Horizon Fitness Evolve 3 Elliptical Review

Quick Summary

The Horizon Evolve 3 is a foldable elliptical trainer with 20″ footpath and 18-pound flywheel.

Like other Horizon ellipticals, this trainer is ergonomically smart from the pedals to the handlebars.

It’s also loaded with extras ranging from iPod compatibility to interactive HD video training.

Learn more from our full Horizon Evolve 3 elliptical review below.

Specifications

Model	Horizon Evolve 3
Rating Our custom rating considers all of the elliptical's features, specs, warranties, and 100's of user & expert reviews, to save you time!	82.3%
List Price Suggested retail price, typically higher than the price you'll pay with our recommended retailers.	$1,599
Best Price Since prices change daily, this link goes to our preferred retailer for the best price we've found.	$1,199
Resistance Resistance is what determines calories burned per stride. The more levels, the more precisely you can control the difficulty.	20 Levels
Resistance Type The type of resistance affects the performance of your elliptical. Magnetic and Eddy-Current are the most common types.	Electronically Adjustable
Stride Length Stride Length is important for comfort and smooth strides. A stride length of 18-21 inches is ideal for most heights (5'3 - 6'7).	20"
Pedals Elliptical pedals can be cushioned and adjustable for maximum comfort and minimum impact on joints for injury prevention.	Oversized
Incline Some elliptical trainers can be set at an incline to increase difficulty and burn more calories.	n/a
Flywheel The flywheel controls the smoothness and resistance of your workout. In general, the higher the better.	18 lbs
Programs Elliptical Programs allow you to complete a workout with changing speeds and inclines, without changing anything manually.	32
User Profiles For each profile the elliptical allows, you can create a custom user account with saved programs and goal settings.	n/a
Heart Rate Heart Rate programs allow you to track how many times your heart is beating per minute (bpm), and some control the workout for you.	Contact Grips
Display Elliptical Display refers to the screen you'll look at to monitor workouts. LED and LCD displays are similar to TV screens.	5.5" Blue Backlit LCD
Max. Weight Max User Weight is the amount of weight, in pounds (lbs), that it can safely support, which can represent durability.	300 lbs
Dimensions Dimensions are included to help you figure out if this elliptical will fit properly (Length x Width x Height and Height x Depth).	69” x 28” x 69”
Upper Body Most ellipticals have handles to hold while you're working out that provide an upper body workout.
Accessory Tray Some ellipticals include an accessory tray for holding items such as water bottles, wallets, keys, or MP3 players like iPods.
Speakers Ellipticals that include a sound system allow you to listen to your MP3 player/iPod through built-in speakers (without headphones).
Cooling Fans Cooling Fans are designed to help keep you cool during an intense workout on your elliptical.
Folding? Some ellipticals are designed to conserve space by folding up. This is a convenient option, but some features might be reduced.
Quick Controls Quick Controls allow you to select speed, incline and even workout programs with the touch of a button (usually on the handles).
Warranty The warranty is an important part of your investment. The longer the warranty, the longer you can get free/discounted repairs.	Frame: Lifetime Parts: 3 Years Labor: 1 Year

Our Rating

Rating: 82.3/100. The Evolve 3 is the entry-level elliptical trainer in Horizon’s Evolve Series. To help you train like a pro it has 32 built-in workout programs that can automatically control the machine’s resistance, which comes from an 18-pound drive. You can also use Virtual Active workout videos (sold separately) that will speed up or slow down in response to your motion. Other highlights are iPod compatibility, a wifi connection for managing fitness data, a holder for your tablet computer, and a water bottle holder.

Horizon Fitness ellipticals are designed to fit six important criteria for comfortable and safe training. These include narrow pedal spacing, optimal arm bar spacing, smooth momentum, a natural footpath, a design that helps you stay upright, and a low step-on height. The Evolve 3 also has a 20″ stride, which is ideal for most adults.

Owing to its maximum resistance the Horizon Evolve 3 is primarily a cross trainer for newcomers to elliptical workouts. For a more advanced challenge see the Horizon Elite Series or consider another fitness brand with “extras” such as NordicTrack.

Pros:

Easy three-step assembly
Optimal handlebar spacing
Comfortable pedal placement
20 resistance levels
20″ stride
Moving arm bars
32 built-in workouts
Passport Ready (Interactive video)
ViaFit wireless fitness tracking
iPod-compatible (Dock and speakers)
Tablet computer rack
Grip pulse readers
Water bottle holder
Foldable
Small footprint

Cons:

Does not have an incline
No wireless heart rate monitoring
Passport player with videos costs extra

Introduction

The Horizon Evolve 3 is a mid-level elliptical trainer selling for $1,299 online (full price $1,599). It’s the simpler of Horizon’s two Evolve Series treadmills; the Evolve 5 has a heavier flywheel and other upgrades. Overall this model is designed for relative newcomers to elliptical training. It has good ergonomic design and includes lot of features to enhance workout time. Here are details about its workout programs and other features.

Workout Programs

Trainees get a variety of traditional fitness machine workouts plus the option to use interactive videos.

As for the traditional programs, 32 workouts are built into the console. These control the elliptical machine’s resistance and the duration of your workout. Your progress is shown on a 5.5″ LCD with backlighting, which includes a Cardio Compass™ for easy-to-read heart rate info. The data readouts are Heart Rate, Time, Speed, Distance, Calories, Resistance, Watts and RPM.

For interactive training the Evolve 3 is Passport Ready. A Passport player, sold separately, can work with your elliptical trainer and home TV to show immersive and interactive workouts. The $199 player (full price $249) includes two videos for virtual striding through Northern Italy and the American Southwest. Other videos are sold separately.

Horizon Fitness Evolve 3 Features

ViaFit connectivity makes it easy to track your long-term progress and access your fitness data with your mobile device. ViaFit also connects with social media.

The Horizon Evolve 3 is an iPod-compatible elliptical. A dock and speakers are included for your iPod or other compatible MP3 player.

The control center for built-in workouts is a 5.5″ LCD with blue backlighting. The machine can also be used with a Passport player for HD video training.

This Horizon elliptical has a 20″ stride and an 18-pound drive.

For heart rate monitoring the Evolve 3 has grip sensors on the handlebars.

A tablet computer rack and a water bottle holder are also built into the machine.

To conserve space the Evolve 3 is foldable. A hydraulic “FeatherLight” system makes this an easy one-step process.

This elliptical trainer is easy to assemble; get the job done in just three steps.

Warranty & Guarantee

The Horizon Evolve 3 warranty includes:

– Frame: Lifetime

– Parts: 3 Years

– Labor: 1 Year

Horizon also includes a 30-day money back guarantee.

Conclusion

The Horizon Evolve 3 is an affordable and comfortable elliptical trainer with a nice list of extra features. Even so, we wouldn’t call this elliptical a best buy; at $1,199 it faces some impressive competition.

To get a better value at this price we’d switch over to NordicTrack. The NordicTrack C 12.9, which also supports interactive training, has heavier maximum resistance, a touchscreen and other upgrades for the same deal of $1199 including delivery.