Sy Reene

I believe Zwift would love it if they didn't have to support every computing platform out there. It seems most of their bugs are related to just 'some users' who are randomly running a certain setup. Doesn't have to be a high end gaming PC.. but it is a game, so thinking why not a Zwift game console? How much processing does Zwift need -- could something like a Nintendo Wii form factor be purpose-built and sold for eg. less than $300 ?

himespau 

I think at one time (when they were still considering the bike), they were talking about trying to make an all in one (bike, computer, screen) solution for Zwift to make it easy to onboard new riders. Just buy the device and go. Then, they got all into adding more and more features to the smartbike to fit the needs of enthusiasts/racers, which took it out of the price range of entry-level riders, so they eventually scrapped the all-in-one solution. Then, they scrapped the smartbike entirely.

Kai Winters

I started having problems with Zwift Comp a couple of updates ago. The C app no longer connects or when it does it lasts only a few minutes then loses connection. Fortunately I don't really need it but it is very convenient.
My hardware: Kickr, gen 6...Apple TV, latest version...iPhone 12. All devices are running the latest software/firmware. All devices are on the same network and the same id/pw. I've uninstalled Zwift and the Comp app then reinstalled. I've used airport mode on the iphone. Still no joy.
I've contacted Zwift and they have replied quickly with mainly the advice I've already listed...not really any help at all. I've sent them screen shots as they requested resulting in several more suggestions that also didn't work.
I do notice fewer and fewer people on Zwift are connected via the Comp app...it is cool that you can see if they are using the Comp app, steering, etc.
Until recently I had absolutely no problems with the Comp app so the problem isn't on my end as nothing at all has changed on my end.
It is frustrating...

PeteHski

I just don't think their market is big enough to make it worthwhile. You can run Zwift on Apple TV for little cost and is likely better than any console Zwift could bring to the market.

himespau 

Honestly, if they're going to sell other trainers on their website besides their own (and that's what the settlement leads to), if they want to make things as turn-key as possible, they should also sell the newest apple TV - even if they drop ship it from apple. Yeah, the resolution isn't as good, but if they can say, all you need is a bike that you already own, a TV and a Hub and an Apple TV (both of which you can buy right here), that'd be the fastest/easiest way to onboard new people.

I've been playing around with indieVelo, and I like its mechanics a lot better than Zwift - if they could port over the worlds from Zwift, I might never use anything else (though I would miss the various race series I do on Zwift). What has kept a lot of the guys on my team from trying it out is that they only ride using Apple TV and indieVelo isn't on Apple TV - yet, developers need to submit changes/updates at least 2 weeks in advance to the appstore and the 1 developer is still pushing out new updates at least once a week currently and doesn't want to get locked into the appstore release schedule until he feels the app is more solid and will only need monthly updates like Zwift does.

Sy Reene

The thing with ATv is that Zwift has to always react to whatever Apple does with their own software, hardware, firmware to reinsure compatibility. If it were their own console, Zwift's game software team would work in conjunction with the hardware teams (console, Play, Hub) -- no surprises and they get out of being in a reactive, bug-fixing mode (in theory).

PeteHski

In reality they would just end up with some very limited Android based box that would eventually need updating anyway. Apple have made the computer hardware very easy for Zwift. There is a good reason why most software companies don’t make their own bespoke hardware.

Peloton is the obvious example of a complete proprietary system and it may well prove to be their downfall.

Sy Reene

From a gaming perspective, you had Microsoft (Xbox), Sony (Playstation) and Nintendo (Wii). It's hard to distinguish where the software and hardware companies start and end. They all made the hardware, as well as published a decent chunk of game titles. Zwift is just a single game title, and their headache is getting piece every piece of hardware out there to run it consistently when iterating through updates and keeping it compatible with a bunch of different OS's, chipsets, and capabilities.

PeteHski

Zwift is a relatively simple subscription based software App that will happily run on almost any hardware. No different to thousands of other software Apps that don't have their own bespoke computer hardware. I have had zero issues running Zwift on various Macs since 2019. Game consoles are totally incomparable.

The only incentive for Zwift to make a dedicated console is if they build it into a complete standalone Zwift bike with a screen i.e like Peloton did. I don't think it would be of any real benefit and would probably prevent users from using other Apps without hacking the console. Again like Peloton.

unterhausen

I feel like zwift users would not like being locked into a platform.

Sy Reene

Probably not -- trying maybe to put the genie back into the bottle would be hard. Though the selling point over considering another platform could be is that the each game update always works because hardware and software development are done in tandem.

PeteHski

Who is going to do the Zwift hardware development and support? Fitness bikes tend to have their own consoles and they soon become outdated. Zwift have actually done a good job of making their software work on a wide variety of platforms. I’ve never had a failed update on the Mac version. I can imagine the PC version potentially causing more issues with quirky setups. But it should work okay on any reasonable mainstream hardware of the last 5 years.

Kai Winters

My comp app continues. I've tried two separate windows based laptops and while they connected via bluetooth in zwift neither will connect with the comp app.
I've sent pics to zwift tech support and they have moved my problem to tech 2 who have reached out to me asking for pics of my network info...sending the pics today.
Fortunately zwift works fine via bluetooth and not using the companion app.
I participated in a zrl race last night and there were no problems at all...excepting my legs that is but that is not a tier 2 problem to solve lol.

himespau 

Last night was brutal. Starting out with a 3 minute climb immediately followed by a sprint completely sapped my legs. Then we still had 38 km with 4 more sprints and 3 more climbs left to go. I was much happier serving as DS for the early race than racing myself in the late race (mid-race cramping didn't help).

unterhausen

For all my complaining about the update process, the app itself has always worked for me*. There have been bad updates that hosed parts or all of the game, but apparently I'm far enough down on their list of gamers to update that they have always fixed the problem before I got the update. They just aren't hooked deeply enough into the hardware to have problems with PC's. Updating on windows is not a hardware specific issue, it's an issue of trying to decipher what MSFT wants you to do today, updated daily.

*there is a minimum standard of graphics card. When I first built my system, I didn't meet that standard and the app didn't display the game. Easily solved by swapping graphics card to an equally obsolete, but supported graphics card.