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Bkool Announces New Smart Go Trainer

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While at Interbike, Spanish trainer company Bkool announced their latest trainer – the Bkool Smart Go.  This lower-priced option helps to complement their existing option, the Bkool Smart Pro.  These two trainers sit at $479 and $699USD respectively.

In many ways, the trainers are very similar, but they have one of the more clearly defined list of differences between two mid-range trainers on the market.  Sometimes you get a bit of wishy-washyness when comparing options in the $450-$700 trainer market, but this is straightforward…which is nice.  Let’s get into it.

What’s new:

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Like all but one new trainer in the market, the Bkool Smart Go supports all the common control options/standards on the market today:

– ANT+ FE-C Control
– Bluetooth Smart Control

The one difference though is that unlike some other trainers on the market, it doesn’t broadcast standard ANT+ Power or speed, so you can’t pick it up on your older Garmin head unit.  For some, that may not matter, and for those with newer Edge units (Edge 520/820/1000), you can simply pair via FE-C instead on your Garmin and you’re good to go.

The Smart Go has a maximum simulation resistance of up to 8%, which is in the ballpark of others in this price range.  However, in order to compensate for the occasional resistance levels beyond that, they’ll actually compensate by slightly slowing the videos down (within their own apps).  Thus creating the effect of having to work harder to compensate for the trainer being unable to punish you properly.

The trainer has a resistance capability of 800w, which is likely more than enough for the vast majority of riders.  To put it in perspective, I very rarely go above 800w – and even then it’s only for a second or two in a hard sprint on Zwift.  If it wasn’t for that, I could likely go years on a trainer without hitting 800w since it’s well outside of any normal training zones.  Of course, to each their own.

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Now many of the remaining differences between the two units are more physical trainer frame attributes.  For example, the Go Trainer (on the left) uses a twisting tightening knob, versus the Pro (on the right) using a quick release lever:

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Then on the trainer frame legs, on the Bkool Smart Go, they are 27” wide (68.58cm), whereas the Smart Pro expands to 32” wide (81.28cm).

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Lastly, on the physical trainer frame attributes, we’ve got the ability for you to separate the frame from the resistance unit.  On the Smart Go, you’ll have to take out a hex wrench to remove the bolt.  Whereas on the Smart Pro it has a quick release type system.

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In order to make this all a bit simpler, I’ve tossed both models into a modified comparison sheet.  I’ll add the new model into the product comparison tool, but it wouldn’t have captured some of the frame nuances, as I don’t typically track those. In any case – here ya go:

Bkool Trainer Comparison

FeatureBKOOL Smart GoBKOOL Smart Pro
Price$479USD$699USD
Max Slope Simulation8%20%
Max Wattage800w1200w
Trainer legsStatic at 27" wideExpandable to 32"
Trainer collapseBolt requiring toolQuick release
ANT+ FE-CYesYes
Bluetooth Smart ControlYesYes
Weight of trainer10kg (22lbs)12kg (26.5lbs)
Noise level75db @ 30KPH75db @ 30KPH
Premium Bkool Subscription3 Month (US)12 Month (US)
Includes front wheel blockYesYes
Warranty2 Years2 Years

Note that on the Bkool subscription, those will vary by country.  So in the US, I’ve listed those, but if you go to various European countries the subscription amounts will vary.

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Oh, and speaking of random things – Bkool also have announced some new thru-axle accessory options as well (above), you’ll soon find these listed on their site for $59.

The Bkool Smart Go should start shipping within Europe by the end of October, and then will hit US stores about two weeks later in mid-November.

Initial Thoughts:

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This is a nice offering from Bkool, with the majority of features common to this price range.  Longtime trainer segment followers will remember that Bkool was really the leader in the market when it came to budget electronically controlled trainers.  But, that point was a few years ago.  Once Tacx came in with their ‘Smart’ lineup, those differences largely disappeared and left Bkool in a tough spot.

However, this new $479USD option (again, Euro prices will vary, and I don’t have those at the moment) will make it more competitive with the Vortex Smart sitting at $529USD.  Plus, them throwing in 3 months of a subscription to their training platform will certainly be appealing for some folks that want to experiment with training platforms.  There are still some minor hardware differences – but I’ll cover those later in the week in my 2016 Trainer Recommendations Guide.

Finally, I’ll note that this is the end of the road for new trainers for 2016.  In a few hours (4hrs to be precise) you’ll see my Interbike Trainer Round-up, covering the last tidbits of trainer news for the Eurobike/Interbike 2016 run.  There won’t be any new trainers in that piece, but there will be key shipping timeline updates on all of the new trainers.

With that – thanks for reading!

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27 Comments

  1. Tommies

    Hi Ray,

    What do you think of tracx flow smart (T2240)? This is (i think) the less expensive (239€) smart trainer on the market.

    Thanks Ray, great job as usual

  2. I like that we can add MTB. I have new bie that has Boost or 148 spacing would love to put on trainer. Even Elite. But it also has to be XD Sram cassette compatible. Wish trainer makers will accommodate that. Wahoo can’t do Sram.

    Any incite would be nice.

    Regards

    Dave

    And this in your comparison would be nice table to add. MTB compatible.?

  3. Julien

    Hi Ray – do you know if they fixed the ERG mode for resistance on workout sessions on Zwift ?
    With the current BKool it is not usable, which is not a huge issue as you can control resistance electronically but still would make it nicer if it worked !
    Thanks for the great work as always.

  4. Bob Dynowski

    Yes, the resistance issue in Zwift workout sessions is fixed and works a treat.

  5. Barry Ryan

    It’s just all to confusing! I want a mid range trainer to do a couple of workouts a week and when it occasionally rains

  6. Dave W

    Hi Ray, at the end of this one you implied your trainer recommendations guide would be out later that week. Sounds like we might be only days away?

    Thanks!

  7. Martin

    I think I’ve just about had it with this trainer now and need to buy a KICKR or TACX NEO, they seem to have changed the software (again) recently by REMOVING the option to create intervals based on time (i.e. 5mins at 1% gradient, 10mins at 5%, 5mins at 0% etc) and only allowing you to define an intervals based on distance in…….metres????? this is a major pain for me as I used to create workouts for myself based on time and gradient which worked perfectly now I find completely out of the blue they go ahead and just remove the time option.

    Does anyone know any other way now to create a custom workout based on time and gradient?

  8. Giovanni

    Is the Bluetooth smart support the Go version offers over the Pro version as any kind of advantage? I am looking to buy my first smart trainer and wonder if I need the Bluetooth?

  9. Martin Bjorgvik

    Has anyone compared this trainer against a real powermeter? showing crazy numbers of watts in Zwift.

  10. Andrew

    The Bkool trainers are way off when it comes to watts. I have a Neo and joined bkool simulator. There are riders that consistently beat Chris Hoy, Bradley wiggins and all the top boys…I manage an average of around 34km/h over the 14k course…They have riders averaging 56km/h…go figure. I questioned them about this and they tell me that the trainers are accurate…UNREAL!!!

    • One thing to keep in mind is that you may not be seeing BKool trainers in the Bkool Simulator. That’s because it can be used with a number of other trainers, just like apps such as Zwift and TrainerRoad can.

    • Andrew

      I am referring to BKool Trainers because I am talking about the leagues….not live. so you can see the trainer used and the results. trust me the bkool trainer is so inaccurate its not funny

    • With that in mind – do you know if those folks calibrated?

      I ask because for a wheel-on trainer, that’s basically a massive difference potential there.

      It’s really the overall problem with online leagues in cycling, calibration and incorrect setup. Some apps like Zwift actually use some logic behind the scenes to filter out unhuman/pro like efforts.

    • Andrew

      bkool response was its normal and they say they are accurate and i replied saying you must be kidding me, to which they no longer reply. Its a joke to be honest and you either accept that their trainers with their simulator is just a game or you find an alternative but frankly there are not many and Zwift is just so boring

    • Alex Masidlover

      Bkool trainers can only be calibrated by support staff and apparently it ‘isn’t needed’ – that said; my Bkool Pro 2 drifts to over 50W higher than my Quarq DZero ( at around 300W) – I have had Bkool dial in and recalibrate it and it seemed ok but then I started monitoring it while it warmed up. They at least don’t claim that its correct (given that it would give me an FTP good enough to be a domestic pro…) and maybe one day they will find a way to sort it.

      Most of the time its not an issue (since I use the DZero as power source) but ERG mode can be a nightmare – I spend most intervals trying to adjust cadence / find the right gear to minimise the issue – or use my Wahoo ELEMNT to control the trainer with the workout @140% of planned power – or just give up totally and put it in resistance mode.

      I just can’t bring myself to spend £600+ to get a new trainer that is universally reported as reliable and having a decent ERG mode, when at the moment it is arguably just an irritation (although even small irritations suddenly get much bigger in the middle of 350-400W intervals).

  11. Steve

    I just received the Bkool Smart Go. It has the EU power adapter included, but no US adapter. Should I have received a US adapter, or is there a recommended US adapter I should purchase ?

  12. nickruss

    I’ve had this for two days. I wanted to use TrainerRoad so had to switch the mode to ANT+ via the Bkool app. Having done this, the trainer no longer has resistance control and does not output power readout to any app, making it useless. I have wasted hours trying to get the flimsy app settings to revert. There is also no documentation anywhere about updating firmware on this thing.

    I just bought a Tacx Neo from Tredz

  13. Matrix

    On the Fence Between the Tacx Flow (T2240) and this BKool Smart Go. The BKool looks a little more durable. But I just read an Amazon review from Oct 3, 2018 where the user noted that after a mandatory firmware update, the unit stopped sending to Zwift via the ANT+FE-C protocol. Any idea if this is an issue? And if so has it been resolved?

  14. Mike proctor

    Bike training inside info

  15. Glen Huybrechts

    Hi Ray,

    I got a Bkool smart go from a friend and when I start pedaling, the bike is vibrating/whobling strong.
    When I start peddling faster, the vibrations/whobling is less.
    I’ve always ridden a Tacx trainer in the past.
    Is this something specific to the Bkool trainers design?
    Have you noticed this too?