DeskCycle MagneTrainer-ER Mini Exercise Bike with Ultra-Smooth Magnetic Resistance, Arm and Leg Exerciser for Joint Mobility, Circulation, and Recovery, Black (DSK-SPO-MGTRAINER)

I'm posting this same review for three closely related products: the MagneTrainer-ER Mini Exercise Bike, the Quick-Connect kit for the MagneTrainer, and the Ergonomic Hand Pedals for the MagneTrainer. I bought all three and together they effectively become a single product. Background: I'm a 62 y.o. COPD patient going through a pulmonary rehab course. One of the machines used in the course is an "arm bike" which you use by cranking some handles with your hands/arms using the same motion your feet would make on a bicycle. This makes you push and pull with your arms, shoulders, upper back, etc. I noticed that this felt like an efficient way to work a lot of muscles that I usually don't work in a short period of time, and it can be as tough or as easy as I choose since the resistance is adjustable. How to get that experience at home without spending big bucks on a gym-quality machine the size of a small car? I read lots of reviews and decided to try out the MagneTrainer and I am sold. It has the feel and performance of the pricey equipment you find in hospitals, rehab centers, gyms, etc. The action is silky smooth and consistent throughout the range of motion, regardless of the resistance. It's nearly silent. You don't need to plug it in (it runs off of one AA battery). The machine is heavy and well-balanced enough that I've experienced no wobbling...it feels like it's nailed to the table or floor when used as they tell you to use it. The standard foot pedals are substantial and comfortable and have Velcro straps to keep your feet from slipping off, and they can be used as hand grips. I bought the optional hand grips ("Ergonomic Hand Pedals") because I liked the similar feel of the handles on the equipment in rehab. The hand grips are substantial, durable and so heavy you could fling them at a burglar and knock him cold. Likewise the optional Quick Connects that allow you to swap the foot pedals for the hand pedals are very solid, well machined, industrial quality stuff. Assembly: the process is easy to understand but you need to put some muscle behind the wrenches when putting this together. All the tools needed are included. You can buy the hand pedals and the quick connects later if you're not sure about the machine, just be prepared to go through something of a second installation when you add them. You don't need the hand pedals but if you buy them, you absolutely need the quick-connects as well. Otherwise if you wanted to switch between hand and foot pedals, you'd have to break out a wrench and risk stripping threads and by the time you were done, you'd be so aggravated you wouldn't want to use the thing! I plan to use it mostly for upper body exercise, but decided to just bite the bullet and outfit the thing completely as I expect I'll have this for some time. With the quick connect adapters installed I find it easy to swap the handlebars for the foot pedals and vice versa. I also find it easy to move the MagneTrainer between the table and the floor if I'm switching from hands to feet (it has a handle). My take is that if you'd find those tasks difficult, you most likely have a helper available who could do it for you. I have two nitpicks. Resistance is adjustable from nothing to plenty with the turn of a dial, but when you find a setting you like there's nothing to let you remember that setting. If you and I were sharing the same machine it would be neat to know that I'm working at, e.g., Level 6 and you're working at Level 9. That way if you used it last, I could dial back to my comfort zone of Level 6. No such luck. Resistance is easy to adjust but it's like a garden hose. "Hey, how far did you have it turned on?" "I dunno, about half way or something." Not precise, but not a huge deal to work around. The other nitpick is the electronics module. It does exactly what it needs to do but given the overall quality of the rest of the machine and attachments, it feels a little cheap. No backlight, tiny display, no memory. On the other hand, this device has NO POWER CORD and those fancy items take power. This thing runs off of a single AA battery inside the electronics module. This isn't cheap, but for something that feels this sturdy and durable it's worth it to me.

I took a long time looking at the MagneTrainer and other mini bikes as well as the Exerpeutic bikes. I almost purchased the new Exerpeutic 500 until one person answered a question about the MagneTrainer. What we all can do with the MagneTrainer that cannot be done with any exercise bike is push the unit away using as a recumbent, draw in closer sitting in a higher chair using it as a traditional bike, and use it for arm strength. I can sit anywhere and use the MagneTrainer, in any chair, and not be stressed if the seat starts to hurt my tailbone. And when I'm done, it tucks away nicely. It is very quiet, very well built, and it took me ten minutes to assemble. It actually took me longer to inbox the unit. It's not that heavy at all. It does come with a long Velcro strap, which I have to use. I have laminate floors and if there is any trace of dust on the floor, the unit will slide. However, it is less likely to slide if it is pedaled in a downward movement. When you assemble your pedals, be very sure the pedals are on the correct side and they are tightened. In the manual, it does state that the company does not warranty if the threads get stripped. I am extremely happy with my purchase and I do recommend it to anyone. It is very comfortable to use, and if you think you can't get a good workout, think again. If you can get a good workout on a recumbent, you can get a good workout with the MagneTrainer, all from the comfort of a comfortable chair of your choosing :-) P.S. I ordered on Dec. 10, received on Dec. 12!! (Yes, I used free shipping!)

I wanted a mini pedal leg exerciser which could double as an arm exerciser. Using the internet I discovered the Magnetrainer would fill that need. While there are other exercisers less expensive, they were also very light weight. The major complaint users had was they wobbled and moved round a lot during exercises. I tried my Magnetrainer in the middle of my kitchen floor and found it solid with no movement at all even with the rear extender all the way into the unit. The extender can go from 15.5" out to about 21" but I saw no need for that. I believe that stabilization is because of those 15" horizontal front and rear bars that keep it from rocking, and especially those front and back rubber feet that grip the floor to keep it from sliding. Update 10/11/25: I found some rocking under these circumstances A much higher tension setting with legs when pedaling at about 45 degrees angle ( on my couch not chair ). I found it's a very smooth and quiet exercise machine. I really like that. I found using it both as a leg and arm exercise machine satisfactory with no need for me to purchase the optional hand pedals & quick disconnect. If you buy the hand pedals unless you only use it as an arm machine you'll need the quick disconnects (just removing & inserting a pin) otherwise you'll be needing that wrench to remove one set of pedals and install the other each time you want to change the configuration. I took 4 stickers marking them 0, 1, 2 & 3 and added them to the resistance dial (see picture) with 0 sticker being at the top when the dial is at minimum resistance position. Rotating the dial I found my total dial travel to be about 5.75 rotations. You dial range may be different. Those sticker markers allow me to redial to my last setting should anyone else use my machine. The display unit at the top displays speed (MPH/KPH) and goes to zero when stopped. The bottom displays R RPM average which also goes to 0 when stopped. D total travel distance (miles or kilometers ) T total exercise time C total Calories (possibly accurate using the highest resistance setting) There is also a scan mode which cycles through those 4 lower displays. Momentary pressing the display button toggles the display to a different display setting. Holding the button for about 3 seconds zeros the display. Holding the button for 6 or more seconds not only zeros the display but changes between miles and kilometer each time you do that. The total distance display seems to be what it would the travel distance if you were pedaling a bike. If you wanted how approximately how far one of your feet moved then divide that number by about 9. You might have noticed a youtube video titled "Magnetrainer pedal exerciser display issue" The root cause of that was really old batteries left in the display module corroding and eating away part of battery holder spring. From the get-go I put in fresh name brand batteries into the display module and plan to swap out from them out probably at the same time that I replace my smoke detector batteries. The advertised 39lb effective flywheel weight is probably because of the difference in the internal pulley diameters since the weight of the unit is only about 23 lbs. In the 3 day period from my ordering to receiving the unit the purchase price increased by $20 from $159 to $179 (maybe because of those tariffs) but even at that higher price I would have ordered the Magnetrainer as it seems to be a very good value.

This is quite good as a shoulder bike (my primary use) considering the constraints (size and price). Using it as a leg bike is a different matter (more on that later). I use it on a wooden kitchen table as a shoulder bike and it works well for that. It is sturdy, very well built, doesn't need to be plugged in and very quiet. Even though I purchased optional handle pedals they are not really necessary in my opinion. The range of resistance is very good and will give you a very good workout at the highest setting. However, this is where the issue with it is: the ability to fine-tune the resistance in this case means it takes full 5 rotations of the dial to go from lowest to the highest setting and there is no indication where it is at at any given point. Either resistance level should have been indicated on LCD or it should've been limited to 1 rotation range with clearly indicated levels (i.e. 1 to 10). The dial to adjust the resistance is also quite noisy (clicking) when turned. For the shoulders the size and weight constraints come into play at the higher settings (about 2.5 rotations and higher). It is just not heavy enough and doesn't have enough of a footprint to stay stable. After 2.5 rotations it starts moving around (side to side and up and down) and not very usable above 4 rotations for this reason. I will note that for my strength level 4 is quite a lot already. If using it on a table as a shoulder bike you can do this while standing as well and it helps with it moving around a bit as your force is directed more downward and less forward. Things get worse while using it as a leg bike. There are a few problems that are exacerbated by the fact that you have to use it at a high resistance level (comparing to the shoulders) or else it is not really a workout: 1) It just doesn't have enough of a weight and a footprint to stay stable, especially on the hard floor. Whatever you see on the video will work like that until about 1.5 rotation of the resistance dial, even on the carpet. 2) You chair is not connected to the device (yes, they supply a strap to connect it but it will not solve an issue #3 and side-to-side movement) 3) You need very stable chair, especially at higher resistance. I used regular folding kitchen chair and it just doesn't have enough of a weight/footprint and attempts to tilt back now and then which is dangerous. It also feels flimsy in general. 4) Just like with shoulders, when used for legs the bike moves side to side and up/down but it is more pronounced because you MUST use it at 3-5 dial rotation level for the legs for any meaningful resistance. These issues when using it for legs can be partially overcome with following: a) Use it on the carpet or rubber mat (I use it on the carpet). b) Put the bike against the wall so to limit the range of motion (it will still jump up/down at the highest resistance level but left-to-right movement will be reduced). c) Get yourself a sturdy chair with a larger footprint. On a carpet it will also slide less. d) Put some sort of heavy weights (like dumbbells) on the front legs of the bike to prevent it from jumping up and down. Yes, they sell an optional wider rear leg that will put a bike at an angle. I don't have it but I think it would improve things. It should've come with that. They also sell full size adjustable stand but if you are in an apartment you won't have the space for it. And if you are in a house you would be better served with larger and sturdier machine with integrated seat (even though it may be larger and more expensive). To summarize: it is OK for a shoulder bike but if leg biking is your primary use you would be better served by a larger stationary bike with integrated seat for any real exercise.

My magnetrainer has been an essential part of recovery from shoulder surgery and repeat dislocations of my shoulder. The separately-sold ergonomic hand pedals (ps://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001PQMGA0/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1) are a must-have if using this device for your upper body instead of lower body. When including the price of the ergonomic hand pedals, the value for the money is incredible. Most local gyms do not have hand bikes - I've only ever seen them in PT offices and very high-end gyms. The performance of this machine rivals that of professional quality hand bikes - it has amazing fine-tuned resistance adjustment, works well forwards or backwards, and is exceptionally quiet for a magnetic trainer. The built-in computer works very well - I can't speak to the accuracy of the distance and calorie counters, but I use that information relatively speaking, relative to light resistance vs. high resistance training sessions. I use mine for both warmup - before extensive shoulder PT routines - and strength building at higher resistance levels. Packaging and shipping was adequate, I had no indication of damage or concerns when unboxing and assembling my unit. Some additional tips and comments: -The trainer comes with 130mm crank arms that provide high cadence but less range of motion than a fully adjustable handbike trainer. With the ergonomic hand pedals, you can clear up to a 150mm crank arm. I purchased and installed unicycle 150mm crank arms - the bike uses a standard square taper interface and cranks can be changed using an old square taper crank puller. At 160mm crank arms you would need to make modifications to how the trainer is mounted because you will get interference between the ergonomic pedal and the legs of the trainer. -The trainer works well at counter height for hand biking but to really accommodate ideal elbow position, I recommend purchasing the adjustable stand or using the device on a height-adjustable standing desk. I do get some occasional wandering of the handbike when using very high resistance settings, but that is solveable with straps on your table and also by being careful with your stroke.

Husband had a heart attack and did the cardiac rehab program at the hospital. They had a machine like this along with several others. We are setting up a home gym for both him and me so when he completes the hospital program, he has a place to keep up with his exercise for heart health and I can have a place to work out at home too. This is a nice little tabletop machine for arm exercises. Smooth operation and insanely quiet. Works in both directions (pedal forward or backward). Nice size display and it rotates through the different categories of things it's tracking like speed and calories burned. I have wimpy arms so it's giving me a nice, non-jarring way to exercise them and start building up muscle. My husband needs to stay within a certain range based on what the nurses have told him at the hospital workout program and this monitor gives him enough detail that he can easily tell he's staying on track. I looked at a LOT of desktop exercisers in a variety of price ranges. Given that we've got 4 pieces of exercise equipment and up to 3 people at a time will be using our home gym, I wanted one that would outlast us and operate smoothly and quietly. This one fits the bill. My husband has to continue exercising 3-4 times a week for the rest of his life. This sucker will outlast both of us. LOL Highly recommended. To go along with this, we also ordered a treadmill, recumbent exercise bike, and recumbent cross trainer. Our home gym is now complete! Bring on winter and snow, we're ready!

I already own an good Flywheel Elliptical Trainer Machine for my legs so i was looking for a machine to remove the under arm fat and jelly fat that hangs at the edge of your chest and this machine does the job its been one year and i use it every other day, 4 times a week and its still quite and runs as if its new. however I hate the vertical accessory attachments for the arm, i just wanted 2x straight bars to grip, and over the course of a year i made trial and error changes to get the most out of this machine for my arms. now after a year of use with the mods i added i love using it and can go for an hour where i use to only do 10 min cause of the uncomfortable vertical attachments handles. materials i used 1. the ChargerCity Aluminum Clamp Mount with 360º Easy-Adjust Holder & 22" Gooseneck Arm Clamp Lock (Compatible with 7"-10" Tablet) i bought this from amazon in 2013 (now no longer available) to attach a tablet to exercise machines now its used to hold my i phone so i don't get bored 2. Drop Forged, C-Clamp you can see the black C clamp use in the back to hold the tablet mount to the machine so its not wobbling around 3. adjustable closet rod pole by Everbilt 18-30 in white smooth finish. this is what i used to make the straight handles bought at home depot for 12$ i cut the inner tube in half for each side then cut the larger tube to insert over the smaller tube for what i grip on. you need this so one tube can freely rotate around the inner tube. just using one tube will create a burning friction in your hand and unscrew the handle attachments off. 4. MAGNETRAINER Quick-Connects for The Pedal Exerciser i had to buy this accessory so the tube handles had something to grip on to the machine. 5. duck tape, used in layers to tape the quick connects together and friction hold the handle tube in place; also at the end of the handles i made a ring of black duck tape to keep the larger grip handle tube from flying off the inner tube. 5. Sta-Lube Constant Velocity (CV) Joint Grease SL3174-4 Wt. Oz. Tube, Extreme Pressure, Anti-Seize Grease. i used thick grease between the inner and outer tub handles this allows the tubes to rotate without friction for a smooth action without this the friction would unscrew the handle attachments. its best to used a metal tube with a smooth finish will help the grease to reduce friction 6. finally i used WILSON Tennis Racket Overgrips you can see the black leather like wrap over the short larger tube where i grip the machine, it makes it very comfortable to use now

The MagneTrainer-ER Mini is a really great device for folks who can't always get outside to walk or cycle. When I received the package, it looked like FedEx had played four rough games of football with it, but the contents were undamaged. Unpacking the unit you can tell that the manufacturer thought everything out pretty well. My unit came with a long Velcro strap to anchor the cycle machine to your chair and a thin wrench to properly tighten the pedals and front foot assembly...everything you need! :-) I have now used this cycle machine for over two weeks, and the exercise has really made a very positive difference in my life! The machine is very sturdy, the cycling resistance is fairly consistent and the included readout shows (in scan mode) distance, speed, calories burned and time used. I took off one star because the unit just can't keep still. This cycle machine is not all that heavy so it's not super-stable. The instructions urge the user to pedal downward instead of from behind, but I'm not able to do that at the moment. Even when I press the back feet firmly against a very heavy object, the unit still shimmies around a lot. They sell an after-market back foot assembly to help keep the unit more steady, but I really think they should have included that as a standard item. If you are house-bound, live in an area that's not conducive to outside exercise, this machine is a God-send! There's no weight limit to worry about and it seems to be very well built. NOTE: If you purchase this item, and you notice the electrical jack on the back of the unit, it's for an optional monitor, not for the included digital readout. I thought at first that I had to hook the readout to this rear jack, but it's just for future use. Just an FYI so you don't try to pull the wire out of the bottom of the unit to connect it. ;-) EDIT - 2016-03-21: Evidently the right crank arm has a design defect. The threaded hole for the pedal is not drilled and tapped straight, so the pedal and crank arm both wear out much faster than they should. I've gone from really enjoying this product to being fairly disappointed. The MagnaTrainer company was very responsive at first and sent me replacement parts, but after a while they stopped responding to my e-mails. It looks like they got burned by the parts vendor who provides the crank arms as the new right crank arm was as bad as the original.

This is a great product that gets your cardio vascular system going very well and easy to use with both feet and hands, great for a wheelchair user.

Well build. Super smooth ball-bearing support. My parents really enjoyed working out with it. Good weight and balance even on normal floor boards. Will not move while using it.

La mejor compra para mi papá la usa para ejercitarse todo el tiempo

I am extremely happy with this product. It arrived very promptly and was pretty easy to assemble - I actually managed on my own without any problems. Takes up very little space compared to an exercise bike but is so much more comfortable to use. I find normal bike saddles so uncomfortable, that I give up after a short while. This I can use from a comfortable chair. The motion is very smooth and quiet, so can easily exercise while watching TV, without disturbing anyone. The tension knob does not have specific settings, but is quite effective at increasing the load needed to pedal, but rather noisy to set. The disadvantage is the calorie counter, not sure this is very accurate, and calories burned seem to be the same for a distance however hard the tension is, which can't be right. It gives a good workout both backwards and forwards, which seems to use different muscle groups, and can be used with hands, but I've not tried this yet. On the USA site a few users complain about it slipping when used. I have not found this when using on carpet, however I think at full tension it may be more of a problem (not got that good yet!). It came supplied with velcro straps to connect to your chair to prevent slipping and I assume this will work fine. All in all a good robust machine, that encourages me to still do a workout even when tired and ready relax in front of the TV. Certainly recommended. Only gave 4 stars due to the counter not being accurate enough.

Delivered 4 days early! Easy to setup and use. Looks and feels sturdy.