Garmin NEO 2T 2022
Reviews / Trainers
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At a glance
Price: 1399 USD / 1299 EUR
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The Neo 2T is Tacx top end smart trainer. With hyper accurate power and cadence measurements, and 32 integrated neodymium magnets the NEO 2T Smart ensures maximum stability, even during explosive sprints, up to 2,200 watts.
The product
Tacx has been on the top of the indoor cycling game as long as I can remember. Their NEO 2T however is a long long way from my first ever cable actuated torture device I used in my base3ment in the late 90’s. While back then using a trainer was a spartan way bugging your neighbours, modern day trainers are the pinnacle of technology. Not only are the modern iterations ultra silent, they can simulate that road riding feeling in your pedal stroke that is almost impossible to discern from the real thing. The NEO 2T is equipped with ANT plus connectivity and Bluetooth technology and takes up 57.5 x 75 cm. Weighing in at 21.5 kg it is sturdy enough to stay in place for some powerful interval training sessions, and can simulate a gradient of up to 25% realistically. The setup can be ordered with a freehub of your choice, and by using smart adapters you can make it work for 135 mm, 142 mm and 148 mm frame sizes.
Out on the trail
To be honest, those hours on the trainer in the 90’s scarred me for life. Sweating uncontrollably while watching ‘Dallas’ and ‘As the world turns’ is just not the way you want to spend your youth. So returning to indoor cycling was a sizable mental hurdle.
Once that was overcome, the device was easy to take out of the box and set up. Within 30’ of cutting the tape from the edges, I found myself drenched doing a FTP test on Zwift. The Tacx comes with a one month free trial for the platform, and also offers various Tacx training programs if that's more to your liking.
I settled on the Zwift which is worth a review all by itself, but for now we’ll just focus on the NEO 2T. Riding accuracy and realism is where it’s at with this piece of equipment. Now you won’t feel the loam under your wheels, but the pedalling sensation is eerily realistic and the climbing gradients feel very accurate. No wonder as it measures cadence and power output within 1%.
In terms of ease of use, storing the trainer is a 5 minute job if even. Remove the bike, fold up the trainer and it can be tucked away neatly behind a couch or cupboard. Also when in use the machine is ridiculously silent. My huffing and puffing definitely made more noise than the trainer when the wattages went up!
Nice feature is that the trainer is not 100% rigid. With that I mean your bike has the possibility to rock left and right a little when you’re pedalling, recreating that natural feel you have out in the world. There even is an option to add a steering mode to your Zwift workouts. By adding your smartphone on the handlebars and linking it with the software, it detects motion and turns your bike left and right on the screen. We haven’t given this a try just yet, but it’s pretty awesome it exists.
It is worth mentioning the Tacx App. The key feature of the app is that it gives you access to their library of “In Real Life” cycling videos. This is a subscription-based service, but if you want a bit of variety apart from Zwifting then this is a genuine option and well worth using their 10-day trial that you get with the trainer.
Verdict
Are we going to ditch our weekly rides in the dark over winter? Definitely not. A trainer will never replace the real life experience of riding a bike in the woods. Will the Tacx Neo 2T stay in the corner of our living room? Definitely. Riding bikes is simply more fun when you’re fit and the Neo 2T will definitely aid you in becoming a fitter rider. Even if it’s just a 45’ ride a few times a week, the Neo is an amazing tool for the job. It’s silent, it’s accurate and paired with either Zwift or the Tacx App it’s even a lot of fun. Amazing to see what technology can do these days.
This review was in Issue 72 of IMB.
For more information visit GarminBy Jarno Hoogland
Jarno's life has revolved around two wheels ever since he swung a leg over his first BMX at age 4. After a BMX and DH racing career, he moved on to work for bike shops, distributors and brands before ending up in the editors seat at IMB. Based in the ultimate testing ground in the Swiss mountains, he runs his guiding operation and makes sure every IMB issue is filled with top notch content.
