New Balance elliptical trainers are the new kids on the block. New Balance is probably better known for their fantastic running shoes than their ellipticals. New Balance partnered with Fitness Quest in 2003 to start making fitness equipment like bikes, treadmills and elliptical trainers.
Although Fitness Quest doesn't have the best reputation in the fitness equipment business (they also produce the Total Gym, Ab Lounge and Tony Little products), their elliptical trainers might still be worth a look.
New Balance produces several economy to mid-priced elliptical trainers ranging from $949 to $1399. So the competition is pretty fierce as they're going up against heavyweights like Sole and Schwinn. How do they stack up? Here are the strengths and weakness of New Balance Elliptical Trainers.
Strengths:
Upper Body Arms - All New Balance machines offer upper body arms bars, which is a feature most buyers want. Upper body arm bars allow you to tone and work your upper body resulting in more calories burned in less time.
Oversized Foot Pedals - The New Balance oversized foot platforms have a built-in skid resistant surface so you can find the most comfortable foot position within the elliptical motion. The extra large platforms support your body weight more evenly and provide added stability.
Magnetic Resistance - This is the best form of resistance (and the standard form among most elliptical trainers these days). Starting at 8 levels of resistance and working up to 16, these ellipticals offer a chance to challenge your body and burn even more calories.
Warranty - New Balance Ellipticals are covered by a standard warranty: 10 years on the frame, 2 years electronics and 1 year on parts. This is a decent warranty - better than some brands, not as good as others.
15" - 18" Stride Length - The cheaper New Balance crosstrainers (the 5.5 and the 8.0) only offer 15" stride lengths which is fairly small and will result in a less effective workout. If you're taller or really want to pick up your pace on your elliptical, this stride length may not be the most comfortable for you.
On the other hand the higher end New Balance machines (the 9.0 and the 9.5) offer 18" stride lengths which aren't bad at all and will help you get an overall more efficient workout.
Weaknesses:
The New Balance brand is fairly new to the market, so they may not have had the time to work out the kinks in their product line yet.
Also, there are several similarly priced brands that give you a bit more for your money like longer warranties, higher user weight capacities and/or more workout programs.
Summary:
New Balance elliptical trainers do offer some promising features including a decent warranty, several resistance levels, oversized foot pedals and attractive, advanced consoles.
I would recommend the higher end models (the 9.0 and the 9.5) before the economy models because the stride length is longer and you just get more for your money.
The real downside is that New Balance ellipticals are in an already overcrowded market with other more proven brands. Competition is fierce and there are several similarly priced models that offer more in terms of warranties, workout programs, stride lengths and user weight capacities.
Given some time however, New Balance ellipticals may become a force to be reckoned with.
You may be wondering about the New Balance 9000 elliptical trainer. You already know that New Balance makes some quality shoes and therefore you may assume that the New Balance 9000 elliptical trainer is just as good. New Balance has several models of elliptical trainers out, which is why you should not get the New Balance 9000 elliptical trainer confused with their lower end models which have not gotten such great reviews. We will show you why the New Balance 9000 elliptical trainer is more superior to the lower end models and why it is a good choice to think about using. One of the first things that you will notice about the New Balance 9000 elliptical trainer is that it has a electromagnetic drive system along with a stride length that can be adjusted from seventeen, to nineteen, up to a maximum length of twenty-one inches. This gives the New Balance 9000 elliptical trainer an edge as it could be used for short and tall people. The New Balance 9000 elliptical trainer can even hold a variety of different body types as its weight capacity reaches a maximum of three-hundred pounds. Its LCD display has all of the basic displays but also includes a display for watts, which is not so common, but at the same time, we do not know how useful that will be to many people. The New Balance 9000 elliptical trainer offers a upper body workout along with your lower body, thus being able to give you a true full body workout. Some other features that stand out on the New Balance 9000 elliptical trainer is that the pedals are big ComFrom foot platforms. This adds some extra sturdy footing so that you can keep yourself continually stable throughout your workout. New Balance 9000 elliptical trainer also has sixteen resistance levels which uses magnetic resistance, seventeen workout programs as well as built in pulse-sensors to track your heartbeat. One nice feature that also makes the New Balance 9000 elliptical trainer appealing, is that it has transportation wheels attached to it. This makes the New Balance 9000 elliptical trainer very easier to maneuver and can be a great way to put your New Balance 9000 elliptical trainer into a storage space when you are not using it, so that it does not clutter up your living space. Moving the New Balance 9000 elliptical trainer is made more convenient by its weight, since the New Balance 9000 elliptical trainer is light enough to maneuver and move on its transportation wheels. The only real problem we saw with the New Balance 9000 elliptical trainer that could be improved and can be found on its competitors is a incline position. It has no incline positioning or adjustments, which can be used to increase the difficulty of your workout. However this does not cause a drastic difference in the challenges that you can give yourself on the machine since the New Balance 9000 elliptical trainer does have sixteen levels of magnetic resistance. However, this is a feature that New Balance could improve on in the future to completely make the New Balance 9000 elliptical trainer dominant over it s competitors. Overall, the New Balance 9000 elliptical trainer is a great elliptical trainer with many benefits and only one drawback that does not cause that much of an impairment on the machine.
Both Vienna Miller & Nicholas Tan are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Vienna Miller has sinced written about articles on various topics from Lose Weight, Credit Loans and Hair Transplant. Vienna Miller writes for , a consumer oriented website focusing on the home elliptical trainer market. For the latest Elliptical Bes. Vienna Miller's top article generates over 3600 views. to your Favourites.
Nicholas Tan has sinced written about articles on various topics from Fitness, Nervous System and elliptical. Submit your articles and get a PR4 backlink to your website! We provide free articles and information. Check us out at. Nicholas Tan's top article generates over 550000 views. to your Favourites.