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Turbo / smart trainers - what to buy and what to avoid.

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Polar Bear:
In the pre covid "leave the house" world we had a Tacx iMagic trainer and used it for a few years during the grottiest of winter days.  It's purpose was to keep us at touring fitness and we enjoyed the blocky Dutch west coast landscapes of the 32 bit system and the odd Tacx classic ride dvd.

We don't have any compatible computers for this old thing any more and are looking at a replacement.  We'd like the hopefully improved 64 bit less blocky landscapes and even video footage of rides but primarily it is a motivation tool for general fitness plus an outlet against grotty days and current and future covid limitations.   

Another unknown is all this subscription stuff.  We don't think that we are really interested in this but can we get what we prefer without it any more?

Should we go dumb trainer, smart trainer or connected smart trainer?  Should we get the roller type or the newer style which connects the bicycle drive train directly to the machine replacing the back wheel?

mllePB will be the biggest winner on whatever system we buy but I will also use it for a bit of exercise now and then.

Opinions of the panel most welcome please.

PaulF:
What's your budget?

Where will it be used? As in will you or your neighbours be bothered by the noise? The roller type are cheaper but noisier.

Does it have to be smart, i.e. with the computer controlling the resistance through the ride or are you happy to adjust manually?

Polar Bear:
Budget is not an issue.

We were hoping that folk would tell us their experiences and help us weigh up the pros and cons.  We would prefer smart. 

Noise:  yes, the old iMagic was noisy.  As we live in a terrace quieter would be better.

L CC:
There are two decisions to make - what to ride, and where.
What - You will get a much better experience with a direct drive smart trainer. It will be (MUCH) quieter and much more reactive. Only you can decide if that better experience is worth the added money. If you and mllePB are not the same size and switch out bikes, it's probably easier to have a wheel-on trainer. Unless you are "training" and "need" accurate power, you will be able to pedal to moving pictures that move in approximation to your pedalling even with a dumb trainer. Like everything else, the more you spend, the better the experience.

Where
We're big users of Zwift in this house. It's a rolling one month subscription which you can pause at any time.
The social aspect- you can chat (with actual voice and ears over discord, or typed within the app) with other riders, which means it's much less boring. There are fewer courses than some (RGV / BKOOL /FULGAZ) but the user base is huge. I have ridden more hours/kms on Zwift inside, than outside, in both 2019 & 2020 - it's worth getting togged up for an hour which I am too lazy to do for outside. Our bikes are permanently set up and ready to roll in our spare room, which makes a huge difference to whether you bother or not. It's not just racing - rather the opposite. You find a group who ride at about the same pace as you, and get to know them when you ride with them regularly on a variety of 'terrains'. Because of the size of the user base, that same pace is easy to find- from amateur handcyclists doing 1w/kg to virtual pros doing 5+.

For me, the best indoor setup is the one you will use. I have never managed to do that with any previous software. I have made actual real online friends from around the world by playing a videogame controlled by my legs.

LMT:
If budget is not an issue then a Tacx Neo 2T. One of the best smart trainers on the market, quiet and has a road like feel.

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