Fitness Mirrors Guide for your home gym in 2023

Here is everything you need to know about smart fitness mirrors, the high-tech workout screens that stream classes in your home. As a personal trainer, I give you my honest view on these smart virtual trainers for your home gym. Whether they are worth it or not, and what to look for.

As a personal trainer, I am always researching ways to help people train more, and better, and have fun with it. I think a smart fitness mirror can be a step in that direction for some people.
Because this type of workout machine allows you to have a virtual trainer in front of you. And at the same time you see your own performce.

You get real time feedback on your posture and your level of training. You don’t need much space for a smart fitness mirror, and with a subscription, you get access to hundreds of classes.

However, fitness mirrors are not for everybody. Read this article to learn about the pros and cons of fitness mirrors. Also includes a checklist for selecting the best fitness mirror for you.

Table of Contents

• What to know about fitness mirrors
  • Reasons why people buy smart fitness mirrors:
  • Reasons why people don’t buy smart fitness mirrors:
• Fitness mirror checklist
  • Type(s) of training
  • Available space for the mirror
  • Required features 
  • Installation and setup
  • Membership Fees
• Overview off smart fitness mirrors
  • Tempo Studio
  • Mirror
  • Echelon Reflect
  • Nordic Track Vault 
  • Pro Form Vue
  • Tonal System
  • Macvon Touch Fitness Mirror
  • Forme The Studio
• Alternatives to smart fitness mirrors with similar features
  • Kemtai
  • Peloton Guide
  • Tempo Move
• FAQ About Fitness Mirrors
• What to do next

What to know about fitness mirrors

Fitness mirrors are relatively new equipment for working out at home. The smart machines evolve quickly, and the main brands compete heavily on features. We will inform you about your best choices and what to look for.

Reasons why people buy smart fitness mirrors:

• Having a virtual trainer in front of you can motivate you to exercise more at home. The smart mirrors give corrections for your posture, and the virtual trainer cheers you up. Many fitness mirrors also have community options, like gaming and a leaderboard. Designed to help you work out more.
• A smart fitness mirror is a small, but complete home gym. Many mirrors have packages with gym equipment, like dumbbells. Some even have pulleys and a barre. The mirror fits in the living room or bedroom. They are well designed, and you don’t need much extra space.
• All workout mirrors offer memberships with hundreds of classes. If you like to join classes and don’t want to visit a gym, a fitness mirror is a good choice.
• Most smart mirrors have cameras and technology to give real-time feedback on your posture. Therefore, it is a great tool to improve your technique and posture while working out.

Reasons why people don’t buy smart fitness mirrors:

On the other hand, a smart fitness mirror is probably NOT worth it if the following is true for you:

• If you already have a well equipped home gym and know how to train with variety. In that case, the smart mirror probably won’t add much value to your workout.
• If you train with a buddy who watches your postures and cheers you up.
• If you are budget conscious and rather invest in equipment for your home gym. Fitness mirrors can be pricey, because you need a membership to fully profit from training. 

If you are in doubt, you could try out one of the smart fitness mirrors I describe below. But please be aware that in some cases returning the mirror can be costly. Read the return policy carefully.

Fitness mirror checklist

Before even looking at the different fitness mirrors on the market, take a piece of paper and decide on your requirements. This will help you select the best workout mirror for you.

Type(s) of training

What type(s) of training do you intend to do in front of the mirror?

• Strength training with heavy weights
• Cardio classes, boot camp style
• Cardio/strength training
• Boxing
• Pilates
• Yoga
• Barre
• Something else:…

All smart fitness mirrors come with new classes regularly. But all have different accents in their offerings. For example, Forme The Studio offers a real barre to attach to the mirror. Forme the Studio, Tempo and Tonal also provide optional extra “arms” on the mirror, with pulleys. 

Do you value live classes or are pre-recorded classes fine?
Live classes may not always be available at your preferred time.

Do you want to hire a personal trainer for a 1-on-1 live workout through your smart mirror?
Not all mirrors offer the service to hire a personal trainer.

Do you want to use the mirror for physical therapy?
At the moment, only xx offers this option, but others might follow. 

Available space for the mirror

Consider the following aspects:

• Where will you put the smart workout mirror? 
• Will it be standing on the floor or fixed to the wall?
• What size can the smart mirror be? 
• Height clearance.
• Note 1: If you don’t have much space, consider alternatives like Kemtai or Peloton Guide. They don’t come with a smart mirror, but use your laptop (Kemtai) or TV (Peloton) as a screen. 
• Note 2: Pay attention to the location of the outlet. Some fitness mirrors are not compatible with extension cords.

Required features

All smart fitness mirrors come packed with features. You easily get lost if you don’t decide up front about the “must-haves” and “nice-to-haves”.

• Should the mirror come with weights, dumbbells, straps and other gear, or do you already have them?
• Can the mirror connect to Spotify, to your earbuds, to your iPhone, to your home speakers? Is that important to you?
• How important are aesthetics of the smart mirror? Do you care about design or not so much?
• Do you want a heart rate display?
• How important is connection to a community (friends or a general community)?
• Level of camera and motion technology. This is important if you want valuable feedback on your posture. The more advanced technology will give better feedback on your posture and exercise level. 
• Do you want a smart mirror with built-in shelving to stow weights, or do you have storage space elsewhere?
• Control through touch screen or smart app. Not all smart fitness mirrors have a touch screen. In that case, you need a smartphone app. 

Installation and setup

Smart fitness mirrors are big. They weigh over 100 pounds and are about 6 feet tall. Check if the supplier offers installation and setup service. 

Membership Fees

All smart workout mirrors come with a membership fee. Some mirrors can also be used without a membership. 

Overview off smart fitness mirrors

Tempo Studio

Tempo Studio used to be the “go to” mirror for strength training. Where others focused more on cardio classes. 

Pro

• Focus on strength training, but classes in many other areas.
• Technically advanced, with high quality pulleys up to 100lbs per arm.
• I recommend this in-depth video review by Garage Gym Reviews after a six months use of the Tempo Studio​).

Con

Personal Trainer Adam Preiser found these issues with Tempo Studio after several months of usage. These are things you don’t read much about according to Adam:

• Form correction is limited.
• Rep counting through the 3D motion sensor is inaccurate, and as a result, the next time you get the wrong advice on what weights to use.
• Connection issues and frozen screens, despite a fast internet connection.
• Noisy fans.
• Refund policy has some fine print, the installation fee and return fee of several hundred dollars are not refunded.

Mirror

Compared to Tempo Studio, Mirror is smaller. The fitness apparel brand LuluLemon purchased it. 

Pro

• Relatively small
• Comes with yoga equipment

Con

• No touch screen, you have to operate the mirror through a smartphone.

Echelon Reflect

This smart mirror is one of the most budget friendly mirrors on the market. It was created with budget in mind. Therefore, it lacks some features that others have.

• Pro
  • Small and space-efficient
  • Budget-friendly
• Con
  • No performance tracking
  • Assembly required
  • No personal training option
  • No built-in speakers
  • No leaderboard or gaming

Nordic Track Vault

The Nordic Track Vault mirror was created with an eye for design. This is a high end smart mirror.

Pro

• Design

Con

• Relatively expensive (depending on which option you buy)

Pro Form Vue

This smart mirror is budget friendly. Therefore, it lacks some features that others have.

Pro

• Reflective Training feature helps perfect your form

Con

• No free trial period, it seems
• Self-assembly

Tonal System

Tonal is a high end smart mirror. Recently, it received bad ratings because of delivery issues.

Pro

• Built in arms for pulleys!
• Lift up to 100 lbs per arm
• Tracks your progress and adjusts weight accordingly
• Installation service included

Con

• Relatively Expensive
• Smart Accessories not included ($495 extra)

Macvon Touch Fitness Mirror

Pro

• Budget-friendly

Con

• Low on features

Forme The Studio

Forme The Studio is a little different from the other smart mirrors. It provides an option barre to attach to the mirror. So you can do ballet and barre classes.

Pro

• Option to add a wooden barre
• Option to add arms and pulleys for weight training

Con

Alternatives to smart fitness mirrors with similar features

Following up on large smart fitness mirrors, there are now alternatives in the market that use your laptop or TV as a screen. They track your movements through a webcam and provide classes similar to the larger smart workout machines.

Kemtai

This is an alternative to a full size mirror. The Kemtai calls itself a “Computer Vision exercise platform” from your laptop. AI software uses a webcam to track body movements. You stand in front of your laptop, start a class, and receive real time feedback on your posture.

Pro

• Budget friendly, use your laptop or computer
• No extra space needed for a large mirror
• Potential tool for physical therapy from home

Con

• Hard to follow along from a small laptop screen
• Tricky to adjust webcam mid-workout

Peloton Guide

Peloton is well known for their bikes with online classes. But did you know they also have virtual classess through Peloton Guide? This system uses your TV as a screen and you get a special Peloton box with camera to select classes and monitor your movements.

Pro

• Budget friendly, use your TV
• No extra space needed for a large mirror

Con

• Smaller screen than smart mirrors

Tempo Move

Similar to Peloton, in front of your TV, but with your smartphone as a cam.

Pro

• Budget friendly, use your TV
• No extra space needed for a large mirror

Con

• Smaller screen than smart mirrors

FAQ About Fitness Mirrors

What to do next

Be sure to select your Smart Fitness Mirror with care, based on the checklist in this article. If possible, visit a center where you can try your favorite workout mirror. Also check out our guide on home exercise equipment.

Related Articles:

• Tonal vs. Mirror
• Best Compact Home Gym: Smart Fitness Mirrors