BH Fitness XS5 Elliptical Review
$1,199.00
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Brief Overview
The BH Fitness XS5 is about the what you would get from Sole with their E55 which has been one of our best but winners for this price category. At this point you might be scratching your head and saying huh? Yeah, that's exactly what we did when we saw it.
Overall Quality
Frankly, that is being generous. If you look at what you can get from Sole or Epic this is a solid machine yet dramatically feature poor. The Epic A 35 E for example, has similar quality yet offers a touchscreen to boot for $1799. The BH XS5 is a decent elliptical. At $2,399, however, it's a joke. Even if you take $900 off the price, it's still not the only option you should consider. This machine doesn't have the quality to match its current price, and it doesn't have the features to match a discounted price. It would take a lot to make this model worth recommending. Ergonomically speaking, this machine is awful. For $1,400 less, you can get an elliptical that has a more natural range of motion. The lack of adjustability is even worse. The stride length is fixed at 20", so you have to hope that works for your particular body type. You do have the ability to choose between 16 levels of resistance, which allows you to align your workout with your fitness levels. Ellipticals that cost as little as $799 often offer significantly more options for adjustments. As far as projected reliability is concerned, this machine is terrible. There are ellipticals that sell for $1,500 less than this one that have comparable life expectancies. The quality of parts used is much lower than you'd expect considering the $2,399 price tag. The noise levels of this machine are below average. Most ellipticals make about the same amount of noise regardless of price, but this is one of the few models that is a bit louder than most. If quietness during operation is a major concern for you, you can find better options in this price range. The warranty on the BH XS5 is its high point. Labor is covered for 1 year, parts are covered for 5 years, and the frame is covered for life. You can definitely find better coverage in this price range, and the durability of this machine isn't even as good as the warranty might make you think.
Ratings
| Adjustability | 2 |
| Reliability | 5 |
| Noise Level | 4 |
| Value | 3 |
| Warranty | 5 |
| Quality | 4 |
| Ergonomics | 4 |
History
We have said that it's hard to understand why BH makes customers pay $100 more for fingertip resistance controls that cost $5 extra to install. But when you understand that all of BH's product offerings are lacking in value and overpriced, it makes more sense. At the end of the day, it is easier to just to steer clear of BH altogether rather than trying to find a good buy.