While this little machine shouldn’t be confused with an all-in-one home fitness center, it does manage to give you the few bells and whistles you might actually care about: A rotating knob gives you at least the illusion of adjusting the pedals’ resistance; a clear LED readout shows your speed, distance, time elapsed, distance traveled, even the approximate number of calories burned; and an override switch (which might be more honestly labeled the "I quit" button) allows you to stop exercising and, y’ know, just watch TV.

Which brings me to one minor glitch that at least warrants mentioning: The thing doesn’t always work. Depending on your cable or satellite dish setup and the strength of your signal, the TV Pedaler may do little to disturb your reception even when your feet are nowhere near the pedals. And, let’s face it, if you’re the type of person who can rationalize not working out on any given Sunday, then you can probably rationalize watching that Raiders-Chargers game with a little video snow clouding up the screen.

Ultimately, the TV Pedaler is not a miracle machine. It can’t change what’s on TV, so a boring ball game is still a boring ball game, and Sex and the City is still a concoction of implausible stories strung together by eye-rolling puns. But I digress. The point here is that this is an inventive product that—as long as it functions properly in your own home—deserves to be called a cool gadget rather than a crazy gimmick. And, hey, imagine how good you’ll feel when the phone rings during your favorite show and you say, "Mind if I call you back? I’m exercising."

• TV Pedaler: $159.95
• Phone: 877.602.7332
• Website: www.d2tech.net