Guides
How smart trainers work, what the protocols mean, and how to choose. Written to be useful whichever app you ride with.
Smart trainers
No hands-on testing yet, and we say so. This shortlist is built from manufacturer specifications with sources, organised by the decisions that matter: drive type, price band, protocols and gradient.
Smart trainers
Every modern smart trainer speaks FTMS. Here is what the Fitness Machine Service actually does, what the control point commands are, and why “supports FTMS” does not guarantee that every app feature works.
Smart trainers
Two control modes, two different jobs. ERG holds the watts no matter what you do; simulation mimics a road and lets you decide how hard to push. Knowing the difference changes how you train.
Sensors & connectivity
Indoors, a heart-rate strap has one job: a stable, dropout-free Bluetooth signal to the phone running your trainer. These are the specifications that decide it, and the current models that meet them.
Smart trainers
One removes your rear wheel, the other clamps it. The choice decides noise, accuracy, setup time and what you spend. Here is how to decide, without the marketing.
Indoor cycling accessories
What you need, what you can skip, and the order to buy in. A setup that works well costs less than people expect, if you spend on the right three things first.
Smart trainers
A trainer cannot tilt the road, so it tilts the numbers. What the gradient figure means, why a heavy flywheel matters, and where the simulation stops matching the mountain.
Smart trainers
A ±1 % claim and a ±3 % claim describe different things from different places. What the numbers mean, how trainers measure power, and why consistency matters more than any single figure.
Smart trainers
Pairing is simple once you know two rules: Bluetooth, not ANT+, and only one app can hold control at a time. A step-by-step guide, with the fixes for the three problems everyone hits.
