MaxKare Recumbent Exercise Bike Indoor Cycling Stationary Bike with Adjustable Seat and Resistance, Pulse Monitor/Phone Holder (Seat Height Adjustment by Lever)

I'm a senior with arthritis in my knees. I began looking for a recumbent bike after learning of their advantages during physical therapy. The bike had to be economical and basic without a bunch of features that I wouldn't use. It needed to be usable for someone like my wife that is vertically challenged (short). She is 4'11-1/2” barefoot. (She won't let me forget that 1/2”.) I also wanted the seat position to be easily adjusted without getting off the bike. We purchased this MaxKare model and find it to be just what we were looking for. We've had it a week now. Only time will tell how well it holds up but I have no reason to think there will be a problem. No exercise bike is right for everyone but if your needs are similar to ours I highly recommend this one. Below are some comments and observations.The bike shipped fast but arrived 1 day later than Fed Ex originally scheduled the delivery. The box had a hole in it most likely from shipping but nothing was damaged. Overall the bike was well packaged and nothing was missing.After unpacking and laying out all the parts I casually spent a couple of hours or so assembling it with the “help” of my 2 year old great grandson. I'm sure I could do it again in 30 minutes. There were assembly tools included which would work but I used a socket set for the cap nuts and a crescent wrench for the pedals. The assembly instructions were clear and easy to follow. There were 8 steps involved and the hardware required for the first 6 steps were packaged in plastic bags labeled with the step number. (Very nice). Mounting screws for the tension control knob and the console were shipped attached to those devices. One person could assemble the bike alone but an extra set of hands (not a 2 year old) is better for step 6 when connecting wires and attaching the front vertical post. Advise: don't remove the rubber bands holding the wires until the connections are made. Then cut the rubber bands with scissors. Also make sure the tension control knob is set to 1 before trying to connect the spring loaded cable to it. One last thing about assembly; there is an arrow sticker labeled UP on the front side of the front stabilizer bar. If you attach the stabilizer to the frame accordingly, the transport wheels will protrude from the front of the bar as shown in an attached photo. The wheels will only be used when tipping up the rear of the bike to move it. If you were to flip the bar end over end and attach it so the UP arrow is pointing down, then the wheels would be under the bar and supporting the bike at all times. This is how the manufacturers product photos on Amazon appear. I can't image their logic for doing that. I suspect someone assembled it wrong and the photographer didn't know the difference. The bike drawing on the cover of the instruction manual shows it correct.I put the bike on a hallway type rug over a vinyl plank floor. The rug is NOT non-skid so I can easily slide the bike and rug together close to or away from a wall. Yet it stays put and doesn't move while riding. I know they make mats designed specifically for exercise bikes but they all have a non-skid backing. Our experience over the years is that non-skid mats often discolor floors or the backing flakes off over time making a mess.The Amazon product page for this bike states a maximum user weight of 300 pounds one place and then later states 220 pounds. I believe I saw that others that reviewed this bike said their instruction manual also said 220 pounds. The manual that came with my bike says “MAX WEIGHT OF USER 300LBS”. Regardless, I can say that at 210 pounds I don't feel like I'm pushing the limit. The bike seems very sturdy and doesn't wobble in any way while riding. It's also smooth and quiet, only making a low level whirring sound which doesn't interfere with anything.So far both my wife and I have only ridden the bike with socks on since we rarely wear shoes in the house. The pedals are comfortable and this has not been a problem for either of us. According to physical therapists and trainers, proper seat adjustment results in a slight bend of the knee when the pedal is extended to it's maximum distance. Having the seat all the way forward on this bike is the proper setting for my wife in socks. A shorter person may need to wear shoes and/or have a pillow behind their back. The proper setting for me at 5'10” has the seat approximately 3-1/2” from the back. I'm not sure how tall of a person could get proper leg extension on this bike. The manufacturer suggests an inseam of 27” to 35” so I would have to defer to that.The seat is very easy to adjust while sitting on it. When the latch handle is up (unlocked) the seat slides forward (downhill) with no problem. Don't lean on the back rest while trying to move the seat backward (uphill) as this will cause a bind on the slide rail and the seat won't move. Just sit up straight or even lean slightly forward and the seat moves easily. I have found the best way to adjust the seat is to move it too far back, put a foot on the pedal and let the seat move forward until there is a slight bend of the knee at maximum extension and then push the handle down to lock it. The seat locks into place very well and we have had no problems with it slipping. The seat and backrest are cushioned but firm and seem to be comfortable. I may change my mind about that over time but if necessary I'll just add another cushion.The mechanical dial for adjusting the magnetic tension is on the side of the front post and it's easiest to read the setting from the side if looking directly at the face of the dial. The setting is also visible from the seat position but not quite as easy to see. That's not really a big deal because it is easy to count as you click through the 8 settings. Some have said it doesn't provide enough tension but that's not the case for my wife and I. We notice the difference in each number and mostly use the lower to middle numbers. If you need higher resistance and extreme workouts then look elsewhere and dig deeper into your wallet.The console is very basic. It does not have exercise programs and does not control the magnetic tension. Consoles that do all that either use D cell batteries or more likely require a power adapter to plug into the wall. I didn't want those features plus if that type of console failed for any reason you would lose the ability to adjust the tension. This console uses 2 AAA batteries which I suspect will last a long time, plus if it were to fail the bike itself is still fully functional. The screen is not backlit but the numbers are large and easy to read. The mode indicators are small and difficult to read but once you know the position of each across the bottom of the screen you don't really need to read them. An attached photo shows the screen turned on.Unlike the bike assembly instructions, the instructions packaged with the console are written in broken English and are of limited value. Fortunately it's not difficult to figure out. Here are some tips: There is no on/off; just start pedaling and the display turns on; stop and the display turns off after a few minutes of inactivity. Every time it starts it comes up in Scan mode meaning it displays all possible settings (Time – Speed – Distance – Calorie – Odometer – Pulse) one after the other, locking onto each for a few seconds. You can select a single setting to stay on using the Mode key. The Reset key resets the current mode. Holding the Mode key for 3 seconds resets all modes. If you want to set a target time or distance, go to that mode and then repeatedly press the Set key to get the value you want; the number will count down from there when you pedal. If you stop pedaling, the values such as time or distance will freeze and then resume when you start pedaling again. I don't know if the speed and distance are in kilometers or miles but it doesn't really matter since the readings are fantasy anyway. My advise is to just consider the speed and distance numbers as reference targets for your individual workout. The calorie values have to be total fiction and are probably just based on a combination of speed and distance. The pulse rate has the best chance of being accurate but will depend on the ability of the hand sensors to recognize your heart beat. I checked my pulse at rest using a blood pressure monitor. I then got on the bike, set the screen to Pulse mode, and held the sensors without pedaling so my heart rate wouldn't change much. Each time I tried this the pulse reading initially climbed way too high and then started coming down until it finally stabilized. I would say it read pretty close to the blood pressure monitor but you have to allow 15-20 seconds or more for it to stabilize. If you just want a quick reading and then remove your hands from the sensors it won't work.Finally I know that some people prefer to pedal backwards. With this bike all the readings on the console and also the tension control work identically regardless of which way you pedal.Update 5/20/20After using this exercise bike for several months my wife and I are still happy with our purchase. It's still solid and works like it did on day one. I noticed that the manufacturer finally fixed the product photos and now state the maximum user weight is 300 pounds. Also I see there has been a price increase.

I wasn't really sure what I was looking for when I selected the MaxKare Recumbent Exercise Bike Indoor Cycling Stationary Bike with Adjustable Seat and Resistance, Pulse Monitor. The idea was to get a recumbent stationary bike, with the emphasis on being able to get it in a timely manner.The bike arrived in a single, large box, with none of the items damaged in shipment. There are some Styrofoam blocks, straps, bags, tape, and small inner boxes, in the outer box. Helpfully, the hardware is metered out by assembly step (pictured) indicated in the manual. There's an awful wrench/screwdriver tool included, but I'd recommend using your own tools (if you have some). The assembly steps for the seat and frame are pretty straightforward. In fact, assembly was REALLY fast, except for two steps. One of the slow steps was in connecting the three sensor wiring harnesses coming up the front support tube (to go to the display module). You see, two of the harnesses are male and the other is female (or the other way around - I can't remember at this point). It's pretty obvious what to do with the one that's different. The problem with the other two is that they have identical fittings. I had to try it out to make sure it was wired correctly. The other issue was with the tension knob. On the lowest setting there's enough slack to connect the lower part of the assembly, but you actively have to pull the cable to get enough slack to be able to drop the brass fitting into the steel hook's recess. I didn't use a tension gauge, but I'd say I probably pulled it with 30-40 pounds of force to get the extra 3/4" of slack I needed.All in, it took about 30 minutes to assemble the bike. I'd recommend using threadlocker on all of the screws/bolts, due to the vibration of the bike (it's not like there are lock washers all over the thing). The use of the bike is fine. Pedaling the bike isn't really as smooth as I'd expected, but that's probably because I'm used to stationary bikes with decently heavy flywheels. The resistance range is ok, but at least 4 of the settings seem to be too close together to be different in a meaningful way. Seat comfort is better than a regular bike, but not that special, overall. The handles are a little awkward, but work fine. The seat adjustment uses a cammed brake, where I'd prefer a tooth/lock mechanism with a release. It's fine, but I wonder about the long term durability of the plastic brake piece. The display box is ok, but I'd say you're better off with whatever datalogging your Fitbit/smartwatch has for heartrate. Since I couldn't get the outer diameter of the front wheel, I couldn't really measure how accurate the odometer is.Aside from the minor assembly issues, the bike was easy and fast to put together. As a bike, it seems to be fine. I'd imagine that you could spend multiples more and get something better, but the MaxKare is good enough for me. As for the display box, I may just hook the leads to an Arduino and just make my own. It wouldn't be hard to improve upon what's provided. At this price point, I don't think you can do much better than the MaxKare. However, you will want to look elsewhere if you're determined to spend more on a bike. Conditionally recommended❤️ If you found my review helpful, please let Amazon know by clicking the helpful button below

I have a spinal fusion due to severe scoliosis from 2001, and needed something that I could keep moving on as my spinal pain had been increasing dramatically this past year. I ended up choosing this bike and was pleasantly surprised at the ease of assembly. Minus the tension piece for difficulty levels I was able to put the whole thing together myself with my husband's help for that one piece. I was able to sit on the floor and take breaks after each step. I also suffer from fibromyalgia and as such have confusion and brain fog, and each baggy was labeled for each step. It was clear and easy to assemble and with my 258lb frame I can bike with ease. One feature I really appreciate is the length adjustment being at the seat level and not at ground level, much easier on my back. And of course I can binge watch my shows on my tablet as I bike slowly. Now with my back I already knew I would need extra padding so I had ordered a separate back and butt cushion to be used, so comfort levels are up to personal preferences. It's compact enough to keep in my room behind my door although I plan to eventually make room in my closet for it to be wheeled in. All in all 5 stars for sure but for me personally I needed extra cushions.

I had difficulty with the tension cable so I email the seller and their customer service send me a video on how to connect the cable and made it work. Great customer service 👍. The product is very quiet, chair is comfortable , and I can put my iPad, laptop onto the holder to keep me from looking at the time. Here is a picture where I was able to place my Acer foldable laptop to watch beautiful scenic places around the world with only music background. It really opens up a whole new level of excercise and entertainment experience to a whole new level. I definitely would refer them to my family and friends to buy from them again.