If you’re after a low impact piece of mega calorie burning cardio equipment to sculpt your lower body and get you super fit, you can’t do much better than an elliptical trainer. And when it comes to reputable elliptical manufacturers, you can’t do much better than Schwinn. In this article we review Schwinn’s mid-priced elliptical, the Schwinn 470.
About Schwinn
The Schwinn company began life as a bicycle manufacturer more thn a hundred years ago. That gives them an amazing hundred year record of providing stellar quality products and service. Their range of elliptical machines are especially impressive, running the gamut from basic to ultra-advanced. They have been producing home use ellipticals since 2014. The current Schwinn elliptical range includes the following machines:
- Schwinn Journey 4.5 Elliptical
- Schwinn 431 Elliptical Trainer
- Schwinn 520 Reclined Elliptical
- Schwinn 430 Elliptical
- Schwinn a40 Elliptical
- Schwinn 420 Elliptical
- Schwinn 450 Elliptical
- Schwinn 460 Variable Stride Elliptical
- Schwinn 470 Elliptical
Schwinn 470 Elliptical Trainer
The Schwinn 470 is the most popular elliptical trainer in the Schwinn stable. It sits in the middle of their range in terms of price point yet delivers many features that you would only expect to find in top of the line models.
User Friendly Console
The 470 comes with a backlit console so that you can get a clear view of your workout data while you’re running. The console features easy to see digits and a user-friendly layout.
Generous Stride Length
The biggest problem with many ellipticals in this price range is their limited stride length. At 20-inches, you won’t have that problem with the Schwinn 470. The extra two inches that it provides over most competitors makes all the difference in terms of full range of motion. The longer range of motion feels far more natural and unrestricted.
Precision Path Foot Motion
The 470 features Schwinn’s patented Precision Path Foot Motion technology to deliver an extremely smooth, natural stride motion that ensures maximum range of motion and enhanced muscle fiber recruitment. The flywheel of the 470 is placed at the front of the machine, which also helps to ensure a smooth, natural stride motion.
Motorized Incline
The Schwinn 470 features a motorized incline. This is another feature which you normally wouldn’t see on a mid-priced home use elliptical. It means that you are able to adjust the incline while you’re working out rather than having to get off the machine to adjust as you would with a manual incline. The inline range is from 0-10 degrees.
Adjustment of the incline on an elliptical makes the Schwinn 470 an effective cross training tool.
Cushioned Articulated Foot Pedals
The cushioned articulated foot pedals on the Schwinn 470 have been engineered for both comfort and functionality. The ergonomic design of the foot pedal actually follows the motion of the ankle as you are working out. The oversized foot pedals also adds to both safety and comfort.
Another feature of the foot pedals on the Schwinn 470 is that the pedal distance is not quite as great as on many competitor models. This has been designed to give you a more natural motion with reduced hip strain.
29 Built-In Programs
The Schwinn 470 provides you with an extremely impressive 29 in-built workout programs. That means that you have the benefit of personal training expertise designed programs to address your every fitness challenge.
The 29 fitness programs break down as follows:
- 12 profile
- 9 heart rate control
- 4 custom
- 2 fitness test
- 2 quick start
25 Levels of Resistance
The Schwinn 470 provides you with 25 levels of eddy current adjustable resistance. This puts you in total control of your workout, allowing you to smoothly and easily adjust your training intensity. Unlike with many competitors, the transition between incline levels is completely smooth, natural and jerk free.
The huge range of resistance levels means that the Schwinn 470 is suitable for all levels of fitness. Beginners are able to stay within the 1-12 resistance levels range, whereas advanced trainers can max out at level 25!
Schwinn Trainer 2 App
The Schwinn 470 pairs with the Schwinn Trainer 2 app. It allows you to upload all of your training data for complete analysis. You’ll have a huge amount of training information at your fingertips to allow you to adjust your training to meet your fitness goals.
Tablet Charging
You can charge your tablet right on the Schwinn 470 console. There’s also a secure tablet holder on the console.
What’s Not So Good
The Schwinn 470 is a relatively heavy elliptical machine, weighing in at 163 pounds. That makes it difficult to move the machine around your home. A console feature which some find annoying is that it scans through your training diagnostics. This means that the readout is always changing.
The Schwinn 470 features handheld heart rate sensors. This is an unreliable method of gauging a person’s pulse rate. The most reliable method is a chest strap monitor. You wouldn’t expect a mid-priced elliptical to provide you with a chest strap, but it would have been nice if it was engineered to work with one which you could buy as an optional extra.
Conclusion
The Schwinn 470 Elliptical Trainer is an extremely functional, well- priced elliptical trainer that delivers some excellent bonus features that you wouldn’t expect at this price point. Probably the most functional of these is the automatic incline feature. You also get a truly impressive 29 workout programs and 25 levels of eddy current resistance. This gives you plenty of workout options to get you motivated and to keep your muscles guessing!
The Precision Path Foot Motion of the 470, along with the slightly narrower pedal distance ensures that you get a very smooth, natural, ergonomically efficient elliptical stride motion on this machine.
The bottom line on the Schwinn 470 is that this is a very impressive home elliptical that will meet the needs of all levels of users.