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- Built-in TV included at little additional cost
- Good speaker sound quality
- Relatively short one-year parts-and-labor warranty
- Inaccurate handlebar heart rate monitor
January 2009. TreadmillDoctor.com and Consumer Reports both rate the Epic View 550 objectively on several measures. Reviews at Treadmill-Ratings-Reviews and TreadmillTalk.com don't include any test results, but they do provide good descriptions of the Epic View 550's major features. We found a handful of owner-written reviews at Epinions.com; their quality ranges from helpful to useless.
Two top review organizations call the Epic View 550 a good value. Although the most credible reviewers usually steer consumers away from treadmills with built-in TVs, critics say the Epic View 550 has managed to include a 7-inch TV without jacking up its price. We found little feedback from reviewers about the TV's picture quality, although some reviews recommend the Smooth 9.45TV (*est. $2,900) instead; Smooth posts its larger 15-inch TV on a separate frame at eye level, which reviews say keeps the TV from jiggling as much as a console TV like the Epic's. Owners do find the Epic's speakers surprisingly good. Testers say the Epic performs well as a treadmill, but some downgrade its warranty (lifetime frame, 12 years motor, one year parts and labor). The similarly priced Sole F80 (*est. $1,500) gets far more positive reviews. Although the F80 doesn't include a TV, it features a much longer warranty than the Epic (including five years' labor and two years' in-home service).
Our Sources
This reliable review site doesn't recommend treadmills with built-in TVs as a rule, but it makes an exception in this case; the experts here say the Epic View 550 is able to include a TV at a reasonable price. This review also rates the View 550's power, cushioning, reliability and more.
Review: Epic 550 View, Clark and Jon Stevenson
2. ConsumerReports.orgDetails/Subscribe
The experts at Consumer Reports test 23 treadmills, including the Epic View 550. Testers rate the treadmills' ease of use, safety and more. Results are displayed in a chart that clearly ranks the treadmills from best to worst.
Review: Treadmill Ratings, Editors of Consumer Reports
3. Treadmill-Ratings- Reviews.com
This review includes no detailed test results, and reviewer Fred Waters makes only limited references to his experience with the Epic View 550. He calls it a "good value," but he does recommend buying an extended warranty to increase Epic's one year of parts-and-labor coverage.
Review: Epic View 550 Treadmill Review, Fred Waters
The unidentified reviewer here denies liking most TV treadmills -- or some Icon treadmills (Epic's parent company) -- but raves about the Epic View 550. Like Treadmill-Ratings-Reviews.com, this site recommends buying an extended warranty.
Review: The Epic View 550 Treadmill -- One of the Best TV Treadmills, Editors of TreadmillTalk.com
5. Epinions.com
Few treadmills have accumulated many user reviews on this site, but the Epic View 550 had five fairly recent reviews posted when we checked. Users' opinions of the Epic View 550 are all over the map; three especially like the built-in sound system, but a couple say the treadmill broke quickly.
Review: Epic View 550 Treadmill, Contributors to Epinions.com
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