NordicTrack AirGlide 14i Elliptical

Overview: The AirGlide 14i is the newest elliptical from NordicTrack, joining the Commercial 9.9 and Commercial 14.9 in the Front Drive Series. It’s currently the only elliptical on the market offering decline training in addition to incline capability. It also has a tilting 14″ touch screen, another differentiator making it a great choice for the home gym

Let’s look at some of the best features…

Large Tilting Touch Screen

As the name implies, the AirGlide 14i has a large 14″ Smart HD touch screen display. The Commercial 14.9 also has a 14″ touch screen, but the one on the AirGlide tilts as opposed to being fixed. This makes it easier to get the ideal viewing angle whether you are on the machine or off.

The touch screen gives you more of the health club experience and you can access all of the great features of iFit (see below) unfold right in front of you.

iFit Workout Capability

One of the most appealing features of all NordicTrack ellipticals (and treadmills, bikes & rowers for that matter) is iFit, an immersive interactive program giving you access to an endless library of trainer led workouts. There are both live and on-demand options, and you can choose to work out in studio or outdoor locations around the world with Google maps.

The cool part is the resistance and incline levels are automatically adjusted for you to match the workout you select, so you don’t have to worry about making those adjustments manually. There is also workout tracking, rewards, challenges, milestones and more. iFit is usually comes for free for a month so you can try it out before committing.

Incline & Decline Capability

You’ve probably come across incline capability if you’ve been using ellipticals for some time. You typically get a few degrees on the less expensive models up to about 15 or 20% on the better ones. But decline capability is very rare. The NordicTrack AirGlide 14i declines down to -5%, giving you additional muscle targeting you won’t find on other ellipticals on the market.

You also get 15% incline capability, so between the two there’s a nice elevation swing to make your training more effective. Couple that with all of the resistance levels and you’ve really got options.

Comfort Features

Beyond the incline, decline, resistance levels and unlimited workouts, NordicTrack includes many features to make your workouts more comfortable. This includes smooth SMR silent resistance, soft grips, large foot pedals, a workout fan and a number of other nice extras. These features help keep you on the elliptical longer, which maximizes your results.

NordicTrack AutoGlide 14i Test Drive

We were anxious to try out the new AutoGlide 14i as it is the first new elliptical that NordicTrack has released in quite some time. The company seems to be consolidating the elliptical lineup, removing the Rear Drive Series a short time ago, as well as several models within the FreeStride Trainer and Front Series lineups.

Although the AirGlide 14i is similar to the Commercial 14.9 spec wise, it has a more modern, streamlined look to it. We like the fact that it has a tilting console now, much like NordicTrack’s newer treadmills. It’s a lot better than the fixed consoles on other models, and we suspect that all NordicTrack ellipticals will have this tilting touch screen at some point.

If you’re not familiar with iFit (found on all NordicTrack and ProForm ellipticals, as well as Matrix ellipticals currently), it’s a subscription program that tracks your stats and gives you a huge choice of workouts with different trainers. When you first turn on the AirGlide 14i, you can enter all of your information and start choosing a workout that suits your needs. (It works the same way on every machine, so you can learn more about iFit ellipticals here.)

We’ve tested out dozens of ellipticals with varying degrees of incline, but decline training? That’s definitely a first. The AirGlide 14i declines 5% with the touch of a button, and at first you kinda feel like you’re going to fall forward. But once you shore yourself a bit you get used to it and it adds another dimension to the workout. NordicTrack is one of the only companies that has decline treadmills as well, and it’s a similar concept. It’s downhill training which is very unique.

The AirGlide 14i inclines up to 15%, which is less that the 20% offered on the Commercial 14.9 and base Commercial 9.9, but still plenty of elevation for you.

The transitions from one level to the next are relatively quiet and seamless, as are the jumps up to higher resistance levels. Everything is very easy to adjust either on the console or on the 14″ touch screen. The adjustable stride is a bit narrower than the other Front Drive models, 17.8″ to 18.5″ as opposed to 17.5″ to 18.7″. If you think that’s still too short, i.e. you are on the taller side, then look at the FreeStride Trainer series.

All in all we like the new AirGlide 14i. It’s relatively quiet, smooth and comfortable, and between the incline, decline, resistance levels and iFit workouts there’s enough to vary your workouts as much as you’d like to.

Conclusion

If you’re looking for an affordable home elliptical with lots of features and capabilities, you’d be hard pressed to find a better option than the new NordicTrack AirGlide 14i.

This new front drive model gives you a large touch screen, both incline and decline capability, lots of resistance levels, comfort features and an ever growing library of workouts via iFit.

If you added up all of these features they could justify a $2500 price tag easily, but this one is well under $2000 when on sale. Take a look at the AirGlide to see if it works for you. Again, if you are taller and need a more open stride check out the FreeStride Trainer Series. Those are more open, although they are a bit more expensive as well.