review – in my normal time WFH I spend at least 7 hours a day sitting in a chair. I try to remind myself to get up and move around, but that doesn’t always work. When I want to get out of bed, it always seems that someone is notifying me via instant messenger at work, or that I have a meeting to attend.I added a standing desk Came to my office about 5 months ago and it at least helped me get up every now and then. I’ve always wanted the treadmill to keep walking while I work, but a few things have held me back. The main reason I never get one is that I’m not sure where to store it when I want to sit back in the chair. So when the WalkingPad A1 Pro, a foldable under-desk treadmill, came up for review, I jumped on it. Let’s see if I can walk and sit at the same table when needed.
What is it?
The Walking Pad A1 Pro is exactly what it says it is. It’s a treadmill that almost folds in half, so you can put it under your desk and walk while you work. It has no handlebars in the way and is designed purely for walking, as it has a top speed of 6 km or 3.728 mph.
What’s in the box?
- Silicone Lubricant
- Remote control, wrist strap and battery
- power cable
- Allen key for belt alignment
- The walking pad A1 Pro foldable treadmill is in the folded position below.
Hardware Specifications
| product name: | WalkingPad A1 Pro Treadmill |
| engine: | Brushless Motor |
| strength: | 1.25HP |
| Panel process: | High precision IML injection molding |
| Show feedback: | time, speed, distance, calories, steps |
| Speed range: | 0.5-6KM/H |
| Bifold Technology: | yes |
| Folded size: | 822*547*129mm / 32.5”*21.5”*5” |
| User capacity: | 105KG/230 lbs |
| Pedestrian area: | 1200*415mm / 47” * 16.5” |
| model: | Standby, Manual, Automatic |
Design and Features
The WalkingPad A1 Pro foldable under-desk treadmill has an LCD display as shown in the image below. It can display walking time, walking distance, calories burned, steps and speed. There’s a power toggle on the front, and the power cord goes into the treadmill.
The treadmill also has two modes of operation, manual and automatic. In the image below, it is in manual mode, indicated by the M in the yellow circle. Manual mode requires you to use the app or remote to start, stop and control the speed of the Walk Pad A1 Pro Folding Treadmill. There are no tilt options available.
The picture below shows the Walking Pad A1 Pro foldable treadmill in automatic mode. This mode is pretty cool because it senses when you want to walk when you start pedaling on the treadmill. If you want to go faster, you just start walking faster. The treadmill was very sensitive to what I wanted and responded very quickly. I personally only use it in manual mode. I don’t want to be distracted by work and find myself walking slower or faster than I should. I was also a little shaken when it started and stopped. It moves nicely, I just prefer the full control of the remote.
set up
The WalkingPad A1 Pro, a foldable under-desk treadmill, does not come with a paper manual of any kind. It does have a quick guide posted at the top of the display area. You can see a picture of it below. There are two wheels on the front of the treadmill. You simply pick up the folded treadmill from the back and push the front of the treadmill to where you want to operate. I didn’t find it super heavy and I moved easily.
Once it’s in place, you unfold the treadmill. I have to say it sounds really scary the first time you do it. When the belt is tightened and the bottom flips to the ground, it sounds like it’s cracking. Then plug in the power cord and flip the switch to the on position.
There’s another notice on the sticker on the top of the Walk Pad A1 Pro folding treadmill. See below. You must load the app to use the treadmill for the first time. I would like to avoid loading this app, as many of them, including the one for the WalkingPad A1 Pro, require you to create a login account. This is how they do the CYA and make sure you know how to operate the treadmill without hurting yourself. Note that the label says the maximum capacity is 230 lbs. This treadmill doesn’t have a powerful motor, and while I’m sure a larger person could walk on it, it most likely won’t have a long lifespan.
The app you’ll load is called WalkingPad, and I downloaded it on the Apple 11 Pro.
The next series of pictures show you the steps to set up the application. First, you must create your account.
During account setup, they’ll ask for your gender, date of birth, and weight to help them calculate calorie burn. Since treadmills can’t calculate your heart rate, take their calorie counts with a grain of salt. During the setup process below, I chose not to show calories burned because I know it’s inaccurate.
The next step is to connect the walking pad to your phone via Bluetooth. You can do this by pressing the connect device button in the screen below.
It immediately found my device and I was able to connect.
You’ll see this popup telling you that you can adjust the treadmill’s maximum speed.
The next thing I did was go to the preferences section of the app. In the screenshot below, you can see all the various settings you can control.
You can set the top speed to 6 kilometers per hour. Note that it’s kilometers and not miles. I found it rather confusing at first because when the speed on the treadmill showed 3.0, I thought it was 3.0 mph, like every treadmill I’ve used in my life. Needless to say, I thought their 3.0 was really slow until I realized it was in kilometers!Ha ha
This screen allows you to select what you want the treadmill to display on the LCD while it is spinning.
This screen lets you choose how to start the Walk Pad A1 Pro foldable treadmill. I chose to press a button on the remote to start it. I didn’t want to accidentally step on it, it took off on me.
This screen allows you to set the sensitivity of the automatic mode. It recognizes that you’re walking faster or slower and automatically adjusts the speed of the treadmill. Since I never use automatic mode, I put it in. I do find this medium works well in identifying that I do want to speed up or slow down.
The next screenshot shows me working through the tutorial. I have to walk for a minute to unlock the speed of the treadmill.
Performance
Once I realized that the Walking Pad A1 Pro treadmill’s display unit is km vs mph, I was completely satisfied with its performance. I found it very quiet and no one had any problem walking on it at 3.5 which caused the fan to turn on when I was in a meeting. It’s also easy to move and compact for storage. In the image below, you can see it under the table on my left. I have a keyboard drawer and I can use the treadmill from the comfort of a chair.
When I’m ready to walk, I pull the chair back into this position.
I found the WalkingPad A1 Pro, which folds under a desktop treadmill, very comfortable to walk. I walk at 3 – 3.5 km/h. While walking, I found that I had to channel my former marching band and use my core to keep my upper body steady so I didn’t end up shaking my entire desk. I have been slowly increasing the amount of time I use the treadmill every day. Now I walk about 30 minutes in the morning and 30 minutes in the afternoon. It just depends on how complex the task I’m working on. As I get more comfortable with it, I plan to use it more often.
I would also like to mention that there are two Allen keyways on the back of the treadmill. One on the left side of the belt and one on the right. You use an Allen key to center the belt on the treadmill. The first time I got the belt, I had to move the belt slightly to the left. I haven’t had to adjust it since.
what do I like
- It folds and stows under my desk so I can sit and type. No additional storage space is required.
- It’s very quiet.
- The app finds my treadmill every time. I’ve seen other comments complaining about this, but I don’t have this problem. I personally only now use the remote to start, stop and control the treadmill.
Areas for improvement
- I wish the motor was a bit more powerful and it could support heavier weights.
- I wish I didn’t have to use the app just to use the treadmill for the first time.
final thoughts
If space is an issue for you and you just want to walk, then I recommend the WalkingPad A1 Pro, which folds under a desktop treadmill. You must make sure you don’t exceed the treadmill’s weight limit. However, if you think you want to jog or even run slowly, then you need to check out some of WalkingPad’s other treadmills that can run faster and carry heavier weights. This treadmill is ideal for placing under a table because it has no handles blocking the table.
price: WalkingPad for $650, Amazon for $499, now with coupons
where to buy: walking mat (Save $100 with coupon code: gadgeteer) and Amazon
source: This product sample is provided by walking mat.
