If you want a high-quality treadmill, but you don’t want to remortgage your house to get it, you might have been looking at the Sole F85. It offers a lot of attractive options. It comes with a great warranty, has plenty of extras and is still foldable. But before you drop almost $2,000 on a treadmill, you want to make sure you are positive that it will work for you.
First, you would have to search pretty hard to find a negative review about the Sole F85. In part, this is due to the great warranty. They offer lifetime warranties on the motor and deck and a 5 year warranty on major electronics with a 2 year parts and labor warranty. You may be wondering how they can offer all this at only $2,000. But Sole can offer these warranties because they know you will probably never need them. These treadmills were designed for major hotel chains and because of that they had to be able to stand up to almost anything.
At nearly 300 pounds, the treadmill certainly feels sturdy. But the treadmill specs say it can hold up to a 400 pound runner. When you consider the huge 60 inch belt, this treadmill could accommodate the incredible Hulk if he decided to take up running. This treadmill runs large with its rollers as well. At 2.75 inches, they do less work and wear out more slowly.
You get a huge 3.5 HP motor, which is akin to having a V8 on your treadmill, but you also get plenty of attractive extras. The display looks decent and offers you a progressive readout about your run, but that is to be expected on a modern treadmill. What you also get in an iPod or MP3 player hookup and some speakers. While they aren’t exactly theater quality, they sure beat putting your ear buds back in every five minutes. You also get some cooling fans on this treadmill. Again, they won’t dry your hair, but it’s hard to complain about a little breeze when you’re running.
When you get a Sole F85, you’re getting a big sturdy treadmill that offers plenty of reliability. And if something should happen to go wrong, you have the impressive warranty to cover it. There are a few niggles to be had with the folding aspect. While it does indeed fold, it is not entirely vertical and takes up more room than other models. But considering the level of quality of this treadmill, it is hardly a deal-breaker that the angle is a few degrees off 90. If you’re an avid runner looking for something sturdy with a few extras for a decent price, this model might work well for you.
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