The ProForm 9.0 Competitor Treadmill – Finally, a Quality Budget Machine

The ProForm 9.0 Competitor treadmill takes style and substance in a new direction. What’s amazing about ICON Fitness is that they have decided in the past few years to improve the component quality of their low-end machines, but then they didn’t stop there; they’ve added features that you won’t see on other budget machines.

The Machine

The ProForm 9.0 Competitor treadmill has a Grafixx™ Display console to view your preferred workout information such as calories, speed, pace, distance, calories, and elapsed time. It shows an animated figure walking, jogging or running with you in your workout, and comes with an iFIT® Fitness Journal, as well as the Competitor Training Center. The full list of the specs includes:

• 2.5 CHP Commercial motor
• 0-12 mph QuickSpeed™ Control
• 0-10% Quick Incline
• 20" x 60" Quiet tread belt
• 20 Personal Trainer Workouts; 4 Create & Save
• ProTech 5™ Adjustable Cushioning
• Dual-Grip EKG Heart Rate Monitor
• AutoBreeze Fan
• 300 lbs. max. user weight
• SpaceSaver Folding design
• Lifetime frame & motor warranty; 4 years rollers; 2 years parts; 1year belt & labor

The Buzz

UPDATE:  The ProForm 9.0 Competitor has been discontinued.  Check out the new ProForm lineup here to find a comparable machine.

The ProForm 9.0 Competitor offers the softest deck of all of ICON’s budget treadmills with its ProTech 5™ Adjustable Cushioning. Compared to the pounding you’ll feel on your joints when running outdoors on hard pavement, the deck cushioning here reduces the impact up to 33%.

Experts also point out that the ProForm 9.0 Competitor is powered by a beefy 2.5 CHP commercial motor, covered by a lifetime warranty, which is viable for runners as well as multiple user households. And lastly -- just to prove it is a runner’s machine -- it has a 60" belt, something normally found only on treadmills in the plus-$1000 range.

Users are likely to point out in treadmill reviews that the most interesting feature in ProForm’s 9.0 Competitor model is the Competition Training Center. On the interactive display, you can race head-to-head against a variety of virtual competitors. Designers teamed with pro runners to write these computer programs which keep you guessing as the animated racers try to draft you, pace you up hills, sprint past you to the finish, and more, in simulated race situations.

What We Say

We continue to be impressed with the effort ProForm is putting into their new lineup of budget machines. We were leery at first of this model’s unusual mounted-above-the-frame console since it looks like a computer laptop screen (which reminded us of work!).

The console is a little cheesier and cheap-looking than we would like, but if you can get past that, the ProForm 9.0 Competitor treadmill is good machine, affordably priced at $790 (MSRP $1299).