Apple Floated as Potential Buyer of Peloton

[xraydoc]

Trust me, you really don’t get the same experience with any cheap bike and tablet. Not even close.

So true. I love my Peloton Bike.

Two years ago I bought a generic treadmill and was running to Peloton classes through my iPhone & Apple Watch (counted pace and HR and fed them to the Peloton iPhone app). It was ok, but not very satisfying on such a little screen. And it couldn't account for elevation in the recorded workout metrics. Apple Fitness+ has the same limitations, though at least one can use a bigger TV by way of an AppleTV.

A few months ago we traded up for a Peloton Tread. Love the thing more than the Bike even!

And the $39/month for the Peloton class subscription is still way cheaper than a family gym membership.

 

[Razorpit]

All of these comments are clearly from people who have never actually used a Peloton.

Well don't stop there, enlighten us then. What did they all get right? What did they all get wrong?

 

[Dozer_Zaibatsu]

In Europe people are more likely to buy sneakers and go running in the forest, or biking as it were, more nature oriented - hard to imagine anyone paying huge sums for a home training equipment / program like that. Yes, there's always some who will pay for this but I think a way lower number than in the USA. I am from Europe that's not how we think there, and I lived in the USA, 1500 US is nothing for the typical overstressed silicon valley wage slave... or (any big city) wage slave. The sentiment in Europe would be use that cash and go into nature... and in Asia the sentiment would be "WTF are you thinking I am getting a massage for $5 now... and having my training session with a triple champ muay thai boxer later for $10"

Europe, where even the lowest-population density city is more dense than NYC, the densest populated city in the US. (Or Canada.) More likely to go into nature than America, where it's sprawl-to-sprawl of suburbs from sea to sea, filled with suburban joggers? ?

Really good lesson for how America works is that Silicon Valley is Silicon Valley and not generic "America." Anymore than Albania or Monte Carlo represent "Europe."

Often what sounds like a good idea in Silicon Valley won't necessarily work in the rest of America.

 

[PhilJustRidingAlong]

Apple is very big on when it comes to fitness. If Apple doesn’t make the purchase some other company will.

Probably Google, after all they bought Fitbit

 

[diggy33]

I was gung ho several months ago about getting a Peloton, and started looking into them. They didnt offer a recumbent bicycle, so for me, it was a no go. Ended up getting a Schwinn 270 on sale at Amazon; paired with an old iPad Air and some cool exercise videos, it does everything I need it to do. And I'm not paying a subscription.

 

[toph2toast]

In my opinion, Apple Fitness + alone is much better.

This is a joke... right?!?!

 

[ericinboston]

I always thought it had a limited consumer base. Proving to be true.

My wife bought the Peleton Treadmill a few years ago. It cost about $2500 if I recall (a solid treadmill costs $1000), but she really wanted it. I tried it for about 6 months and have to say that pricing aside, there were a lot of good live classes I could attend as well as pre-recorded. I could also use bluetooth headphones if I wanted. She still really likes it. Yes, it's expensive, but hmmmmm...I believe Apple isn't so cheap, either, on a lot of its products (gotta love that $19 wipe cloth!!).

As far as Apple buying Peleton...I can possibly see for obtaining audiences that have the money to spend on said products as well as integration into all the "health" stuff Apple keeps promoting. Frankly, I'd rather see Apple make the Watch so much better (especially health features) and increase the battery life to a point where, like the ipods and iPhones and iPads, everyone wants one and is willing to fork over the cash.

 

[aapl owner]

I never understood Pelotons appeal or it’s business case. Always seemed like a fad and it was a fad.

 

[farmboy]

I bought a brand new carbon fiber road bike (Cannondale Synapse 105) and Kreitler rollers for less than the cost of a Peloton bike. (You just need to buy a model that's at least a year old but still brand new, which isn't especially difficult.) Anyway given this, imho buying a Peloton makes zero sense. Especially since their products kill children. It would be a horrible decision for Apple to buy this company.

Nice bike, and you're right about the price. But...

"Especially since their products kill children". Bike riders have killed and been killed thousands of times more frequently than one child by a Peloton.

 

[xraydoc]

Well don't stop there, enlighten us then. What did they all get right? What did they all get wrong?

The Peloton hardware is well made and have big, vivid displays. No, not cheap, but neither are MacBooks. There's been a few problems over the last few years, but Peloton seems to make it right (as has Apple).

The library of prerecorded classes is huge. Everything from beginner to intermediate to advanced. Lots of different durations, styles (HIIT, etc), music genres, and on. My wife likes doing the live classes, too. In addition to cycling and indoor treadmill workouts, they offer yoga, core strength, traditional strength training, floor cardio, outdoor runs and walks (and combined run/walk), stretching, bootcamp and mediation sessions. There's also multi-week programs like 'couch to 5K' and such.

The instructors are very good. Not too cheesy like some on Apple Fitness+.

I know it's overused, but they are the "Apple of fitness equipment & classes" -- they just work, they all integrate together and they run on nice hardware. Yes, you pay more for the ecosystem just like you do with Apple, but it's a well designed system.

No, not everyone wants a Mac or an iPhone. Some are fine with a generic PC or cheap Android phone. Same as with Peloton gear. But as Apple users, we should understand better than most the pleasure of a well-integrated ecosystem.

 

[topmounter]

Anyone "floating Apple as a buyer" is a Peloton stockholder attempting to float the Peloton stock price and minimize their losses.

 

[sdf]

It's not exactly impossible, but I don't know what Apple's motive would be. If they want to build an exercise bike they would. If they want someone else to build one they can connect to, they'd make that deal.

 

[Buck987]

I bought a brand new carbon fiber road bike (Cannondale Synapse 105) and Kreitler rollers for less than the cost of a Peloton bike. (You just need to buy a model that's at least a year old but still brand new, which isn't especially difficult.) Anyway given this, imho buying a Peloton makes zero sense. Especially since their products kill children. It would be a horrible decision for Apple to buy this company.

You want everyone to run out and buy road bikes & rollers. Lets see how many new indoor roller riders get hurt or killed. Its obvious your an experienced rider but to suggest rollers for people looking for an internal fitness option is just wrong.

Maybe a trainer as someone else mentions.

I‘m an avid cyclist and have a trainer for indoor use. However I know many people with the peloton bike that rave about it. The key is that Peloton just works and they are well made. I refer anyone to DC Rainmakers review of the peloton.

My 1200$ trainer does the job but It’s not without its issues. ANd most cyclist with trainers do pay for some subscription services.

And nothing cracks me up like saying, I can get a Schwinn bike and ipad and do the same. These people have never even seen let alone used a Peloton.

 

[rictus007]

Instead of Peloton, I ride my bicycle outside in the fresh air. Much cheaper, and I get good-ole vitamin D!!!!!

Plus a decent real bike is still more affordable than the ones from Peloton …even if you buy an indoor bike stand for the rainy days

 

[icwhatudidthere]

Lol at anyone advocating buying a regular bike and indoor stand. You might as well also tell people to build their own PC instead of buying a Mac. They're different products for different people.

 

[toph2toast]

As both an Apple and peloton consumer/fan here's my 2 cents.

First - For people calling them overpriced, remember for years you likely paid an extra $100 to double your storage on your phone while Apple laughed all the way to the bank...

Second - why do people by them when there are (cheaper options, you can ride outside, just buy a bike and use an iPad, __ other option). Yes there are cheaper options, but like the Apple ecosystem, it's all about integration. You can use the camera to "ride" with friends that also have a peloton, compete with them on the leaderboard, send "high fives", etc. You can also go back to previous rides and beat your record if that's your cup of tea. They have badges for different challenges, various artist rides, etc.

For people who say just ride outside, not everyone has that option, it may not be convenient, and sometimes I just want to ride for 5-10 minutes after a strength workout. I live in a very hilly development, so its almost impossible to do a "flat road" bike ride without driving 25 minutes round trip to the closest trail. In that amount of time I can do a pretty decent workout with my peloton.

I'm not going to justify the terrible business decisions they made, unlike an iPhone, there isn't enough to change on a spin bike for people to get a new one every few years. Plus if their bike did break after a few years, their customer base would get pissed and leave. They actually build a quality product, but once people have one, they will likely keep it for a while. Until mine doesn't work any more, I see no reason to buy a new one.

I also think the monthly membership is a bit much for those with their equipment, but to their credit, they've added a boat load of content over the past few years. Yoga, Running (outside and on a treadmill), strength, cardio, bootcamps, etc. At least you can have a bunch of people on 1 membership, so my wife, myself and my buddy who doesn't have a peloton all use it.

It's not for everyone but if it's helping many of their users in their fitness journey, all the other crap doesn't matter.

 

[Aeolius]

A. Apple buys Peloton. The hardware gets shuffled off to the AR/VR department (360 treadmill for use in VR perhaps) while the instructors become fitness instructors for VR workout routines (ever seen the Supernatural fitness app?).
B. Apple buys Peloton. Debuts new autonomous bicycle without handlebars or pedals.

 

[ApfelKuchen]

This is just another wishful thinking scheme - analysts that follow Peloton looking for a deep pockets rescuer.

From Apple's standpoint? They nearly always acquire software businesses that offer technology that gives Apple a leg up in an area of relative weakness or new/emerging technologies. Even Beats, despite its hardware component, was mostly a technology/infrastructure buy, for the streaming music service that became Apple Music. What they learned from Apple Music (and Jimmy and Dre) lead to TV+. Altogether, there's no chance Peloton could ever do that for Apple.

Of course, Apple knew they could leverage that streaming service into a business far larger than Beats - every Apple customer is a viable prospect for streaming media, as Apple's Services revenue segment so handsomely displays. However, while the market for health is equally huge, the opportunity for similar growth/build-out in high-end exercise equipment is likely to be limited. Apple already has already built Fitness+ from the ground up. Peloton can't contribute much more to Fitness+ than its stable of trainer/personalities. Those can be had by simply offering those individuals a better contract - no need to buy a hardware manufacturing-and-sales business to get them.

And as to Apple selling fitness equipment in their retail stores? It's bulky stuff to display at front-of-house and to inventory in the back room. That's just not compatible with the design of the retail stores. Such products can actually reduce sales-per-square-foot by a significant amount. If they had any interest in that, they could already be selling goods from either Peloton or other manufacturers. No, when it comes to fitness Apple's best to stick to physically small stuff like Beddit.

 

[toph2toast]

What gave it away? Was it because they are still alive?

wonder how many people have wrecked their cars because they were on their iPhone...

 

[yabeweb]

As I’m replying to others, it’s usually the staff or IP they go after & prob weigh up acquisition cost vs how easy it is to do themself re; Apple TV.

True, but that still makes your statement wrong.

They always buy stuff they could do themselves, but preference to go the “cheapest” way, and I do not blame them.

 

[Pezimak]

and apple is the king of being expensive to buy and getting customers to do it.

You slap apple bike on the peloton and a bunch of people will be buying it cause it says apple and then paying the charge monthly to keep it.

It compliments their content strategy and building out an ecosystem.

I think you give far too much credit to Apple brand. An exercise bike is hardly as popular as a smart phone. And Peloton have made their products overpriced all on their own with no help from Apple.

 

[anshuvorty]

I’m surprised Peloton didn’t fail sooner. Expensive bikes, expensive subscription. You get the same thing with a phone/tablet and any cheap bike/treadmill paired with a subscription to some fitness program, many of which are cheaper than peloton or even free.

Apple saw the core component of this market and just copied it, brilliantly done.

 

[jmgregory1]

Plus a decent real bike is still more affordable than the ones from Peloton …even if you buy an indoor bike stand for the rainy days

Have you priced bicycles lately? Not talking about some basic single speed you ride for fun, but a bike that is made to be ridden hard and fast? Because a Peloton isn’t a bike made for just slow peddling - sure, you could use it for that, but it’s a spin bike made for high intensity workouts. Yes, there are less expensive versions of the Peloton Bike out there, but Peloton’s competition isn’t really knock-off versions of their bikes, but rather gym memberships. I know for my wife and I, the Peloton bike and monthly subscription (which you only pay per household) is half what it would cost to get a membership to spin at our local gym, which my wife had been doing prior to the pandemic. So all in it’s a better deal and we can ride whenever we want and not have to drive to the gym.

 

[Freeangel1]

great. another area they are gonna wander off and fail at. We all see how the APPLE car has been doing.
How Buggy APPLE macOS has become.
All the M1 chip people that quit and left the company.

Beats Headphones not doing too hot either.

So let them get into exercise equipment now

And See how bad the Mac and macOS get because they have their hands in too many things and the core things, macOS and Macs begin to suffer.

More business for Intel and Microsoft Windows.

 

[metapunk2077fail]

Buy an actual bike.

$200-300.

Done.

And you get fresh air.

And you can learn stunts.

You might meet people too. Fall in love. Have fun. Things like that.

No dating apps necessary.