JLL IC300 Pro Indoor Cycling Bike Review
JLL IC300 Pro Overview
The JLL IC300 Pro, I had heard a lot about this range of spin bikes before I got the opportunity to review one of them. The IC300 Pro seems to be one of the most popular. They have six bikes in this range, IC100 PRO, IC200 PRO, IC300, IC300 PRO, IC400 Elite, and IC400 PRO. As you work up the range from the IC100 Pro to IC400 PRO, they improve slightly in performance with heavier Flywheels, higher user maximum weights, and more functions on the monitor. They also increase in price as they go up the range. The IC300 PRO sits in the middle of the range of the bikes they have available and seems to be one of the most popular. This bike comes in at around $600 in the world of indoor cycles is low to mid-range. Another thing to mention depending on where you live can come with free delivery. The bike is well packaged and in a much smaller box than you might think. The assembly is straightforward and can be completed within about an hour with all the tools provided. It comes with a generous 12-month warranty and 30 days money-back guarantee if you are not happy. A bike around this price has a lot of competition. Can the IC300 PRO keep up?
The monitor is very basic and runs on two AAA Batteries. It isn’t backlit, so I’d recommend spinning in a well-lit room. It will track workout duration, RPM, Calories, Speed, Distance, and heart rate. The data fields it provides are enough for a decent workout. It doesn’t have any connectivity to Bluetooth or Ant+, but I wouldn’t expect that at this price, so you can’t add your heart rate monitor. Not having these functions will make it challenging to be on applications such as Zwift or Peloton and have all the interactive features they provide. One thing I do like about this monitor is the fact it has an inbuilt heart rate monitor in the handlebars. Once you make contact with the metal sensors, it will display your heart rate on the screen. The monitor has the fundamentals it needs, and at this price, you would struggle to find a bike with anything more complex than this. It’s ok and nice to have it available, but it’s not going to win any awards.
The transmission and the resistance system are excellent on this indoor cycle. It’s a frictionless system and works on the use of magnets. What happens is the magnets are situated above the Flywheel, and with the resistance dial, you can lower these closer, causing the magnets to slow the Flywheel and make it harder to pedal. This is an excellent feature on this bike as it means it won’t need brake pads. The next thing to mention is the fact it is a belt drive instead of a chain drive. This means this indoor cycling bike will need no oil or lubrication and much less maintenance. This system is extremely quiet, and this bike will be perfect if you live in a flat or have the exercise bike on the second floor of your house. The resistance dial is very smooth to use, and you can pinpoint exactly where you want the resistance to be, and it doubles as an emergency brake. You can engage this by pushing it straight down.
The pedals are basic and just have a standard toe clip-in. They are made of metal, and to me, they look like a higher quality than most pedals you would get in a spin bike in this range. They don’t have an SPD Clip-in, but the pedal thread inside the crank is standard, and you could change them out to be whatever you would prefer in the future. The Q- Factor is the size of the bracket where the crank arms attach. On this bike, it is 180mm. For size reference, an outside road racing bike would be about 150mm, and a mountain bike would be 170mm. This is probably a very similar size to most studio spin bikes. The Flywheel is 20kg, yeah it’s pretty heavy. I usually see many spin bikes around this price, especially on magnetic systems, cut costs and use a very light Flywheel. Here they haven’t, 20kg is a hefty Flywheel and adds to the experience of riding the bike, giving smooth rotations, and promotes efficient cycling.
The bike itself weighs 45kg, it’s not the lightest bike I have come across. Personally, though knowing it has a 20kg flywheel, all is forgiven. It’s not difficult to move at all, providing you use the wheels at the front for transport. It’s 51” in length, 21” in width, and 44” tall. It has a weight capacity of 130kg, and unfortunately, they don’t list the height range. From my professional opinion and looking at very similar bikes, you are looking about 5ft to about 6ft 5”. It’s a steel frame with aluminum components, and it seems well designed and built. The saddle is good, like most spinning bikes will take a few rides to get used to. It’s easy to adjust and can be moved vertically and horizontally. The handlebars are pretty basic, and unfortunately, I feel they let the bike down. Although they have a heart rate monitor, they are not a great design limited on positions. Most bikes like this would have a tablet holder, and some would even come with aero positioning. The handlebars only can move vertically, which can make getting the correct position difficult. The bike comes with a bottle holder and bottle, which is a nice touch from JLL. That aside, it is tremendous fun, and when being used, I feel confident in putting down power in a heavy climb or having a quick sprint here and there to spike that heart rate up.
JLL IC300 Pro Indoor Bike Features:
- Q-Factor: 180mm
- Pedals: Metal Toe Cage
- Flywheel: 20kg
- Resistance: Magnetic
- Transmission: Belt
- Weight capacity: 300 Pounds
- Height capacity: 5ft – 6ft 5″ Estimated
- Bike weight: 130kg
- Bike dimension: 21″W x 44″H x 51″L
- Monitor: Non-Backlit
- Connectivity: None
- Applications: None
- RPM tracking: Yes
- Speed tracking: Yes
- Watt tracking: None
- Resistance tracking: None
JLL IC300 Pro Indoor Cycling Bike Pros:
- Price
- Easy Assembly
- Monitor with heart rate
- 20kg Flywheel
- Frictionless transmission system
- Belt Drive
- Generous Warranty
JLL IC300 Pro Indoor Cycling Bike Cons:
- Handlebars Design and Adjustability
- No Tablet Holder
- No Backlight on the monitor
- No SPD pedals
- Seat is not really comfortable
The Final Verdict
I had heard a lot about the JLL IC range of bikes, and they’re a good product. The 20kg Flywheel is incredible. It has an excellent transmission and resistance system. Overall I do rate it highly, but in my opinion, they are missing a few tricks. A tablet holder would have made it much more fun and open up to use online classes or non-connective apps without having to cast it to a TV or put the tablet on a table close and squint your eyes. Being able to adjust the handlebars back and forward would help with positioning. Overall it’s a great bike and will work well for those fun spin sessions at home, but in my opinion, other bikes on the market are cheaper and could do the job better, such as the Maxkare Black or the Kouz Live. Is it worth the money? Yeah, you’re going to have a lot of fun with this bike, but I’d spend an extra $50 and go for the IC400 Pro, which has a tablet holder and the handlebars adjust back for forth.
Robbie Ferri from “Riding with Robbie” has been cycling for almost ten years. In that time, he has broken World Records, Bikepacked all over the World, and also raced ultra distance at a top-level. Robbie picked up a bike and started cycling when he was about 25 years old and said it was the best thing he ever did. The experiences and the fun he’s had have given him a huge passion for helping inspire others to ride further, farther, and get fitter.
