Sole (http://www.soletreadmills.com) is a 20 year old Canadian brand that manufactures and sells treadmills, ellipticals and exercise bikes, all residential products. They sell their products exclusively online.
Sole is well known in Canada and USA, but they also have dealers in Dubai, India, Thailand and China.
Reviews:
Sole treadmills are reliable in your home gym, but they are not strong enough for commercial use.
There are Hotels chains such as Hilton, Omni Hotels and Monaco that have decided to place few of the Sole products in their guest rooms as a fitness service. This is particularly enjoyable and proves that Sole is a trusted brand. Nevertheless, these products are still recommended for light commercial use only.
None of the models we've tested has a patented technology incorporated, or exclusive preset workouts included. Some models have the option to connect an iPod. Some can be folded. But these are not features you can't find on other important brands.
The good news is they are built with quality parts. None of the machines we tested have had any technical malfunctions.
We like that you can find the full documentation for Technical Maintenance online. This helped us a lot when we needed assistance. And we also like that you can request to buy parts online, using a basic form.
Motor:
Sole pays attention to the motor quality. All treadmills have continuous duty motors (from the entry level treadmill, to the top products). They are strong, silent and come with a lifetime warranty.
User Profiles:
All treadmills have 2 user profiles included in their console. You can save your workout results and compare them in time.
Warranty:
Sole offers a convenient warranty for parts and electronics (minimum 3 years). They also have a minimum 1 year warranty for labor. This is not the best you can find for residential products, but it is a strong offer nevertheless.
Speed and incline controls on handlebars :
These features help the user change the speed and incline value during workout easier. It is a small detail, but we have found it particularly useful.
Workouts Diversity:
From all the residential treadmill brands we have tested to date, Sole has the less diversified preset workouts selection of all. This has always been a weak point for them. Runners need diverse preset workouts to use the treadmill correctly.
They sell online only
You can't test the product before you buy it and that's an inconvenient. You can't even see it live. It's an uncomfortable choice to have to buy something expensive blindly.
A treadmill from Sole can cost from $1,000 to $2,500. In this price range they have strong competitors, such as Smooth, Yowza and LiveStrong. Why should you buy their products and not choose another brand? There is no special reason. You can go either way.
