Three years ago Icon Health & Fitness, the maker of Nordic Track, decided that they had to improve their quality to survive in an increasingly competitive marketplace. We have noticed this over the past two years but because of their past sins we have waited to increase their ratings. You can only wait so long before you become a believer. This family of ellipticals is part of that quality increase. If you are a competitive athlete they will not last long-term, but if you are an average Joe that just wants to loose weight these are a great value.