JLL Folding Rowing Machine for Home Gym with Quiet Magnetic Resistance

I want this to be a very helpful review so bear with me while I set the background. I'm 65. It's years since I set foot in a gym and I have no experience of other machines in decades. I am 5'9 and was 12 st. Always 12st - for years. It didn't matter what I ate much to the chagrin of other people trying to cut the calories. I would have said I was fit and most of my friends would have agreed with me. They'd have called me slim. I was pretty damned complacent. Until I checked my own blood pressure in a machine at the surgery. At which point I had to hit the alarm button. The doctor put me on the lowest dose of blood pressure tablet but I wanted to not just rely on medication. I'd used a rowing machine a long time ago and I was sure it was the most complete exercise machine. So I bought the JLL after seeing a fitness website make it their "surprising recommendation". At this price I could try it out and not worrry about the outlay. Assembly is pretty easy if you take your time and one person can do it just about. Packaging was excellent and the components felt heavy and well-engineered. None of those not-quite-properly-threaded holes or bolts that didn't quite turn freely. You know the Chinese junk I'm talking about. This felt solid and well-made. I found it hard work to start with, I was tired after 1/2 a kilometre on no4 resistance and I had to overcome discouragement. I'm 65 remember. After 4 months I'm doing 4 kilometres neraly every day at maximum resistance and I could do more if I wanted to. My blood pressure is down to normal, although obviously the meds have played their part. Here's the thing, though. I've lost 10lb even though that wasn't an objective. Where's it gone from? That stomach that I was a little bit in denial about. My trousers are loose on my waist! My biceps and forearms are like iron. Ditto my leg muscles. If you are not using the machine as a surrogate for real rowing - you know, with water involved! - then this machine WILL get you fit - and without the impact injuries you can get from jogging. I haven't felt fitter in twenty years. What I took to be the inevitable pains of aging have gone. At £166 this can be a life and health-changing purchase. So what's not like? Well. rowing's boring. So do what I've done. Stick a TV nearby and plough through a boxed set! Keep your eys of those dials. My sessions are taking half an hour and I do it nearly every day (say 11 days in every 14). So it takes time. You don't have to do as much as that, though, and if you're younger you could try a higher pace than my 22-23 strokes/min to shorten the time. It's darned satisfying - and motivating - to see 180-200 calories on the read out day after day, even if the readings are as inaccurate as everyone says. So my strong advice is to use the readouts just for comparison purposes day on day. Feel your body, That's the only readout you really need. The only truly negative thing I have to say is that my bum aches after a while! That seat could be more padded. Get a cushion! So there you are. A man his 60s can use one of these - but for God's sake build up from a low base of short sessions at lower resistance. You will lose weight - you can't help it, believe me! You blood pressure will fall. You will feel better about yourself. Your girlfriend/wife will like the improvement to your body. You will improve your life expectancy. Just take it steady to start with. Getting fit is a marathon not a sprint. I'm not saying other machines won't do just as well. but this one feels like a bargain to me. It's changing my life. Really. If you're thinking about it - just do it. And please - get your blood pressure checked out. Don't taek it all for granted as I did. Twleve Month Update: After nearly twelve months my enthusiasm for this machine is undimmed and I can't believe much fitter I feel. However, just before the warranty ran out there was a failure in the main base unit. The rowing action started to produce a grinding sound and the tension fluctuated. At their request I sent JLL a video clip. They sent me a whole new machine so I could replace the base unit. At my request they also allowed me to replace the seat unit. A bolt had worked its way out its seat, although it made no difference to the its operation. I simply packed up the dodgy bits and they arranged for the box to be colllected. So the warranty was fulfilled politely and efficiently in less than a week. Should you be worried about this failure? My own view is that if you have to buy one every year it's probably still an decent deal. You should bear in mind that my machine had about 750 "miles" and thousands of strokes on the clock by the time it failed. That's pretty intensive use and at full tension. Let's be honest with ourselves: many of you will soon get fed up and others will use it spasmodically. I maintain this is still an ideal machine that doesn't involve you in huge investment in order to get yourself fit. And the warranty is taken seriously by JLL. UPDATE: May 2023. Today the recoil unit failed again. So it's time for the last rites. The first recoil unit (is that what it is called?) failed in less than 12 months. The second one lasted 5 years. That points to a little bit of hit and miss with quality control. The seat unit has also been fine since it was replaced, indicating again that the first one was substandard. I need a new machine and, dammit, the websites are still recommending this one as the best buy for amateur use. It's a darned sight dearer - over £100 dearer - but still looks like good value. I note that competitor machines also have various componenet failure issues. What to do? Watch this space....

Been using for a month and for a budget rowing machine it’s adequate , and is a shorter length to accommodate than some. I am 5’8” female , 62 years of age and purchased to try to obtain overall workout on a machine which doesn’t play havoc with my dodgy knees! I had wrangled with the decision whether to buy this one or the much more expensive Concept 2 of which I have experience using at the gym as it had very good reviews.To be honest I couldn’t justify spending that much for the concept one, plus , it was too big for my box room. I decided any exercise is better than none and the JLT one is adequate for my needs. I use 5 x per week and it gives me that kick start energy-wise in the mornings before work. I do find it a little low to the ground which is an effort getting up and down to it . It’s sturdy enough though and was easy enough assembling it myself . I only awarded it 1* for the ease of folding as it folds right in the area where the wire which is very flimsy, connects to the screen readout . I think it could very easily damage the wire and render the screen useless in no time. In that respect the design hasn’t been thought through. Other than that is ok.

Had the rower for just a few days but already very impressed with it. It's a very sturdy piece of kit. Easy to assemble out of the box - says two people required but apart from a slight struggle to extract it from the box (which I didn't want to damage in case I needed to return it), I managed to put it together myself in 25 minutes with the included tools. The rower has a very smooth action and is quiet enough to exercise whilst watching the TV, albeit with the sound turned up a tad (much quieter than the air rower at the gym). The tension settings are perfectly adequate for a good range of abilities, though if you are a serious rower or extreme fitness fanatic the highest setting might not cut it for you. The lower 4 or 5 settings are also a little weak but useful if you haven't done any serious exercise in a while and want to start off gently. The seat is comfortable at first but can make your btm ache after a little while so I just put a small memory foam pad on it and it's fine. I'm 5' 10 1/2" and there is plenty of travel on the seat for me. I've read some people saying that the foot pedals are too big and their feet fall out - this can be remedied by threading the pedal straps through the lower slots in the pedals (they are in the higher slots out of the box). The display takes a bit of mastering as the instructions are a little vague but with a bit of trial and error you can soon work it out. I'm not sure how accurate the calorie counter or distance measure are but I'll only use them for comparison from session to session anyway. To sum up: for the price this is a really solid machine and I expect it to go the distance. If you're serious about your rowing you'll probably want something a bit higher up the league but if you're looking for a rower for general fitness purposes at beginner/intermediate level, buy with confidence.

I did a lot of research before buying this machine, and have to say I'm very pleased with it. I'm a 61 year old guy who is still slim and in reasonable shape, but I realised recently that I could be a lot fitter. It was suggested by a friend that a rowing machine would be the ideal thing for me. As I'm not into running, and have no wish to spend a fortune on a gym, I took his advice. The machine was really simple to assemble. I unpacked it, laid all the bits out on the floor, and had it sorted in around 30 minutes. It's very sturdy and everything seems to be of good quality. The foot rests are a little strange, but I'm sure with a little use I'll figure out the most comfortable way of securing my feet. I hopped on board, and thought I would try some very gentle exercise just to get to know the rower. I set the tension at it's lowest and tried a few strokes - all felt fine - enough resistance for a beginner like me to start with. Then tried the resistance at 5, and could definitely feel a difference. Finally tried it out on maximum, and could feel a considerable difference. Dropped it back down to minimum and had my first 10 minute trial session. The machine is very quiet in use, feels very stable, and the seat is quite comfortable. The digital display works very well but it will take a while to get used to all the various settings. So I just left it on scan which shows everything in sequence. Easy to read and understand. Being new to "proper" exercise, I'm going to start gently with 10 minutes morning and evening and see how I get on, but even after that first session, I could feel that I had been using my hamstrings and abs. So, gently, gently to begin! Finally, the machine is very easy to fold up, and I just leave it in the corner of the room until needed. This is definitely a very good machine for an entry level user like me. The resistance is certainly enough to give me a work out. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who just wants to get into shape and improve their fitness, rather than someone who who wants a more demanding fitness regime. I'm very impressed with this at the price. It's good quality and looks very nice, works smoothly, and I'm sure will help me improve my muscle tone and aerobic fitness. (I'll report back in 3 months).

I considered several spin bikes and rowing machines and settled on this one. I like it. I bought it the Tuesday after Cyber Monday and it arrived on Thursday - nice quick delivery via Yodel. Setting up is quite straightforward. Like previous reviewer, I think bigger diagrams in the guide would have been great, but a little patience means 30mins is about enough time to get it set up. The product is a good weight and feels solid and well built. The computer display is big enough to be easy to read at the finish stage of a stroke. The magnetic mechanism is very quiet and the majority of the noise comes from the sliding of the seat in the drive and recovery. I felt confident straight after setting it up to push up to 40strokes/min. Folding the machine is quite simple - just remove two bolts. [update below]:I've given the product 4 stars for 2 reasons: (1) the pedal strap is just a velcro strap. I've racked up about 10km since receiving the unit and the straps keep coming off my feet. Two straps per foot or a toe/heel block would help keep feet in place during the recovery stage of the stroke. (2) The magnetic load mechanism is low. This means the handlebar has to be kept very low during the stroke. I use a Concept 2 ergometer at the gym and the higher placed flywheel ensures that arms are above the knees throughout the stroke. IMHO that works much better. At the moment I have to keep my arms outside my knees to make this work. I'm only 5'8", for reference. Oh, for those who want to know, the display has no backlight, and the machine is suitable for people at least half a foot taller than me - the monorail is a good length. The seat is soft too, if thats a priority for you. I like the tension and IMHO unless you're a pro it will provide more than enough resistance. At first use the magnetic resistance wasn't very smooth at low resistance, but it seems to be smoother now, and is definitely smooth at higher resistance. I like the product and the wife has decided to give it a go, so can't complain. Recommended if you can engineer a way to keep your feet in, and don't mind having your arms outside your knees. [update - 11th Dec] This review got a comment from JLL. They pointed out that the foot pedals had an extra slot for the strap. I used the lower slot and this provides more security. I've also grown used to the lower arm position so can't complain. 5 stars! Recommended

After some years away from the gym, and many more after selling my old rowing machine to make space, I decided to buy the JLL R200 based on online reviews. Overall I'm very satisfied with the purchase. The machine was fairly easy to assemble, though a little difficult to extract its box. The instructions do say to tighten the seat to the slide, but it's not entirely clear how to do that. About 12 years ago I owned a Concept 2 rower, which I paid something like £400 for. Although I'm sure current models are far superior to my old one, I'm preferring the JLL to that. It's very solid and quiet and takes up little space when folded away. Ideal for a spare room. It offers sufficient resistance, though the lower levels are all much the same The LCD display is the only let down. It's somewhat out of date (in fact, very similar to the one on my old rower) and there are no instructions for using it. It quickly becomes apparent that it records distance, reps, time spent rowing etc - but it is not very flexible. Anyway - that's a trivial thing. As long as you can measure time and distance, that's all that really matters. It will certainly do until my fitness is improved enough to warrant an upgrade.

A good machine but with a few drawbacks. The assembly instructions are poor with some trial & error required to put the machine together, the 'fold away' mechanism is fiddly, and the integrated calculator for tracking your progress is erratic & unreliable (as often seems the case with these machines). It's sturdy and works well but don't expect anything more.

I thought I'd leave it a while before reviewing the rowing machine to give an informed opinion, rather than an instant impression. I used to run, used to go to the gym and generally tried to keep reasonably fit but without a great deal of enthusiasm. Apart from a tendency to walk where i had the opportunity the rest of my fitness activities fell away and I gained some weight and generally felt lethargic. Looking for a low impact form of all round exercise I came upon the JLL rowing machine and was impressed with the reviews, both here and elsewhere, but wondered what I'd actually get for what seemed a pretty low price. But, nothing ventured, nothing gained, I put in an order. The machine was delivered promptly and well before the estimated date. I had watched a YouTube video from JLL on how to assemble it and with that, and the enclosed instructions, it was put together in around 40 minutes. The fittings were in a well numbered blister pack so there was no doubting what went where. There was also a small, and probably, easily overlooked information sheet for the computer. The one tiny issue was that one of the knobs had part of it's plastic broken away. It had no effect on the machines usage and was more cosmetic, but a call to JLL had it replaced within a few days. The machine itself is solid and sturdy. The action is smooth and very quiet and, for a beginner like me, even on a low resistance level gives me a decent work out over 20 minutes to half an hour. Because of it's quietness I can entertain - or distract - myself listening to podcasts whilst I work out. I get off after exercise feeling it in my legs, abs, shoulders and arms and having built up a sweat. More importantly I don't dread doing it, which is progress. Two minor niggles. The foot straps could be more robust as occasionally one of my feet will slip out and the bolt holding in the left pedal needs tightening after every couple of work outs, but they are very minor and it would not stop recommending this machine to anyone. It's not a Concept 2 but it's 20% of the price and at what is being asked you really can't go wrong.