Peloton Tread+ Treadmill: Complete Review

Woman Wearing Grey Sports Bra

Photo by Andrea Piacquadio

By Simon Gould

The Peloton Tread+ is a very unique treadmill. You can see by the picture above. It does have a few features that are not found on any other treadmills. This makes it a very popular way to workout. However, the features I will explain also increase the cost. Making it far more expensive than your standard treadmills, but I think it’s worth it and I’ll explain why in this review.

The 32 Inch HD Touchscreen

This is what makes the Peloton Tread+ different. The massive touchscreen in front of you. I used to have a TV this size! What you can do and see on the screen makes the treadmill so unique and popular. The incline and speed are changed using a rotating wheel on the handlebars. You can’t see them in the pictures but they are very easy to use.

The Peloton Tread+ is connected to the internet using wifi. You can then take classes by paying a subscription to Peloton. For an additional $39 per month, you have treadmill classes you can take on your touchscreen. Peloton did this with their spin bike and now they’ve done it on the treadmill too. The instructor tells you to speed up, down or use the incline and more.

Classes

During the classes the instructor gives you encouragement and you hear all sorts of types of music. The picture above is a class being taken. You have a choice of 10 or so instructors and you soon find a favorite. You can either take a live class or the thousands on demand. You run with other people as well as the instructor.

Peloton Tread class

There is a leader board which gives you a rank compared to other riders in the world like you, who are taking the same class. This is a game changer for the Peloton Tread+. It wasn’t seen in any other treadmills and they were the first. You get some really good motivation to keep you going when you may be inclined to stop.

Even more technology

The screen, the dials to change the settings, the classes. That’s all new, also the deck is new too. It’s made of rubber and has slats that you run on. Apparently these make it a bit firmer than normal treadmills, so more comparable to running outside. These last longer than normal treadmill decks and require less maintenance.

You can see the deck in the picture above. Peloton describe it as low impact but any running is quite high impact really and you need to take care and not over do it at first. I can imagine this to be a real problem as people report finding the classes very addictive. As long as you have rest days and build up slowly you’ll be fine.

I’ve only seen 2 other treadmills with a deck similar to this. That is the Woodway Curve. This is a treadmill that has no motor because you power it. This is the same with the Technogym Skillmill and Skillgo. These are very high end treadmills with prices to match. Far more than the Peloton Tread. The Tread+ is powered by a motor and that’s why you choose the speed and incline.

Peloton Tread deck

Changing speed and incline

The way this works. I’ve never seen operated like it does on the Tread+. There are black dials on the side you turn to change the settings. These can be found along the handrails and you turn them forward or back depending if you want the speed or incline up or down. Below is a photo of the speed dial.

As you can see it’s a clever way of changing the settings. On the Peloton Tread website, you see it moving and it’s easy to see how it’s done. There’s no pressing buttons how ever many times to get to the speed you want. You just slide your hands on the dials and the change occurs. You get a read out on the screen of what your speed and incline is.

Statistics

The stats are a big part of the motivation. Once you’ve registered an account, every run you do is tracked. You are given statistics to show every aspect from speed, incline and output. You can see how you progress or not, over time. When you take a class you can compete with other runners with the leader board telling you where you rank.

There are rewards you can earn for the workouts you do. If you run every week for 5 weeks then you can an achievement badge. If you run more than a certain amount of times in a month, there would be another achievement badge. This is great to keep you going toward getting fit and healthy, or losing weight.

Peloton Tread dials

There is a heart rate chest strap (optional) and you can get stats on that too. One page of the stats can be seen in the picture above. It covers the whole screen and there are line graphs and charts to track every part of your workout. This is a runners dream. The Tread+ can cater for all runners, even those who have just started. Your progress will be shown.

Cost

At the time of writing the Peloton Tread+ is just under $4,300.00. That includes delivery and set up. That may seem high but I don’t think it is. You always pay a premium for new technology. It is more than most treadmills, but what you get greatly increases the value for money. The classes are the magic that make the treadmill.

The other cost is the subscription. There needs to be only one in the household and everyone using the Tread+ can have their own account. It is $39 per month. You get the classes for this price and other ways to workout like yoga, strength and more. Without the subscription you’ve looking at a plain and expensive treadmill. So factor that in to your cost.

Review summary

The Peloton Tread+ is an amazing treadmill. But it’s the classes that make it. Without them you have an expensive piece of equipment with far less functionality. You can still run on it and the scenic runs you can do. But after a while you will have to motivate yourself. Those classes really make it what it is.

Peloton Tread stats

This brings a worry to me. They have sold over 400,000 bikes, which came out before the Tread. So the classes will be around, for the bike, for a long time. But they have to sell enough Treads to make it practical to keep running the classes. If they don’t sell enough, they could discontinue the classes and you’re stuck with an expensive treadmill.

So I do recommend keeping an eye on how many Treads are being sold and if they’re likely to continue the classes for it. The company itself is worth billions so it has that going for it. But if something becomes unprofitable, then it makes sense to cut their losses. That seems far on the horizon and a popular customer for the Tread+ seems to be those that have the Peloton bike!

That said, lets look at the Tread+ treadmill as it is now, all fully supported with classes. It’s a game changer, I think it’s worth the money. I can see many competitors try and replicate the Treads features. But Peloton was there first and they have the financial backing of a company on the New York stock exchange. I love it and you will too.

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