TOUSAINS Cable Machine Home Gym, Foldable LAT Pulldown & Pulley System

Why it's worth it

The TOUSAINS CR63 is a plate-loaded cable station that folds down to about three square feet and doubles as a rower. It's the only machine here that works in an apartment with seven-foot ceilings and no dedicated gym space.

This is the machine for people who don't have a gym room. It stands under 63 inches tall, folds to roughly 2.9 square feet, and takes up about 7 square feet fully open. You can slide it behind a door or into a closet corner between sessions. Nothing else here comes close to that — the other machines are furniture you build a room around.

It's plate-loaded, which is both the compromise and the appeal. You skip the selectorized stack and load your own dumbbells or plates instead, up to a rated 400 pounds. If you already own adjustable dumbbells, you're not paying twice for iron. Owners specifically like how quickly you can swap loads, and the dual-dumbbell grooves are a small design win over competitors that only take one.

From our review of 7 cable machines for home gyms, by Eleanor Vance, Health & Beauty Editor

What we like

• +This is the machine for people who don't have a gym room
• +It's plate-loaded, which is both the compromise and the appeal
• +The rower mode is more useful than it sounds
• +Owner feedback is broadly positive with clear limits

What to know

• –The height is the real constraint
• –The pulleys are the weak link
• –Some owners find the included seat useless and remove it