For Italy, the time has come to start all over again and what better way to start moving again, if not to do it in an eco-sustainable way? This will be one of the reasons that prompted the Prime Minister to introduce, in the now famous Relaunch Decree, a bonus of up to € 500 for all those who want to embrace the environmental cause and contribute, in their own small way, to making our post-quarantine planet a more livable and enjoyable place for us and future generations.
Who is the bonus dedicated to?
The bonus, equal to a 60% discount on the expenditure incurred, up to a maximum of 500 €, can be requested by all those who between 4 May 2020 and 31 December 2020 will have purchased or will purchase "bicycles, including pedal assisted bicycles, as well as vehicles for personal mobility with mainly electric propulsion, such as segways, hoverboards , electric scooters and monowheel ". So reads the text of the decree, specifying that the voucher can be used only once and only by adult residents of municipalities with a population exceeding 50000 inhabitants. However, there are no limits on income.
Thanks to this government incentive, even the most skeptical will finally be able to seriously think about the home-office journey as a daily action in which moving is a moment to observe the world in a fun way, putting an end to the stress caused by long traffic queues and from searching for a parking space that is not always close to the destination. If you choose to buy an electric scooter you will make an investment which, in the face of minimal maintenance - as long as you buy important products on the market, such as those we will soon recommend - will allow you to obtain an important gain in economic terms and of health. Also wanting to leave out the savings resulting from not having to travel by car, after all the tension accumulated in recent months, returning to the old city hassles does not seem such an attractive prospect, does it? So discover with us which electric scooter is right for you and, after purchasing it, get ready to enjoy a new life!
The best electric scooters
- Xiaomi Mi M365 PRO 2
- Xiaomi Mi M365
- Segway Ninebot MAX G30
- Segway Ninebot ES2
- Segway Ninebot Air T15E
- Revoe Tech Street Motion
- GeekMe Electric Scooter with seat
Xiaomi Mi M365 PRO 2
Let's start off strong with what it surely is one of the most interesting electric scooters available on the market. Xiaomi Mi M365 PRO is the revised and improved version of the Xiaomi Mi M365: it offers a range of 45 km, an excellent braking system with braking energy recovery and a digital display which allows us to keep an eye on, without particular distractions, all the information we need to drive. The motor reaches 600 Watts and the battery pack, larger than the non "PRO" model, it recharges in one night, that is 8 and a half hours. The maximum speed (legal limit) of 25 km / h is reached with extreme ease and, with a weight of about 14 kg combined with a high handlebar and a wide platform, it is certainly one of the best light electric scooters in terms of general comfort and driveability. Through the application it is also possible to update the internal software and adjust various parameters such as Cruise Control. In short, it is a truly complete product from every point of view, at an attractive and often further discounted price.
Xiaomi Mi M365
The younger brother of the Xiaomi Mi M365 PRO, deserves a place among the best electric scooters currently available for purchase. Compared to the PRO model, the autonomy drops by 15 km, settling on a maximum of 30 km that can be traveled with a 5 and a half hour recharge. There is no digital display and the support platform is obviously slightly narrower, but removed these small differences, the M365 model is however a valid choice for those who use low-slope roads or do not have to travel many kilometers and therefore does not need to spend the extra € 100 required to purchase the "PRO" version. In fact, all the technological systems mentioned for the top model are present, from recovery of braking energy at Cruise Control, via ABS and unlocking via password. In addition, the weight of about 12 kg makes it, once folded, even more comfortable to lift, transport and possibly store in a corner.
Segway Ninebot E22E
Segway needs no introduction, it is the company that best represents electric mobility in the city, with a variety of products and above all a quality, so high, as to make them almost iconic and a point of reference for all other companies. Among our shopping tips, therefore, the Segway Ninebot E22E could not be missing. It is an expensive electric scooter, but in return it offers everything you can expect from a product that is a candidate to be the best in its category. The maximum speed is, as always with regard to the most performing electric scooters, limited by law to 25 km / h and the autonomy of 25 km can be obtained with a recharge that is completed in just 3.5 hours. Driving comfort and precision are guaranteed thanks to the presence of 10 ”tubeless tires, cushioned. In a single shot we solve the problem of punctures and thanks to the gelatinous layer integrated into the wheels, we obtain an even greater damping of road bumps. The double braking system equipped with ABS is both electrical and mechanical to ensure maximum safety in every situation. Each component, from the aluminum frame, to the "smart battery management" system is designed to minimize energy waste. Then there are the classic front and rear lights and a color display from which to control all the functions that the Ninebot E22E makes available to us. The weight, about 19 kg, is unfortunately a compromise to accept, but it is a fact that, in the face of such a great technical data sheet, can easily take a back seat.
Segway Ninebot ES2
The value for money of the Segway Ninebot ES2 is certainly the strong point of this extremely versatile electric scooter. We define it as “versatile” because it is sold (often with strong discounts already at the start) with one rechargeable battery in about 3 and a half hours that offers an autonomy of 25 km but, following a simple operation, it is possible to add an additional battery pack that extends the autonomy of the product up to 45 km. In practice, without having to resort to particular modifications, you can adapt the configuration and weight - which stops at 12,5 kg using a single battery - of the Ninebot ES2 according to your needs. The suspension wheels are wide, stable and braked by a double system that includes an electric brake at the front and a mechanical one at the rear. Obviously there is no shortage ABS, Cruise Control, a front and rear lighting system and a digital display to keep all the fundamental parameters under control. A futile feature presented by this electric scooter is the customizable lighting system: cute and spectacular, it will allow you not to go unnoticed in the streets of the city.
Segway Ninebot Air T15E
Of all the offers available today, the one on the scooter stands out Ninebot KickScooter Air T15E which can be bought at only 399,99 € instead of € 749,00, an unmissable offer for those who want to switch to electric mobility. Compact but at the same time light and easy to carry because it can close completely halfway with a simple click, the Ninebot Air T15E scooter features a futuristic design and elegant, featuring a long LED ambient light customizable that runs along the stem. Ninebot Air T15E has aautonomy of 12km and is perfect for small trips around the city. Thanks to his 4 driving modes is a versatile vehicle that adapts to various routes, from the pedestrian one that does not exceed 6 km / h up to 20 km / h in sport mode.An important feature of Ninebot Air T15E is undoubtedly the innovative electric regenerative braking system applied to the front wheel, which is able to transform the energy captured during braking into charge for the scooter's battery. On the handlebar there is also a practical screen which provides the driver with all the information such as speed, driving mode, battery level and even maintenance alerts, so that they can check everything by simply keeping their hands on the handlebars. Finally, you can connect your Ninebot KickScooter Air T15E with theApp Segway-Ninebot and access on your smartphone to functions such as real-time statistics, Cruise control, personalization of ambient lights and much more.
Revoe Tech Street Motion
Revoe is a relatively young brand that aims to sell various products for electric mobility. Thanks to the medium-high quality of its proposals, in relation to really interesting prices, it has managed to carve out a slice of the market in the world of electric scooters; an increasingly difficult and crowded world from which it is difficult to emerge if you do not have the right cards to do so. Revoe Tech Street Motion is an electric scooter that looks to the point and that, for a price of about € 200, has respectable characteristics. The Samsung battery pack delivers 250 Watts allowing one top speed of 16 km / h and a maximum travel range of 15 km obtainable with a 3 hour charge. It is small, practical, easily foldable and weighs only 9,5 kg. The technical data sheet is completed by the central LCD display, the front and rear LED lighting, tires without inner tubes to avoid punctures and a front shock absorber to make driving safer and more enjoyable. As you will have understood, this is a product intended for those who have to travel short city stretches and do not encounter particular slopes. If we consider its lightness and charging speed, combined with a relatively low price, this could be the right solution for those lucky enough not to have to travel particularly long to reach the workplace.
GeekMe Electric Scooter with seat
Who says an electric scooter has to be used while standing? GeekMe offers a solution for all those who would prefer to have a comfortable support during daily commuting by inserting an electric scooter equipped with a seat in their catalog (sold separately with a small surcharge). It is to all intents and purposes a product similar to those seen previously, but the characteristic that distinguishes it is precisely the presence of a seat, easily installed and removed, which will give you a further new experience in the field of city travel. Without a seat, it weighs about 12 kg and folds up in 3 seconds, allowing us to use it as a normal electric scooter. The speed reached in fact is always 25 km / h with a maximum distance of 20 km obtainable with a recharge time of 3-4 hours. The wheels have no inner tube, there are front and rear lights, Cruise Control and an LCD display which will show us the classic data regarding speed, battery charge and the like.
Electric scooters: what to look into for a good buy
Electric scooters are relatively simple tools whose sole purpose is to take us from point A to point B in our city in total comfort and safety. Precisely to guarantee ourselves that these two important aspects are respected when buying an electric scooter, we must examine the fundamental components of these products and choose, also on the basis of our needs and expectations, which characteristics to privilege and with which we are willing to compromise in order not to exceed our pre-established budget too much.
Battery
When buying our new electric scooter the first thing we are going to look at will certainly be the autonomy in terms of kilometers that can be traveled. From a "safety" point of view, the scooters that we have recommended in our article are all built, designed and tested by reliable brands: by purchasing one of them, you will not run the risk of unpleasant overheating. It might seem like a remote possibility, but with products of dubious origin and seriousness it is not uncommon to have fires.
Having clarified the safety issue, we can therefore talk about the batteries themselves. The autonomy declared by the manufacturer, exactly as it happens for cars, is influenced by many factors including the weight, the speed adopted, the amount of climbs faced and their slope, the charge level and, for the models that support it, as we will see in the next paragraph, the regenerative braking force that we will set according to our preferences . In general, the values envisaged by the parent company do not differ much from reality and leaving a couple of kilometers of autonomy as a margin limit, we should have no problem getting to our destination and returning home.
Some models, with a heavier weight, offer extremely capacious batteries that allow distances that easily exceed 60Km, in this case, however, the handling and transport are affected and if these were to be important factors for us, it would be better to move towards other solutions.
Which? Fortunately, the market is varied and offers products for all tastes, some electric scooters allow the insertion of an additional battery which can be attached to the scooter and removed when the stretches to travel are shorter. For those who need to maintain a certain degree of portability, but do not intend to deprive themselves of their new green means of transport to reach more distant destinations than usual, this is certainly the category of products to look for.
The brakes
The only limit between us and the scorching and hard asphalt, the wall of the building, the pole or the cat that appears suddenly, are the brakes. Again, it is important to turn to reliable brands when buying an electric scooter because trust me, you would never want to have the feeling that something goes wrong with braking when at 30Km / h you will find yourself a sudden and impossible obstacle to get around.
As for electric scooters, the type of brakes available usually falls into three categories: mechanical, disc and electric. The first is nothing more than the classic brake with which, through the rear foot, we slow down the scooter thing by pressing down a sort of "mudguard" that wraps the wheel at the top. This type of brake is called "Flex Fender".
The disc brake needs no introduction. Among the 3 it is certainly the most effective type of brake and as for the Flex Fender, it is easily modulated. They consider that braking takes place via a lever placed on the handlebar and that, if you already own bicycles, we should have a certain sensitivity in applying the right force to reduce braking distances to a minimum without nailing, the disc brake could be without shadow doubt a right choice.
The electric brake is obviously the most technological of those mentioned, the most useful, but also the most difficult to manage in the early days. This braking mode is implemented via a "button" mounted on the handlebar which, acting as a small lever to be activated with the thumb, slows down the travel of the electric scooter they directly exploit the enormous braking force that only electric motors are able to guarantee. We have defined this type of braking as “useful” because it contributes to recharging the battery.
The regenerative braking that occurs when the accelerator is released deserves a separate chapter. This recharges the battery by slowing down the scooter without any kind of intervention on our part on any button. If from an energy point of view it might seem an attractive solution, in reality, before setting it via application on the scooters that support it, the decision on its degree of incisiveness must be weighed very well, especially based on the paths we undertake daily. In fact, if our journeys were all flat, a setting that allows gliding when the accelerator is released, would certainly be much more interesting than invasive braking even when not required. In addition to this, from personal experience, I can assure you that before deciding to set it to both an average force and a high force, it is good to familiarize yourself with this driving mode: release the full throttle at 35Km / h and practically find yourself to slow down in the space of a few meters due to high regenerative braking, it is anything but a pleasant experience.
Many mid to high-end scooters adopt a mix of these three types of braking, it is up to you to find what you like best and the one you feel most comfortable with.
The wheels
Although it is a component of primary importance, the decision on the type of wheel we want for our scooter is completely personal. We can opt for two main models: wheels with inner tube and Flat Free wheels, or "solid" wheels.
Tubed tires are certainly more comfortable than Flat Free. The latter, however, do not require any type of maintenance and are not at all subject to punctures. Before orienting yourself on those equipped with an inner tube due to the countless holes in your city, also carefully evaluate the damping system of electric scooters equipped with solid wheels: if it is performing enough to compensate for the lack of an inner tube, try to prefer this type of products as a puncture several kilometers from home that would ruin your day, could always be around the corner.
Accessories, options and Companion apps
Other elements that may interest you during the purchase of an electric scooter are the portability, the handling and all the various goodies that such a product can offer.
For example, if you want a scooter that is easy to transport, in addition to looking at the weight, you should find out about the quick coupling / release mechanisms of the handlebar with the footplate. Some scooters are easier to fold than others, but that doesn't mean you have to give up great stability and sturdiness once unfolded.
Many manufacturers offer official accessories that are well suited to the size of the handlebar. For example, if you imagine you want to use your mobile phone as a navigator, it would be useful to inquire about who offers the most comfortable accessories, but above all who presents the app store of our smartphone, the application that best interfaces with the scooter and offers the functions. we exactly need. Do not forget that the space on the handlebar is limited, hooking up the phone and losing sight of the main information on speed and battery, is not exactly a good idea, so better to use official accessories and applications that show us everything we need.
Finally, for those wishing to use the scooter in the darkest hours, it would be useful to have a look at the safety devices sold as an option or present at the factory such as the reflectors and the headlight installed on the handlebar to illuminate the road ahead. Even the LEDs, apart from giving flashiness for those interested, especially in the evening they can turn into life-saving devices helping others to identify us more easily in the dark.
