SOLE Fitness Elliptical Exercise Machines, Models E25, E35, E95, E95S, E98, Elliptical Machines for Home Use, Home Exercise Equipment for Cardio Training, Work from Home Fitness Stepper Machine

To start off, I had some trepidation over having this delivered, since my wife's stationary bike had several broken parts due to poor handling. However, as noted in other reviews, this was delivered by a separate company, not FedEx or UPS or anything like that. In short, the elliptical arrived in fine condition and the delivery service brought it into the house for me.Do follow the markings on the box; if necessary, have the shippers help you get the box correct side up, so that you can slice around the bottom of it with a box cutter and lift the box up and off. That box makes a perfect storage container for all the packing materials inside, and if you just cut it open and tear it up, you lose that option.I've had the machine for over a month now, and have used it almost every day (most times twice a day.)PROS:**Assembly was rather straightforward. There were a couple of issues, but if you've put together other bulky items, this won't be a challenge, just time consuming. As my wife mentioned, this was the first time she can remember me putting together anything and NOT cussing a blue streak while doing so.**Mostly quiet operation. Most of the time, there's little to no noise when in use. Exceptions noted later.**Solid construction. I was a bit leery, again after my wife's bike, due to cheapness of flimsy materials. I was happy to see that there are no easily broken parts.**Consistency of operation. I've been logging my workouts, and have yet to see any wild fluctuations. I only run on Manual mode, so I can't give any advice concerning the other modes, but there is a noticeable gradiation in the resistance levels, but not too much of a jump from one step to the next.CONS:**About two weeks into use, the right foot platform developed a squeak. I have yet to isolate the source; I've loosened and re-tightened the bolts and checked everything out. It appears to be about halfway back, and is simply a flex point. A week later, the left foot platform had the same issue. The noise comes and goes, and at this point, is noticeable at the start of each exercise but goes away after about five minutes or so.**Almost immediately, the left foot platform was noticed to be slightly wobbly. Instead of only rotating as one expects it to, it also will occasionally slip laterally. If it happens at all, it only happens once or twice during a workout, and usually in high (for me at least) RPMs (upper 70s-lower 80s), then goes back to the way it should be. It does not feel loose when I'm checking the machine out, so I'm not sure what the issue is or how to fix it.**A single lap appears to be 1/3 mile, not 1/4 mile like I'm used to on other machines. Not necessarily a con, but something that I wasn't expecting.**The machine's starting level 1 resistance is much tighter than I was expecting it to be. I'm now doing workouts ranging from 9-11 resistance level, but the first week or so I was stuck around level 3, and there didn't appear to be very much difference between levels. I'm thinking it just had to be loosened by activity, and since then the levels have come out to a reasonable level...just don't expect level 1 on this thing brand new to be anything as easy as level 1 on a gym's elliptical in use by hundreds of people.**Probably the biggest drawback for me is the lack of heart rate monitors on the moving handles. They are there and work fine on the stationary handles, but ideally I'd never touch those in a workout. They do include a remote chest monitor, with instructions on use; I haven't used it yet and probably won't.Overall, I'd probably give this somewhere around an 88-90%. I specifically bought this after reading reviews on this as well as other similarly and cheaper priced ellipticals, and I would say that if you can afford the extra couple hundred bucks, go for this one if you're searching in the $1,000 price range.

This is one amazing machine! It runs very smoothly and doesn't make a sound when we are using it. My headset plugs directly into it so I can listen to music while exercising. I have my "User 1" programmed so that I can easily get my workout done in 1/2 an hour and feel like I've burned some real calories. It is simple to change the settings so that I can increase the difficulty level and it can be paused if you need to take a quick break. I like going backwards since it is just as smooth and can work on the back side of my legs and bottom. It gets used 2-3 times a week instead of just sitting there like most exercise equipment. This elliptical was a good purchase too. We bought it on Amazon as a "Lightning Deal" and have not regretted purchasing it. The package was VERY Heavy so the delivery men brought it into the room where we would be using it and we assembled it there. Make sure that the ceiling where you will be exercising is at least 8 foot tall to allow for headroom. The machine length when fully assembled is 7 foot long and the width is about 2 1/2 foot wide. We have ours in our den and it takes up about half of the length of the room but is tucked away in a quarter section so that we still have room for desks and files. All the parts came clearly marked and we kept them with their bags and set them in little sections as we checked to make sure all parts were there. The instructions had fairly small print on the diagrams but we were able to understand them and follow them. Putting it together was a bit time-consuming but we made sure to read every step and tighten all the parts correctly. The hardest part was putting the final front plastic Handle Bar Covers. The screws didn't seem to fit but we found out that they need to go in at a certain angle and the hole is a little difficult to hit just right with the screw. A flashlight and a magnetic screwdriver can really help with this problem. Having two of us working together made it much easier for the whole job. The only thing (and it is just a tiny thing) is that the fan that is on the control panel to help cool you is pretty ineffective. Others have mentioned it too but it definitely isn't a big deal; just a note. We have a window that works nicely for cooling us down. I would truly recommend this for others looking for a really nice, quality elliptical machine! It is solid and sturdy, but still quiet and smooth.

Once assembled, the machine is excellent. The instructions were 90% clear but I was told by the company rep that assembly would take 1-1.5 hours. With two mechanically competent people working together, unboxing (the well packaged 275 pound crate) and assembly took 7 hours. I "googled" the manual before the machine arrived and saw that there were "exploded" diagrams with dozens and dozens of parts and fasteners, so I was prepared for an afternoon's work, but some of the sheet metal screws have to fit into tiny recessed holes........not always easy. That said, all the pieces fit together and the finished product is quite sturdy. I actually assembled this for a friend and have an older version of the same model, E35, that is more than 10 years old and still going strong, so I can attest to a likelihood of a long life for the elliptical machine. The operation is smooth and the screen and controls are fairly straight forward and functional, although there are several pages of user instructions well worth reading in order to get the most benefit from the machine. I also encountered shipping issues, however, multiple company reps were friendly and helpful and all my issues were resolved satisfactorily. So, I highly recommend the machine, it definitely gets 5 stars, but unless you and a buddy can spend some time reviewing the instructions AND you read exploded diagrams easily AND you are both members of a professional race car pit crew ........expect to spend at least an afternoon for assembly or opt to pay extra for assembly.