Peloton, at press time, had just launched a “strive” score, which uses the readings from your heart rate monitor to deliver a score based on how much time you spend in each of the heart rate zones - the higher the zone, the more your score goes up. We also loved how leaderboard-motivated riders can seemingly find a live riding pack every one to five minutes in the new “sessions” feature regardless of when the class first aired, and how you can really make sure you’re working as hard as the instructors want you to work with very clear resistance, output and cadence numbers. (As of our testing, Peloton was the only bike that synced with the Apple Watch at this level, but we know it’s on a few of the other bikes’ road maps.) We appreciated how the bike seamlessly syncs with the Apple Watch, launching the “indoor cycle” workout tracker when you pair before a class, letting you know how hard you’re working throughout and then stopping when the class stops. The bike lives up to the hype and came out on top in our overall testing. Peloton has been at it the longest and has had the most opportunity to optimize the category and the experience.
