The R100 APM Premier Rower is easily the best of the rowing machines under $2500. The Concept 2 rower is the talk-of-the-town but that's due more to good marketing than good product.
The R100 APM Premier Rowing Machine from Lifecore Fitness blows the Concept 2 fitness rower away in every department, hands down. The Concept 2 rower is good but its way over-hyped, which so often happens when everyone gets on the same bandwagon... the Bowflex and Weider Crossbow are other examples of ok machines that have been over-hyped..
I'm so tired of going into showrooms and the salesman only wants to talk about the Concept 2 that I've decided cut through the BS once and for good by doing a side-by-side comparison here with the R100 APM Premier Rower (our choice for best rower), which really is a much better machine.
| Feature | R100 APM Premier Rower | Concept 2 Fitness Rower | Comments |
| Warranty | 5 years on parts | 2 years on parts | No manufacturer will give a warranty longer than how long they think their machine will last without a breakdown.. A warranty is a measure of a manufacturers confidence level. |
| Frame | Heavy 600lb capacity frame | Lighter 250lb capacity frame | Another reason for the difference in warranties. |
| Resistance Levels | 16 levels | 10 levels | More levels means less difference between each, so you can train yourself to new fitness levels more easily. |
| Handle | Ergonomic | Ergonomic | Both have angled handle for more comfortable rowing |
| Resistance Type | Magnetic & Air | Air only | Magnetic resistance is quieter, smoother, better and state-of-the-art. |
| Resistance Control | Automatic | Manual | On the Concept 2 you have to adjust the blade settings manually |
| Preset Resistance Programs | 15 programs | None | There is no auto resistance control feature on the Concept 2 and therefore no preset resistance programs whereas the R100 has 15. |
| Heart Rate Control | Auto via computer and chest strap heart monitor | None | In the 'age of the heart-attack' all cardio-fitness equipment should come with a heart rate control feature, standard. On the R100 you pre-program your desired heart range and magnetic resistance will automatically adjust during workout to keep you in optimal zone. |
| Heart Rate Programs | 3 | None | The R100 also has 2 programs which use a heart rate feedback loop to take you through a preset workout. |
| Recovery Programs | 1 | None | The recovery program monitors your heart rate for 60 seconds after completing a session and then calculates a fitness score of between 1 and 6, the score increases by increments of 0.1. A score of 1 means you are 'Super Fit' and 6 is 'Very Unfit'. Impressive feature for tracking your progress. |
| Foot Plate Design | Pivoting | Rigid | With rigid footplates your foot lifts out and you lose your footing. The R100 PMR has deliberately built pivoting footplates to eliminate this known problem. |
| Foot Plate Position | Narrow | Wider | We felt the Concept 2 footplates were a little too close together. |
| Foot Plate Angle | Externally rotated | Neutral | This is a big deal and its amazing no one else has thought of it. The R100 footplates are not angled out so your toes don't point straight up. This position externally rotates your greater tuberosity at the hip and opens your legs to accomodate you body in the full forward row position --> a well thought out design. |
| Drive System | Belt | Chain | Belt is smoother and maintenance free. Concept 2 chain needs to be oiled. |
| Seat | Over-sized soft seat | Smaller, harder seat | At the end point of row motion, hips are in neutral rotation and ischial tuberosities (butt bones) are directly under you... you need a large soft seat in this position or end up with a sore butt. |
| Monitor | Backlit high definition LCD | Basic LCD | Backlit high definition LCD monitors are much easier to read. This monitor is super clear white text on a blue backlit background. |
| Cooling Vent | Adjustable | None | On the R100 you can angle the cooling vent to blow the cooling air where you want it, Concept 2 doesn't have this feature. |
| Storage | Conveniently folds | Must be separated into 2 pieces | The R100 is easier to store b/c it has been designed to fold away easily whereas the Concept 2 has to be separated into 2 pieces if you want to store it and then reassembled for later use. |
On a side-by-side comparison the R100 is a much better machine, and represents far better value for money than the over-hyped Concept 2.
There are a few additional features of the R100 to discuss here
Additional R100 APM Premier Rowing Machine Features
- Silent Drive System uses a belt and make this machine noticeably quieter than other rowers. You can actually hear the stereo while your on the R100.
- Very strong frame - 600lb capacity
- Built-in Chest Band Receiver - wireless chest band heart monitor send a radio signal to the computer every 20 seconds to update your heart rate data.
- Computer arm is moveable to position the monitor where you can best see it.
Console Features
- Output Data
- heaps of output data for the user
- Watts generated
- Calories burned
- Distance travelled
- Time training
- Number of strokes
- Strokes per minute
- Time per 500 meters
- Pulse
- Bar graph
- User display
- Level display
- You vs. Pacer display
- 15 Auto Control Programs - Preset programs that vary the magnetic resistance as you train. Increases endurance, motivation and decreases boredom.
- Pacer and Interval Programs - Pacer program simulates racing or pacing against an opponent and the interval programs takes you through cycles of sprint and coast, similar to training drills practiced by competitive water rowers. The intervals can be set by time or distance.
- 3 Heart Rate Control Programs - No other rower that we have seen at the time of writing this review has this feature. The computer monitors your heart rate via the chest strap and auto adjusts the frictionless magnetic resistance to keep you within a specified heart range --> cutting egde home exercise at its most scientific.
- Heart Rate Recovery Program - All athletes should warm-down. With the R100 rowing machine, the computer deliberately controls resistance safely bring you into a low-risk recovery heart rate zone.
- Watts Dependent Program - you must maintain a certain watt output specified by you prior to beginning.
- 4 User Preset Programs - 4 separate users can train on this machine and keep their training own unique preferences pre-programmed for easy use every time.
- Personal Data Storage for 4 Users - computer uses this information to make calculations regarding calories burned and so on.
Size (we haven't measured the R100, these measurements are taken direct from their website)
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Weight: 96.12 lbs (Packaged: 115.3 lbs).
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Length: 7.78 ft., Width: 1.64 feet, Height: 2.98 feet.
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(FOLDED: Length: 4.33 ft., Width: 1.64 feet, Height: 5.57 feet).
- Weight Limit: 600 lbs, User Height Limit 7 ft 6 inches.
Warranty
5 year all parts in home 1 year labor.
2 year all parts light commercial 1 year labor.
1 year full commercial no labor.
Pros
- The #1 pro on this machine is the long warranty - We always look at warranties first because we've all had machines that breakdown. The 5 years warranty on the R100 is a testament to the manufacturers confidence in their machines durability.
- Second most impressive feature is the heart rate control programming - state-of-the-art training technology that is now available in your own home. You can train smarter (design your workouts with greater benefit) and safer.
- Third is the recovery program. This is a very slick feature that gives you an outcome measure for tacking progress and improvement over time. Very sophisticated for home fitness equipment.
- Angled footplates - the designers could have only known to incorporate this feature if they were either experienced rowers themselves or consulted with experienced rowers. Its ergonomically perfect.
- 15 resistance levels - more than average. With few levels, the difference between one level and the next above is too large keeping you stuck on a lower level. The R100 has 15 meaning it becomes easier to advance to the next resistance level.
- Heaps of output data for monitoring your workout.
- Very quiet for a rowing machine
- Value - an affordable state-of-the-art commercial gym grade rowing machine. Better value for money than the over-hyped Concept 2
- Magnetic resistance - its smoother and quieter than air resistance only
- Pivoting footplates - you can now row at full pace without worrying about your foot flying out of the stirrup
- Wide supersoft seat - rowing on a hard seat is like riding on a hard seat. The R100 seat will allow you to train for longer and more often in comfort. The sitting surface is ergonomically designed with scoops for your ischial tuberosities (butt bones) to minimize pressure and discomfor - a nice toucht.
- Folding - a machine this long takes up considerable floor space if you can't easily fold it away
between workouts
- Directional fan - rowing builds a good sweat, the air vent allows you to direct the flow of air for better cooling of your body
Cons
- The backlit high definition LCD monitor uses too much power to run on batteries and needs to be plugged into a wall socket. There is a basic battery operated LCD monitor if you can't plug in but its not as bright..
Overall
Indoor rowing is an excellent form of cardio exercise but it is not an exciting nor comfortable past-time. If you are going for a rower take these 4 important points into consideration:
- You will want to turn on some music or watch the TV while rowing, otherwise you'll become bored real fast. So buy a quiet machine... rowers are notoriously loud so choose carefully. The R100 is the quietest we have used but you'll still need to turn up the volume.
- Rowing gives you a sore a**. Its true, if you have good form in the end position then you are sitting right on your ischial tuberosities (butt bones), so get a comfy seat. The R100 seat is the best of the rower seats because its wide, soft and has scoops especially for your ischial tuberosities.
- You need lots of programs to keep things interesting. With no programs you are left too much to rely on your own internal motivation to keep at it. You may be saying 'no not me, I'll be fine' but we have several decades of experience training and personal training and know what we are saying to be true.
- Rowing is not easy so you need strong data to justify your continued use, again it comes back to motivation. The R100 computer provides an unusually large amount of output data by which you can track your progress, including a recovery program which sums you up in a single fitness score.
The R100 APM Premier Rower is the best of the rowers under $2500. Its smooth, quiet, intelligent and the clever design allows it to be folded and stored very easily. The R100 APM Premier Rower is our Top Pick Rower.
Sellers
Always buy from the manufacturer when you can because no one will ever know the machine like they do --> you'll appreciate that logic if anything ever goes wrong.
Lifecore Fitness sell the R100 APM Premier Rower directly from their warehouse for $1199 with free shipping. Go here:
