Topiom Wooden Rowing Machine Review and Comparison
Wooden indoor rowing machines offer a unique workout experience in the comfort of your own home. Personally, I love them. The feel of the water resistance is the most realistic rowing sensation in my opinion, and the wooden frame always adds to the feeling of being in an actual rowing boat. The Topiom Wooden Rowing Machine offers a stunning, real wooden frame that comes in either walnut or ash. The great thing about these wooden frames is that they are so strong, that the Topiom Wooden Rower can withstand a maximum weight capacity of up to 397 lbs! Another popular wooden rowing machine, the Mr. Captain wooden water rower can only accommodate up to 320 lbs, so the Topiom has a step up on its competition. Like most wooden water rowers, the Topiom’s frame is not foldable, so vertical storage is one of your only options. Luckily, the Topiom wooden rower does store easily in a vertical stance, although if you think you might benefit more from a foldable frame, check out the Koreyosh foldable wooden water rower!
One thing about wooden water rowers to take note of: they are generally amongst the largest rowing machines on the UK market. The Topiom wooden rower is no different, with dimensions of 83” L x 20” H x 22” W, this particular model is nearly seven feet in length. If space is an issue at your home, there are other options if you aren’t too picky about the wooden frame. For example, the unique design of the Capital Sports Flow M Water Rower is only 61” long, saving you about two feet of space. At roughly 66 lbs out of the box, the Topiom isn’t outrageously heavy, and can easily be moved around on the convenient transport wheels.
When it comes down to it, indoor water rowers in the United Kingdom are all about the resistance system. The Topiom water tank is made from a high quality Polycarbonate Aviation plastic, that increases the impact resistance while reducing wear and corrosion. The blades inside of the tank are standard, and provide an excellent resistance feeling when rowing gets more intense during workouts. As with most water rowers, the Topiom is a variable resistance system, which means you cannot alter the resistance level during a workout. To do this, you must either add or remove water from the tank, which I always find to be a burden. Even with the bonus USB charged electric water pump to make things a bit easier, this is one area where I believe magnetic resistance rowers have the advantage.
While the LCD monitor itself is nothing special, tech fans like myself will be happy to hear that you can connect to it via Bluetooth to integrate your connected devices. Download the FitShow or Kinomap apps for free and enjoy tracking your workout progress with your smartphone or tablet. The LCD display provides a quick look at keeping track of your distance, calories burned, total strokes, time, and strokes per minute. Note that the Bluetooth connection for the Topiom rower is for the display only and you cannot integrate other devices for entertainment during your workout.
Assembly is a breeze for the Topiom wooden water rower, as you really only need to attach the water tank to the frame. The rower conveniently comes shipped in two different packages so make sure you receive both before you start! Maintenance for wooden water rowers is simple: just throw in a cleaning tablet into the tank and change the water regularly. If you have pets I would recommend covering up the wooden frame as it has been known to be used as a scratching post for cats and dogs!
Shipping is free and fast, whether you order it directly from the Topiom website or through its Amazon store. I always prefer Amazon as it is easy to track and I can give them specific instructions as to how I want my package to be delivered! As for the Topiom wooden water rower’s price, I wouldn’t say it is overpriced, but considering it sells in British pounds on the UK Amazon site, it will definitely cost you more than other wooden rowers. At £749.99, I would say the Topiom is reasonably priced considering some of the features you get with it. Finally, I use the warranty as an indication of how much a company believes in its products. Topiom offers a solid warranty with 5-years for the wooden frame and 3-years for the components.
Topiom Wooden Rowing Machine Pros
- Beautiful real wooden frame
- Excellent water resistance system
- LCD display can be integrated with smartphone apps via Bluetooth
- A large maximum user weight capacity
- Solid warranty and Easy assembly
- Not overpriced and free shipping
- Includes bonus USB electric water pump
Topiom Wooden Rowing Machine Cons
- Bluetooth connection is only for the fitness apps, not entertainment
- Has a large footprint that is not space-saving
- No manual adjustment for resistance levels
- No foldable frame
- LCD display is fairly basic
My Final Verdict
As much as I love wooden rowing machines, the Topiom rower didn’t stand out to me in any way over its competition. Sure it has a larger weight capacity, but other than that there was not anything that set it apart in my opinion. That’s not to take anything away from the beautifully designed real wood frame and excellent rowing experience. The Bluetooth integration is a nice touch and the easy assembly and long-term warranty gives you confidence in a quality product. But for essentially the same product, I recommend taking the discount and looking at the Sportstech WRX700 wooden rower or any of its variations like the Mr. Rudolf or Capital Sports Flow M water rower.
Sayed Hamed Hosseiny
Hi, my name is Sayed Hamed Hosseiny. I am a professional health and fitness trainer with nearly 20 years of experience using ellipticals, rowing machines, and spin bikes. I also have my own EU-based Rock Fitness Pro fitness brand where I design, import and sell exercise equipment such as rowing machines and spin bikes. I and writers on my team also often receive fitness equipment to review and evaluate their functionalities and performance from tens of different exercise machines manufacturers. Fitness equipment tips, guides, reviews, and comparisons on this website are my opinion (and opinions of my fitness expert colleagues) based on tens of criteria. I never accept payment to write reviews of products or say positive things about fitness equipment products. If brands are interested to have me review their rowers, ellipticals, or spin bikes, they can get in touch with me via email provided on the contact page and send a sample of their product.
