Nautilus Exercise Bike Reviews

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This is a complete guide to the highly rated Nautilus exercise bikes, which are available in two variations; upright and recumbent.

Each style of exercise bike has a 614 version, and a 616 version, where the 614 is considered entry level, and the 616 a more advanced version with more workout programs and resistance levels.

Although all Nautilus exercise bikes offer heart rate monitoring via touch sensors in the handles, it’s only the top-of-the-line 616 series bikes that let you track your heart rate via a chest strap transmitter (telemetry).

Nautilus also produce a line of treadmills (T614 and T616) and elliptical trainers (E514c, E614 and E616), but if you’re looking for an effective, affordable, low-impact cardio workout, there’s really no better option than the indoor exercise bike.

Listed below you’ll find a summary of each bike’s best features, allowing you to quickly identify the bike that best suits your requirements and budget. This includes the number of workout programs and resistance levels, type of heart rate monitoring, and whether you can track a history of your workout performance.

We’ve also included links for you to read our full review, where we go into more depth about the bike’s features and compare it with similar designs, as well as a link to check the price and discover any discounts currently available.

Why should I buy Nautilus?

Before buying any new piece of fitness equipment, it’s worth finding out about the company that designed it.

This doesn’t have to be their entire history. Even some basic background research can highlight pretty quickly whether a company has a good track record with the quality of its products, warranties, and customer service.

With new companies that haven’t established themselves yet, this can be more difficult, but with a company like Nautilus who have been committed to helping people achieve their fitness goals for over 40 years, it’s much easier.

Nautilus Inc. is in fact a family of some of the best known names in home fitness, and now includes Bowflex®, Schwinn®, Universal®, and of course it’s own Nautilus® equipment.

In recent years Nautilus has also received numerous awards for its innovation in fitness equipment design (Max Trainer), as well as workplace awards, rated as one of the healthiest employers by the Portland Business Journal since 2011.

On top of that, Nautilus Inc. as a company are continuing to lead the way in fitness product development, with new versions of their Max Trainer, SelectTech dumbbells, and TreadClimber through their Bowflex brand.

This is one of the reasons they were ranked in the top 100 fastest-growing companies in 2015 by Fortune magazine, and started 2016 by opening a brand new 3,000 square-foot Innovation Center.

All of this is backed by an excellent customer service record and some of the longest equipment warranties in the industry.

Nautilus recumbent bikes

Whether you’re running on a treadmill or doing squats in a power cage, maintaining good posture is incredibly important for the health of your joints and lower-back.

The recumbent style of exercise bike is ergonomically designed to provide optimum lower-back support, with its reclined position creating a low-impact form of cycling.

Both Nautilus recumbents feature a walk-through frame, making it easier to mount and dismount the bike, with a molded seat and contoured back support to maximize comfort during your workout.

As with all Nautilus exercise bikes, the R614 and R616 both offer Nautilus Connect™ data syncing. This allows you to track your performance over time, and import your workout results to a MyFitnessPal profile for monitoring future fitness goals.

So what advantages does the R616 have over the R614, and which model represents better value for money?

Nautilus R614

Review rating:
Usually available in the $300-$400 price range, the R614 faces stiff competition from the bestselling ProForm Hybrid Trainer, and Exerpeutic 4000, both of which retail for around the same price.

But while the Hybrid Trainer combines an elliptical and recumbent bike into a single machine, the stride for the elliptical motion is limited to 15″. This means anyone much taller than 5’5″ won’t be able to build up to a full running pace.

The warranty is also half that of the Nautilus R614, which offers 10 years coverage on the frame, 2 years on parts, 1 year on electronics, and 90 days on labor.

In terms of workout tracking, the Hybrid Trainer doesn’t have anything to offer beyond what’s shown on the screen. However, the Exerpeutic 4000 does let you track your workout results through its integration with the MyCloudFitness app.

The only downside is that, as far as we can tell, the data sync is strictly between the bike and the app, meaning there’s no way to export your results. This means you can’t import them to other fitness profiles that combine workout and nutrition tracking, such as MyFitnessPal.

This is where the R614 has an advantage, with a dual track display system on the console making it easier to track stats mid-workout, and a versatile data sync that lets you analyze your performance post-workout.

Unfortunately you’re getting slightly fewer workout programs than on the R614, and heart rate monitoring is touch only, but for the money is still one of the best recumbent bikes on the market.

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Nautilus R616

Review rating:
The R616 is in a slightly higher price range to the entry level R614, and usually retails for between $500 and $600. To put this in perspective, commercial recumbent bikes like the Precor RBK 835 can cost in excess of $4000, and even the popular LCR from Sole Fitness is priced at close to $1500.

But in terms of direct competition from recumbent bikes in the same price range, there are none that have proven as popular as the R616, which has dozens of 4 and 5 star reviews on Amazon alone.

As for the upgrades, you’re getting 7 more workout programs, twice as many user profiles, and 5 more resistance levels compared to the earlier R414 model. Warranty and weight capacity are the same, but you can also monitor your heart rate using a telemetry chest strap instead of using the touch sensors.

Workout tracking is available through the NautilusConnect system, where you can sync workout data to a USB drive via a port in the console. If you prefer not to use a USB, Bluetooth Connectivity is also available, which is something that isn’t included with the Schwinn 270 or Nautilus R614.

There’s also a slight difference in the seat design, where the seat itself is padded as well as contoured for improved comfort. The back support and seat are both still vented to help keep you cool.

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Nautilus upright bikes

In addition to their line of recumbent bikes, Nautilus also has a series of upright bikes, which share many of the same high quality features.

This means similar scaling between the entry level U614 and top-of-the-line U616 in terms of workout programs, resistance levels, heart rate monitoring options, and performance tracking.

The warranty coverage is identical too, with 10 years on the frame through to 90 days on labor, and a 300 lb capacity for each model. But there are some significant differences between the U614 and U616 that are worth knowing.

Nautilus U614

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The U614 features the same console as the R614 recumbent bike, with its 22 workout programs a combination of Quick Start (1), Profile (9), Heart Rate (8), Fitness Test (2), and Custom (2).

Performance tracking is available through the USB data sync via a port on the console, which lets you upload the data to your Nautilus Connect profile.

During your workout you can use the DualTrack™ high-resolution LCD screens to keep track of 13 different metrics, including time, resistance level, speed, and heart rate.

To keep the U614 as affordable as possible, Nautilus haven’t built in a full colour, web-enabled console like you might find on some NordicTrack machines. You do however have MP3 connectivity and acoustic chambered speakers for listening to your favorite music, and a media shelf for supporting a tablet if you wanted to watch movies while you cycle.

Upright bikes themselves are an incredibly popular piece of home fitness equipment, and with the U614 usually priced at under $300, there’s no shortage of competition.

As with the recumbent version, there’s the Exerpeutic 3000 with its MyCloudFitness app integration, but offers far fewer resistance levels and workout programs than the Nautilus model.

You also have to consider bikes in the Schwinn collection, which tend to have almost identical features to the Nautilus bikes.

The Schwinn 130 is the closest match to the Nautilus U614, with a similar dual track LCD display, and the same number of user profiles, workout programs, feedback metrics, and resistance levels. In this case it really comes down to which tracking program you prefer to use (SchwinnConnect or NautilusConnect), and which model you prefer aesthetically.

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Nautilus U616

Review rating:
As their current top-of-the-line upright bike, the Nautilus U616 features Bluetooth Connectivity, allowing you to sync your workout data with Nautilus Connect™, the Nautilus Trainer™ App and MyFitnessPal.

In terms of the upgrades, you’re looking at much the same as for their recumbent bikes, with 7 additional workout programs, 5 more resistance levels, and the ability to monitor your heart rate via a chest strap (telemetry).

However, the U616 provides a wider range of seat adjustment options, with fore/aft adjustment as well as the standard vertical height settings.

You’re also getting an oversized seat and oversized deluxe pedals for improved comfort during longer workouts, and more choice in terms of foot placement.

Unfortunately there’s no additional entertainment options compared to the U614, but you’re still able to listen to music via the MP3 port and built-in speakers.

Usually priced at between $400 and $500, the closest competitors to the Nautilus U616 are the Schwinn 170 and NordicTrack GX 4.2 Pro.

As we mentioned before, the Nautilus line of exercise bikes are virtually identical to the Schwinn series, with very similar designs and the same specifications in terms of workout programs, resistance levels, and workout feedback.

However, the NordicTrack bike has the added benefit of being iFit® compatible, while still providing 28 workout apps, 22 resistance levels, and touch and telemetry heart rate monitoring.

This means you’re able to download additional workout programs straight to the console, which can be a useful feature to have if you’re looking for more variation in your training. It’s certainly worth a look but isn’t as easily available as the Nautilus bikes.

If you want to make the most of any free space, upright bikes offer a much more compact footprint than treadmills, ellipticals, and even recumbent bikes. There’s no difference in the dimensions between the U614 and U616, with both models measuring 41.8″ L x 21.6″ W x 57.6″ H.

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