Does anyone know if the new Technogym Skillbike (https://www.technogym.com/gb/skillbike.html) will be compatible with TR? My gym is getting a load soon and they look great but appear to be closed system or Zwift only. Surely if it can send Bluetooth data to Zwift then TR can pick up the same outputs?!
The website also says you can track with your Garmin so it must be transmitting ant+ to enable that.
Anyone had any success using the Technogym Skillbike with TR. The gym I use has replaced the Wattbikes with Technogym Skillbikes - Iâve pointed out the error of their ways.
What connection devices & method(s) have you tried?
Edit to add from Google search: According to this report:
- âTechnoGym supports Zwift via Bluetooth only. Basically, you canât use it using ANT+ FE-C protocols if you run Zwift on a Windows PC for example. Also, without ANT+ FE-C support or Bluetooth FTMS, you are limited to only using their system for all your training or Zwift on iOS.â
- âTechnoGym seems to be following the same model with the SKILLBIKE. You will be limited to using their own training app or Zwift via Bluetooth only. Using other applications such as TrainerRoad or The Sufferfest isnât going to work.â
Thanks for that.
Was trying to use it with my Android mobile.
BTW their App is rubbish, as far as I can tell, cannot compare to TR.
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Hi @JWP1969,
Iâve been using TR on them for a while now as my gym also switched out the wattbikes for skillbikes. It is possible to connect them on Android BUT they donât send cadence for some reason, not even on Zwift - although that could have been because they werenât set up properly.
The steps are:
- Create an account with mywellness and log in on the bike you want to use (you can use NFC for this as long as your phone is unlocked)
- Then open TR and before you link any other devices (like your HR monitor) you need to search for the skillbike in the TR devices section. They will usually show as âBIKE2334â or something along those lines.
- Select the bike you want to connect to and the screen on the skillbike should say âZwift is trying to connect, accept? YES / NOâ - hit YES and away you go.
HOWEVER, it is quite buggy and sometimes you need a bit of patience to get the skillbike to show in your list of devices on TR. Sometimes starting to pedal until the quick start sessions starts, and then stopping until the sessions ends seems to kick-start the Bluetooth connection.
Also, my gym removed them from the WI-FI connection, and couldnât be bothered to hard wire them which meant I could no longer log-in to mywellness, which meant no connecting the bikes to TR. So I just used TR as a target power and hit that on the bike, linking my HR monitor only to TR. The problem with that is that none of your power data syncs and you have to add the TSS manually afterwards by adding a ride, with the length of time and TSS etc.
I actually quite like the skillbikes, and if theyâre new they should be well calibrated, as opposed to old wattbikes that havenât been serviced for 100 years. There are some issues though:
- The âreal gearsâ are actually quite annoying because the jump up is quite steep, and without ERG mode (which doesnât seem to work) one gear is often too high a cadence for one power target, and the other gear is too low a cadence.
- There is a BIG lag in the time it takes for the bigger gear to kick in - so if youâre doing sprints youâll hit up a gear and then thereâs a 10-15 second lag as the resistance cranks up and you end up hitting your power target by the time the sprint has finished
- No ERG mode (at least it hasnât worked for me)
- No cadence data pushed to external devices
- Pedal stroke mapping is a bit light on if thatâs something you like to use. It only really gives you an indication of which leg is pushing the most, as opposed to wattbikeâs 360degs circular mapping view.
Hope that helps.
J-L
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Many thanks for that. Will give it a go next time iâm there.
Just rode the Technogym bike in Portugal and really liked the feel of the bike. Couldnât figure out how to connect TR (or my Bolt or HR strap). But did do their ftp test. Really liked seeing the left/right power balance. Now I know why my stages left pm is reading so high!! Do any of the trainers do L/R balance readings?
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Some do but usually limited to their own apps like the Drivo. However Tacx neo 2 yesterday updated their firmware and now broadcasts L/R to Garmin Edge devices
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Thanks for the update and I really like your channel!
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Hey, did you find a way to configure the different gears? Iâve tried it for the first time today and gear 5 was 150w and gear 6 250w. I had to play massively with the cadence but thatâs still quite a jump!
Iâve tried setting my ftp now in the wellness app to see if the gear configuration is different.
Also I assume you still didnât manage to find a way to make erg mode work? There was a guy next to me on swift and erg was definitely onâŚ
Hey Jonathan, and welcome to the forum!
Iâve since quit my gym membership and have invested in a direct drive trainer so I donât know if there has been any progress in the last 4 months. That said, I donât think the gear ratio can ever be changed, and ERG is really the only way to overcome the massive gear ratio changes.
In terms of Zwift, it wouldnât surprise me if ERG was working because Technogym list them as an authorised partner. My guess is that TrainerRoad isnât, and therefore is not yet compatible with ERG. Both parties will probably need to do some work to ensure compatibility.
If enough people request it then perhaps that work will get done.
Hope that helps in some way.
JC
Thanks for the prompt answer!
Iâll continue to investigate and report back if I find anything new!
Any plans to have compatibility with these smart trainers - https://www.technogym.com/gb/mycycling.html/?sfcampid=268940&pdg=kwd-309017216051:cmp-959019797:adg-46950000959:crv-411327093727:pos-1t1:dev-m&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI17DPt5qn5wIVQuDtCh0cmwTMEAAYASABEgIdK_D_BwE
Thanks for the merge. Iâd read this thread but thought the turbo may be different to the gym bikes.
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It is possible to be different, but I suspect the setup (and any limitations) are closely linked. I guess we can re-split them, but there arenât many TG users, so I figured it was best to keep it together for now.
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Sounds exhausting but you could build a custom workout in zwift so that you can still do the workout?
Or as @Nate_Pearson has stated in the past just change out the pedals. I am sure gym staff wonât notice your wrench set.
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Maybe possible but I donât use Zwift and it is in my cellar.
Iâll have a play around but itâs not that important. I just spent hours trying to get a Kickr to work that was a blown unit!
Interesting that TR picked up the turbo immediately last night with my Vectors and HRM at the same time. It had power readings but no ERG as stated above.
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Has anyone had success using a Technogym skillbike with TrainerRoad? Have one I can use at a gym. But find it difficult to hit correct power in workouts. Itâs like the gears are spaced too far apart. Also the bike seems to slip when used for longer than 20-30mins.