Buyer's Guide

There's a £200 version and a £2,000 version of nearly every piece of home cardio equipment, and most of the people Motion Range is built for have already owned the £200 version. The £2,000 version isn't ten times better – but the gap on the things that actually matter (motor life, deck stability, belt tracking, console reliability, warranty handling, parts availability after three years) is wider than the price suggests. This guide is about navigating that gap with confidence, by category, with the practical detail home buyers actually need.

The catalogue starts with home cardio: treadmills, exercise bikes, rowers, cross trainers, and steppers. The buying decision is genuinely different in each – a treadmill decision is mostly about motor and deck; a rower decision is mostly about resistance type and folded depth; an exercise bike decision is mostly about resistance, console, and seat geometry. So the guide is split by category below – read the section that matches what you're buying.

The four cardio buyer's guides

Treadmill buyer's guide

The biggest motor, the longest deck, the heaviest frame, and the highest ceiling clearance requirement of the four categories. This guide covers motor power (CHP rating, sustained vs peak), deck dimensions (running surface vs overall footprint), cushioning systems, fold mechanisms, console software, and the noise and vibration question for upstairs rooms. If you've outgrown a budget treadmill that wobbles above a steady jog, this is the place to start.

Exercise bike buyer's guide

The decision divides into three subcategories: upright, recumbent, and indoor cycling (sometimes called "studio" or "spin"). The guide covers resistance type (magnetic, friction, electromagnetic), flywheel weight, console reliability, seat and handlebar adjustment range, and the question of whether to pay for an integrated app subscription. The strongest category for fitting a serious machine into a small footprint.

Rower buyer's guide

The category where the resistance choice (air, magnetic, water) determines almost everything else – feel of the stroke, noise level, maintenance, and what the machine costs. This guide covers the four resistance types in detail, folded depth and storage, monitor and software options, and what to look for in build quality from a machine that gets pulled hard every session.

Cross trainer and stepper buyer's guide

Two related categories with quietly different decisions. Cross trainers are about stride length, flywheel weight, and front-drive vs rear-drive geometry. Steppers are about the type of motion (mini-stepper, stair-climber, lateral) and how the calf and quad load distributes. This guide covers both, and helps you choose between them.

What's the same across all four categories

A few questions matter regardless of which category you're buying in. We cover them in detail on each individual category guide and on every product page, but here's the overview.

Space and access. Measure the room first. For treadmills, measure ceiling height too – a treadmill's running deck sits 15–20 cm off the floor, and a 6 ft runner needs 20 cm of clearance above their head to feel comfortable. For folding machines, measure both the in-use footprint and the folded one. For everything, measure the doorway, the stairs, and any turns the boxed item has to make from your front door to its final room.

Delivery to the room. Most home cardio machines arrive on a pallet weighing 50–150 kg. Standard parcel courier won't take it past your kerb. Whether you need a two-person delivery to a specific room is a question per product, set out clearly on the product page.

Assembly. Some machines arrive fully assembled (most rowers, most exercise bikes). Some arrive partly assembled, requiring 30–60 minutes of straightforward work (most cross trainers, some treadmills). Some require a more involved 90+ minute assembly with a second person (most folding treadmills). The product page tells you which.

Warranty. Motion Range handles manufacturer warranties as your first point of contact. You call us, we deal with the brand. Warranty terms vary by brand and component (the motor, the frame, the parts) and are listed in full on each product page.

Delivery and returns. Free UK delivery on orders over £500; delivery method and timing vary by product and are set out on each product page. Statutory 14-day returns apply on all online orders.

Five mistakes home cardio upgraders make most often

Under-buying motor power. If a £400 treadmill struggled, the £700 treadmill with a slightly bigger motor will too. The honest threshold for sustained 5+ km runs at home is a 3.5 CHP motor or larger. Below that, sustained running tends to shorten the motor's life considerably.

Forgetting ceiling clearance. A loft-conversion bedroom with a 2.1 m ceiling is generous for a person standing up, but tight for a 6 ft runner on a deck that sits 15–20 cm above the floor. Treadmill product pages list deck height; bring it forward when you're checking the room.

Confusing folded dimensions with in-use dimensions. A rower that folds to 56 cm wide takes that space when folded; in use it's 220 cm long and 60 cm wide. A spare bedroom that fits the folded version may not fit the in-use one. Always check both.

Skimming warranty terms. "5-year warranty" can mean the frame only, with one year on the motor and 90 days on the console. The motor and the console are the components most likely to fail. Read the breakdown, not the headline number.

Underestimating assembly time and people. "30-minute assembly" written on a box often means 30 minutes with a second person and a power drill. If you're alone with hand tools, double it. Some machines genuinely need two people to lift parts into position. Plan accordingly.

How Motion Range chooses what to stock

We stock a small range deliberately. Each machine we list has been chosen for build quality, warranty terms, parts availability, and how it holds up after a year or two of real use – not for breadth of catalogue or margin headroom. If a brand we trust changes the spec of a model in a way that weakens it, we drop the model. Better a short list of machines we can defend than a long one we can't.

Ready for the next step?

Read the category section above that matches what you're buying. The full range is where the product pages live. Or call us on 0333 880 7174 between 9am and 5pm Monday to Friday if you'd rather talk it through.