TACX NEO 1 vs TACX NEO2

After years of not updating the original Neo, Tacx finally updated their flagship smart bike trainer last Fall. But are these updates worth spending the extra money or should you save some money and get the Tacx NEO 1 instead?

HOT DEAL: TACX NEO 2 is selling for only $899 at Amazon.

If you look at the specs side by side of the two bike trainers, you will notice not much has changed. Here is the specs sheet from Tacx NEO 1 and Tacx NEO 2:

	TACX NEO 1	TACX NEO 2
Price	$1,199	$1,399
Magnets	32 Neodymium magnets	32 Neodymium magnets
Maximum Power	2,200 Watts	2,200 Watts
Accuracy	<1%	<1%
Slope	25%	25%
Calibration	Not required	Not required
Output	Speed, cadence, power	Speed, cadence, power
Flywheel	Virtual	Virtual
Bike Compatibility	130 mm, MTB 135 mm. Adapters for other widths available	130 mm, MTB 135 mm, 142 mm & 148 mm (INCLUDED). Adapter for 135 x 10 mm available.
Cassette	Shimano & SRAM: 8 – 11 speed. Campagnolo body sold separately	Shimano & SRAM: 8 – 11 speed. Campagnolo body sold separately
Footprint	575 × 750 mm (22.6 × 29.5 in)	575 × 750 mm (22.6 × 29.5 in)
Weight	21.5 kg (47.3 lbs)	21.5 kg (47.3 lbs)
Height	550 mm (21.7 in)	550 mm (21.7 in)

WHAT CHANGED?

ADDITIONAL AXLES

Looking at the table above, you will notice the NEO 2 comes with 142mm and 148mm adapters, where you have to purchase those separately if you get the NEO 1. So if you need these adapters to fit your bike, it might make more sense to purchase the NEO 2 in this case.

CAPACITIVE CADENCE SENSOR

The original NEO has the ability to estimate your cadence and it did a pretty good job at it. However, if you pay close attention to your cadence, you might notice the occasional spikes from time to time as you see in the chart below:

Tacx added a capacitive cadence sensor inside the NEO 2. With the capacitive sensor, as your crank passes by the front end of the NEO, it will detect your crank and measure your cadence more accurately. This way the NEO 2 can measure your cadence directly rather than estimating it as with the NEO 1.

L/R POWER DATA

The NEO 1 had the ability to broadcast L/R power data, but that was all estimated just like the cadence. The sensor in the NEO 2 allows it to capture the left/right power data more accurately and broadcast it.

Unfortunately, this data is only available when using Tacx’s Training App on Windows. Eventually, it will be pushed to the Mac version and also other devices such as Garmin Edge.

PEDAL STROKE ANALYSIS

Just like the Left/Right power data above, Tacx will be able to capture and display your pedal stroke analysis more precisely than the NEO 1. This featue is only available on Tacx Training App on Windows.

MORE POWERFUL CHIP

Tacx claims the NEO 2 has better internals and a more powerful chip allowing it to adjust and react to changes a lot faster and made it quieter. I personally couldn’t tell the difference between the two. The NEO 1 was already very good at that and the quietest trainer in the market.

Also, Tacx planning on future firmware updates that will only be designed for the NEO 2 to make it even better and this chip should be able to handle that.

In the past, Tacx pushed additional features to the NEO via firmware updates such as Road Feel Simulation, increased flywheel speed, and Isotonic and Isokinetic Modes.