The Schwinn A10 is a relatively new product, and is the new iteration of the much more reviewed Schwinn Active 10. It has improvements over the former, but also commands a higher price as of now. Whether or not Schwinn will eventually phase out the Active 10 for the A10 is unknown to me.
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PACKAGING:
The bike was in a large box which had a shipping weight of 65 pounds. All of the components are placed into two foam molds, which were very secure. The condition it will arrive in will most likely vary depending on the carrier and how they treat it.
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ASSEMBLY:
Each component is wrapped in a plastic bag, and the console comes in its own box inside the package. Assembly instructions are provided, along with two User's Manuals, in both English and Spanish. All necessary tools and fasteners are supplied***. If one did not have trouble taking the components out of the package, it should be easy to assemble alone, otherwise additional help may be required. The heaviest individual part would be the mechanical component housing which needs to be angled slightly upwards in order for the stabilizing bars to be attached on the bottom. Remember to connect the console to the base before attaching the support.
***During assembly, it became clear that the supplied hex key did not fit several of the bolts. A standard 5/16 hex key works fine.
***One of the four capped nuts for the stabilizers was unthreaded. A trip to the hardware store was required to obtain a metric M8x1.25 nut.
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USAGE REVIEW:
The bike is powered by 4 D-cell batteries (unsupplied) which had cost around $6 locally. An optional AC adapter can be purchased from Schwinn for $15 + Tax, S&H. As of current usage, it is unclear how long a set of batteries will last. The electronics shut off after 5 minutes of non usage, with no manual way to turn off.
The final assembled dimensions of the bike at the base are:
--27.5" from front to back
--16.5" at the front stabilizer
--14" at the rear stabilizer
--47.5" high at the handlebars
***Note that the bike is trapezoidal in shape, with a narrow base and wide top.
The bike seat post has a wide range of adjustable heights, done so by a twist knob that is inserted along a series of holes on the post. At 6' (184cm), I can comfortable ride the bike, and there are 2 higher positions and 5 or 6 more lower ones.
The bike seat itself is adequate. Having not rode a bike in over 7 years, I was fine at the end of a 20 minute ride with just minor soreness as expected.
***IMPORTANT NOTE: This bike seat attachment is nonstandard. If you plan to change it, you will need to buy an adapter, which will cost around $20 + Tax, S&H. Look for a 3-bolt bike seat adapter on the internet.
A bottle holder comes standard, it is plastic and works fine with my 28oz Klean Kanteen Stainless Steel Water Bottle. The top of the console also doubles as a book holder, but depending on your handlebar setup, it may limit the width of the book or magazine you wish to read.
The pedals come with straps and feel very solid. Shoes are recommended when using the machine.
The fan that is in the center console is an asthmatic 60mm PC case fan. It does spin but provides no measurable airflow.
There are a total of 8 resistance levels which vary gradually. The console has 6 setups and 1 free/manual mode for user controlled resistance, which is the Quick Start button. The predefined modes work by displaying a set of 10 columns with the variances in resistance, and with each column representing 1 minute. After the user selects the amount of time and the starting resistance level, the program will adjust according to the setup. The manual mode lets the user change how long the machine stays at a particular resistance level.
The console also has a contact heart rate monitor. Just place your hands on the contact areas and it will display the measured heart rate. I cannot vouch for the accuracy, but it does at least work.
During operation, there is a noticeable but unobtrusive hum from the mechanical movement. However, changing resistance levels on my machine has a a very minor ticking noise. This seems to be coming from the small motor in the front of the housing. Whether or not this is a problem or is part of the normal use is unknown to me.
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PERSONAL OPINION:
I am an adult male in my early 20's. I am 6' tall and weigh roughly 175 lbs. I purchased this machine to help improve my health and allow me to exercise at my leisure and in the comfort of my own home. So far I have been happy, as a 20 minute session feels like a nice workout. Even though there were some assembly issues, I am overall very happy with this piece of equipment. If there are any drastic changes to that opinion, I'll be sure to update this review. Schwinn A10 Upright Bike
This upright stationary bike is great. I was transitioning from an old "friction" based old fashioned bike and the resistance is so much smoother with the A10. There are enough programs / resistance levels to make training interesting and is a great alternative to the gym cycles.
The only minor negatives to the bike and is really specific to Amazon is that the recommended "Schwinn Pillow Top Cruiser Bicycle Seat" is not compatible with this bike as far as I can tell. I emailed Schwinn/Nautilus support and they confirmed this being the case and they have no alternative seats to recommend. I'm a novice cyclist and after 30 minutes on this bike, my crotch area gets pretty sore (more so than my outdoor bike). I was hoping the "Schwinn Pillow Top Cruiser Bicycle Seat" would fix this but can't be used. The only other gripe is that the Fan is pretty pathetic and if you (or your 3 year old) accidentally leave the fan on, it will drain the "D" batteries in a few hours.
So in short, I'd definitely recommend this product but be warned about the seat. - Stationary Bike - Schwinn - Stationary Indoor Bike - Exercise Bike'
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