Thank you - The Facebook chat was helpful and responded pretty quickly this morning.
if i were you, i’d consider the 7.4, if that’s still available. i can see very little difference between the two machines, except that the 7.4 is $1,499 (with our discount code) and the 7.8 is $1,899 with the code. the major difference otherwise is a 3.5hp motor versus a 4.0hp motor.’
Aside from the smaller motor, the 7.4 also appears to have a smaller and more basic display. The display on the 7.8 is already marginal tech for a brand new treadmill so I’m not really willing to step down even more. Is it $400 difference in terms of functionality? Maybe not but I suspect I’d be disappointed. Now if I were in the market for something used I’d probably be willing to settle but I’d also be paying under $1k. I’m still wavering between Horizon, Sole, and Nordictrack and it’s not something I NEED right now so I’ll wait it out and see if the 7.8 is back in stock soon.
From what I can tell the differences for the screen are the size and color only which to me is mainly cosmetic between the two models. They both function the same and only display the treadmill metrics. No pairing of a mobile device to can make use of the its screen for displaying of a movie or fitness apps like how a chromecast will play on your TV or Apple TV running zwift.
One thing I noticed is that the 7.8AT it seems that the quick dials are required in order to fine tune your speed/incline not covered for the buttons on the console. So for speeds any paces in between whole numbers and for inclines 0.5 degree along with the numbers not on the console quick buttons. Dan or other 7.8at owner’s of the latest model year please confirm if this is true.
For my 7.4at yeah the screen isn’t as big and is a singular color but it appears to display the same info as the next model up. Plus there is traditional up/ down push buttons to fine tune speed/incline on the console the are next to the start stop buttons So you should be able to not bother with installing the quick dials. I’ve found them to be placed poorly and are too sensitive. It’s really hard to fine tune the speed or incline when doing anymore more than walking. And it’s easy to get the dial in between “clicks” and then pace will change on its own 0.1mph pace in either direction when running as it settles into the correct dial position after a bit of movement on the treadmill frame running. It’s a great idea but extremely poorly executed.
Connecting a tablet via Bluetooth is really only for the speakers and won’t control the treadmill I believe (haven’t tried and only used the speakers once…went back to Bluetooth headphones instead with a tablet in the place on the console for it). Onboard fan is useless and I still use an regular fan pointed at me.
We also have a chat tool on our website that may provide a faster response. If you are in need of more urgent assistance, you can reach our marketing team via a direct message on the Horizon Fitness Facebook page. While we can’t resolve customer support concerns via Facebook, we do try to track down updates on orders and help out in any way we can. We’re all hands on deck right now and truly appreciate everyone’s patience while we work through these unique challenges.
Thanks for your response: yesterday I did reach out via FB, and was directed to the chat function on the website. I started that, waited about 12 minutes for a response, which was to swap me to the tech support chat. I waited on that for another 10 minutes, and then had to step away from my computer.
I will try again today.
One thing I noticed is that the 7.8AT it seems that the quick dials are required in order to fine tune your speed/incline not covered for the buttons on the console. So for speeds any paces in between whole numbers and for inclines 0.5 degree along with the numbers not on the console quick buttons. Dan or other 7.8at owner’s of the latest model year please confirm if this is true.
True for fine adjustment in between whole numbers the dials are the only way to adjust the speed and incline.
One thing I noticed is that the 7.8AT it seems that the quick dials are required in order to fine tune your speed/incline not covered for the buttons on the console. So for speeds any paces in between whole numbers and for inclines 0.5 degree along with the numbers not on the console quick buttons. Dan or other 7.8at owner’s of the latest model year please confirm if this is true.
True for fine adjustment in between whole numbers the dials are the only way to adjust the speed and incline.
the ONLY fine adjustment is thru the quickdial wheels. on the left and on the right are buttons on the console, but they are rough increments. i believe it’s on the left, that’s the incline, and as i recall there is no 1% option. it goes from level to 2% and then you can press a button for every additional percent grade. on the right are MPH. there is no up/down arrow. it’s just the rotational wheels (quickdial).
what i have advocated, to horizon - and they’re very open to hearing this - is that they be one of the few treadmill companies to behave the way the better smart trainer companies behave. i could see now the ability to make a robust app, like the wahoo app, and the treadmill connects via BLE your smartphone, and your smartphone connects via wifi and can “middle” firmware updates for the treadmill, and the smartphone app lets you program the treadmill per your taste.
if this was available, then you could do 2 things right away. first, you could program controls to suit. for example, i find both the incline and the speed increments to be too fine on the quickdial wheels. you could program the increments - every quickdial click - to be (say) a tenth of a percent of incline instead of a half a percent (which they now are). likewise the speed.
second, what if those numbers on the console weren’t gauged to MPH (in the case of velocity) but were instead gauged to some other metric. maybe KPH? or, something else entirely. you could program in what those numbers represent in the app.
many of you purchased Horizon Fitness treadmills with the discount code they gave you all. this was limited to the 7.8AT, which i reviewed. this was a $1,999 treadmill, and the SLOWTWITCH100 code took that to $1,899.
alas, you sold them out of treadmills. so, they’ve agreed to expand this code to the 7.4AT, which is pretty similar to the 7.8, it’s pretty similar, mostly the difference is it’s a 3.5hp motor instead of a 4.0hp motor, otherwise the deck dimension is the same, it has BLE connectivity (so, it’ll connect with zwift as delivered), and it’s $300 cheaper. so, with the discount, it’s $1,599.
So for the lighter athlete the 3.5hp motor makes zero diff over the 4hp motor so you are getting the same functionality for $300 less, unless of course you mount the back of your treadmill on a bunch of bricks to simulate a 10 percent downhill and the treadmill motor has to keep lifting you back uphill on each stride so you have to run downhill (don’t laugh, I used to run a weekly sub 40 min downhill 10km on my treadmill at minus 4 percent with the front cover open and a fan blowing on the motor, to simulate pace for the first 10km and grade of Boston marathon…ran 2:59.52). Most manufacturers will not recommend you doing this because it may burn out motor, especially the lower power motors and the bigger you are the worse this gets.
But running on a flat or certainly uphill, motor size for smaller men and women is a total non issue.
If I could I would send my Horizon 7.8 AT back. Purchased it mid November 2020 made my first payment on it last month and just over two weeks ago it stopped working. The only thing that lights up is the power switch. I’ve called numerous times and they only let you stay on hold for 10 minutes and then you are automatically disconnected. I’ve sent emails and my reply was we will try to get back with you in 10 business day. As of today I have heard nothing . Do your research on this company and their products. They might be great at selling them but when it comes to standing behind there products it’s not happening. I’m hoping someone from Horizon fitness sees this post and will contact me. By the time I get my treadmill up and running again it will be spring and I’ll be back outside. Very disappointed!!
If I could I would send my Horizon 7.8 AT back. Purchased it mid November 2020 made my first payment on it last month and just over two weeks ago it stopped working. The only thing that lights up is the power switch. I’ve called numerous times and they only let you stay on hold for 10 minutes and then you are automatically disconnected. I’ve sent emails and my reply was we will try to get back with you in 10 business day. As of today I have heard nothing . Do your research on this company and their products. They might be great at selling them but when it comes to standing behind there products it’s not happening. I’m hoping someone from Horizon fitness sees this post and will contact me. By the time I get my treadmill up and running again it will be spring and I’ll be back outside. Very disappointed!!
So…I managed to get through yesterday and make some progress, using their chat function. Here’s the timeline:
Start chat at 14:37 my time. I have a projected wait time of 14 minutes and 8 secondsAt 15:07 I get through to an agent. I explain that I am following up on a warranty repair for my treadmill. She advises that she is moving me to the tech support chat.15:08 - I am now waiting on tech support chat - projected wait time of 1 minute and 30 seconds15:31 - am connected to a tech support person.Once I actually was communicating with a person, it all went very smoothly and she was very helpful - repair parts are supposedly being shipped to me.
We finished the chat at 15:59 my time, so it was 1 hour and 22 minutes from start to finish. 54 minutes of waiting and 18 minutes of discussion. Best to have two computers - one that can stay on the chat window while you use the other for work.
Thanks will give it a go today.
And, all due respect to the folks bringing these deals…this is why when spending 1500+ on a treadmill, you should get a brand with a reputation for quality, NOT bells and whistles, not a department store brand (Horizon, Proform, Norditrak, livestrong, xterra, etc). Just buy a Sole.
Just to be 100% crystal clear - I really do appreciate that slowman brings some of these deals to the forums, but sometimes there are smarter options, strictly IMHO.
And, all due respect to the folks bringing these deals…this is why when spending 1500+ on a treadmill, you should get a brand with a reputation for quality, NOT bells and whistles, not a department store brand (Horizon, Proform, Norditrak, livestrong, xterra, etc). Just buy a Sole.
Just to be 100% crystal clear - I really do appreciate that slowman brings some of these deals to the forums, but sometimes there are smarter options, strictly IMHO.
I think you make some good points. In my defense, I bought mine before Slowman’s review and deal. I did some research, and while I saw complaints about Horizon from several years ago, at that time there were very few complaints from the past 2 years. (obviously, that has changed in the past few weeks).
So that, combined with the facts that a) I liked the Horizon 7.8 the best when I tried various treadmills (including the Sole F85 and the NordicTrack 2950) in the store and b) Sole is not delivering to internal rooms in a house right now, pushed me to Horizon. I didn’t have any red flags at the time, and it made the most sense to buy the treadmill I was going to really enjoy running on, rather than one that would be a grind.
Honestly, I still really like the treadmill. I’m thinking that if they don’t get these CS issues fixed, I may just have to start acting like it is out of warranty, pay on my own for repairs, and then go after them later for reimbursement.
Side observation here: if a company offers a lengthy multi-year warranty on parts and labor, but you can’t actually contact them to get anything fixed, do you really have a warranty? I would argue no - the warranty is useless. Basically, it’s like I just bought a treadmill second hand.
How do I cancel my order? No one has replied in 3 hours on Facebook messenger. The website chat option appeared for the first time for me this morning and I was provided a shipping number with EFW and assured the item was shipped on 1/20. I contacted EFW, they said Horizon has not approved them to even pick up the item yet. The chat option no longer appears on your website, and the online form to cancel the order won’t let me submit it. Your site says there’s already something pending for that order # (the prior exchange from the damaged delivery). So I have no way of contacting anyone at Horizon to cancel the order?
If I could I would send my Horizon 7.8 AT back. Purchased it mid November 2020 made my first payment on it last month and just over two weeks ago it stopped working. The only thing that lights up is the power switch. I’ve called numerous times and they only let you stay on hold for 10 minutes and then you are automatically disconnected. I’ve sent emails and my reply was we will try to get back with you in 10 business day. As of today I have heard nothing . Do your research on this company and their products. They might be great at selling them but when it comes to standing behind there products it’s not happening. I’m hoping someone from Horizon fitness sees this post and will contact me. By the time I get my treadmill up and running again it will be spring and I’ll be back outside. Very disappointed!!
You must have had some good gummies in your system when you wrote this. You went through all of that and your comment is that you are disappointed. I’d be raging mad. You’ve had it 2 months and it’s dead. Can’t believe their response was they would get back to you in 10 BUSINESS DAYS!?
Hope that changes for you.
Unfortunately I did not have time today to try the chat option. Yes I am furious the only thing keeping me sane is zwifting on my bike. I don’t look to my left when I am on my trainer because my clothes hanger (Horizon 7.8AT) is staring at me.
So…I was browsing on the Johnson Fitness corporate site, and I noted that as of January 15 they have a open position for a “Director of Customer Technical Support.”
I’m taking that posting as an indication that they are taking steps to improve these issues (though it will obviously take some time to turn the ship around).
Unfortunately I did not have time today to try the chat option. Yes I am furious the only thing keeping me sane is zwifting on my bike. I don’t look to my left when I am on my trainer because my clothes hanger (Horizon 7.8AT) is staring at me.
Any chance your credit card offers purchase protection?
I guess this is a lesson of buyer beware. As of this morning I was told that the part is still on back order (for the second time). This treadmill has been broke longer then I was able to use it. I wish someone from Horizon would see this post and contact me because this is totally unacceptable. I will be contacting my credit card company to file a complaint.
I guess this is a lesson of buyer beware. As of this morning I was told that the part is still on back order (for the second time). This treadmill has been broke longer then I was able to use it. I wish someone from Horizon would see this post and contact me because this is totally unacceptable. I will be contacting my credit card company to file a complaint.
Huh. Me too.
On January 21 I was told the parts would be shipped in 3-5 business days.
On February 1 (Monday) I followed up - was told that they had been back ordered but would be shipped out “this week”.
On February 5 (Friday) I followed up again - the shipment was delayed and they were now expecting the parts on February 12.
I really hope this is genuine delay and not me being taken for a ride.
i was eyeballing this treadmill pretty hard… so very glad i didnt bite. customer service and service after the sale is more important to me than even the quality of the product.
Wow. I literally just went to place my order and found that the discount code wasn’t working so I cam back here to ask about it. It’s been a couple weeks since I checked in so just now seeing all of these quality and CS issues. I guess I’ll go back to my previous first choice - Sole F85.