Winter, as they say, is coming, but that needn’t mean three months of sitting indoors while Netflix devours your hard-earned cycling fitness. Especially when there’s a device that lets you sit indoors, watch Netflix and keep cycling. It’s called the turbo trainer.
In its most basic form a turbo trainer turns your regular bike into a static bike and a decent one can be had for under £150. But in its most advanced guise, a turbo trainer is a gateway into a world of digital coaching and massively multiplayer cycle racing.
The choice can be overwhelming, so here you’ll find our guide to determining what type of turbo trainer you need, followed by bite-size reviews of six of our favourite tried and tested options to suit all levels of cyclist.
How to choose the best turbo trainer for you
Are all turbo trainers the same?
No. Broadly speaking there are two main types – traditional, or ‘dumb’ turbo trainers, and smart trainers. Traditional trainers can be as basic as to have no controllable resistance – simply pedal harder and the resistance increases – but in the main they have user-variable resistance, either mechanically, through a dial mounted to your handlebars, or digitally, through a wired or wireless head unit. Digital versions tend to show speed and cadence as a minimum, and more advanced ones will also sync to heart rate monitors – they may also measure power output so that you can see exactly how many watts your legs are pumping out.
Smart trainers are the new wave. They use a variant of the popular ANT+ wireless standard for sports-related tech, which is routinely used in heart rate, speed and cadence sensors, called ANT+ FE-C: Fitness Equipment Control. This allows a third party device such as a laptop or iPad can to control the amount of resistance your smart trainer offers in order to emulate real world riding, racing or specific coaching sessions, and so you can feel like you’re actually riding up and down hills without leaving the comfort of your living room (or more likely, your garage.)
What would a smart trainer setup look like?
Typically a laptop connected to the internet running a desktop app such as Zwift or TrainerRoad, paired to your smart trainer via an ANT+ USB dongle. Some people go the extra mile and hook their laptop up to a TV or projector; others get minimal and run apps off their tablet or phone. If you can’t afford a fully ‘smart’ trainer, then there are cheaper ‘half smart’ trainers which bridge the gap. They broadcast data such as power, cadence or speed to a third party device, so you can record how far and how hard you’re riding, but cannot be automatically controlled by that device.
What apps can I use with my smart trainer?
There are loads of apps for smart trainers, but TrainerRoad and Zwift are two of the most popular. Both are non-contract subscription services that cost £8 (Zwift) and $12 (TrainerRoad) per month.
TrainerRoad is like a digital coach, putting you through turbo trainer sessions like a robotic spin instructor, all the while recording and assimilating that data into a training regime. Zwift is an online massively multiplayer ‘game’ where you can race against yourself or other Zwift users on the virtual island of Watopia, spin past the virtual landmarks of central London, or embark on any of the inbuilt training plans for building your strength and speed.
In both instances the apps control your smart trainer, varying the resistance automatically. For example, in Zwift the resistance increases when the virtual course climbs a mountain, so you can have all the fun of climbing endless hills without leaving the house.
Should I buy a smart trainer?
Only you and your mental resolve can answer that one. Some people can stare at a wall for three hours while turbo training, looking at nothing more than a stat-filled LCD display, while others need that extra motivation. And that doesn’t just go for amateurs. Mark Cavendish turned to Zwift as part of his recovery after he crashed out of this year’s Tour de France, and an increasing number of pros and ex-pros are coming round to the training benefits which virtual cycling can provide.
Can a non-smart trainer get smart?
Kind of. It depends on what app you’re intending to run, but as an example, at its most basic, Zwift only requires a speed sensor on your rear wheel that broadcasts in ANT+, and a compatible traditional turbo trainer (it has a list of these on its site). If you’re wondering why it has to be a supported turbo trainer, it’s because Zwift needs to know your power output in order to work, so its developers created a mathematical algorithm, dubbed zPower, that estimates your power output based on how fast your rear wheel is spinning. It’s much less accurate than power measured by a fully smart trainer’s in-built power meter, but offers a cheap taster of real smart training without the hefty outlay.
The biggest downside to this approach is that you’ll have to vary your trainer’s resistance manually based on cues from the app, reducing the immersive element. The upside is a half smart turbo trainer package can be had for around £200, less than half the cost of a fully smart trainer.
Do I need to buy anything else?
Like all static exercise, turbo training can be boring. So even if you’re not on Zwift or the like, simply popping your trainer in front of the TV does wonders to keep you interested. Beyond that, a powerful, good quality fan is all but essential. When there’s no wind to keep you cool you’ll soon realise how much cycling makes you sweat, and you'll want a towel handy to make sure that you don't end up dripping salty, rust-causing sweat all over your stem and handlebars.
The best turbo trainers to buy
1. CycleOps Fluid 2: The best turbo trainer under £200
Price when reviewed:£189
With a reputation for build quality, relatively quiet operation and easy setup, the Fluid 2 is something of a benchmark in basic turbo training. Many units at this price point use a magnet to create resistance, but the Fluid uses paddles turning around in oil. Pedal faster and you get more resistance, and because it’s oil and not air being pushed around, the Fluid 2 is remarkably quiet. The gradations of resistance are therefore theoretically infinite, and as such the power curve – your effort versus wheel-turning speed – feels incredibly smooth and natural, without the jumps associated with lower-end magnetic trainers. That said, you can’t choose the resistance in an indexed fashion, and there is no other built in way of harvesting metrics, so a speed/cadence sensor or heart rate monitor (available separately) is a good idea to help quantify your effort. With said sensor, however, you can use the Fluid 2 with Zwift.
Key specs – Connectivity: None; Power source: N/A
2. Tacx Satori Smart: A taste of smart turbo training for under £250
Price when reviewed:£219
The Satori Smart’s magnetic resistance unit broadcasts speed, cadence and power data in ANT+, which means it can semi-integrate from the off with the likes of Zwift and TrainerRoad. It isn’t ANT+ FE-C enabled though, so you’ll have to manually change resistance when prompted using the handlebar-mounted lever.
The Satori also broadcasts over Bluetooth, so you don’t need an extra ANT+ dongle to hook it up to your smart device or make use of Tacx’s bundled app. It’ll also connect to a Garmin, Polar or other ANT+ or Bluetooth sports device. The frame is pretty stable and folds away, and while the resistance unit isn’t the quietest, it is solid. We have an earlier generation that’s nearly six years old and still going strong.
Buy the Tacx Satori Smart from Wiggle
Key specs – Connectivity: ANT+ and Bluetooth Smart (not ANT+ FE-C); Power source: Battery operated; Brake power: 950 watts
3. Tacx Flux: The best smart turbo trainer under £650
Price when reviewed:£600
The Tacx Flux Smart is a fully-fledged smart trainer for £600 – a veritable steal compared to many other options out there. The Flux is direct drive, meaning you remove your rear wheel and bolt your bike directly onto the unit. This makes for a more solid base on which to pedal and provides more accurate power measurement, as you’re not contending with tyres slipping on rollers. It’s ANT+ FE-C ready, so apps such as Zwift have no problem pairing and taking control of the motor-braked resistance unit. Power measuring accuracy is reported within +/-5%, which is okay for most mere mortals, if not up to the standard of pricier turbo trainers. A gold-standard SRM power meter, as used by professional cyclists, quotes +/-1%. For this kind of money, however, the Flux is a solid, hassle-free step into the world of smart training.
Key specs – Connectivity: ANT+ FE-C and Bluetooth Smart; Power source: Mains
4. Wahoo KICKR (Gen 2): Team Sky’s turbo trainer of choice is something special
Price when reviewed:£899, wiggle.co.uk
Arguably the original smart trainer, and the choice of Team Sky (Okay, they get them free, but still, they can always be seen warming down on Wahoo trainers after races), the KickR is now in its second generation and is considered by many the benchmark for smart trainers. It’s now significantly quieter than its predecessor and just as stable thanks to its wide stance legs which keep it from rocking side to side. Wahoo has also increased the KickR’s top end power to 2,000W, meaning even Chris Hoy would struggle to overpower it.
Power measurement accuracy is quoted at +/-2%, and in practice we found the KickR returned consistent power numbers. It folds up to a relatively small size, but like all the smart trainers here, it’s still pretty bulky and heavy – we’d suggest setting it up somewhere and leaving it there.
Buy the Wahoo KICKR from Wiggle
Key specs – Connectivity: ANT+ FE-C and Bluetooth Smart; Power source: Mains
5. Elite Drivo: A stunningly accurate direct-drive turbo trainer
Price when reviewed:£934
It looks a little bit like a collapsed AT-AT from Star Wars, but the Drivo’s clunky aesthetic belies an incredibly smooth smart trainer. Like the Wahoo KickR, it’s direct drive, although you will have to buy a cassette for it (the cluster of sprockets that your bike chain turns once bolted on). Power measurement accuracy is quoted at +/-1%, a figure validated by third party lab tests, and the Drivo also measures speed and cadence, one-upping the KickR in that department. Another boon for more advanced riders is that the Drivo supports pedal analysis via the bundled app, which can help you develop more efficient pedalling technique.
Buy the Elite Drivo from Wiggle
Key specs – Connectivity: ANT+ FE-C and Bluetooth Smart; Power source: Mains
6. Technogym MyCycling: The ultimate smart turbo trainer
Price when reviewed:£1,790
Made by the Italian gym equipment leviathan, MyCycling is arguably the most stylish smart trainer on the market and has the smoothest pedalling action we’ve ever tested, feeling every bit like actual cycling – albeit on a very smooth road.
It is controllable by desktop apps such as Zwift, but also comes with its own highly advanced app, which helps train pedalling technique, displays left-right leg power and has in-built coaching programs a la TrainerRoad. Technogym says it’s looking to develop this aspect further, expanding the coaching plan database and adding real-world coaches into the mix, who will supply personalised regimes to your app that MyCycling will then enact, a bit like having a remote personal trainer.
Buy the Technogym MyCycling direct from Technogym
Key specs – Connectivity: ANT+ FE-C and Bluetooth Smart; Power source: Mains