I wanted to wait for some time to review and see how the treadmill operated over time. I have now over 100 miles on the treadmill. I was concerned because at around 25 miles I started getting a squeaking sound from the front left side when running that was cleared up but running the incline up to 1 but would return within a few seconds of returning to level. After a few days of this and concern that I was going to need to call for support it went away and has not returned. It appeared to be from where the machine rested on the stop on that side and there was some minimum motion that was causing this. I adjusted the position of the treadmill and it is in the garage on a level concrete floor so it is definitely a firm level surface.

Delivery is as expected by LTL freight but I met the driver and was ready with furniture dolly's for the transfer. since my driveway is only 4 car lengths an nearly flat he offered to drop it in the garage so I just helped push it in.

Assembly was relatively quick, about an hour or so. I do spend a good deal of time looking through the instructions ahead of time and lay out materials and identify where and when they are used in the assembly process so the build goes much smoother. That hour is just the build time. Two people really makes this a breeze to put together since you can hold things level or out of the way has the case may be. The instructions are pretty good, although the description of the threaded fasteners could be a bit more clear and I believe could be a hang up point for those not as familiar with the identification of them. A blister pack with the fasteners labeled by description and/or step used would be fantastic and allow people without that previous experience to identify them more easily.

I agree that the jump from 5 mph to 7 mph seems to be a large gap and would very much like to have seen a 6 mph button and possibly a way to jump by 0.5 mph increments but with the controls on the handle you can get there pretty quickly. The included heart rate strap tracks well with my fitbit watch overall, each having their own ramp up and down speed to the current heart rate but at the stable heart rates track as closely as is necessary for personal use. The feel of the deck is extremely firm but soft enough to be easier on the joints than running on concrete or asphalt. The ramp up and down speed to the target speed is actually the slowest I have ever seen in a treadmill, I don't know if that is good or bad, it was just different than any treadmill than I have ever been on. I am sure that it lessens the starting torque on the motor on the way up and the amount of possible slip on the belt in both directions for speed changes. Using the buttons on the handles for both speed and incline adjustments are very responsive and easy to use while running and in a much more natural position than reaching for the treadmill control console. As has been stated in previous reviews the fan is pretty much a joke. I think it is there to have a line item in the listing that says it has a fan. I use stand up fans and box fans so I wasn't going to use the fan likely anyway. The holder for the tablet of removable laptop screen is very nice. There is a USB port for charging but pretty slow, slow enough that the phone even says charging slowly, I even used the phone supplied USB 'C' cord that normally charges quickly to make sure it wasn't a cable thing, it wasn't. It still charges and keeps the phone from discharging while using it with the screen on so it really serves its purpose, I don't believe it was intended for you to get a 4 mile run in and charge your phone from 10% to 100% anyway. The tray mid way down from the console is great for storing the extra cables for connecting to the speakers (which I honestly didn't try, either I use BT headsets of BT stereo in the garage depending on if there is someone sleeping). The locking and releasing mechanism for putting the deck up is very nice and the the shock for letting it down slow was a "shock" to me and a great idea. Again, mine stays in the garage and stays down so I only had it up to move it.

Almost all of the exposed materials are covered with plastic which is great for cleaning and rust prevention. My last treadmill had over 2,700 miles on it and I wiped it down with disinfectant post workout each time but sweat still found places to start rusting and bubbling the paint over time. If this one does it will at least be hidden by the plastic trim panels :-D.

I would definitely recommend this treadmill. It has a great build and operational quality at a price that won't break the bank.

One year in-
This treadmill is great. It's not high tech, but it is a quality machine. The only negative that I have experienced is that the distance/speed doesn't seem to be calibrated accurately. My Apple Watch consistently records my workouts as longer distances and higher speeds than the treadmill does. It's not a huge difference at shorter distances, but it adds up at longer ones. Ex: at 1.5 miles on treadmill, watch will say 1.57. By the time treadmill is at 3 miles, watch is recording 3.5. At first, I thought it was the Watch that was off in estimations, but when comparing stats with outdoor runs, across months of workouts, I believe it's the machine that's off. It doesn't really bother me though because the treadmill works great and is perfect in every other way for my uses. I just take the treadmill distance and speeds with a grain of salt and rely on my watch.
My thoughts when selecting this machine: I wanted the best quality treadmill motor and a full size platform, without paying for extra technology. I looked at lots of brands and decided that I didn't want to pay more for an interactive screen and then be locked into a subscription type service when I already have an iPad and can be free to download running apps if I choose. The tablet holder works perfectly for this, and the other option of laying it lower on the console to be able to interact with an app works too.
The treadmill is quiet and runs smoothly. I don't use the speakers though, they are not loud enough when the machine is running at faster speeds, but I prefer to use headphones anyways.
Overall, this was a great purchase. It's solidly built and it doesn't feel flimsy. It feels like a gym treadmill and does the job I need it to.

Did a bunch of research and went with this Sole 77 2013 model. 4.0HP motor should be a big benefit over previous model and other treadmills for this price. Mainly wanted to offer experience with delivery and installation. I might've opted for the 85 which I think just adds folding capability for an extra $100, but it wasn't available on Amazon and I wanted to take advantage of 12 months no interest on Amazon store card. It is pretty heavy so I don't think folding it would be very fun, but if you need the space...

Delivery - Pilot Freight was the carrier and I was able to pick a date with a 3 hour window during checkout. I kept thinking I needed to call someone to verify but it clearly says no need to call and appointment was confirmed so I didn't call. I set up Amazon to send texts and got a few confirmations which was good. The delivery guy might've been 30 minutes late, but carrier office gave me a heads up - no problem. I asked what the policy was as far as getting it in the house and he told me that the goal is to get it in the house. I have a walkout basement and he willingly helped me get it in there. We have a small hill on each side of the house and he hand trucked it over to the top of the hill and we let it slide down the hill in the box which was better than trying to contain the hand truck with that thing on wheels. The friction on the hill helped it slide down slowly. There was a slight incline up to the sliding glass door but we got it up close enough on the hand truck and then just laid it on its side to get in the door - slid it in and over to a spot close enough to where it was going to live. Took maybe 6-7 minutes and the delivery guy was friendly and not put out at all.

Installation - I was in a hurry and advise against that... I certainly agree that two people would be best but it is doable by yourself. Hardest part was getting the base out of the box and over to where I wanted it. There is lots of styrofoam protecting the treadmill which is good but makes it tough to slide it out of the box. You could put the box in the spot you want it and take the packaging out around it, but the styrofoam pieces will be everywhere. They were anyway... I took all of the console and railing parts out of the box and tried to remove as much styrofoam as possible. I opened up one end of the bottom part of the box to slide the base out. It was challenging but just requires patience figuring out what part of the packaging you need to get out of the way - try to get all of it out first so you are only left with the base. One the base is in place, the rest is fairly easy but again take it slow and make sure you have the right pieces in place before tightening the rails. Some of the pieces come snapped together but you only slide the half you need on the side rails before bolting on. I mixed these up, then switched them, but forgot to slide a piece on after and had to take the bolts off again. I also forgot to put the curved brackets on that help support the bottom of the rails. This always happens to me... can I get a witness?!? I got pretty good at it though - takes some skill to hold the rail in place to get the bolts started so another person would help. BE VERY CAREFUL NOT TO PINCH ANY OF THE WIRES THAT YOU CONNECT BETWEEN THE PLASTIC RAIL CORNER COVERS AND THE BOLTS. It would be very easy to damage a wire. Lay out your bolts with washers and always have them reachable - especially for the console balancing act (if doing this solo). The console will actually sit in place without bolts, but I wouldn't risk it - well I did risk it and ran back to get a bolt - but I wouldn't do it again. It is tricky to snap together the two wires while you hold the console in place and then bolt it on. It will stay in place if you position it a certain way, but I would try and put one bolt in to hold it before letting go. Again, most of these hassles are non-existent with two people. There really are not that many parts and it would go quick if you don't put the parts on the wrong sides and have to unbolt and bolt a few times like I did! Once you get the base in place, I think two people could install it in about 15-20 minutes depending on how installation instructionally challenged they are. It took me an hour. I think there is a video on youtube or Sole's site that I watched, but I'm not sure if it was the exact model. I should've watched the video again right before I installed.

My wife has only used once and liked it - we just got it setup. Note: Sole includes a card that explains you will hear a "thump" at first because the base is stored with the belt on so it has the indentation from sitting. That is supposed to go away after some use. I've seen some reviews that complain about that and people get frustrated trying to fix it thinking something is hitting somewhere.

Wasn't really sure how to rate it yet since it is new so rated a 4. It seems like tremendous value for the price, but It's hard to like or love delivery and installation...

In our case we wanted a treadmill to replace two pieces of exercise equipment: an Inspire Cardio Strider 2 and an older treadmill. I share the house with my parents and got the Cardio Strider 2 for my father after he had heart surgery several years ago. At the time, we thought it was a good investment but all the sitting hurt his hip and found the treadmill to be a better use of exercise time. I still used the CS2 because the treadmill is old and can really only be used to walk on it since its tread isn't all that wide (17") .

So now we took the dive on this bad boy to replace two pieces of equipment. To start, the shipping company used was fantastic. They put the thing on a dolly and put it where we wanted it. This is already an improvement with our CS2, as it was literally dropped off in the street and we had to slide it into the driveway, open the box, and bring it in piece by piece. The shipping company used here for the Sole treadmill was proactive in calling us and sending us a robocall when they were on the way on the day of arrival. In fact, we had gotten the robocall and I was getting ready to go outside to meet them when they rang the doorbell! It was fast and efficient.

Once we got the box opened we took the items downstairs. The main platform is very heavy and you have to be smart in how you move it down steps. My initial plan of attack was to spring open the hydraulics as soon as it got to floor level. However, in our case, we have a door that is right at the end of the stairs and the unit cannot fit through it as the unit is too wide for our frame. So we kept the platform collapsed and bound with the secure guard wrap (basically how it arrives) and slide it down that way, got it through the door, and *then* sprung open the hydraulics.

After sliding this beast down the stairs getting it assembled was incredibly easy. I took my time to read the instructions and in assembling it, but it took about an hour when all was said and done, I would say.

I have used this thing twice now and have been very impressed with it. Especially for the price. I did see a review about short handles but I think that is how all models in this price range are set. The handles for this unit are longer than our old one. I am about 5'9" and a little taller than my father and we both reach the handles just fine and feel they are adequate.

One note though, when the model inclines the handles do not, so the higher you incline the lower the handles go. This is fine if you don't mind bending over a little while you incline and want to hold the rails. Others might have a problem with this so it is worth mentioning.

In my case, I get a very good workout @ 3MPH at an incline of 5. Anything beyond 5 and the handles feel like they are getting away and I have to lean forward more than I would like.

But most importantly, it feels very solid and sturdy, which is important to me as I use it to run. The 20" of tread width is great, too. I haven't gotten quite comfortable with running at speed, but I do not see myself running faster than 6.0MPH on this, and am breaking in at 5.0MPH to start. I run as far as I can and then do the walk + incline for the remainder, to both get myself familiar with the unit while also trying to get back in shape.

One last note is that I contacted the seller while this thing was being shipped and they were extremely prompt and courteous. Very happy with this purchase and the party that manufactures it!

We bought this for the family and it was easy today put together and simple to use. My Dad who is in his 70's uses it every day. It is a heavy duty unit and I'm sure will give us many years of use.