Zwift has announced the frameset portion of the Zwift Ride smart bike is now available to purchase independently of a smart trainer for £749.99 / $799.99 / €799.99.
This will enable owners of existing smart trainers to upgrade their indoor training setups – provided they own a compatible option.
The brand has also revealed an updated version of its Zwift Cog singlespeed conversion kit for smart trainers. Dubbed the Zwift Cog v2, and costing £79.99 / $79.99 €79.99, it features greater adjustability for quieter running.
A number of trainers from third-party manufacturers will be dubbed ‘Zwift Ready’, indicating their compatibility with Zwift’s new hardware accessories.
Solidifying its ongoing relationship with Wahoo, the price of the Zwift Cog-equipped Wahoo Kickr Core Zwift One has been reduced to $499.99.
These announcements come alongside a host of seasonal updates and new features celebrating the app’s 10-year anniversary.
Click through to find out all about the new world expansion, features and content coming to Zwift this winter.
Zwift Ride Smart Frame
The Zwift Ride was announced earlier this year, pairing a modular frame with a Wahoo Kickr Core smart trainer and a set of modified Zwift Play controllers.
At £1,199.99 / $1,299.99 / €1,299.99, it was priced well below most of the best smart bikes, making it one of the most accessible options available.
As hinted at the time, though, you can now buy the frameset portion of the Zwift Ride smart bike independently of a smart trainer.
The idea is that riders can pair the frame and a Zwift Cog with their existing smart trainer to effectively create their own smart bike.
As before, the Ride Smart Frame is designed to fit riders from 5ft (152cm) to 6ft 6in (198cm) tall.
It costs £799.99 / $799.99 / €799.99, including the new Zwift Cog v2.
Zwift says the Ride Smart Frame is compatible with the following ‘Zwift Ready’ smart trainers:
- Elite Direto XR
- Van Rysel D100
- JetBlack Victory
- Wahoo Kickr Core
- Wahoo Kickr V6
- Zwift Hub
Having discontinued the Hub smart trainer earlier this year, as it revealed a partnership with Wahoo, Zwift is now expanding its collaboration with other manufacturers. It says more Zwift Ready trainers “will be announced in the coming months”.
According to the brand, all Zwift Ready trainers will support the app’s virtual shifting protocol and will soon be available to purchase with the Zwift Cog v2 pre-installed (bundled with the Zwift Click shifter).
Although the Zwift Ride Smart Frame may be physically compatible with other smart trainers, it’s worth noting that unless the trainer supports Zwift’s virtual shifting protocol, you’d be stuck with only one gear (because it uses a singlespeed drivetrain).
There are also some limitations when it comes to existing smart trainers.
Zwift says the Ride Smart Frame fits Wahoo’s Kickr Move smart trainer, but can only be used with the trainer’s signature ‘movement’ locked out, for example.
Likewise, it notes existing Elite Direto XR trainers cannot currently be upgraded to work with the Zwift Cog and Zwift Ride frame, as Elite is yet to make a firmware update enabling virtual shifting publicly available.
Zwift said it was "in conversation" with Elite about getting this firmware rolled out to existing trainers, but couldn't confirm if or when this would happen.
Zwift Cog v2
Following on from its original singlespeed smart trainer conversion kit, Zwift has announced the Cog v2.
The v2 Cog differs from the original version in two ways – it offers integrated indexing adjustments and updated graphics.
The indexing is designed to help reduce drivetrain noise, by adjusting the Cog v2’s singlespeed sprocket placement on the freehub for better alignment with your bike’s chain.
The slightly increased noise level compared to the narrow, profiled teeth of modern bike cassettes was one of the downsides we noted in our Zwift Cog first look in December 2023 (although we also noted it made up for this somewhat by reducing noise from gear shifts).
The updated Zwift orange graphics help it stand out a bit more. Zwift has also given a colour refresh to the Click virtual shifting remote, with the two buttons now orange and blue.
This doesn’t have any effect on functionality, but might make it easier to ensure you hit the right button at a glance when deep into a hard Zwift workout or race.
The Zwift Cog v2 is available as an upgrade kit for compatible Zwift Ready smart trainers and costs £79.99 / $79.99 / €79.99.
As with the original Cog, Zwift says the Cog v2 is compatible with “almost any 8- to 12-speed bike”.
Wahoo Kickr Core Zwift One drops in price (with a catch)
Zwift has also announced the Wahoo Kickr Core Zwift One is now available at a lower price of £449.99 / $499.99 / €499.99, down from £579.99 / $599.99 / €599.99.
It’s worth noting this option doesn’t include a year’s subscription to Zwift (which would normally cost £179.99 / $179.99 / €179.99), though, which is required to make the most of this trainer in its stock setup.
This is because the Zwift Cog and Zwift Click are only compatible with the Zwift app, as things stand.
That said, the Zwift Cog can be disassembled and a standard cassette installed in its place, should a rider wish to use the trainer with a different app.
Likewise, Zwift reasons that riders with an active subscription to the app may not wish to pay extra for something they already have.
