Nordictrack NEW S22i Review 2022 | From A Group Fitness Instructor

By Robbie Ferri, Cyclist, Personal Trainer, and Group Exercise Instructor.

Nordictrack is a brand you probably would have heard of when it comes to researching spinning bikes. Spoiler, they make excellent indoor bikes, and if you’re looking for something really special, their website is one of the first places you should go to take a look. Over recent years they have brought out some incredible bikes and what sets Nordictrack apart from the rest is the rapid rate at which they improve and advance their products. 

The Nordictrack S22i is one of the best bikes you can buy and offers so much for the rider. It has been around for a few years now but recently had a big upgrade, and we believe it could be one of the best or the best indoor home spinning bikes you can buy now. This article will tell you all about it and explain why it’s worth considering as an upgrade.

Our Verdict: 4.7 / 5.0

Nordictrack S22i (New Model)

4.7

The bike itself is an incredible machine and has an incline and decline feature, which means when you ride, a motor will raise and drop the front of the bike. The screen is 22” HD and uses an application called iFit for all your live and pre-recorded classes.

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What we liked and what we didn’t

If you’re short on time and just want a quick rundown of what to expect, here’s what we liked and what we didn’t like about the Nordictrack S22i.

S22i New vs Old Version: What’s Changed?

Nordictrack, unlike many other brands, is constantly changing, and generally, each year, they are improving the bikes and other equipment they make. We highly recommend going for the latest model and not buying second-hand. In the previous years, we have seen upgrades on the processor in the screen, making it faster and more responsive. The incline and decline motor has been improved to make it quicker and quieter. The newer models even come structurally very different, and because of this, they are much easier to assemble. You can tell the new model by the modern writing and the blue trim.

Detailed Review

Nordictrack S22i (New Model)

4.7

The bike itself is an incredible machine and has an incline and decline feature, which means when you ride, a motor will raise and drop the front of the bike. The screen is 22” HD and uses an application called iFit for all your live and pre-recorded classes.

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The S22i may look like quite a large bike, but you would be pleasantly surprised at the actual size of the machine. It is 55” long by 29” wide and 56” long. This actually makes for a fairly average size bike. It has a weight limit of a solid 350 lbs, which is very high, and they say it will work for a height range of 4ft 10” to 6ft 10” which is also excellent. So if you have a family and have multiple users, it’s going to work for everyone.

Connectivity and Applications

As with many high-end bikes, they are locked to certain applications and have limited availability when it comes to other services. This is how interactive bike companies make their money. The sale of the bikes is not where the profit is. Nordictrack uses an application called iFit, and like Nordictrack, they have rapidly been advancing it. It will give you live studio rides, prerecord rides, scenic outdoor training rides, and lots of off-the-bike classes like yoga, strength training, and HIIT. 

iFit also has a very intelligent feature of learning your fitness level and auto-adjusting the resistance to make every workout perfect. We think at the minute, they are one of the best applications going, and it comes in at $180 for an individual membership or $396 for a family plan. As far as connectivity, you also have a Bluetooth connection, so you are able to link up your heart rate monitors and even headphones to improve the experience.

Construction and Quality

Nordictrack is not just known for being great at implementing technology into their bikes. They are also known for excellent construction and high quality. When you order a Nordictrack product, you don’t just get an excellent experience. You get a bike of the highest standard. Down to even the welds, the bike is very well put together, and everything works amazingly well and is completely solid. Although Nordictrack products are not cheap, you get a lot for your money as far as the quality goes.

Resistance System

The bike itself has 24 resistance levels, and they are light enough for beginners and heavy enough for a seasoned professional. What we love about the resistance system is that it is all on buttons, so you are able to run through the gears right off the handlebars. You don’t have to use the buttons though. It will automatically change for you in the classes if you use the auto resistance function.

Incline Decline Feature

What does set this bike apart from its competition is the incline and decline feature, and this is a huge amount of fun. Imagine you’re riding the bike on a scenic hilly course, and you hit an incline. What happens on the Nordictrack bike is the front will raise all the way up to +20 degrees. Then when you come down the other side of the hill, it can decline all the way to -10 degrees.

The Incline / Decline feature in action.

It’s an incredible feature and the automatic resistance just makes the experience feel amazing. It really does add so much value to your riding, and it makes it feel like a real bike ride, not a spinning bike. There are very few bikes on the market that can do this, and we absolutely love the feature. 

Drive System and Flywheel

The resistance system is very good on the Nordictrack. It is an entirely frictionless belt drive system, making for a very quiet and extremely smooth bike. A frictionless system means it uses an eddy current that comes from sets of magnetics. This means very little maintenance will be required over the life of this bike, and it’s never going to feel sloppy. The flywheel is very modern and comes in at 14kg in weight. This is the way most modern bikes go, and to put it in simple terms, a smaller, evenly weighted flywheel spinning faster is better than a larger heavy flywheel when it comes to frictionless resistance.

Comfort

One of the most important things when it comes to a spinning bike is that it is nice and comfortable to ride. The last thing you want is to be dreading getting on it because the saddle might not be good. That’s not something you will need to worry about in the S22i, as Nordictrack has been made to suit a variety of riders, and as far as spinning bikes go, it is extremely comfortable. The saddle is good, the handlebars are nice and chunky and provide great grip, and it is just a pleasure to ride.

Monitor

They call the Nordictrack the S22i because the screen is 22”. It’s an incredible quality touch screen and very easy to use. As discussed before, it is preloaded with the iFit application, and it works seamlessly. On the older models, you find the loading time was a bit longer but on the newer models seems to be much quicker.

On the latest model, you have uprated speakers on the screen which go nice and loud, and in between them you even have a cooling fan. The screen also has the ability to swivel around for those off the bike classes.

Pedals

When it comes to pedals, you have a double-sided setup here. On one side, you have a typical flat pedal with a toe strap, and on the other side, you have a clip in SPD for spinning shoes.

The pedals spin well, and again they are of very high quality. They don’t look cheap in a nice glossy black and don’t feel it either when being used.

Portability

When it comes to these larger interactive bikes, people worry that they will be very challenging to move around, and some of them are. The Nordictrack is pretty good when it comes to moving it around. The light flywheel on the front and weights on the rear make it very evenly weighted, and the transport wheels on the front make moving it simple. 

Adjustability 

The S22i is well designed and fits the majority of indoor cyclists very well. The handlebars move up and down but not back and forth, which is the case with many bikes with screens. The saddle can move up and down and back and forth and is very easy to do with the micro adjusters. Overall the bike is very adjustable and very easy to do.

Assembly

In previous models, the assembly wasn’t the easiest, but in the new models, they have made some structural changes which have made it a lot easier to build. The pedals come attached, and it’s pretty much all built already apart from attaching the legs and handlebars. I would allow a couple of hours but getting it right the first time is important.

Warranty

The warranty is pretty good, and Nordictrack gives you 10 years on the frame, 2 years on the parts, and 1 year of labor. As far as indoor bikes go, it’s good, but because the quality is high, I doubt it ever gets used. 

Usual Problems

There are few common problems with the bikes, and anything that has come up in the past Nordictrack has resolved quickly. Sometimes you might need to reconnect the wifi when you turn it on very rarely, but that is it, and it’s no trouble at all.

User Reviews

After reading many reviews, we see many people very highly rate the bike and also compliment Nordictrack on their customer service. It’s nice to see they are so well recommended.

Comparisons with other bikes

When it comes to spinning bikes, it’s always good to look at a few competitors and understand where the bike you’re looking at sits in the market. We have taken some close comparisons and will tell you how it matches up.

Nordictrack S22i vs. MYX II Bike

MYX II Bike

4.8

Used in elite cycling studios and gyms, MYX comes with a monthly membership that gives up to 5 people access to the widest range of workouts available.

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The MYX II Bike has made a lot of waves recently because it is so much cheaper than its competitors, but it does have a few corners which have been cut, things like they still are using a friction resistance system, and the bike is quite basic compared to the S22i. Interested? We have tested the MYX II for more than a month, so check our review to find out more information.

Nordictrack S22i vs. Bowflex Velocore

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Bowflex VeloCore Bike

4.8

Provides the rider with an incredibly realistic riding experience, closely simulating riding outside on roads or up and down your favorite mountain climb.

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The Bowflex Velocore has an ability that very few indoor cycles have, and that is the ability to lean side to side while you are riding. It does make the bike larger, but it is a lot of fun. Compared to the S22i, it does have that extra feature, but overall we think the S22i is a lot more fun.

Related:
NordicTrack S22i vs Bowflex Velocore Detailed Comparison

Nordictrack S22i vs. Nordictrack S15i

NordicTrack Commercial S15i

4.7

The NordicTrack Commercial S15i iFit Studio Cycle includes a 14" HD Touch Screen and a one-year subscription to iFit. This bike is equipped with an inertial-enhanced flywheel and offers 22 digital resistance levels.

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Like the comparison above, the big difference is in the screen, and the S15i has a 15” screen compared to the 22”. Another big difference is that it has only 22 levels of resistance compared to 24. 

Nordictrack S22i vs. Nordictrack S27i 

NordicTrack NEW S27i Studio Cycle

4.8

Nordictrack made the s22i years ago, and it has advanced consistently throughout the years. This advancement has ended up making the s27i which is just such an incredible machine, and we can highly recommend it as an excellent purchase.

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These bikes are very similar in design and how they work. They are actually nearly identical. The only big difference comes in the size of the screen. The S27i has a 27” screen compared to the S22i’s 22” screen. It does make the experience a bit more full-on, having a larger screen, but we like that.

Nordictrack S22i vs. Peloton

Peloton Bike

4.7

Maybe the most popular indoor cycle, and for a good reason. Excellent quality with an excellent app for beginners and experts. The only downside it that users cannot change resistance when using apps like Zwift etc.

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Although they look like they do the same job on paper, you do get more with the Nordictrack S22i. Firstly the incline and decline feature, the auto resistance, and there seem to be fewer issues regarding quality. Pelotons are incredible bikes though, and we do highly rate them.

FAQs

Conclusion

The S22i is an excellent bike and totally justifies its price tag. We feel it offers so much more than other bikes and just makes the indoor cycling experience excellent. We think it is one of the best bikes on the market and highly recommend it to any indoor cyclist.