8 best electric scooters

Presented two years ago, the model M365 in this has been updated, at the same time significantly adding to the price. The novelty retained the old index, but acquired the prefix «Pro». And what is behind it?

First of all, it is pleasant that the manufacturer simultaneously increased both the engine power and the driving range. If earlier the scooter gave out five hundred watts in peak, now it is six hundred, and the nominal power increased accordingly - from 250 to 300 watts. At the same time, the range of travel increased much more decently - from 30 to 45 km, which is a fifty percent increase! This is not surprising - the scooter, gaining 1.7 kg in weight, scored this “fat” almost entirely due to the recycled battery pack, which now has a capacity not of 280 watt-hours, but all 474. As a result, the ride became much nicer - the battery lands much slower and will not leave a scooter in the middle of the trip without power, especially if the rider is heavy and there are many rises on the tracks.

It's nice that the brakes were also improved: the diameter of the brake disc (alas, the only one) increased from 110 mm to 120. The drive mode selector has changed - if it used to be two-way ("eco / sport"), now it has a separate mode for normal driving “Drive”, which, if desired, can already be done more brightly by switching to “sport”, or save a charge in “eco”. Taking into account the increased power of the motor, the use of the improved selector is particularly visible.

In addition, instead of the minimalist control LEDs, the scooter got a normal screen, and the steering wheel became taller - small but pleasant advantages to convenience and comfort. However, unfortunately, the previous generation's “sores” are preserved - first and foremost, it is the grinding of the wire in the rear wing, which will still have to be eliminated on its own, and the pulling of the folding unit also does not hurt to eliminate play. It is very unpleasant that such things, already known for two years, did not take into account the plant itself.

The electric scooter is distinguished by its construction: it is supposed to stand on it not as on a regular one (one leg in front, the other in the back), but putting the legs on the side platforms. In principle, this is convenient - here it is not necessary to constantly push off with your feet.

The battery pack was placed both in the column and not under the policy: the box is installed at the junction at the helm and the bottom frame. In principle, this is not bad: it does not interfere with the legs, the center of gravity is lower, and the protection is better than with models where the batteries are removed under the polik. And the battery is easily removable: you can buy a spare and not be afraid to "dry" on the road.

The motor power is 500 W, but the scooter is not one of the fastest: its maximum speed is limited to 20 km / h. But there is a USB-port that turns the electric scooter into a self-propelled paverbank for your gadgets. Well, for this we give Z5 ten hipsters out of ten.

Front fork - with two shock absorbers, which is good. Moreover, the diameter of the wheels - only 8 inches. Behind, by the way, the wheel is not pneumatic, but solid: less comfort, but more reliability. Brake - or a single drum on the rear wheel, or additionally there is a front tick.

In general, the device is funny - stylish, well assembled.However, it is necessary to immediately point out the limited strength of the frame: under the weighty rider and amateur jump over the bumps, it can not stand.

From a good electric scooter, you expect, among other things, ease of transportation, and here with this KUGOO has a serious puncture - it weighs as much as 25 kilograms, which cannot be called comfortable when carrying. On the other hand, the weight here is not taken from the air - here is a damped saddle, which, in combination with ten-inch wheels, gives decent comfort, and an accumulator assembly with a capacity of 16 amp-hours (768 Wh)! So the half-kilowatt motor installed here, capable of accelerating a scooter up to 35 km / h, does not suffer from hunger - the power reserve is declared at 45 km with a load capacity of 120 kg.

Brakes - disc, on both wheels. But, unfortunately, at this moment the advantages of the Chinese scooter in the out-of-box state are over. If you are already accustomed to the fact that such a technique almost always requires “file completion”, then you can read further, if you just want to unpack and skate - better go to another item. So, what do you need to do right after the purchase? To begin to check the tightening of all the screws that the assemblers often twist as Gd on their Chinese soul put. Then lubricate the brake cables, check the ease of forward and reverse. Tinker with the steering column for elimination of play in the bushes. Especially carefully examine the folding unit, the “native” bolts of no quality should be immediately replaced with strong ones from the nearest hardware store. And now after that it makes sense to ride. Well what can I say - "Ketis" ...

It would seem that the company Xiaomi has come to our market recently and is still associated mainly with cell phones. But come and see you - now it is both recorders and cameras ... and a good inexpensive electric scooter.

Especially the characteristics of this model is not impressive: a motor of only 250 W, the battery - 7.8 ampere hours. Moreover, the battery is installed under the polycom and is covered only with thin plastic - this somehow does not inspire confidence. However, for this model you can already find on the Internet a metal battery cover.

The “interface” is minimalistic: a power button, four charge level LED indicators ... and that’s it. For everything else, use the mobile app - either your own, or from Ninebot. This is not surprising - although Ninebot is formally owned by Segway, one of their largest shareholders is ... right, Xiaomi.

What exactly liked it here is the brakes: the rear wheel has a full disc brake, controlled by a standard bicycle lever. It also activates the switching of the motor to the generator mode, so that Xiaomi is clearly “doing” Ninebot on the brakes.

However, not to mention the disadvantages. Firstly, the steering column is rather weak - in a month of skating there starts to appear backlash. Established tires and cameras are just “something with something”, they are wiped literally before our eyes. And, finally, the regular sound signal is practically inoperable - most often it is necessary to bend the tongue so that it buzzes somehow.

Lightweight, not very conspicuous electric scooter on an aluminum frame does not strike with characteristics - the motor develops only 250 W of power, and the mileage on a single charge of the battery assembly with a capacity of 7.5 Ah does not exceed 30 km. The scooter accelerates slowly, slowly bringing the speed to 25 km / h - of course, if the terrain and weight of the driver will allow.

However, the wheels with a diameter of 8.5 inches, in the absence of the suspension, will not be able to move out from the flat tracks. But let's not forget about the merits - first of all, it is a decent water protection, with which many electric scooters have problems. And the disc brake on a light and low-speed scooter pleases - they did not save on safety.

There are three movement modes, they are chosen out of love for minimalism by successive pressing of the power switch, and not by a separate button. In the “economy” mode, the scooter is slightly faster than a pedestrian, the speed is limited to 8 km / h. “Moderate” mode is already more interesting - here the ceiling is twice as high, 16 km / h. And, finally, the third press will turn on the “sport” mode, in which the scooter accelerates to the maximum.

And yes, traditionally pay attention to the folding unit - the manufacturer not only specifically noted this point in the instructions, but even put spare bolts in the kit ... M5. Then the hands immediately itch to strengthen the structure, using high-quality fasteners of increased diameter.

If you use the electric scooter only for short trips, and the convenience of carrying and storing is more important for you than the dynamics of acceleration or power reserve, pay attention to this model. With a weight of just 10 kilograms, this scooter quickly and easily folded (with the reliability of the folding mechanism is higher than that of cheaper models). Just press the foot on the pedal - and the lightweight deck along with the rear wheel will automatically rise, pressing against the steering rack.

The power of the motor is small - 250 watts. But the 5.8 ampere-hour battery is more or less enough for it, especially if you switch the scooter to “slow” mode with a speed limit of 6 km / h. In the “fast” mode, you may be able to accelerate it to 25 km / h, if not to get involved in hamburgers.

I am glad that the manufacturer did not stint on the mechanical brake, although with such a mass and power one could also expect a “wing-brake”.