DKN AM–5I Ergo Exercise Bike Review

Having read the spec sheet of the AM-5i Ergo bike we were almost as surprised as we were delighted to see some very exciting capabilities on a bike costing well under £300! It certainly makes for some impressive reading in theory but we were eager to see how it performed in practice!

Assembly is a 6 step cinch! Straight out of the box, you’ll find a very manageable amount of parts needed to complete the assembly but much of that process has already been done for you in the factory. The right bolts are already located in the right holes, which not only reassures you they are correctly machined, it also makes it all the more obvious what goes where.

Once built you have a sleek, good-looking machine typical of the contemporary style that is ‘DKN’. Better still is that having seen and felt some of the parts already during assembly, it’s already clear that it boasts DKN quality and precision too!

Comfort is perhaps the most important consideration when choosing an exercise bike and there are no compromises here when finding your ideal riding position. As you’d expect, the seat stem has plenty of vertical adjustment with 9 holes to choose from spaced at 1″ increments and goes all the way up to over 40″ at it’s maximum height. The saddle also has 3″ of travel back or forth to get you at the correct distance from the handlebars. Plus, we were impressed to see that even the handlebars themselves can be adjusted until you find the angle that’s right for you.

If you have a limited range of mobility or have issues with balance, then it may be a welcome design feature that the front bodywork of the cycle angles down, giving you a height of around 12″ to step over.

The overall build quality is durable enough to cope with riders weighing up to 22 stone and it’s backed up by a two year warranty. The quality commercial grade components used in its construction, give the bike a sturdy feel as well as a very pleasing riding experience. There are adjustable levelling feet at the rear to ensure it’s stable on uneven floors, but it’s what’s INSIDE the body of the bike that really makes the big difference.

The AM-5i has an 11kg(24lb) flywheel which is weighty enough to deliver a very smooth and fluid pedal motion that’s consistent right through the resistance levels. Plus, for those looking for long-term challenges and a bike you won’t soon ‘out grow’, we can report that if you reach the top of the 32 levels of resistance, it is as tough as it is smooth!

The console allows up to four individuals to store their personal data. It’s a simple matter of inputting gender, age, height and weight but it really does make all the difference to the accuracy of calorie consumption figures.

There are 12 pre-set programmes built in and they are clearly laid out on the console casing for easy reference. The courses have been divided into 3 groups with 4 workouts in each: Beginner, Advanced and Performance (which are based around interval style training).

The handlebars have the usual pulse grip sensors, but as always these are notoriously inaccurate so we’d highly recommend you utilise the inbuilt receiver by wearing a compatible chest belt. Doing so will not only ensure you of far greater accuracy of feedback, you’ll also be able to use the heart rate controlled program. You can set the duration to be any time from 2 minutes up to 99, then set the target value and the computer will automatically adjust the resistance to keep you within it.

If you’d prefer to see the effort expended by your legs rather than your heart then there is a Watts program too.

During all that effort, it’s likely that you’ll want to keep hydrated so it’s rather a pity that there is no onboard storage for a water bottle. What there IS, however, is storage for an iPad or a tablet… True, that will do little to quench your thirst, in fact, if you set up a tablet device with DKN Motion app, it should make your mouth water even more! Yes indeed! DKN have bestowed this bargain bike with compatibility with their famous app and that makes this bike all the more outstanding.

If you’re unfamiliar with this technology then please allow us to give you an overview and you should start to see why we are getting enthusiastic!… Through a bluetooth connection it’s possible to sync your tablet device with the bike and see all of your training feedback on the tablet but that’s just for starters, the DKN Motion application has a fantastic array of features that will also broaden your choices of pre-set programs, heart rate controlled sessions, watts controlled workouts and much, much, more!

The ‘iRoutes’ feature allows you to select courses around some of the most iconic spots on the globe. You can jog round Hyde Park in London, run the Madrid 10 k in Spain or if you fancy taking on an even bigger endurance event then why not go for the Bupa Challenge in Australia?!

This app is so well-thought-out that as well as offering a massive array of pre-set programmes, you can also create your own. Press ‘program’ and then just use your finger on each minute segment to ‘pull’ up the resistance levels in an instant and then just set the time! It’s so easy, and that goes for selecting and setting up every feature.

As highly as we recommend the DKN Motion feature, we realise that there are many people who don’t possess an iPad or Android tablet device. Rest assured, as we’ve already established throughout this review, the AM-5i is more than good enough as standard!

The warranty on the AM-5i is DKN’s standard 2 years onsite parts and labour.

DKN have produced a video showing off the AM-5i Exercise Bike and we’ve included it below: