Ninebot Kickscooter E2 Plus - Swings and Roundabouts

I have a love/hate relationship with scooters.

Many years ago I fell off a push-scooter on my way to work when I misjudged the weather conditions and the impact a bit of mud on the footpath would have on my high-speed cornering ability. This resulted in a dislocated right shoulder and the end of my short-lived stint as a scooter-commuter.

Fast-forward to the present day and wouldn't you just know it? I'm currently recovering from another shoulder injury - this time a broken left shoulder. Again the result of a muddy footpath but no scooter involved this time; just an uncoordinated old geezer slipping over in the wet.

It takes a long time to recover from smashing your humerus into four bits, so it was with some ironic trepidation I took delivery of an eScooter for review just a few days after my visit to the emergency room. Obviously, I wouldn't be able to do it much justice with my arm in a sling so it sat in its carton, just taunting me, for weeks on end.

Finally, after many physio sessions and a series of consultations with my orthopaedic specialist, I decided it was time to take the plunge and open the box.

The Ninebot Kickscooter E2 Plus powered by Segway is easy to assemble; it's pretty much just a matter of inserting the handlebar column into its housing and tightening a couple of bolts with the included Allen key.

I was immediately impressed by how solid, durable and generally well-designed the Kickscooter E2 Plus is - from the compact yet reliable kickstand right up to the robust handbrake and warning bell, every component in between seems built to last.

The black and grey colour scheme isn't exactly head-turning but it's not over-the-top either. In saying that, you have the option of making more of a visual impact by adjusting the lighting effect via the Ninebot companion app - but we'll come to that shortly.

First, let's make sure the 220Wh battery is fully charged. I was surprised to discover the charging brick is very compact - no bigger than the power adapter for most other appliances. That means it's also light and easy to carry with you for a top-up charge at your destination if required. However, charging time is not particularly snappy - around 7.5 hours for a full juice-up. That should get you about 25kms though, so I imagine it'd be rare for most users to have to charge more than a couple of times a week.

Further setup - including firmware upgrades - happens via the aforementioned app and a very full-featured app it is too. Here you can name and register your scooter, lock and unlock it and access some more specific functions not adjustable on the scooter itself.

For example, the Kickscooter E2 Plus can be set to automatically enter "Cruise Control" when travelling a constant speed for five seconds or more, meaning you no longer have to hold the throttle down until you brake. There's also an Energy Saving function to retrieve kinetic energy from braking to help conserve battery life.

Speaking of braking, it's smooth and reliable thanks to the twin form-factor; an electronic front brake combined with a rear drum brake.

The wheels are fairly large and feature 8.1-inch Inner Hollow tyres - meaning they're puncture-proof but also that they're quite hard. This makes for a pretty bumpy ride, especially given there's no other form of suspension to cushion the impact of curbs and cobblestones on my poor, embattled shoulders. This is a genuine downside to the design of the Kickscooter E2 Plus and I would steer you away if you're considering using it on anything but smooth footpaths and cycleways.

The LED dashboard in the centre of the handlebars is clear and simple - like me. It shows your speed, remaining battery and what riding mode you're in; Walking, Driving or Sports. Obviously, Sports mode offers a bit more speed and power at the cost of a certain amount of battery life.

The top speed is supposed to be about 25km/h - which I rarely achieved mostly due to avoiding pedestrians and encountering hilly terrain. This is the Kickscooter's other major downfall; when I say "hilly terrain" I don't mean particularly hilly. Anything over a 12% incline and this eScooter becomes a push scooter again - especially given I'm hovering around (or perhaps just over) the recommended maximum driver weight of 90kg. On my first ride, I was quickly disappointed to discover I couldn't even get around my block under full-electric power because there were a few short hills along the way.

The only other major drawback I encountered was moving the scooter around when I wasn't actually riding it. You'll see me struggling to carry it down steps in the video below. Unfortunately, I filmed this before I realised there is in fact a way to lock the Ninebot Kickscooter E2 Plus in its folded position and it's quite clever - once you know how to do it. 

There's a small hook on the rear mudguard which fits into the spring-loaded trigger of the bell on the left handlebar. If all else fails, read the instructions I guess. At over 15kg, the scooter is still fairly heavy - especially for younger riders - but folded down it fit easily into the boot of my little hatchback.

The scooter is rated IPX4 for water resistance and the battery IPX6 - still, given my painful history with wet footpaths I'm not sure I'm ready for any rainy excursions just yet.

However, the rest of the time I've found the Ninebot Kickscooter E2 Plus to be a useful way to cover short distances a lot quicker than I would by foot. It's a very well-manufactured piece of kit and feels extremely solid, if not particularly speedy or powerful. It has good safety features like bright head and taillights as well as side reflectors. The companion app is also quite straightforward, yet full of features and even offers the ability to record and share aerial videos of your rides courtesy of Google Earth.

It's a very tidy package and at just under NZ$700.00, I think it's pretty good value for money, despite its limitations.

    

Click here for more information and pricing on the Ninebot Kickscooter E2 Plus.