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15 of 17 found the following review helpful:
 Solid machine, easy to assemble and fun to use Jan 24, 2011
By Bernard Farrell
Our elliptical trainer arrived in a large cardboard box, that needed two people to move it. We had it delivered in our garage and carried the pieces down to the basement and assembled it there. The only difficult part of this was the base, which also needed to people to move - it's heavy and awkward. The box contained Styrofoam which was marked for recycling, and all the plastic bags were clearly marked with recycling symbols. I give them good marks for making recycling easier.
Assembly was extremely easy. The directions were fairly clear and the parts needed for each of the assembly steps was individually packed, see my photo. Some parts are left or right oriented and those are clearly marked with L or R stickers. It also came with all the tools needed for assembly. I put it together in about an hour. NOTE: I needed to tighten some of the nuts after we'd used the machine for 3 weeks. I noticed this after the elliptical was noisy to use, normally it's extremely quiet.
One hint, it's not clear where to plug in the power line. It goes into a small socket near the base of the left hand side, see the attached photo.
There are two roller wheel at the front of the unit and a large bar to the back, so in theory you can stash it when not in use and pull it out to use it.
When not in use it's 51" long and 30" wide. When in use, it's needs a length clearance of 68".
The power drive a large very readable and bright display. It shows the type of circuit you're using below very large digits that cycle between: workout time; speed; distance (miles); calories; pulse rate; and watts. The display powers off automatically, and then switches on when you get on the treadmill and take a step or two. So it's very energy efficient.
Programming the display is not obvious, and it's not explained well in the owner's manual. If you want to use one of the 12 program patterns shown follow these directions.
1. Power on the unit.
2. Press the Up arrow until the bottom of the display reads PROG.
3. Press the Mode button.
4. Press the Up or Down arrow to choose P01 to P12, for one of the patterns printed below the display.
5. Press the Mode button.
6. Choose the effort level with the Up or Down arrows.
7. Press the Mode button.
8. Use the up arrow to set the number of minutes you want to workout for.
9. Press the Start/Stop button and get going!
Because there's no motors in this unit, it's fairly quiet to operate with little clicking noises as you move. I can easily use it to walk forwards and backwards, and I can increase or decrease the levels while exercising. At the lowest level, I can go from 1 to 8. If you grip the small handles, your pulse rate is displayed after a few seconds.
Overall I've found using it is very smooth, it's not as bulky as a professional gym unit but it feels very solid. After we'd been using it for a week, I did use the tools to check the bolts and screws were all tight, a few of them had loosened slightly.
I have a two minor gripes: the hill display doesn't move, it's the same whether you do 10 minutes or 30 minutes; with program 3, for example, you always get four peaks with the time divided equally between the four sections. The other gripe is the placement of the water bottle holder. It's on the frame under where one of the big handles moves by. Trying to get it while you're using the elliptical is awkward, I wish they'd placed it on the step below the display.
We also have a good treadmill, but since the elliptical arrived it's been the machine that everyone in the family is using, including the kids.
7 of 8 found the following review helpful:
 Works great with TVs--Saves me at least an hour a day, and Compact in Size! Oct 25, 2011
By Chen Sun
"WebAndNet.com"
I'm a relatively active outdoors person also with numerous indoor exercise equipment, dislike gym ellipticals, and expected this elliptical would be a minor use item. Was I surprised!
Probably the greatest impediments to most people's exercising are: lack of motivation and time. This mindless, requiring low-motivation (both desirable characteristics) exerciser works excellently with high-wall-hanging TVs, so one can learn or be entertained, while exercising; thus perhaps saving an hour of time daily!
Rowing machines are noisy. Free weights and home weight-gyms cause interrupted flows in viewing due to constant changing of weights and head angles. Treadmills require concentration and has too much bounce to enjoy the shows. Gazelle gliders lack adjustable resistance and also require concentration and has too much bounce. Boxing bags or jumping with ropes cause interruptions and bounce. Gym ellipticals either require my watching boring commonly-watched TV programs or if a small TV is attached, the viewing angle is not directly in front of the eyes, requiring a head adjustment that removes some exercise value. Yoga doesn't require much motion exercise. Indoor bicycling has no arm exercise and bad for posture.
The BF-E1 elliptical is relatively quiet (so I can hear the TV audio), has varying resistance levels (for better workout), is relatively compact (saves space), has extensive exercise modes settings, and even is effective for a 6ft1in guy, as me (I had expected it to appeal primarily to women). Its pedals are well designed for safety because BF-E1's lower sidewalls prevent possible jamming a toe, when one is mindlessly pedaling.
Suitability in house or apartment:
Installation ease--A,
Easy to move around--A,
Compact size--A, (This is particularly valuable where real estate rent is high.)
Quality of mechanics-- A
General exercise:
Ergonomics (how well it fits to body)--B ellipticals, I believe are inherently not ergonomic, and this unit's foot step height, I suspect, may be a bit shorter than gym ellipticals).
Injury prevention--A safety to the point that it's mindless exercise)
Enhances posture--A
Strength building--C ellipticals don't exercise mid-abdomen and the total range of leg and arm motions is limited)
Actual Usage Characteristics
Enhances Personal Motivation--A
Mindless operation--A+
Low Noise--A
Watching TV--A+
Requires minimal exertion-- A
Posture improvement--this is a less obvious benefit. Most other exercisers are difficult to improve posture, and posture improvement is difficult to achieve in outdoor sports. Major health studies show that posture is one of major determining factors in predicting one's health, particularly when one ages. Because the elliptical can be exercised with the head erect and chest upright, using this, with a high-hanging-wall TV can greatly enhance one's posture. BF-E1 is a low effort, low muscular gain exerciser that, when used with a TV, becomes fun and substitutes muscular effort exercises with more time spent exercising. Calories reduction and toning are probably effective.
Because I treat this more as an exerciser-entertainment-learning device than a strict exerciser, I'm not focusing on its control panel capabilities, which is described in other reviews.
Acid reflux issues. Running can aggravate the esophagus, mostly because the stomach acid bounces up and down and hits the esophagus. The elliptical is very smooth, so using it with an empty stomach reduces acid reflux issues. For additional protection, use a sandal on right foot, barefoot on left, and uplift your chest--these will further distance the esophagus from the stomach acid. BF-E1 is smooth and can be used barefooted with great safety.
Mindless operation--and this is excellent, because one can concentrate on other issues. Most of the other exercisers I've tried required discipline and effort. BF-E1 elliptical requires the least discipline, concentration, minimal motivation. And it's very safe, so I can learn or be entertained by TV, while mindlessly exercising barefooted. I own more varieties of indoor and outdoor sports and exercise equipment than anyone I know, and expect to use this elliptical regularly, because it saves time (a major compliment).
3-19-12 addendum-- when installing, use grease to lubricate the arms' spindle pivots and the arms' and leg arms' joints. My unit did not come with grease, but apparently some units do.
2 of 2 found the following review helpful:
Elder jock Apr 29, 2011
By W. J. Stoffey
"Mr. Fitness"
I received my elliptical trainer in a well-packaged container which prevented any damage to the components. I was able to assemble it myself with some degree of difficulty in about 2 hours. So far I have been very pleased with the operation of the ellipital trainer. The stride is comfortable, not too long and doesn't put undue stress on the hips. It is quiet when in use, allowing one to watch television without a home theater for amplification. The only problem I have found is there is some jerkiness when at higher tension levels. I haven't tried any of the programs so I can't comment on them. The trainer doesn't take up a lot of room (unlike the treadmill it replaced)! Overall I would recommend this product, particularly if space is limited.
I love this machine!! Apr 14, 2012
By L. BOONE
I am so happy I made this purchase. It came with everything needed to put it together. It gives a great workout as well and doesn't take up alot of space. I'm totally satisfied with this machine.
Love it! Jan 17, 2012
By Margie
This elliptical was easy and quick to put together. I timed myself starting after unpacking it all and it only took me an hour and a half. All the screws were in little packages numbered by each step which was extremely helpful. The only thing that I had problems with was the instruction manual was not in order and trying to figure out where the plug went into the machine. It's not in the written instructions. I found a picture of it on someone else's review of this machine. Here's the link....
http://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-media/product-gallery/B002TYF4D8/ref=cm_ciu_pdp_images_1?ie=UTF8&index=1
It works great!!
See all 7 customer reviews on Amazon.com
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