When it comes to affordable streaming treadmills, NordicTrack’s New EXP 10i is one of the top contenders in its class.
As the name might imply, this model comes with a 10″ HD tilting touchscreen console that makes it well-equipped for accessing all the workouts iFit has to offer.
And when it comes to performance, the 10i isn’t the biggest or baddest, but it’s got what it takes to give most folks a nice workout experinece.
Under the hood, the EXP 10i comes with a 2.75 CHP motor that can reach a top speed of 10 mph and a max incline of 12%.
It’s also equipped with NordicTrack’s Runner’s Flex Cushioning system that most users agree offers a comfortable feel during walking and running.
NordicTrack’s warranty could certainly be longer here, but given the nice console features, this isn’t necessarily a deal-breaker.
All things considered, if you’re looking for a streaming treadmill in this price range, the New EXP 10i is easily one of the best options.
But I’m getting a little ahead of myself here.
In this review, I’ll be going over everything this treadmill does and doesn’t have going for it – I’ll also compare it to some of the other top treadmills in its price range so you can see how it measures up.
After reading, you’ll know whether or not the New EXP 10i is the best option for your home gym.
NordicTrack’s New EXP 10i doesn’t come with the largest running surface or strongest motor, but when it comes to streaming treadmills, it’s the best option $1500 will get ya.
NordicTrack’s New EXP 10i Treadmill
We all know the NordicTrack name.
This is a brand that’s been around forever and they’ve become highly popular for their home cardio machines and more recently, their iFit streaming platform.
These days, all of their products are geared directly toward iFit streaming, so if you aren’t interested in joining the streaming movement, NordicTrack might not be the best brand for ya.
But if you’re ready for home fitness streaming and everything it offers, NordicTrack is a great brand to check out.
Anyway, they have a large lineup of products to choose from, including several different series of treadmills.
The treadmill we’re here to go over now is part of their “New EXP” series, which also includes the New EXP 7i (the numbers refer to the screen sizes, which is the biggest difference between these treadmills).
The “EXP” treadmills aren’t as heavy-duty as their “Commercial” series models and they can’t reach the crazy inclines of their “Incline” trainers, but they’re quite a bit more affordable.
Speaking of which, at the time of writing this, the New EXP 10i is going for around $1500.
Pros
- 10″ HD, tilting touchscreen console
- 0 – 12% incline range
- Instructor-led workouts (iFit)
- Automatic Trainer Control (iFit)
- Scenic routes (iFit)
- Runner’s Flex Cushioning
- One touch speed/incline buttons
- Bluetooth compatible
- Folds easily for storage
- Cooling fan
- Sleek frame design
- 300 lb weight limit
Cons
- Running surface could be larger
- Motor could be a little stronger
- Warranty could be longer
Running Surface
The 10i comes with a 20″ x 55″ running surface, which is large enough to comfortably fit runners of most heights.
However, most top treadmills in this price range come with a larger running surface of 20″ x 60″.
FYI, the running surface tells us how much room we’ll have when using the treadmill and having more space is always a good thing in my book.
I mean, even if you’re not worried about having to shorten your stride, it’s still nice to have a little extra wiggle room around ya.
Anyway, most treadmills in this price range come with at least a 20″ x 60″ running surface and some even come with a slightly larger, 22″ width for an even roomier feel (like Sole’s F65).
So, the EXP 10i scores a little below the norm here, but again, unless you’re exceedingly tall, you should still have enough room to stretch out while running.
But I also like to get an idea as to how “heavy-duty” a treadmill’s going to feel and to do that, I look to the machine’s assembled weight.
This spec tells us exactly how heavy the treadmill is and seeing a heavier machine is a good thing because it should mean the treadmill is going to feel more stable during use.
Heavier machines are harder to move, meaning they should move less while you’re on ’em.
That said, NordicTrack doesn’t exactly tell us their assembled weights, instead they give us the “in box” weights, which also include the weight of the box and any packaging.
Not a huge deal, just makes it a little more challenging to compare weights between NordicTrack treadmills and other brands.
But we can still try – all we have to do is subtract a little weight from these in-box figures to get an idea what the true weight of the treadmills are.
In this case, I’m not exactly sure how much the packaging for the 10i weighs, but I think subtracting 30 – 40 lb or so is very conservative.
The 10i comes with an in box weight of 230 lb, so if we subtract 30 lb, that gives us an estimated assembled weight of around 200 lb.
Assuming that’s at least fairly accurate, that assembled weight isn’t bad for a treadmill in this price range, but there are certainly heavier-duty models.
For example, the F65 mentioned earlier weighs in at around 267 lb; and Horizon’s similarly priced 7.4 AT weighs in at 318 lb (which to be fair, is crazy heavy-duty, but still).
So, there are much heavier-duty treadmills in this price range, but none of these treadmills come with HD touchscreens either.
So there’s that.
It’s also worth mentioning that the 10i comes with a weight limit of 300 lb, which is pretty standard for any decent home treadmill.
Heavier-duty models tend to come with even higher capacities, but at 300 lb, the 10i should still be able to handle most users safely.
I also want to point out that NordicTrack updated the frame with the New EXP 10i, giving it a sleeker, more modern look.
Overall, this treadmill comes with a decent sized running surface and with a weight limit of 300 lb, it’ll be able to handle most users safely.
The treadmill itself could be a little heavier duty, but it should still be robust enough to offer a stable feel during workouts.
Motor
Moving on, time to talk motors.
Having a powerful motor is never a bad thing.
Even if walking is your jam, having a powerful motor is still going to make your workouts feel smoother.
Basically, the stronger your motor is, the less it has to work to get its job done.
This makes for a smoother feel because the motor won’t have to struggle, but it also tends to mean a quieter workout too.
Most home treadmills are packing motors somewhere in the 2 – 4 HP range (and we’re talking DC motors here; there are some home models with AC motors, but those are usually found on the commercial grade treadmills).
With this in mind, consider that the 10i comes with a 2.75 CHP motor.
This isn’t bad, but again, there are stronger treadmills out there in this price range.
For example, Sole’s F65 comes with a 3.0 HP motor and Horizon’s 7.4 AT mentioned earlier comes with a 3.5 CHP motor, so there’s that.
At 2.75 CHP though, the EXP 10 will be strong enough to handle joggers and most runners.
With this motor, the 10i can reach a top speed of 10 mph, which is fast enough for most home runners and it can also reach a top incline of 12%.
Something that isn’t especially impressive in this category though, is the size of this treadmill’s rollers.
At only 1.9″, the rollers on the 10i are a little small compared to other treadmills of similar quality.
(By the way, the rollers are what the belt glides along and having larger ones makes for smoother operation and improved overall durability).
Most quality home treadmills come with rollers somewhere in the 2- 3″ range, so the 10i falls a bit shy here.
Overall though, the EXP 10i comes with decent motor specs for this price range and it definitely has enough power to challenge most of us.
Features
The NordicTrack EXP 10i Treadmill comes with the following features:
10″ HD touchscreen console- the touchscreen display on this treadmill is a hallmark feature and it’s essential for accessing and viewing all your workouts. At 10″, it’s pretty small compared to the televisions we see on some of their other machines, but it’s still big enough for easy viewing.
iFit- this treadmill is obviously designed for iFit, NordicTrack’s fitness streaming platform. Through iFit, you get access to unlimited instructor-led workouts, scenic routes, metric tracking, etc. It costs $39/month and technically isn’t required to use this treadmill, but I don’t see the point of investing in the 10i without iFit.
Automatic Trainer Control- oh, there’s also this cool feature that can control your speed and incline settings automatically to match what the instructors are saying during workouts. This way you can relax and just try to keep up (but you can always control your settings manually too if you prefer).
Bluetooth- the console is bluetooth compatible with headphones and heart rate straps, although neither is included with purchase.
Cooling fan- there’s a built-in fan to help keep you comfortable during those more challenging workouts.
One touch controls- you can instantly set your speed and/or incline with the push of these convenient buttons located on the console.
Storage tray- there’s an area to store small things like remotes, keys, headphones, etc right below the console.
Water bottle holders- and don’t worry, there’s plenty of room for your water bottles too.
Assembly
If you decide to purchase the EXP 10i, getting it assembled shouldn’t be too challenging.
NordicTrack’s assembly manual is pretty easy to follow and the process itself is pretty straightforward.
Although I will say this model has a few more steps than some other treadmills.
Like most, you have to attach the uprights to main deck and snake the console wires through the right side (which is usually more of a hassle than it should be).
Then you’ll have to connect the hand rails and cross bar and attach the console itself (it’s handy to have a second set of hands for this part).
Unlike some of other treadmills though, you also have to manually attach the hydraulic piston that helps raise/lower the folding deck.
This shouldn’t be that challenging, but a lot of other treadmills come with this step already completed.
Overall though, if you or a family member is at least a little handy (or good at following directions), you shouldn’t have too much difficulty getting the 10i assembled.
Warranty
NordicTrack backs their EXP 10i with the following home warranty:
- 10 year frame
- 2 year parts
- 1 year labor
This is NordicTrack’s standard warranty these days and they back pretty much all of their equipment with this same guarantee.
Generally speaking, we should expect more expensive treadmills to come with longer warranties, so the fact that their $3k models come with same warranty as their $1k models might be a little discerning.
In the case of the EXP 10i, this warranty isn’t awful, but there’s definitely room for improvement.
10 years on the frame is decent, but most of the top treadmills in this price range are offering lifetime frame guarantees (think Sole, Horizon, Spirit).
And 2 years on parts again, isn’t awful, but it’s still a little low compared to the 3-5 years brands like Horizon are offering on their comparable models.
A year on labor is standard stuff, no concerns there.
But overall, it would be nice to see a longer warranty on the 10i.
NordicTrack’s EXP 10i vs The Competition
| NordicTrack EXP 10i | Sole F65 | Horizon 7.4 AT | |
| Running surface | 20″ x 55″ | 22″ x 60″ | 22″ x 60″ |
| Motor | 2.75 CHP 0 – 10 mph 0 – 12% incline | 3.0 HP 0 – 12 mph 0 – 15% incline | 3.5 CHP 0- 12 mph 0 – 15% |
| Frame | ~200 lb weight 300 lb weight limit | 267 lb weight 325 lb weight limit | 318 lb weight 350 lb weight limit |
| Console | 10″ HD touchscreen | 9″ LCD | 8.25″ LCD |
| Warranty | 10 year frame 2 year parts 1 year labor | Lifetime frame/motor 2 year parts 1 year labor | Lifetime frame/motor 5 year parts 2 year labor |
| Price | ~$1500 | ~$1500 | ~$1600 |
Time for a little head-to-head comparison to see how the 10i’s stats hold up to some of the other top treadmills in this price range.
And as I mentioned in the intro, there are some pretty heavy-hitters in this ~$1500 price range, so the EXP 10i has some tough competition.
The first comp that comes to mind is Sole’s F65, which usually sells for somewhere around ~$1500.
The F65 comes with a larger running surface, stronger motor, larger rollers, heavier-duty frame, higher top speed, and higher top incline.
It also comes with a lifetime frame warranty.
In other words, the F65 comes with much better performance specs, but its console is just a simple LCD screen with a few built-in workout profiles.
It’s bluetooth compatible with Sole+ (which offers free streaming workouts by the way), but you’d have to use your own tablet to view ’em.
Another tough competitor is Horizon’s 7.4 AT, which usually costs around $1600.
Like the F65, the 7.4 AT is bigger, stronger, faster, and backed by a much better warranty – but again, it comes with a simple LCD console with a few built-in workout profiles to choose from.
Although it does also come with those cool quick dial speed/incline controls that I love.
But again, the EXP 10i’s touchscreen blows the 7.4 AT’s console out of the water.
Honestly, there are a few other treadmills in this price range we could list here that also come with more impressive performance specs, but they also don’t come with touchscreen consoles.
When it comes to touchscreen consoles and built-in streaming workouts, the EXP 10i is as good as it gets in this price range.
NordicTrack’s EXP 10i vs NordicTrack’s EXP 7i
| NordicTrack’s EXP 10i | NordicTrack’s EXP 7i | |
| Running surface | 20″ x 55″ | 20″ x 55″ |
| Motor | 2.75 CHP 0 – 10 mph 0 – 12% incline | 2.6 CHP 0 – 10 mph 0 – 12% incline |
| Frame | ~200 lb weight 300 lb weight limit | ~200 lb weight 300 lb weight limit |
| Console | 10″ HD touchscreen | 7″ HD touchscreen |
| Warranty | Lifetime frame 2 year parts 1 year labor | Lifetime frame 2 year parts 1 year labor |
| Price | ~$1500 | ~$1300 |
But wait, there’s also the more affordable EXP 7i.
The EXP 7i costs about $200 less than the EXP 10i and it’s reallllly similar.
The running surface, rollers, and weight limit are identical between these treadmills and they both weigh about the same amount.
The EXP 10i technically has a stronger motor (2.75 CHP vs 2.6 CHP), but realistically, I don’t expect 0.15 horses to make much noticeable difference.
So that means the real difference between these treadmills is the size of their consoles – the EXP 10i comes with a 3″ larger touchscreen.
But the EXP 7i offers all the same cool iFit features found on the EXP 10i.
So, if you like the 10i are but are trying to save a little cash, the 7i would be a great alternative.
Final Thoughts
Ok, that about does it for the EXP 10i.
All things considered, I like this treadmill and I think it has a lot going for it.
That said, I think it makes the most sense for people who are planning on using iFit because as I think I’ve illustrated, there are heavier-duty treadmills with longer warranties in this price range.
But, none of these treadmills come with HD touchscreen consoles that make it so easy to access instructor-led workouts.
And none of these treadmills come with decline capabilities or Automatic Trainer Control features either.
So, it really comes down to what you’re looking for out of your treadmill.
Overall, if you’re looking for an affordable streaming treadmill, I think the EXP 10i could make a lot of sense.
