The Horizon E701 Elliptical Trainer

The Horizon E701 elliptical trainer is yet another entry into Horizon’s extensive line of elliptical trainers under the $1000 mark. At $800, it’s a machine that falls squarely in the middle of the pack for them, offering a few more extras without attaining the level of their top of the line E1200 series.

What You Get

The Horizon E701 elliptical trainer is similar to the LS 654E elliptical in terms of essentials like stride length and number of programs, but it adds a few enticing extras such as MP3 player capability. You’ll find enough to keep you interested if you are a typical at-home exerciser, but not enough options for the serious athlete.

The stride length is very good for an elliptical that’s priced under $1000, and 14 programs offer you enough variety, but a mere 10 levels of resistance will disappoint serious athletes or anyone who needs a real challenge.

Features of the Horizon E701 elliptical trainer include:

• 18” Stride length
• 10 Levels of Resistance
• Magnetic brake resistance
• 14 Programs
• Water bottle holder
• Contact heart rate grips
• Pivoting footplates
• 14 lb. Front flywheel
• 275 lb. user capacity
• Cooling fan
• MP3 Input
• Warranties: lifetime frame and brake, 1 year parts and labor

The Word on the Street

UPDATE:  The E701 elliptical from Horizon has been discontinued and is no longer available for sale. You can check out the latest Horizon elliptical reviews here.

The pros and gym experts are silent regarding the Horizon E701. Most of them seem to by-pass this machine in favor of more expensive models by other brands. Conversely, many consumers seem to prefer some of Horizon’s less expensive options if they are going to invest in a budget elliptical trainer.

The few complaints we’ve heard revolve around poor shipping. The Horizon E701 elliptical trainer sometimes arrives with missing parts or damaged parts. Fortunately, the company’ customer service is stellar, and they quickly send out replacement parts.

Elliptical reviews are a mixed bag when it comes to the design of the Horizon E701. Some people love the relatively compact design with the flywheel in the front; others feel like it is awkward. It seems to be a case of a good design that’s been poorly executed.

Our Thoughts

The Horizon E701 is an ugly ducking in the Horizon line-up. It falls into that nether region between lower cost budget machines that many love from Horizon and higher priced machines at the $1000 mark or more.

Put simply, many people either want to spend less – and do – or they figure that if they are going to go this close to $1000, they might as well move up to a better machine.

Once again, Horizon has fudged a bit on the user capacity. Although only twenty-five pounds less than the industry standard of 300 lbs, you can feel a real difference in stability of the machine if you’re approaching 200 lbs or more.

You can get the Horizon E701 elliptical trainer at Dick’s Sporting Goods or at Sam’s Club on occasion. If you catch a good sale, you might consider this a comparable model to other Horizon units, but if you’re paying anything more than $700, look elsewhere.