– Added extra axle adapters: A full bag of them as seen in video – New communications controller: This will improve firmware update, and allows faster communication with apps (which would likely be used for real-time pedaling analysis) – New microcontroller and additional memory: This will improve ERG control Tacx says, and reduce vibrations – Increased cadence accuracy: Uses new magnetless object detection (more on that in a second) – Added left/right balance information: Will show distribution of power between legs, as well as broadcast this to 3rd party apps. Additionally, this will also be broadcast to 3rd party apps for NEO 2. This was added to a degree last December in a firmware update for NEO 1 users, however, the internal changes for NEO 2 makes this more accurate. – Added pedal stroke analysis: Will plot out full pedal stroke, akin to some power meters. However, here’s what’s new/unique on the new NEO 2: Ok, so as seen above, that’s the baseline and basically the same as the NEO 1. – Power Cable Required: No, it can operate powered or standalone sans-power. – Max Incline: 25% simulated grade, the highest of any trainer out there – Skewer Compatibility: All the skewers and adapters you could ask for: Road 130mm, MTB 135mm, 142x12mm, 148x12mm – App Compatibility: Every app out there basically (Zwift, TrainerRoad, Rouvy, Road Grand Tours, SufferFest, Kinomap, etc…) – Protocol Compatibility: ANT+ FE-C, ANT+ Power, Bluetooth Smart Trainer Control, Bluetooth Smart Power It does have foldable legs though for easy storage. – Handle and Folding: This unit lacks a handle, which continues to make it slightly awkward to move around. Only the sound of your drivetrain is heard, and a very faint hum of internal fans/electronics. – Sound: Identical to the original NEO, essentially silent. – Cassette: No Tacx trainers include a cassette, which will set you back $50-$60, plus $10-$20 in tools to install. – Downhill Drive: This is one of only a handful of trainers that drives the rear ‘wheel’ forward while going down hills, thus simulating descending inertia. – Flywheel: It has a virtual flywheel up to 125kg, the largest of any trainer on the market. – Direct drive trainer: This means you remove your rear wheel Instead, it’s more about the promise of unknown new stuff down the road.īut first, let’s talk about what it is exactly: Albeit that hasn’t resulted in much in the way of new features for us end users. Whereas in the case of the NEO 2, the internals have been significantly refreshed. In the case of the Flux S/Original swapparoo, the changes were virtually non-existent – features or internally. While earlier this year we saw the Flux S replace the original Flux (plus a new Flux 2), the story on the NEO 2 is a bit different than that. Onwards with the review! Technical Overview: If you find this review useful, hit up the links at the end to help support the site. Once I’m done with it I’ll get it all boxed back up and returned to the Tacx folks. In any event, I’ve been riding a media loaner Neo 2 as my primary trainer since it announced early last month, and now have plenty of data on it to dive into. And ultimately it follows Wahoo’s popular model of incremental changes to existing trainers – rather than massive shifts from model to model. In some cases, keeping changes to a minimum might not be a bad thing for reliability though. Part of that reason, as you’ll see, is likely due to the fact that the Neo 2 has relatively minor changes in comparison to building an entire indoor bike. While the Tacx NEO 2 was the last product of the year that Tacx announced – a mere 45 days ago – it’s actually shipping already, unlike its bigger brother the long-awaited Neo Smart Bike. Check out that link for the most up to date information on this Smart Trainer line up!**) (** Update: the Tacx NEO 2 has since been superseded by the Tacx NEO 2T.
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