After many years of using a dumb wheel on turbo trainer, I jumped into the Zwift arena with the purchase of the Zwift Hub.
10 days into my Zwifting experience I am very underwhelmed and bitterly disappointed, here’s why…
I read (before I invested) you can use your Apple Watch as a HRM via the companion app to have your heart rate showing in the race. Well, that’s about as reliable as a chocolate teapot. I get ready for a ride all excited only to be utterly frustrated that the heart rate does not work in any consistent manor. This should be easy and a no-brainer. Why so difficult? In the end I have bought a second hand Polar H9 chest strap and that much better.
My Zwifting was going great, then every now and then it felt like the gears slipped a cog or two, more like a clunk rather than a badly indexed gear. This happened a few times and now the pedals and drive chain free wheel in both directions. It’s as if the hub in the ‘hub’ has broken. I can’t ride the Zwift Hub at all.
Zwift support via chat on Friday evening was excellent, I got chatting, we got to a point where I emailed them a video of the issue, but now everything has gone quiet…
Have been sent a resolution article for when " Can’t Turn Pedals on Zwift Hub" - come on, really, did you not look at my video!
The Zwift support email gave me a UK number to call, this is only available between 08:00 and 14:00 UK time… WHAT, Zwift UK is a huge market, why can you support us within normal office hours in the UK
I am hoping for a direct replacement and also hoping this is just an edge case, or a one off as if this continues, I will be very upset and seeking a full refund on the Hub, delivery and any subscriptions.
Just thought I would share…it made me feel better.
I tend to get upset immediately anymore when support doesn’t keep supporting me over the weekend. But then I try to remember that people need weekends Hopefully they get this fixed for you–not that I closely monitor the Hub as a device, but this is the first time I’ve heard of that particular issue. Have a few friends now who own Hubs, no major problems for them.
This was the original thread where they mentioned it:
Here was the quote:
"
Additionally, for Apple Watch owners: we are aware that this experience needs upgrades and we are working on a longer term vision for support. In the meantime, the Zwift Game and Companion apps will be removed from the Watch App Store.This means:
New users will not be able to install the Zwift Game or Companion apps
Legacy users will be able to use the watch apps, but will receive no updates to either app"
Later they said they were going to leave the companion app in the store for some iOS users, but I think the issues they refer to above still remain for Apple Watch. It sucks because I find the apple watch isn’t too bad at HR readings while I’m on the bike.
Edit: Their “longer term vision for support” hasn’t materialized yet as far as I can tell.
Dec 2021 - Long time ago. Depreciating certain OS I get, but given the popularity of the Apple Watch and Apple devices, for entry level Zwifters like me, who has an iPad, iPhone and Apple Watch, making the adoption of their platform needs to be easy and seamless. While the Polar H9 wasn’t breaking the bank, the HRM on the apple watch is perfectly fine.
I have my fingers crossed for a zwift (swift) resolution.
It makes sense to have such a widely used product compatible which leads me to believe that perhaps there’s something about the way apple watch reads or sends data that makes it less than ideal… possibly the number of readings per second? I wonder… they’ve worked so hard to keep the ATV available as a startup option, you’d think the watch would be a natural extension.
Blame definitely rests with Apple on this one. They’re the ones that chose to not have the watch broadcast HR via a BT signal which is a pretty standard way of doing things.
Hi Paul
Good to know that you sorted out your problem with ZWIFT.
I just purchased their bike and the front chainring is not installed properly and the chain creating a very loud noise. I wrote to them but the Ambassador advised that he escalated to their experts but nothing from their experts so far. Any chance that you may kindly share the customer service phone number they advised you please
Hopefully they get this fixed for you–not that I closely monitor the Hub as a device, but this is the first time I’ve heard of that particular issue. Have a few friends now who own Hubs, no major problems for them.