"Completely ridiculous."
  • Peloton is introducing a $95 “used equipment activation fee” for bikes purchased from outside its official channels in the US and Canada, aiming to boost revenue and maintain onboarding quality for new subscribers.
  • The fee has sparked criticism as it reduces the cost savings typically associated with buying secondhand equipment and diverges from practices in other industries, potentially discouraging used market purchases.
  • Peloton’s hardware sales continue to decline, but subscription revenue has seen slight growth; the company still faces financial struggles despite cost-cutting measures and layoffs.
    • Batman@lemmy.worldEnglish
      79·
      3 months ago

      For everyone with a peloton, you can flash the bike with an aftermarket software.

    • Wogi@lemmy.worldEnglish
      29·
      3 months ago

      They already charge a ridiculous monthly fee just to use the bike.

      And sure, it’s a nicer exercise bike, but you can get a similar experience with a much cheaper bike and a tablet.

      • elliot_crane@lemmy.worldEnglish
        11·
        3 months ago

        Yep. I’ve been doing this for a while now with a cheap old no-name bike and an ipad. Poor man’s peloton ftw.

        • WalnutLum@lemmy.mlEnglish
          2·
          3 months ago

          How do you do this with a tablet? Can you buy like a wheel sensor or something?

          • elliot_crane@lemmy.worldEnglish
            6·
            3 months ago

            I don’t have anything fancy going on with the tablet. Like it’s not tracking the bike or my workout or anything like that. I just use my watch for fitness tracking and put up either exercise videos or a stream or something to watch on the tablet.

        • tabular@lemmy.worldEnglish
          3·
          3 months ago

          It’s unappealing to have software be hostile. Software that does what I want only if it’s creator doesn’t actively oppose it… that need not be on my computer.

        • VelvetStorm@lemmy.worldEnglish
          1·
          3 months ago

          Those ones are actually kinda hard to pirate. Especially if you had the creative cloud on your pc at some point.

    • BallsandBayonets@lemmings.worldEnglish
      2·
      3 months ago

      Do you see an alternative? Each year more companies move to a subscription model, even when it doesn’t make the slightest bit of sense. In many cases if you have the time to do proper research and/or a lot of technical savvy, you can find alternatives from companies no one recognizes. Most people don’t have the time or know-how, and the companies that like subscription models are spending billions making sure their names are the only ones people think exist.

      • tabular@lemmy.worldEnglish
        3·
        3 months ago

        Update consumer protection laws and actually enforce them. Laws that were written back when tech would come with the schematics.