Let me preface my review by first saying I already have a large room full of GYM QUALITY exercise equipment from both Powertec and BodySolid I use religiously almost every day. So, after spending thousands on that, why would anyone want this? Because except for a few exceptions typical home gym equipment does NOT very well address abs or obliques or simply offer clumsy and sometimes painful exercsies like incline leg raises on a exercise bench or high pulley crunches or getting down on the floor each of which can damage your lower back and I already have that probelm. With the Ab Doer Twist you sit down and yes it is fun... to a point.
First impressions: Reasonably priced, well made. Assembly is both fast and simple. Took me less than 12 minutes, watching the step by step that is included on the DVD that comes with the Ab Doer Twist. The unit uses several push and lock pins (bolds) similar to my expensive home gym equipment that holds the arms/handles, seat and massage roller in place and lets you easily adjust positions. Reading the other comments, some have complained about the lack of tension, making it "too easy" ie it won't do what's claimed. Well, guess what, while not included, you can order a "resistance rod kit" (apx $25) that has three rods that add considerable tension making the exercises varying degrees harder depending on what rod you insert. I'm guessing these are not included in the base package because a light resistance might be enough for older people and thouse wishing to mainly do "cardio". I'm going to order that, and if you're already in half way decent shape and not a total coach potato, you probably will want to also. The seat is oversized about 17 inches across, bit less less deep and lightly padded. Still comfortable enough for it's purpose.
A feature that might be confusing is in the ads and photos there is a tension knob. This only controls the resistance of the swivel of the seat what can be very light, to pretty hard plus another lock pin to keep it steady and not twist if you don't want the seat to move. As far as "fun", well that is objective. Because of the design it does allow a wide range of movement both forward and backwards and to the side, the main reason I got it to hit the obliques (love handles) if you have a bit of excess baggage in that area. Because of the wide range of movment you won't get bored which should keep you going.
Will this give you killer six pack abs while letting you enjoy pizza, burgers and fries twice a week along with ice cream and chips? Of course not. If done longer enough I can see where this will help tone and perhaps burn fat, but you still have to watch your diet and do other exercises. I plan to use my Ab Doer Twist AFTER my regular weight training to help tone abs while watching TV, which means probably using it at least 30 minutes at a time every other day to cool down from more demanding weight training. The point I'm trying to make is this isn't a toy. It can work, if you put effort into it and do enough reps. Comes with several exercise plans on the DVD I haven't checked out yet. So far, I'm impressed, glad I got it.
UPDATE 1/1/12
For some reason I can't make a reply to anybody's comment and thus adding here. Anyone else have this issue? I've wrote/called Amazon several times, this problem (not being able to make a comment or reply to one) is over a year old and all I've got from Amazon is lip service. Oh well...
As for those saying I must work for the company or somehow am affilated with them, sell it, etc.. I assure I don't. Read my other reviews on other products and you'll see they too are quite positive about the product being reviewed, expect for the one book and the tape measure it which case I was quite negative. Also this review is I feel objective. Read it again in full. The Ab-Doer Twist is what it is. It is made well enough, it will help you "tone up" if you devote the time to it. It can not and will not turn you into the next Jay Cuttler, Arnold or by itself give you a stunning six pack so your phone is ringing off the hook with offers to do modeling or beg you to enter the next Mr. Universe contest.
I usually get a kick form the people that give a one star review. Here, some complain the tension knob provides no tension. Well it isn't suppose to! It provides tension that controls how easily the SEAT swivels, that's all it is suppose to adjust. Others complain the machine "doesn't do anything". Again, duh... What it is suppose to do and does is put your body in the correct postion for YOU to do something, ie do the exercises! The effort and results or lack of same comes from YOU.
As I said before I use this to mainly cool down while watching tv AFTER doing a session on my multiple thousand dollar home gym equipment. One big benifit is this device gets you off the floor, where doing "ab" exercises can and often do end up causing lower back pain. Also 9 out 10 people don't have a clue HOW to do crunches the right way. Ditto for doing leg lifts which mostly work the hip flexors and have zero benefit to abs. Also the reason the back arm and arms are so flexable is to let you bend sideways and optionally also add twisting motion is to work your obliques, (love handles) quite effective for that.