WaterRower Water Rower Exercise Machine A1 Studio S4 Rose with Self-Regulating Resistance

Yesterday I took receipt of a Waterrower A1 Rose model. I am going to write of my initial impression and a comparison to a Concept 2 rower. I purchased the Waterrower from Dazadi via Amazon. According to the Waterrower website, the A1 model is not available in the US. However, I can assure you that if you order this model, you are ordering a genuine Waterrower. The manual has the directions in English and French so I’m inclined to speculate that these may have been manufactured for the Canadian market. This is essentially a GX model that is rosewood stained and equipped with an upgraded S4 monitor. The vendor was very prompt in shipping, but take warning, they ship via Fedex. Fedex operates pretty much as a rogue nation. If you experience any problems in your shipment, you’re in for a world of head aches and frustration. If you don’t believe me please google “Strong FedEx Employee, Customer Response to Customer ServiceComplaint.”Ok, now that I got that off my chest, on to the rower. It is shipped in two boxes and requires assembly. I did not find the assembly process difficult. There is a discrepancy in the instructions on the labeling of the hardware. It seems that the instructions were written when Waterrower sent the hardware all mixed together in a plastic bag. They now send the hardware in a clear plastic blow molded case that nicely separates and labels the components. The problem being that the written instructions in the manual assigns different part numbers to the hardware than what’s printed on the newer packaging. It’s not hard to decipher and choose the correct nuts and bolts, but initially it’s confusing. Beyond the hardware snafu, the rest of the assembly will go smoothly as long as you take the time to review and follow the instructions. After you have it all together, you will be impressed by the beauty of the machine. Mine had a few minor spots where I want to touch-up the stain, but no major scratches or gashes. This is a miracle considering the shipping company had its way with the packages for aweek, and there is no rigid styrofoam used in the packaging. Only cardboard and a few foam packing sheets are used.As soon as the tank was filled, I took the rower for its maiden voyage. Having only used a Concept 2, I was really intrigued (and a little bit worried) by the difference in feel between the two rowers. I have about 1 1/2 million meters logged on a Concept 2. Yes, that’s a drop in the bucket compared to many hard core rowers, but I wanted readers to be assured that I’m not writing a comparison without having spent sometime on a rowing machine.The resistance of the catch while on the Waterrower is immediate. I understand that this simulates being on the water more accurately than a Concept 2. For me, this makes rowing on the Waterrower more taxing. But I also realize, as I have no on-the-water rowing experience, this is a new sensation that my body has yet to acclimate. Over time it’s likely the challenge will lessen. A reviewer (on Amazon, I believe) stated thathe/she could not get his/her heart rate elevated on the Waterrower. I don’t know how this could be possible. To be honest, I was worried that maybe I made a mistake in buying the Waterrower. It didn’t take me long to realize that I was being premature in my judgement. I truly believe that I will learn to love the feeling of the Waterrower as I learned to love rowing on a Concept 2. They are both fantastic rowing machines.The noise factor. I have read reviews describing the Concept 2 as being loud and the Waterrower as quiet. I don’t agree. I do not find the sound of the Concept 2 to be loud or unpleasant at all, just as I don’t find the sound of the water rower to be quiet. Concept 2 has the whooshing sound of the chain and fan, Waterrower has the whooshing sound of water. I think the water has a muffling effect, so the noise might be a bit softer, but not necessarily quiet. I actually love the rhythmic sound of rowing coming from both machines.The monitor. The A1 model I purchased has a S4 monitor. I haven’t had time to really check out the monitor on the Waterrower, so I can’t give it a fair review. I will say this, Concept 2 has a very good monitor and a huge community of users that use the C2 online logbook. This is where C2 excels. If you are motivated by numbers and comparing your stats to other people, you really need to go with a Concept 2. C2 also hosts many team and individual challenges throughout the year, and these challenges are, for me, highly motivating. As far as I can tell, Waterrower users don’t have access to a strong online community. I would love to find out I’m wrong.Durability. There’s no denying Concept 2’s reputation for building durable machines and outstanding customer service. Waterrower appears to offer top notch customer service as well. As for as the durability of the Waterrower, only time will tell. There are relatively few negative reviews. A leaking tank was cited in a couple of reviews. I will withhold judgement until, and if, such problems arise. For now, I can report that the rower seems very sturdy.Ok, these are my initial thoughts. Please keep in mind that I have only logged 4,000 meters on the Waterrower. This this review will be updated after further use. I’m off now to row.Updated 10/1/17I've had the Waterrower for a little over a month and have managed to row 175K thus far. Love this rower. My only complaint concerns the S4 monitor. It really lacks functionality when compared to a C2 PM5 monitor. I am compensating for this shortcoming by using an android app developed specifically for Waterrowers, Coxswain. While not a perfect solution, it is more than a serviceable one. There is also a Waterrower's user group on Facebook which seems to be growing rapidly in membership. I can't really recommend one brand of rower over the other if comparing C2s and Waterrowers. I don't think you can go wrong with either machine.Update 12/31/17Still happy with my Waterrower. I have rowed over 500K on it without a single problem. The subpar monitor might be a real problem for those people who need reliable performance metrics. I row for fitness, not competition, so I can live with it. Waterrower seems to ignore elephant in the room (criticism of the monitor), and I don't believe their approach serves them well. There is the very useful Coxswain app and other reported third party developments on horizon. Stay tuned...

UPDATE: after nearly 4 months, wanted to add experience of actual exercise. Am somewhat disappointed and my main concern is that I cannot get enough of a leg workout compared with upper body. I have tried adjusting my form a lot and exploding with legs only and adjust where that thrust comes from heelward, and have confirmed with others that I have good rowing form. The more intense the rowing it seems the greater that discrepancy between upper body and leg stress. Caveat is that I run days opposite rowing and I lift for upper body as well and am looking to the rower to relieve knee stress of running. Regardless, I find my arms get sore and tired much faster than my legs, and this is a different ratio than Concept2 puts on me at the gym; my suspicion here is that the WaterRower has greater midstroke resistance/deceleration than the Concept2, so the leg momentum does not carry to the arm stroke as much, forcing your arms to do more work. I would not expect this to be a problem since I am strong upstairs, so doubly surprised. The best compliment to running is this does put more tax on my hamstrings and works core and back in a different way. Wish I had rented to buy in retrospect. Still, will continue to use, but not necessarily getting the combination of benefits I was looking for. Since my target needs are pretty specific, may not apply to you and can otherwise recommend.This special A1 Rose arrived in 2-days from Dazadil; arrived intact despite Fedex not heeding the prominent "this end up" markings. Unpacking is easy and straightforward. Quality seemed solid on the parts and the hardware is pretty good quality too, although wonder why no thread locker on all bolts rather than just some. Parts are in a handy plastic container that organizes them, but the labeling on the container does not match the labeling in the instructions.The instructions were pretty good, all of the info is there, if not necessarily in the right order, and the blue paper and small print made it harder to read. Be sure to follow instructions closely on when to fully tighten bolts. Do not lift the rail side before the footrest is attached, it is the key part of stabilizing the frame and that is not obvious until it's attached. The rower is so easy to move, assemble it where you have the most space and move it later. Two of the bolts (the only 1-of bolts) were mislabeled on the parts holder, made the steps using them very difficult until you figure out that they are backwards; follow the booklet pics over the parts holder's, the book shows the longer bolt where you need the longer bolt. Thought about cutting a star on this, but will allow one pass.Filling the tank, yes, is sloppy and not great, but who cares?! Get a little water splashed around the place, get the water in the tank and be on your way. Not hard to rig your own system if you care enough. I cut the siphon feed to fit in a gallon jug of distilled from the store and worked from there. The rower took 4 gallons almost exactly to the "19 line".We went back and forth on the Concept2 vs. this and ultimately the slightly smaller footprint was necessary. We also appreciate the lack of advertising on the machine. For some reason WaterRower is trying to push it's double-rail when this one seems better in so many ways (cost of steel?). The rose was even nicer than expected, with nice grain and finish at this price. Despite being pretty, this is still a piece of exercise equipment and does not look like "furniture" in any way in the living room we are in (not a complaint or different than expected, just a confirmation). The water tank looks a little darker tinted than in the photo here, a good thing.The action is quite smooth, and perhaps a little louder than I was expecting (your room acoustics will have a pretty significant impact on how this plays out, in our case I am hearing the rail rollers at least as loudly as the water). I double-checked watching my wife row and confirmed that the rail is louder than the water. Was a bit concerned from a couple of reviews that the single rail seat would feel less stable. Not so at all and I am a large man; just need to keep your motions in the z-plane and the rail seat is as stable as can be if not quite as smooth as I would have hoped (some rolling vibration comes through the seat). In fact I could not get it to feel unstable. This particular unit has 4 wheels under each side of the seat.Was able to fit this in a tighter space than I expected, all of the horizontal space you need is in the back of course, so from halfway forward I have this very close to a chair with no problems. Very easy to lift to vertical. The footholds are easy to use as instructed (did I read poor reviews on that too? so easy!)Will try to check back in a couple of months at how things progress, for now this is a great purchase at a reasonable price.

I did a lot of research on rowers and finally settled on Waterrower and this model. I like the darker wood stain and the fact it has the S4 monitor. You won't find it on Waterrower's website but it is an authorized model. (Per a WR customer service rep, it's a model sold only by their retailers.) The shipping was prompt and it was easy to put together but for a defective footboard which the retailer replaced.I'm a newbie rower so wasn't sure I'd enjoy it but after following WR's YouTube video instructions and doing some beginning workout routines, I now have hit a groove where I row 4 times a week. Note that the S4 instructions aren't great as they are geared toward telling you what the screens display vs how to maximize use of the monitor for workouts. But as an overall matter, the sound of the water is soothing and the seat glide and pull is extremely fluid. I actually prefer to use the workout-a-day and online rankings logbook from Concept2 to challenge myself but WR does include daily workouts on their website as well. The only deviation is that I primarily use the Coxswain app in the Google Play Store to setup and track my workouts and export them to Google Fit. That way I don't have to hit button after button on the S4 to input my preferences.The rower stores neatly upright in a living room corner and does not look out-of-place. I'm very pleased and find that the expense of this rower is worth my improved well-being. Highly recommend.