Wattbike unveils Atom indoor smart bike

Wattbike has unveiled a new indoor smart bike called the Atom that’s very different from the existing Wattbike Pro and Trainer that are seen in many gyms.

The Atom has a power range of 0-2,000 watts and a claimed accuracy level of +/-2% across that range. You can manually control the resistance to simulate gradients of up to 25%. 

The Atom is designed to be used with a tablet or smartphone – a tablet holder, positioned in front of the handlebars, accommodates devices up to a 12.9-inch iPad Pro – and offers 22 gears. You can pre-programme target power to automatically adjust using the Wattbike Hub app, or by syncing with virtual riding platforms like Zwift, TrainerRoad and Sufferfest. 

It is Bluetooth and ANT+ enabled so it can interact wirelessly with third party apps and devices, such as Strava and TrainingPeaks.

Things have been really hotting up in the indoor cycling market over the past few years, especially since the introduction of Zwift.

Here’s how to get started on Zwift. 

Wattbike Hub provides training tools like Climb mode which offers six pre-loaded ascents: France’s Mont Ventoux, Tourmalet and Alpe d’Huez, Mallorca’s Sa Calobra, and the UK’s Winnats Pass and Box Hill. Using Strava GPS and simulations from VeloViewer, the Atom’s resistance changes automatically to match the gradient on your virtual ride. 

You also get Polar View which is an analysis tool designed to improve your pedalling efficiency and power output, and the new Pedalling Effectiveness Score that we told you about here on road.cc a couple of weeks ago. This is designed to help you assess the impact of changes in pedalling technique in real-time.

Find out more about Pedalling Effectiveness Score here, along with Wattbike’s advice on how to pedal perfectly. 

The Atom is powered by mains electricity or, from October, by a Wattbike battery pack with a battery life of 36 hours.

Working with Giant and British industrial designers Curventa, Wattbike says that the Atom was two years in development and went through nine prototypes. It costs £1,499 (including VAT).

A Wattbike Atom has arrived for review here at road.cc although we were all at Eurobike last week so no one has had a chance to ride it yet. We'll let you know how we get along with it in a few weeks.

For more info go to https://wattbike.com