All you’ll ever need, from your first indoor ride to your 10,000th: the Elite Rivo with Zwift Cog and Click bundle delivers pro performance at an accessible price

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I’ve rarely been satisfied with smart trainers in the past. The good ones cost about as much as a kidney, an organ I’m too attached to for auctioning off. The rest were invariably a faff to set up, painful to break down, and would occupy too much space in the modest house I share with my non-cycling family and two mischievous cats.

Thanks to Elite, my vital organs remain safely in situ, and my family has their living room back. Its Rivo smart trainer, which was launched earlier this year, is a seriously good bit of kit. Now, bundled with Zwift’s upgraded Cog and Click, it’s evolved into a smart bike killer, but for a fraction of the cost.

In a single stroke, Elite has resolved all the issues I have with smart trainers. The Rivo with Zwift Cog and Click delivers the same sophisticated indoor training experience you’d expect from a top-tier smart bike, including 24 virtual gears that are, quite literally, at your fingertips.

At the same time, it’s an easy platform on which to mount your existing bike; it’s also straightforward to pack away and compact enough to store neatly out of sight. Yet it's a steal compared to most smart bikes with similar features. If you’re planning to buy an indoor training solution – and I hope you are – the Elite Rivo with Zwift Cog and Click should make your shortlist.

Zwift Cog and Click - now even better

The Rivo smart trainer has always been Zwift compatible straight out of the box, but bundling both Cog and Click brings a multitude of benefits and advantages. Zwift, if you don’t already know, provides a virtual riding environment bursting with group rides, structured workouts, competitive racing and much more. It has the largest community of active users of any indoor training platform, so you’ll be able to ride right alongside friends, local clubs and even pro riders.

The Zwift Cog and Click duo enhances the Zwift experience by delivering easy setup, quiet, trouble-free running, virtual gearing and fingertip control. In short, it makes the rider experience more immersive than ever.

Zwift Cog comes pre-installed, replacing your bike’s messy, noisy rear cassette with a deceptively simple-looking single sprocket. Working in tandem with Zwift Click, it introduces 24 virtual gears regardless of your existing drivetrain. It also offers increased compatibility, a quieter and more efficient chain line, and, of course, helps prevent wear on your expensive cassette. It works with 8-12-speed drivetrains, eliminating compatibility issues and significantly reducing setup time.

The two Zwift Click handlebar-mounted controllers offer an unprecedented level of control at your fingertips, enough to rival any smart bike. Shifting is instant and silent. You can also steer through Zwift’s virtual terrain, navigate menus, use PowerUps, award Ride Ons, and more, all without interrupting your session or losing focus. Zwift Click fits any bar, whether curly or straight.

Impressive hardware

The Rivo hardware is equally impressive, featuring a slew of high-end functions rarely seen on smart trainers at this price level. Power accuracy stands at a respectable ±2.5%, and it can automatically simulate gradients of up to 18%. Combined with its best-in-class 3.5 kg / 7,7 lbs flywheel, this delivers an exceptionally realistic ride-feel. For the height of realism, pun intended, you can add the optional Elite Rizer gradient simulator, which automatically elevates the front end of your bike as you climb. Maximum power is rated at 2,100 Watts, which is plenty – it’s more than many pros can generate.

Connectivity is excellent. Rivo supports Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and Zwift Protocol BLE, making it compatible with just about every app and sensor you can think of. Better still, it features Elite’s ingenious Bridge feature, which enables two connections – such as a heart rate monitor and a cadence monitor – to transmit data through a single FTMS BLE connection. This overcomes a significant issue with platforms such as Apple TV, a popular device for displaying Zwift on a large screen, which can only support a limited number of sensors at the same time.

If you find all this talk of sensors and protocols confusing, don’t worry, there’s no need to feel daunted. Setup is disarmingly simple, and any updates will install automatically over Wi-Fi. Rivo with Zwift Cog and Click even includes two months of free Zwift membership to get you started.

In the saddle, the Rivo is impressively responsive, partly because of the superior rotational inertia of its large flywheel, but also due to smart features like Easy Start and Supertuck.

If you briefly pause pedalling during an interval, the Easy Start function helps you stay on track without any sudden power drops or jerks. You'll enjoy a smooth return to your set effort.

The Supertuck function instantly reduces the trainer's power when you stop pedalling. This allows Zwift to immediately recognise you're not exerting any effort, so as long as you’re going at a fair lick, and the road is steep enough, it automatically switches your avatar into the speedier aero tuck position.

Convenient and affordable

If, like me, you lack a dedicated training space, you’ll value a rig that breaks down easily and stows in the smallest of spaces. Training can be challenging enough without having to deal with a cumbersome, bulky smart trainer after every ride.

I believe convenience is one of Rivo with Zwift Cog and Click's most appealing features. Detaching any bike from Zwift Cog is child’s play, and the Rivo’s integrated carry handle makes lifting its modest 10 kg (22,05 lbs) weight near effortless. At just 523.5 mm long x 164 mm wide (20,61” x 6,46”) with its legs folded, the Rivo is a very slim unit, making it a joy to store or transport.

Two of the biggest barriers to indoor training are the expense and the hassle of setting up and running an indoor rig smoothly. Then there’s the issue of storing your smart trainer when it’s not being used. In my opinion, Rivo with Zwift Cog and Click triumphs over these challenges, banishing the dreaded procrastination that often accompanies them.

At £499.99/€519.99, it offers remarkable value for such a sophisticated plug n’ play training solution. The Zwift Cog and Click integration elevates it to the level of many smart bikes costing at least twice as much, and its compact size means it’s unlikely to infuriate other members of your household. If you’re seeking a cohesive, convenient, and compact indoor training partner, you might well find it in the Rivo with Zwift Cog and Click.