Customer Reviews

Schwinn 120 Upright Exercise Bike (2012 Model)

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(18)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

When I was growing up, the rich kids had Schwinn bicycles. Schwinn meant quality, reliability and long lasting. When my wife wanted a new road bicycle, we shopped around and in the end, she picked a Schwinn. I live in the north east so riding every day is difficult as the weather gods turn a cold shoulder to my neck of the woods. To keep riding, we shopped for an exercise bicycle and my wife, once again, picked a Schwinn. Unlike the bike I am reviewing today, she picked a recumbent and since it was going to be her machine, and she was paying, it came home with us. So, for years, I have gotten my almost daily fix on that Schwinn recumbent bicycle. While I put many hours a week on it, to get your pulse rate and calories calculated, I have to place my hands on the sensor pads on the bars that sit below the seat - not a natural position for me but I have gotten used to it. I much prefer riding with my hand "up on the bars".

Enter the Schwinn 120 Upright. It's a traditional bicycle in form and function and this will be MY exercise tool going forward. As with every other Schwinn product we have purchased, the 120 Upright says QUALITY with a capital Q. Hefting it into the house tells me that this is a serious machine - the label on the side warns the wary that it's a heavy package.

Assembly (with instructions in English and Spanish) was intuitive and simple. They even included a nice set of tools so the only thing I had to go to the tool drawer for was a scissor to cut out the screws, bolts and tools from their cardboard backing. I think it took me 45 minutes from opening the box to sitting on the seat and taking my first ride. Like my recumbent Schwinn, the "computer" allows you to program your exercise regimen. My usual program on my old bike is to pick a level of difficulty, start going and work as hard as I can to hit my target pulse rate. In Schwinn-speak, that's their Quick Start program. The 120 Upright works the same way so there was no learning curve. However, if you are a more creative rider, you can set up a custom workout. They have 2 courses, 2 circuits, and 2 "pursuit" modes. Each is adjustable for time and intensity (or resistance). You can even use it to set and then measure your improvement in fitness.

The unit has a feature that lets you keep track of the people who use it and will report on your number of workouts, total hours used, average speed, total distance and even total calories burned. Pretty cool, I must say.

They have added a couple of other cool features not in my old model. First, there is a 2 speed fan - nice because the fan on my recumbent is too weak to be effective. And they have a connection and non-skid pad for your MP3 player (naturally, with built in speakers). Not sure I see the need for that since I have my exercise machines in a room with TV, radio and CD player but if you don't, this should be an appreciated feature. Especially if your MP3 player shows video because the holder is right there in front of you.

OK, so why 4 stars and not 4? Well, the one thing I don't like is the computer display. It's LCD with thin stick letters - I find the numbers hard to see and since I work out trying to hit a target, seeing the numbers and the graphs in the dim morning light is important to me. I know, minor gripe but there you have it. Other than that, it's all good. The seat is even very comfortable.

Schwinn quality. Easy setup. Lots of features. Feels like it will work well for years. Maybe 4 1/2 stars?

Just finished my first workout, a short 30 minute, 8 mile ride. Installation was straight forward and took about 45 minutes total. I'm a fairly big guy (6'3/230lbs) but have an athletic build. The bike fits relatively well. My knees have enough room and don't hit the handle bars and that is with seat 1 notch from the tallest setting. The foot pedals however are small. I wore my running shoes (size 13) and they just barely fit into the straps even when they straps are at their biggest setting. If I don't have it just right, the sides of my shoes hit the bar that holds the pedals. After a few times adjusting my foot position it wasn't a problem for the rest of my workout. The LCD screen is a bit hard to read due to the font being a bit skinny. It is certainly not a deal breaker though. The heart beat sensor seems to be a bit erratic (even when making sure my hands did not move on the sensor). It would jump from 80 to 110, to 130 within 3 reading (~18 seconds). I think this may be because of the size of my hands and the smallish size of the metal sensors. Lastly the seat is just like any other bike seat. Having not rode a bike for a while it may just take a few rides to get used to. If not I'll probably buy a replacement seat that is a bit wider. It feels to be built quite well and is dead silent if you don't have the fan on (which it pretty useless anyway because it doesn't move any air). The machine doesn't rock at all even when going pedaling hard. The resistance the bike offers is really good. I used levels 3-8 during the first workout (bike can do up to 16) and at 8 it tired me out pretty quickly. Overall it is a good bike and in my opinion worth the price.

To recap:

PROS:
- Easy installation (~45 minutes)
- Solidly built
- Accommodates taller individuals (6'3/230lbs)
- Quiet (so I can watch TV without jacking up the volume)
- Good resistance

CONS:
- Foot pedals and straps are small (using shoe size 13)
- Heart rate sensor inconsistent
- LCD screen a bit hard to read (skinny font)
- Fan doesn't move any air

I'll look to post another review in about a month or so.

Prior to receiving this Schwinn model, the only experience I had with an exercise bike was a rather primitive one that could only claim a resistance knob and a padded seat among its features. So I was pleased to find this Schwinn 120 model features a convenient water bottle holder, a rubber mat on the console to keep your MP3 player secure, an area to place a book or magazine, and a built-in cooling fan. There's also an input port to plug in an iPod with speakers built-in to the console, but it doesn't work with my Sandisk MP3 player.

There are six preset exercise programs and the option to enter your information, age, and weight in a custom profile to keep track of your progress. Your profile will track your number of workouts, total hours spent, average speed, total distance, and total calories. My favorite feature is the ability to change the resistance on the fly with the simple press of a button. Wheels are included on one of the base supports to make moving the unit a bit easier. The seat is comfortable (for a bicycle seat) and easily adjustable to different heights.

Assembly is quite simple and will take the better part of an hour. All the necessary tools are conveniently included in the box. The only tool you'll need is the knife or scissors you used to open the box, as you'll need it to extract the smaller parts from the plastic-covered cardboard. A small thing, but I appreciated the fact that the manual is entirely in English without being cluttered by another language. A separate French manual is included and the option to view the manual in Spanish is available on the company's website.

There are only a couple outright negatives I found with this model. The fan's output at even the highest level is nearly imperceptible without having your face nearly pressed against the console. This is by far the most disappointing negative as it's a great feature that's rendered nearly useless by poor execution. Also, the LCD display could have benefited from having a backlit option, as without direct light on the console the letters and numbers can be difficult to read. Despite these issues, I've put several hours on this bike since receiving it and I'm rather satisfied. Overall, this product is an easy four stars and a nice value to boot.

Pedaling is smooth, as are the resistance changes. Both my husband and I are using it, so we have to make seat adjustments, which have proven simple and easy. The default program options are varied (to the point where I haven't felt the need to program my own yet). The creaking/clicking others have mentioned has developed in my bike as well, but it only happens after I've ridden for 15 minutes or so. I might open it up again and see if I can remedy the situation myself.

I slaved over my decision on whether to purchase an elliptical or a stationary bike as my first piece of at-home exercise equipment and ultimately, for my budget of $250, I realized I could get a much better quality bike than I could by spending the same amount on an elliptical, so I purchased the Schwinn 120 bike.
First off, the installation. I am woman, hear me roar, but holy cow the straps on the pedals were a challenge to get on by myself! I was burning calories just trying to get those suckers on, but once that was done it was fairly smooth sailing. Ladies, you gotta have some muscles to get the nuts and bolts tightened, or find a man you can con into doing it for you! But overall, not too bad. I was able to assemble the entire thing by myself in about 45 minutes.
Next, my first week in review.
I can definitely see what people are talking about regarding the thin lettering on the screen of the bike. It's very light and hard to see, which is the only reason I gave this bike a "4" instead of "5" star rating. Wishing there was some way to increase the contrast or something, but I do work out in a well-lit room so it's not impossible to see. Unfortunately the heart-rate monitor isn't all that accurate either. It seems to be a bit inconsistent and in testing my heartrate by myself versus the monitor, I'm finding the monitor to be quite a bit lower at times, although somewhat accurate at other times. If that's a big deal to you, then don't get this bike. If it's not a big deal (which it isn't for me), then the rest of this review should please you.
I get an AWESOME workout on this bike! I thought** I was a fairly fit person until I started peddling and realized out of the 15 levels of tension, I could only endure about 5 minutes at level 5. Wow. Less than 10 minutes had me working up more sweat than a 2-mile run! I'm only 5'5" tall and I had no problem adjusting the seat hight to my comfort level. I fit on this thing perfectly. The seat was a bit uncomfortable at first, but after some readjustment (I removed the seat completely, adjusted the tilt and reattached at a more suited angle) it's now very comfortable, and I use it often twice a day. Also, others are not kidding when they say this bike is QUIET!! Very nice for me since I like to pedal while my kids are still sleeping and I don't risk waking them up. The MP3 hookup is pretty cool and the speakers work well, so that's definitely a nice feature. I can set up my own little Spinning music mix - super-fun. The small footprint on this bike makes it very versatile for placement, as it can fit just about anywhere. Something I would have had more trouble with had I gotten an elliptical.
One thing to note: I have mine set up on carpet. I know it's recommended this system be placed on a hard, flat surface, but I don't have that available to me so a carpeted area was my only choice. The bike still feels very stable even when I'm pedaling fast, but it does tend to rock a bit if I get up out of the saddle and do a standing pedal. It doesn't feel like it's going to tip, but for someone larger than me it might be a problem, so beware of thickly padded carpet. Otherwise, great machine for the money and I'm very happy with my purchase!

To say I investigated purchasing a new fitness bike would be a small understatement. There are just so many choices, places to purchase them, and small differences in each bike that make them not as easy to compare and shop for as one would assume.

Brick and mortar stores such as Sears, Walmart, and Dicks' all carry most brands as well, with some even selling their own store brands to complicate things even more.

I knew from shopping and interfacing with choices at the local stores above that I did not care for ProForm, Nautilus, or Bowflex brand exercise equipment.
I was looking to replace a no-frills fitness bike with a similar no-frills model and the three brands I mentioned all seemed like the Cadillac, BMW, & Mercs of fitness brands with all their bells and whistles and prices to match. If we are like minded, you are not making a big production out of working out. A fitness bike to me isn't about mastering a brand new computer screen just to adjust my resistance. It's ride and be done for me. It's actually kind of difficult to find a new bike model out there that didn't want me to connect it to the internet or talk to it with commands. No thank you.

Space to me is an issue and this Schwinn 120 caught my eye because it didn't seem to give up similar full size fitness bike features for lending itself to a more compact size. It is also mainly grey with a few red accents which is a nice change from the majority of brands out there that of course are black.

I have a Prime account so I was jumping for joy to receive next day four dollar shipping on something of this size (It's eighty pounds boxed up). It took me all of an hour to assemble it and I didn't need assistance. Tools are included, as well as an OK set of instructions but do look over them well as I swapped the peddles later the fit I did that wrong and really had to fight to work the nuts out of the wrong peddle holes. As a side note, turns out after reviewing the assembly directions that Bowlflex & Nautilus are sister companies to Schwinn. Guess I found more of the other brands in stores cause the higher price points!

I ended up removing the water bottle holder after a few workouts because me knees kept coming too close to it since the bike frame is compact. This is of no loss to me. The seat, as well as it's height, and the handle bar U-shaped unit are all adjustable with an included adjustment tool. The peddle and resistance mechanism are very quiet and this was of major importance to me. I was replacing an aging fitness bike that you'd swear I was grinding coffee beans while peddling so it's now a surprise to be able to easily make out a news program while doing a workout!

The resistance and program screen are not backlit so imagine classic Timex watch readout but this does not matter unless you're working out in a poorly lit room. There is both a built-in fan for your face, as well as a speaker to connect an iPhone/iPod to. Both are poor. The fan does not come into equation because of the angle of the readout compared to the angle of your body while working out. Your face is simply never really near the fan. Again, for me, I couldn't care about a small face fan. I don't use an MP3 player while working out but I suppose that if you do, than sound quality is important to so this tiny built-in speaker won't rock your world. Once again, no loss for me there as well.

Overall - I'm very happy with this purchase. The price is great and considering that I paid for expedited shipping on the cheap and also saved on sales tax, I've got some left over for brand new workout clothes!

My husband and I bought an exercise bike a month or so ago and were disappointed at how noisy it was; we returned it. I did quite a bit of research and came across the Schwinn 120 Upright and among it's features, quiet was one of them. We received it last week and it's exactly as described. It's so incredibly quiet and especially perfect for those who wish to do bike riding when others are asleep. So far we have really enjoyed it.

I can't say enough about this bike. I've been riding it for about a month now. It is dead silent, the action is as smooth as you could want, the display is easy to read (I do have lights directly overhead) and the various support structures make it easy for me to store my remote control and drape my towel while I ride. The only negative I've found is that the built-in fan is utterly useless...it's a tiny computer fan that has three speed settings, none of which can be felt past three inches from the fan itself. I have not had opportunity to use the speakers, so I can't speak to that.

Without any doubt, Schwinn has always made high quality products and this exercise bike is not an exception. The assembly was fast and easy. Every tool you may need was included in the package. It took me about half and hour to assemble the bike. It's light weight but seems to be sturdy. The bike has functions that you may never use. It can measure the calorie you burn during the exercise. It can measure your heart rate as well as the distance you travel. To make it short, the bike has everything you need for a good exercise.
My only concern is the resistance is controlled electronically. Therefore, if the control panel breaks, the bike will be useless. When the power is off, there's no resistance at all. If Schwinn can figure out a way to adjust the resistance mechanically (in case the control panel breaks), the bike will be perfect.

Owned the bike for a little over a month now. Was able to put it together without any help in about an hour. Bike is super quiet. I'm 6 feet tall and have no issue with my knees hitting the handlebars.

One issue I have is the pedal straps are too small. I have size 10 feet and I can just barely get the tips of my toes in them. And they have to be in there just right or the sides of my shoes rub up against the pedal bars. Also, as one reviewer said, the LCD display is not back lit so you have to make sure you have ample light. Not a problem for most people, but I like to turn off the lights and watch a movie from time to time.

To me, they are minor complaints for an overall good bike at a great price.