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They are losing money still so desparate moves like this I guess make sense, but adding friction to the new subscriber workflow just seems wild. There's a reaso

They are losing money still so desparate moves like this I guess make sense, but adding friction to the new subscriber workflow just seems wild. There's a reason why just about every subscription out there offers free trials/discounted first months. It's to get you in the door. It's not even as if the bike is disabled when bought used, you can just use it like any other spin bike happily. This ONLY effects people who are trying to sign up for a subscription.

afavour 2y ago
> It's not even as if the bike is disabled when bought used, you can just use it like any other spin bike happily. While that’s true, a Peloton attracts a premium price above regular spin bikes. So if you had no intention of using the software you’d just buy a cheaper bike. If you do intend to use it you now have to add $95 to whatever price you’re paying.
- DaveExeter 2y ago
  ...or, the seller has to subtract $95 from the asking price. This makes every used Peloton worth $95 less.
- lesuorac 2y ago
  Do they command a premium when used? I have one that I got for free, YMMV.
  - laweijfmvo 2y ago
    Yep. They seem to be going for very low cost around here...
  - notarobot123 2y ago
    > YMMV I thought they were stationary.
    - dessimus 2y ago
      Yeah, but how far away the person one gets it from may still vary.
    - focusedone 2y ago
      heh
    - playingalong 2y ago
      While stationary, it still measures the distance. (Yeah, I get the joke)
      - bravetraveler 2y ago
        Your username really missed the mark on this one :p
- loeg 2y ago
  > While that’s true, a Peloton attracts a premium price above regular spin bikes. Well, they used to.
- rdtsc 2y ago
  >a Peloton attracts a premium price above regular spin bikes. So if you had no intention of using the software you’d just buy a cheaper bike. If you do intend to use it you now have to add $95 to whatever price you’re paying. Good point, it's like a signal that "our bikes are a premium product: you'll pay more, and feel good about it, too!". However, like a sibling comment pointed out, that sort of conflicts with the used aspect of it. If someone is planning on spending cash on a premium exercise bike, they'll pay for a new one.
  - drivingmenuts 2y ago
    It's also a signal that you got screwed by the seller if they didn't tell you about it before you bought the bike.
- rootsudo 2y ago
  You'd be surprised, they go for like $300 used, easy in many markets. I like it for the overal quality. I tried the sunni, and whatever brand was high on the amazon affiliated marketing stuff (ew right) but the peloton works fine. I also do like how the LCD is basically a vesa mount so you, and well, I did swap in a normal LCD but you can also jailbreak the android os there too. And you can also buy the newer bigger screen to put on an older bike. The metrics to me are a bit meh, I get it, but the hardware itself is sturdy and any real cyclist will be doing/using strava. But new, yes there is a premium and I don't see it worth it at all.
  - trd716 2y ago
    I thought about trying to root the peloton tablet, but I'm not sure what it would gain me
    - rootsudo 2y ago
      netflix, vlc, thats it
fracus 2y ago
I mean, just the idea of paying for a subscription to ride a stationary bike is wild.
- savanaly 2y ago
  >the idea of paying for a subscription to ride a stationary bike You're not. Like was said above, you can ride it as a stationary bike for free. You're paying for the video content put out by Peloton which is added to daily, like a tv station. I can't help sounding like a sales person at this point but I'd also point out you get access to all their old content plus the fact that all this content is tied directly to your bike and the social network of other peloton riders.
  - KennyBlanken 2y ago
    There's nothing unique about the "old" video content that makes it attractive other than the fact that their top "trainers" are leaving in droves.
    - Larrikin 2y ago
      Is there something worth leaving to? I have my old subscription limping along because I do like the trainers, the music especially, and use the non cardio programs, but would like to switch to something that isn't actively making the product worse to make money. Yt dl came in handy before their cardio money grab.
      - MrMetlHed 2y ago
        Zwift, maybe. But you need / should have a power meter to do that properly, and it works way better with a trainer that can adjust resistance on its own.
  - ddalex 2y ago
    This is such a weird thing, paying to see scenery when riding your stationary bike and then post on the social network, when you can just go out with friends and bike for real in the nature.
KennyBlanken 2y ago
The market is absolutely flooded with used bikes. Looking in my area I see two dozen on CL alone within a 30 mile radius for $300-$900 (the $900 guy is delusional.) Some people will never buy a used peloton, so this doesn't affect them. Some people will never buy a new one, but the bikes have depreciated so much that a used one is a "steal" at 20%-50% of its original cost, they will grumble about, but pay, the fee. Peloton doesn't care if your used Peloton doesn't sell. That's one less used bike that didn't kill a new bike sale (they need to move new bikes to keep distributors, retailers, and investors happy), and maybe you'll get tired of it being unused and sign up for the service again. I guarantee they did all sorts of market research before they instituted the policy. The bigger problem is that they've lost a number of top-name instructors, the CFO is selling stock like it's about to burst on fire, and while they stemmed the bleeding a bit, they're still pissing money down the drain...
- mhb 2y ago
  > Peloton doesn't care if your used Peloton doesn't sell Sure they do. People who buy a used bike are not necessarily substitutes for people who will buy a new one. And new ones are more appealing to purchasers if their resale value is high.
  - KennyBlanken 2y ago
    I literally said "Some people will never buy a used peloton, so this doesn't affect them. Some people will never buy a new one" > new ones are more appealing to purchasers if their resale value is high. The kind of people dropping $1.5k on a spin bike to pay $45/month for a glorified youtube don't care much about resale value.
    - mhb 2y ago
      I read what you wrote. But that's not how economics works. You don't base your conclusions on actors at the extremes - the people who wouldn't buy a used one at any price (do these people actually exist?) and people who would never buy a new one. Peloton cares about the price of used Pelotons because they understand that economics regards the decisions made by the marginal consumers - the ones who would buy a new one if the resale value of used ones was $1 higher.

afavour 2y ago

> It's not even as if the bike is disabled when bought used, you can just use it like any other spin bike happily. While that’s true, a Peloton attracts a premium price above regular spin bikes. So if you had no intention of using the software you’d just buy a cheaper bike. If you do intend to use it you now have to add $95 to whatever price you’re paying.

DaveExeter 2y ago
...or, the seller has to subtract $95 from the asking price. This makes every used Peloton worth $95 less.
lesuorac 2y ago
Do they command a premium when used? I have one that I got for free, YMMV.
- laweijfmvo 2y ago
  Yep. They seem to be going for very low cost around here...
- notarobot123 2y ago
  > YMMV I thought they were stationary.
  - dessimus 2y ago
    Yeah, but how far away the person one gets it from may still vary.
  - focusedone 2y ago
    heh
  - playingalong 2y ago
    While stationary, it still measures the distance. (Yeah, I get the joke)
    - bravetraveler 2y ago
      Your username really missed the mark on this one :p
loeg 2y ago
> While that’s true, a Peloton attracts a premium price above regular spin bikes. Well, they used to.
rdtsc 2y ago
>a Peloton attracts a premium price above regular spin bikes. So if you had no intention of using the software you’d just buy a cheaper bike. If you do intend to use it you now have to add $95 to whatever price you’re paying. Good point, it's like a signal that "our bikes are a premium product: you'll pay more, and feel good about it, too!". However, like a sibling comment pointed out, that sort of conflicts with the used aspect of it. If someone is planning on spending cash on a premium exercise bike, they'll pay for a new one.
- drivingmenuts 2y ago
  It's also a signal that you got screwed by the seller if they didn't tell you about it before you bought the bike.
rootsudo 2y ago
You'd be surprised, they go for like $300 used, easy in many markets. I like it for the overal quality. I tried the sunni, and whatever brand was high on the amazon affiliated marketing stuff (ew right) but the peloton works fine. I also do like how the LCD is basically a vesa mount so you, and well, I did swap in a normal LCD but you can also jailbreak the android os there too. And you can also buy the newer bigger screen to put on an older bike. The metrics to me are a bit meh, I get it, but the hardware itself is sturdy and any real cyclist will be doing/using strava. But new, yes there is a premium and I don't see it worth it at all.
- trd716 2y ago
  I thought about trying to root the peloton tablet, but I'm not sure what it would gain me
  - rootsudo 2y ago
    netflix, vlc, thats it

fracus 2y ago

I mean, just the idea of paying for a subscription to ride a stationary bike is wild.

savanaly 2y ago
>the idea of paying for a subscription to ride a stationary bike You're not. Like was said above, you can ride it as a stationary bike for free. You're paying for the video content put out by Peloton which is added to daily, like a tv station. I can't help sounding like a sales person at this point but I'd also point out you get access to all their old content plus the fact that all this content is tied directly to your bike and the social network of other peloton riders.
- KennyBlanken 2y ago
  There's nothing unique about the "old" video content that makes it attractive other than the fact that their top "trainers" are leaving in droves.
  - Larrikin 2y ago
    Is there something worth leaving to? I have my old subscription limping along because I do like the trainers, the music especially, and use the non cardio programs, but would like to switch to something that isn't actively making the product worse to make money. Yt dl came in handy before their cardio money grab.
    - MrMetlHed 2y ago
      Zwift, maybe. But you need / should have a power meter to do that properly, and it works way better with a trainer that can adjust resistance on its own.
- ddalex 2y ago
  This is such a weird thing, paying to see scenery when riding your stationary bike and then post on the social network, when you can just go out with friends and bike for real in the nature.

KennyBlanken 2y ago

The market is absolutely flooded with used bikes. Looking in my area I see two dozen on CL alone within a 30 mile radius for $300-$900 (the $900 guy is delusional.) Some people will never buy a used peloton, so this doesn't affect them. Some people will never buy a new one, but the bikes have depreciated so much that a used one is a "steal" at 20%-50% of its original cost, they will grumble about, but pay, the fee. Peloton doesn't care if your used Peloton doesn't sell. That's one less used bike that didn't kill a new bike sale (they need to move new bikes to keep distributors, retailers, and investors happy), and maybe you'll get tired of it being unused and sign up for the service again. I guarantee they did all sorts of market research before they instituted the policy. The bigger problem is that they've lost a number of top-name instructors, the CFO is selling stock like it's about to burst on fire, and while they stemmed the bleeding a bit, they're still pissing money down the drain...

mhb 2y ago
> Peloton doesn't care if your used Peloton doesn't sell Sure they do. People who buy a used bike are not necessarily substitutes for people who will buy a new one. And new ones are more appealing to purchasers if their resale value is high.
- KennyBlanken 2y ago
  I literally said "Some people will never buy a used peloton, so this doesn't affect them. Some people will never buy a new one" > new ones are more appealing to purchasers if their resale value is high. The kind of people dropping $1.5k on a spin bike to pay $45/month for a glorified youtube don't care much about resale value.
  - mhb 2y ago
    I read what you wrote. But that's not how economics works. You don't base your conclusions on actors at the extremes - the people who wouldn't buy a used one at any price (do these people actually exist?) and people who would never buy a new one. Peloton cares about the price of used Pelotons because they understand that economics regards the decisions made by the marginal consumers - the ones who would buy a new one if the resale value of used ones was $1 higher.