “twiddle” (ancient cycle racing term) you can add to the difficulty and it still rides smoothly. Some older machines tended to be jerky when you did that, but this one remains silky smooth. I’ve tried – believe me I’ve tried – to find something I don’t like or that isn’t right to put in this review but I honestly can’t.
Brilliant – nice to buy something which meets expectation in reality and not just on paper!
The bike is fine – the instructions & Customer Services aren’t. No mention is made in the assembly instructions of how to use the special nuts (see photo) to attach the saddle to the saddle plate. No doubt some of you reading this are DIY fans – but I’m not. For weeks I tried to get some sense out of customer services in Germany – it was like pulling teeth! Eventually (after I provided proof of my blood group & inside leg measurement) they sent a whole new pack of nuts & bolts – just the same as the ones I already had.
But Eureka! While waiting several weeks for the package to arrive, a friend solved the problem: identified them as Nyloc nuts, explained what they do & how to fit them. So then I was then able to attach the saddle without any problem. If only customer services had done the same weeks earlier, it would have saved me a lot of hassle & wasted time without a bike.
As well as that – if anyone thinks they might injure themselves trying to fit the rigid plastic toe straps onto the pedals – just soak the straps in hot water for a few minutes to make them more flexible. Another useful tip that the instructions fail to mention.
On the plus side, it does seem quite sturdy and got good Which? reveiws. Seat is easily adjustable for someone 5 foot to over 6 foot and the control panel has clear and easy controls. I weigh 110kg and it seems to cope if I dont ‘go for it’ – just a steady, easy pace, watching a tv program for an hour or so.
Just lost a star due to small niggles.
I had one of these for about 3 years until it broke (something internal, the pedal kept slipping so it was unusable). Got a new one 3 months ago and a few days ago it started knocking every time I pedal. The old one did this just before it broke, but that time it was intermittent. This time, it’s with every rotation of the pedal. I contacted the manufacturer who sent me a new set of pedals which resolved the issue. Also wish it had more than 8 resistance settings. I bought the first bike when I was really unfit and started on setting one. I now do an hour on setting eight and wish there was a nine or ten. Overall, a decent machine which has helped me lose over 20 kilos.
Thanks .
James
Quite easy to assembly. I have done a lot more worse assemblies then this. If my memory is correct, there was only one place where the instruction was not too great, but it was just trying 1 thing out of 2.
It is quite light and compact when folded. It is just sitting in the room corner right now without taking much space. Similar to side bed drawer.
Really good for begginers whic want to train at home.
Now the not so great things:
This will only work for the beginners. The hardest difficulty is starting to get too easy just after 2 weeks. When you reach the speed of 30 and start to move sideways a lot more, the bike becomes a lot more unstable.
The menu on the screen does not go through the options in order (Neither vertically, neither horizontally). It’s not a big problem, just a bit confusing at first.
The seat is not the best. I’d be honest and say that it is quite hard one and buying something like a gel seat would be nice for it.
I will still give it 4 starts as I find it very convenient and as a first training bike, I am quite happy about it.
I assembled the Ultrasport very easily (It’s a 15-minute task at worst). On my e-bike I was doing 10 miles per day, and I stored it when I had covered exactly 1000 miles. The exercise bike only shows kilometers, so I decided to find an appropriate friction level that allowed me to do 10 kilometers per day with a fair bit of effort.
I’m up to 550Km now. The saddle, which some reviewers don’t like, is covered by a spare beach towel, and that makes it very comfortable. The riding position is fine too. I’m about 6 feet tall and it’s quite a good distance between saddle and handlebars. I do my morning 10Km whilst watching Breakfast TV, which SOMETIMES relieves the boredom, but there’s no getting away with it, it’s exercise for the sake of it, and I don’t enjoy it!
My dodgy cartilages are groaning in pain, but I’m at the level where I can do my 10Km without falling off. In reality, I like the machine: it’s doing the job and didn’t cost too much.
I can recommend it to those who need exercise on a regular basis.
The display shows elapsed time, current speed, trip distance, calories and pulse. It also has an odometer (total distance since last re-set). However, only one value can be displayed at a time. The display can be set to scan through all the values or you can manually set a single value to display, or toggle through the values. This is limiting as I would like to see several of the values simultaneously (e.g. speed, time, calories). Instead, I use my Garmin watch to monitor pulse and tend to just display calories. I then do a form of interval training alternating between Levels 6 & 7 (10 calories on each) with Level 6 used for recovery and Level 7 for maximum effort. Towards the end I switch to Level 7 and do a flat-out phase for around 60-80 calories looking to maximise the anaerobic aspect. I then download the Garmin data to review on a smartphone or pc. Without the Garmin watch I would struggle to set a meaningful training session.
So, in summary:
Good value. Compact when folded. Easy to assemble.
Limited in resistance.
Lacking display options or any data download.
But, for <130 it is a hit, for now at least.
I’ve had the heavy version for nearly a week now, I’ve used it for about 20 minutes a day. Assembly was a little tricky but it did come with all the tools required and all nuts and bolts etc. it is easy to adjust the seat and pedal straps.
A word of note is it doesn’t come with batteries for the computer, it takes two AAA ones. The computer is good with a big display, and it’s auto power on and off, you have a button to flip between the different screens and reset the readings.
Using the bike is easy, it’s certainly been working out my legs!
A word on quality, the sticker with the numbers for the resistance on the dial to adjust it is coming off on one end, but a bit of superglue should fix it, and when I got the bike their was a rattling in one pedal and it would be stiff to move. I popped of the plastic end cap and found an extra nut that was loose, I just took it out and it’s been fine since. I could moan and send it back but it’s an easy fix and it saves a lot of hassle sending things back. Plus it’s 140, not dirt cheap but no where near a Peloton!
So overall I’m pretty pleased with it, it’s easy enough to fold up and then setup for use and gives you a workout. And it was nice to see all the tools needed to assemble it in the box.
The assembly instructions were concise and easy to follow.
Completion can be achieved with the enclosed tools but should you have a socket set to hand, the process will be much easier, especially when you come to tightening the 3x nyloc nuts under the seat.
I am presently around 12 and a 1/2 stone and the bike is sturdy, stable and quiet.
For stowing away in the folded position, it is light enough to carry, even up the stairs.
Many people have complained about soreness caused by the seat and after completing the assembly myself, the reason was clearly evident.
Due to the seat being bolted directly to the triangular plate at the top of the seat post, the position is fixed, causing the front section to be higher than the rear, which in turn results in chafing and the early onset of soreness.
Unfortunately, there is no adjustment to lever the front of the seat down, such as you find on a bicycle, so a simpler if not perfect fix, would be for the manufacturers to alter the angle at which the triangular plate is welded to the seat post.
For me to overcome this problem, I would fit ‘spacer’ washers to the two threaded studs at the rear of the seat, thereby raising the back of the seat so that it is slightly higher than the front but alas, the threaded studs are too short.
My final concern occurred when attempting to install the two AAA batteries in the rear housing of the computer.
When compressing the spring terminal by the Negative end of the first battery, I could then push the Positive end into position and the battery was secure.
Repeating the process with the second battery was not so straightforward. Again, with the spring terminal compressed by the Negative end of the battery, the positive end could not be pushed home securely. With my finger keeping the battery in place, the computer functioned but as soon as I removed my finger, the battery fell out.
After a number of attempts, I have had to slightly force the battery housing cover shut, which in turn is holding the batteries in position.
The resistance range of the machine seems adequate for my needs and I intend to use it daily, when watching the 6 o’clock news.
Pros:
*Easy to assemble.
*Easy to use.
*Easy to store and is small enough to be set up almost anywhere.
*Gives you a good work out. I’m always left exhausted after my hour long sessions (in a good way of course).
*Its light and easy to maneuver around when I’m done using it (I store it in a corner of my home office).
*The screen is great at keeping track of how far you’ve “traveled” and what calories I’ve burnt.
*It is very easy to lose track of time while on the bike. It can feel like 5 minutes have passed but its actually been closer to an hour.
*Came quick and in perfect condition. The instructions were very clear on how to assemble and use.
Cons:
*The seat is slightly uncomfortable. As a larger person, I found the seat highly uncomfortable at first (and it left me a little sore on my behind for a day or so) and still do. Its very hard but I fixed the problem by putting a pillow on the seat and it makes it much more comfortable to sit on. Would suggest also using a pillow and/or something thick and comfy to sit on (could be a pillow, a thick blanket, etc, etc). You could also buy one of those padded bike seats that you would buy for a normal bike but I’m on a budget so a normal pillow works just fine.
*The top speed doesn’t feel all that challenging to me (this will differ from person to person though so not much of a con).
*The plastic/rubber ends to the stabilizers seem to come off rather easily even when the bike is lifted off the ground (I however fixed this with a bit of duct tape so again, not so much of a con).
*The seat is still slightly too high for me but I have managed to work around it easily. Could do with one more hole to make the seat a couple inches lower.
*The rubber strips for your peddles (that keeps your feet on the peddles) can be difficult to get on and off but with a little force and a bit of bending, I managed to get them on fine. They do stay in place once they’re on so this is both a pro and a con.
NOTE: I HAVE THE F-BIKE HEAVY
I’ve now had this bike for a week and I’ve used it every day (I was already fit anyway but I can’t get out much now so I bought this). I usually do pretty short reviews but considering this is 100+ I decided to go through some of the questions and give some answers and recommendations. Here’s some things people may find helpful:
– I’m 5’2 / 157cm and weigh 54kg / 119lb. I use the lowest seat setting and it’s perfect for me, if anything I can even use it when the seat is one notch higher.
– It’s very easy to assemble for one person but obviously it’s quicker with two people, one on each side!
– Attached is a photo of the bike: the bike when it’s folded in a reasonably small space in my lounge which is where it stays until I get it ready to go in the evenings.
– The bike came as it looked in the photo. It has the console and the handle bars. There’s no laptop table or anything.
– The pulse sensors can be temperamental. At the beginning they’re fairly accurate but as you progress and start sweating it effects the sensors a bit and the readings are inaccurate. For me this isn’t an issue as I track it all on my Fitbit anyway.
– There’s 8 settings on the bike. I usually use levels 2 and 3 for a warm up and cool down and then about level 5 for my actual workout. It’s handy to have a TV or music playing so you don’t get bored after a couple of days.
– When you’re attaching the phone holder, put it as high up as you are able but make sure you’re still able to put your phone in before you tighten it completely. The reason for this is because the bike doesn’t have a bottle holder so what I do is put my bottle of water lying on the two bars under where the phone holder goes! I thought that tip might be helpful!
– It’s very sturdy. I was on the bike a few days in to having it and realised I’d left my towel on the sofa, I leaned over a fair bit to get it and the bike didn’t even move, let alone tip over!
– I would highly suggest getting a gel seat cover like I have if you plan on using it more than a couple times a week but make sure it’s from Ultrasport and that you order the right size! It takes a couple of mins to stretch it on but it’s supposed to be like that! Otherwise the cover could just slip off. I’ve left the link to the one I have at the bottom of this review.
– You can’t change the distance. It’s preset to kilometres. I’m just going by km now but if you really want to calculate miles then a quick google search will do the trick!
– The console turns itself off after about 4 minutes of inactivity. When you go for your next workout the previous workout results will appear (distance, calories, time etc). If you want to start a new workout then hold down the button on the console (there’s only one!) and it’ll reset rather than carry on from your last workout. The only thing that doesn’t reset is the odometer which just tells you how many kilometres you’ve done in total from all your workouts.
– No noise!! The only sound it really makes is a very slight humming. You can still keep the TV at a normal level and it doesn’t disturb anyone. I live on the top floor of a block of flats so this was important for me.
– No plugs. No pesky wires. All you need is 2 AAA batteries to power the console.
– For those who want to start some kind of weight loss, this is a good start for FITNESS. Of course it’ll help you lose weight but 80% of weight loss is down to DIET. So you won’t be losing any weight if you’re still eating fatty sugary stuff all day.
I hope this helped and I hope I answered a lot of the questions people were asking. I also hope some of the tips I’ve recommended will help! If you want to know where I got my gel seat cover for my F-Bike Heavy then go to this url and make sure you select the right size!! A lot of people say it doesn’t fit as expected but I don’t know how many of those people just didn’t have the experience of being able to put right fitting gel covers on bike saddles and who genuinely had a cover too small!! Mine fits like a glove: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B01EV6XCYE?psc=1&ref=yo_pop_mb_yo_pop_mb_pd_t2
Overall, great bike for the price you pay.
Comfort
We were both immediately very impressed with the comfort of the bike. Very comfortable seat and handlebars. Crucially, the seat height is very quickly and easily adjusted so suit both of us which is very important because of our height difference.
Noise
With 2 sleeping kids in a small house noise was an important factor is choosing a bike. I’m amazed at house quiet this bike is. I was worried that I would need to put the volume on the TV quite high to hear it over the bike noise but it’s actually not really necessary to put the volume up at all.
Resistance
This was a big concern for me when buying because I am a lot fitter than my wife, albeit it’s been a few years since I’ve regularly exercised. Many reviews complained it barely gave them a workout. The main thing is to make sure you understand what you’re buying and don’t expect the bike to offer resistance similar to an exercise bike at a gym. You don’t get anything like an uphill sensation. But as a fit 26 year old man I find the top level gives me a good workout at a level I can maintain for a long time. My wife will probably prefer to use a lower level.
Computer
I find the computer very simple. Just one button to move between the different options to avoid any confusion. Tracking distance and calories and time all make it very easy to set clear goals which is ideal when starting a program.
Storage & Weight
First question is how easy/quick is it to fold and unfold. It’s as simple as pulling out a pin and then re-inserting it. If , like us, you’ll need to move it before and after using it then you’ll need to consider weight too. Most men will find this easy to carry around. Many women will probably find it a little on the heavy/uncomfortable side like my wife. However it’s certainly not too heavy for the vast majority of women to move around.
Appearance
Appearance is probably low on your priority list, but it might come into consideration especially if it is going to be left out. We find the white colour of the bike and the curved design makes this a very attractive bike which fits in well with out mainly white furniture. After all most other bikes are black and fold in an X shape.
Assembly
Putting the bike together is very easy and won’t take you long at all. It took me about 20-25 minutes and can be done faster than that.
This bike has a computer that measures speed (km), time spent on current session, calories burnt and your pulse rate.it also features an odometer to tell you how much distance (km) you’ve covered since you began using the bike.The computer takes 2xAAA batteries,which were included too! It took me about 30-40 minutes to assemble the bike, if you pay close attention to the manual you’ll be fine. Also the only tools you’ll need to assemble the bike are all in the box.
POSITIVES
– It’s a bargain.
– Its better quality than you might expect at around 90.
– It appears to be of German design (but built in China).The bike is well stabilised,its never tipped up in any direction whilst in use.
– The manual is better than I expected, better than a friend’s manual for their Everlast exercise bike of similar value from Argos.This manual has recommended stretches that you can do before and after your sessions. And it has an (albeit fuzzy) graph that gives you idea of what your ideal heart rate you can aim for based upon your age. Mine is approximately 108-113bpm. But I tend to use cycling speed as my benchmark, see my negatives list below for the reason why.
– I wasn’t expecting the computer to have that many features,but these are useful for keeping tabs on your progress
NEGATIVES
– My partner is about 5’4″ tall,and despite what some have said amongst these reviews, I don’t think she would be comfortable on it,( I was hoping that we both might get some use out of this bike). I set the saddle height on the second notch of three safe positions – I’m about 5’9″ tall . for my partner she could have the saddle set as low as it will go, which is without the peg in place,but so far she hasn’t used it so I can’t absolutely confirm that this bike might not be suitable for ladies of below average height. I’ve just looked at the saddle stem notches and there are five in total,but two of those are above the Max safety mark, this seems bit daft I guess but if you’re tall and you’re careful(!) not to make the bike tip backwards, this bike might suit you too.
– The pulse rate sensor seems crazy,either I’m working too hard, or its really sensitive. It takes a good minute to settle on a value,and even then it seems too high…. Or maybe I’m sort of super athlete! Unlikely. I’m thinking of purchasing one of those Bluetooth heart rate wristbands instead.
First the good news : it is quiet, it looks pretty good,, and it is easy enough to assemble. It will cope with a rider slightly over the 100kg limit (and possibly quite a bit over, but i havent stress tested it).
And it tracks your pulse rate, distance, speed, etc…. and folds up quite small into about a 40 x 45 cm corner in your lounge, bedroom etc.
Limitations:
One: the saddle is quite uncomfortable – superficially soft but actually quite hard after you have been on it for fifteen minutes. The nose sticks up a bit.
Two : The resistance levels are gentle. eight levels , 1 to 8, even at level 8 its about the same as modest paced riding on a regular smooth-tyred bike on the flat. So its good for encouraging the unfit, but it wont get you into tip top shape.
If you can spare the time, you’ll removing the saddle and sticking a regular, tilt-adjustable, bike seat post snugly inside the existing square seat post… then you can add your saddle of choice. And/or you may need to drill another hole or two to widen the range of heights that the bike can serve.
If anyone has succeeded in adjusting the resistance levels, I’d be interested to hear from them…
Update, after 4 years:
I carried on using this from time to time but the lack of any middling (or severe) resistance levels limited its value. Better to get out and about and ride up a few gentle hills on a normal bike…
The screen on the trip computer has largely given up the ghost; when it is working at all, the LCD characters are only displaying about 50% of their lines.
At its sub-100 price tag I’d rate it as being worth 3.5 stars – if you arent sure whether you will use an indoor exercise bike (most of them end up neglected in the garage or loft) then this is way better than shelling out 500 for a good one, buy this and find out how good your motivation is!
—Background—
I’ve been wanting to get fit for some time but I’m the sort of person who is reluctant to pay through the roof for gym membership or brave the cold, wet and dark to go jogging around the local area. As I live in a flat an exercise bike was out of the question as space is a premium and it would just get in the way. I then stumbled across folding exercise bikes and spent a good few hours reading reviews and trying to find the best one. In the end I settled for this one – what a right decision that was!
—Delivery & Set-Up—
As a Prime member I ordered it on Saturday and had it the next day. I was a little worried about getting it up three flights of stairs on my own but it is not as heavy as it seems. I don’t think I have ever seen anything wrapped and packaged as much as this product – it even as throw away plastic caps to protect the end of the metal struts before you put it together!
Putting it together was simple and stress free. My only criticism is that the pictures in the instruction booklet are a bit small. Each part is also numbered in the booklet but there are no corresponding numbers on the pieces of the bike. Not the end of the world as there aren’t that many pieces so you can figure out which ones are which. Batteries are supplied but I decided to use some Duracell ones I had spare. I found that I had 4 spare washers which I couldn’t work out where they were supposed to go as every screw had washers already! Bit of a mystery…
TIP: Put the straps onto the pedals BEFORE putting the pedals onto the bike. I made the mistake of doing it the wrong way round and as the straps are a bit tricky to get on you don’t want to be fighting to stop the pedal spinning as well. I put the straps on the 3rd one up but I might changed that to the 2nd one so I can get more of my foot on the pedal.
—Usage—
The bike folds nicely away and sits in the corner by the TV. Unfolding it is straight forward as you just pull out a pin, unfold it, and put the pin back in. If you are worried about the bike being heavy to move then don’t! I store it in the corner and then move it into the centre of the room to use it. Two hands make light work of it.
When you are using it the bike as all the usual settings – timer, calories burned, pulse etc. but for my purposes I just use the timer – it’s nothing fancy, it just counts up but that’s all I want from it. The bars are angled just right so you can rest a Kindle on it to read whilst pedalling. When using it you can’t even hear it! It is the quietest bike I have ever used. Maybe it makes more noise when the tension is higher but I certainly don’t hear anything with the TV on. The instruction booklet comes with some easy warm up and warm down exercises which I would recommend doing before you start and when you finish a session.
NOTE: I don’t know if it is just me, being super unfit, or the seat itself, but I find that after using it the tops of my inside legs can become really stiff from where it makes contact with the seat.
—Tension—
Like most people I was worried about the maximum tension not being that great but so far I don’t have any issues with it. I’ve only been using it a week, slowly building up the time I spend on it from 15 minutes to 30 minutes. I’ve been using setting 1 to start as I’ve not ran/done any exercise in a long time. This has been adequate to get my body used to the motion. Once I reach 30 minutes I plan to crank up the tension to actually get a bit of a workout and burn some calories.
—Conclusion—-
I think this bike is great for those who:
– Don’t have much space
– Want to get fit and lose some weight – perfect for beginners
– Want a cheap product that is great and easy to use
I wouldn’t recommend this for any serious fitness people as you probably won’t get out what you need. If you’ve got the money, and the space, go for an exercise bike as they generally have higher tension than folding bikes and you can do more with them.
I hope you find this review useful.
The summer of 2010 saw me in my mid-twenties, watching the world cup and enjoying the deals on beer, pizza and coke. For the first time in my life I put on weight. My god-given right to not exercise, eat anything I want and stay slim and looking good had been rescinded. A year later and a whole 2inces on my waist, I decided it was time to get some regular exercise, hence the f-bike. Bought for 90 and bought because it had the best reviews.
Some questions:
——————–Who is the `Ultra fit’ f-bike for?
Well oddly it’s definitely not for the Ultra fit. Even on the hardest setting it is unlikely to give the ultra-fit an adequate workout in a reasonable amount of time.
The f-bike is for people who are fit and want to stay that way or for people who are unfit and want to get fit.
——————–Will its size suit all?
Nope… it seems that the bike is aimed at the tall to average and would not be suitable for people who are short. On its smallest setting my lover who is 5.4 sayys that she can’t go at full speed as she is too short. I note another reviewer had to drill another hole to make it suit her size better.
——————–Max weight?
Is 100 kg; that’s 15st 10.5lb
——————–How quiet is the f-bike:
It’s not totally totally silent, as when you’re on it you can hear a whisper of the belt but it is quiet enough that others can watch TV, while I use it in the same room, the neighbours are totally unaware it exists and I can use it late at night without anyone hearing it. When in normal use it make no vibrations to the ground so is fine for use in any flat… even with Mrs Knock Knock downstairs.
——————–How easy is it to use:
Really easy. Resistance is controlled by one simple knob 1-8. The digital system is all controlled by one button, giving details of speed, distance, time, calories, pulse, ODE, and a scan button that moves through them all. After peddling details are held for 5mins before the system switches itself off. Holding down the button clears data. There are no user profile or courses. It takes 2x AAA batteries but the bike works on your steam.
——————–Does Pulse work?
On the handlebars are two metal strips when hands are placed it gives a pulse reading. Some are critical of the correctness of it. So far my system appears to be right but only after cycling for 2mins with my hands on the right place. If measuring your pulse is essential then check with the makers or buy a separate device.
——————– How portable is it and how much space does it use up?
It’s really not that portable, as it is heavy and fairly large. While it does fold up, meaning it could be stored in a wardrobe this is not ideal and I doubt a regular user could be bothered folding it up and unfolding it every time it was in use. This said it is much more portable are less bulky than a fixed bike; so it’s `foldability’ is appreciated.
——————–How fun is it
It’s fun for the first 5mins then it’s just a tool. This does not make exercise easier nor fun but it does make it more accessible. Watching the TV while exercising is a luxury.
——————–What’s the Wow factor?
The what? It’s just a cheap little bike made out of the same welded together silver metal as most exercise equipment has. It feels sturdy but without any frills.
——————–How complicated is it to build:
Not complicated; easier and more intuitive than IKEA,. It’s basically just securing things. It’ll take 20 mins max . It’s a one person job but will be faster with two.
The instructions are fine but offer little reassurance. Bellow is a little bit of commentary to give you an idea of what needs to be done and a bit of reassurance.
NOTE: all the tools needed come in the box. A wee spanner and a alan-key.
1, unfolding it
Pull the grenade like pin. Unfold the bike and replace the grenade pin. No tools needed.
2. Screwing on its floor stands:
Note the floor stands have an indented side for where the bolts should start from. Screw into the bike. Tighten with spanner.
3. Screwing in its pedals
Screw in the pedals. Note you need to hold the pedal itself still and crew in the bit with the track. Tighten with the spanner.
4. Securing the seat bracket
Place the bracket to the right seat height secure with the ratchet thing.
5. Screwing the seat to the bracket
Screw the seat onto the bracket. Use the spanner to tighten. IT should not wobble at all.
6. Screwing the handlebars to the bike.
Screw the handlebars to the bike using the alan-key. It should not wobble at all. Connect the two wires.
7. Check to make sure everything is tight, secure and stable.
Cycle.
8. Every once in a while you may want to tighten up certain bits and pieces.
Nice to ride, I started at resistance level 3 and went up to 4 in less than two weeks.
Computer is basic and calorie counter seems to take time into account more than resistance and speed. Pulse monitor takes ages to catch up, so I stopped using it.
ADDITIONAL: After about a week the cycle started to clunk a little on every pedal turn, from about 15 minutes into a session. I’m using it four hours a week, so nothing too excessive. It seems to be getting worse – the clunking starts after about 10 minutes now. It doesn’t seem to affect performance or the computer readings, but is annoying, especially over 10 minutes or more. I’ve used it less than 12 hours altogther.
The batteries supplied lasted about 10 hours, and the display dims a long time before the batteries conk out, so there’s plenty of warning and it doesn’t interrupt a session. When the batteries are taken out you lose the cumulative “mileage” (in km).
ADDITIONAL 2: Amazon sent a replacement very quickly, but when I started unpackaging it I found a loose screw in the box which came from the magnetic resistance part of the cycle, and couldn’t be put back because the casing is cracked. Waiting to hear about a replacement replacement, and in the meantime have two boxed up cycles and a painful back – getting them back in the boxes is less than fun. Also means my exercise regime is interrupted, and I’m not getting the first one back out due to the pain I’m in from all the packing and unpacking today.
The upside is, I have been losing weight in the last three weeks.
ADDITIONAL 3: Third cycle arrived and I’ve done 2 x 25 minutes on it. Should have stuck with the first one – this one is way noisier. It clunks, groans, rattles, growls, sometimes goes quiet for short time then starts again. You definitely wouldn’t be watching TV using it! But I’ve given up and am keeping it, assuming it doesn’t actually grind to a halt within a month. I just can’t be bothered with more returns and interruptions to my exercise regime.
I think the magnetic resistance element may be too delicate to cope with being transported and assembled.
MY ADVICE WOULD BE: spend a little more on something more robust – when I can afford it that is likely what I will be doing.
FINAL COMMENT: The noise has drastically reduced over a week, and now the cycle is mostly very quiet, with some rattling occasionally from about 15 mins onwards. All else is well with it.