Mobvoi Home Walking Treadmill: One-minute review
Treadmills are often relatively inexpensive, can be easily stored behind the sofa or under the bed when not in use, and are an excellent “comfortable cardio” solution whether you want to combine it with a standing desk or get your steps in while watching TV. The Mobvoi Home Walking Treadmill is a no-frills, super-cheap solution and possibly the best under-desk treadmill for budget users we’ve tested to date.
The Mobvoi Home Walking Treadmill normally costs $229 / £210 / AU$273, but is often on sale, even for up to half the price, from Mobvoi itself and from retailers like Amazon. For a few dollars more you can get the Home Walking Treadmill Plus, which offers a few more inches of running surface but no extra features. The Mobvoi Home Treadmill SE is another version of this treadmill with a flip-up bar that puts it in “running mode” (i.e. it runs faster), and so would be a more versatile machine if you like to jog as well as walk – this model is actually a little cheaper in the US at $220, but more expensive in the UK and Australia at £289.99 / around AU$335. On the basic home treadmill, however, you’re limited to walking speed only.
It’s easy to set up – you just need to screw on a couple of stabilising feet – and it took me around 10 minutes to unbox and assemble the treadmill. With a maximum user weight of 120kg, it’s sturdy despite its slim size and I was impressed with the build quality during our testing. It doesn’t feel cheap; in fact, with its black glass display, it shares a design ethos with some of the best smart scales I tried it, and its 5 inch/13 cm depth means it can easily be tucked under a bed or into a closet when not in use.
The downside to the Mobvoi Home Walking Treadmill’s compact form factor is that it’s quite narrow, so it takes a little getting used to at first. I found that my foot would occasionally get caught on the side until I’d spent some time on the treadmill. The larger Plus version is two inches wider and one inch longer, so if you have the space, I recommend getting that model.
It offers very few features: it can connect to a WearOS smartwatch to display the same stats you can already see on the treadmill screen, which I found pretty pointless. Even more annoying, there’s no way to program a workout based on time and distance. Ironically, you have to do all the legwork yourself.
However, since it’s on sale so often, I’d definitely recommend it to people looking for a simple plug-in-and-go device to get their steps in on the cheap. It’s sleek, the remote is easy and intuitive to use, and it’s perfect for rolling out, hitting play, and just going, whether you’re using it with a standing desk or getting your steps in while watching TV. Devices like this make fitness accessible, so you shouldn’t necessarily let the lack of programmable features put you off buying the Mobvoi.
Mobvoi Home Walking Treadmill: Specifications
| component | Mobvoi Home Treadmill |
| Mass | 48.5 x 20.5 x 5 inches / 123 x 52 x 13 cm |
| Weight capacity: | 265 pounds / 120 kg |
| Engine power: | 2.25 HP |
| Maximum speed: | 3.7 miles per hour / 6 km/h |
| Compatibility: | Wear OS, via the Mobvoi treadmill app |
Mobvoi Home Walking Treadmill: Scorecard
| category | comment | Score |
| Value | Excellent for the price, even though it is a feature light. | 5/5 |
| design | Solid and unobtrusive. Intuitive and slim. | 4/5 |
| Features | Missing. | 3/5 |
| Performance | Really good at what it does. | 4/5 |
Check out our video review of the Mobvoi Home Treadmill below:
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Mobvoi Home Treadmill: Should I Buy It?
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Don’t buy it if…
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This is how I tested
I spent hours walking on the Mobvoi Home Walking Treadmill at TechRadar’s dedicated test center, unboxing, installing and programming it. I tested the top speed, checked the programming features, used the remote, walked while watching TV, rolled it around and stored it both flat and upright.
First reviewed: July 2024
