Amazon's first foray into connected fitness is a $500 smart bike made by Echelon that only Prime subscribers can buy

• Amazon and Echelon’s "Prime Bike" is now available on the e-commerce giant’s website.
• The Echelon Ex-Prime Smart Connect Bike, only available to Amazon Prime members, lacks some of the extra features of Echelon’s other products, which has kept the price low, the companies said.
• This is Amazon’s first-ever connected fitness product. It initiated the partnership, fitness company Echelon said.

Smart exercise company Echelon has teamed with Amazon for a $500 spin bike that only Prime subscribers can buy.

The Echelon Ex-Prime Smart Connect Bike, unveiled Tuesday, allows users to join virtual exercise classes and connect with personal trainers remotely.

The bike, dubbed the "Prime Bike," has similar hardware to Echelon's other bikes but cuts out features such as a dumbbell holder, allowing the company to keep the price under $500.

But the bike comes with new features that other models don't include, such as stabilization handles and a precision resistance motor, Amazon said.

The bike can be bought through Amazon Prime only. Echelon had a similar arrangement with Walmart for its Connect Sport bike, which costs $600, though it had an introductory price of $500.

Read more: These are the 15 fastest-growing fitness companies, according to digital traffic.

Echelon, which has made connected fitness products since 2017, said Amazon initiated the partnership, and the two companies developed the bike together. It's Amazon's first foray into the connected fitness market.

The bike includes a 30-day free trial for Echelon United, the company's subscription service that provides access to live and on-demand fitness classes.

Earlier this month, Echelon's upmarket rival Peloton reduced the price of its original bike to $1,900 from $2,250 and launched a new $2,500 premium bike with a rotating high-definition screen and automatic resistance control, after lockdown caused a boom in at-home fitness. Peloton's sales between April and June skyrocketed by 172% compared to the same period in 2019 — which led to CEO and founder John Foley to warn of months of order delays.

But the delays caused other problems too. When Peloton announced the price cuts, it said it would automatically refund customers who purchased a bike within the last 30 days or are still waiting for back-orders. Customers who narrowly missed the 30-day window or who waited weeks for their back-ordered purchases took to Twitter to express their anger over the policy. Peloton said owners of its original bike can trade it in for a $700 rebate, and free yoga and toning accessories.

Peloton also came under fire after customers told Business Insider they had to wait weeks, and in some cases months, for the fitness company to make repairs to their broken bikes.