Inmotion - S1F

The inmotion S1 is a solid choice. A little under your budget, built for a bigger guy, front and rear suspension, and has really solid range.

I've been recently getting acquainted with our handlebar friendly friends the humble e-scooter! Thanks to Ed and Tim for letting me rip around and get the feel for two of the most popular entry level suspension e-scooters on the market. Here are my findings! Segway Ninebot MAX G2 Rider weight: 85kg Range (hilly areas): Top 50% - 13km Bottom 50% - 11km Total range - 24km (would go further on flat areas) Top speed - 36km/h (device) 33km/h (GPS) on flat with a little more to give, likely 40km/h max Average speed - 15km/h Elevation gain (top 50%) - 257m Elevation gain (bottom 50%) - 134m I honestly felt like my wrists were going to fall off. There is definitely a lot of pain in the wrists even after just 5km - taking the front splint out of 187s might help. Coming from electric unicycle obviously I am not used to having my hands do so much work while riding. I have also not made adjustments to the throttle position as this is not my hardware so that could help quite a bit. There's just barely enough power in the MAX G2 to get me up a substantial incline without overheating. That should go without saying considering the low nominal output power. On long inclines the speedometer flash red indicating overheat of battery or motor. I would have to stop frequently on long inclines in order to allow it to cool down. I ran the entire test in sport mode (top mode with acceleration assist unlocked in app) as I am not a lightweight rider. Inclines of 10-15° would result in a top speed of 14-17km/h at full battery, whereas a short incline of 20-25° reduced me to 4-7km/h. At inclines of 30° I was completely stopped even in sport mode. This isn't going to be what I'd consider commuter viable for anyone over 75kg - unless they live in dead flat suburbs. Pedestrians are quite a bit less friendly than with other PEVs. E-scooters definitely have more of a stigma attached to them already, which is sad. Some people are friendly however, not everyone was scowling. I see way more positivity or neutral attitudes from the public on the EUC. Electric skateboards are somewhere in the middle. Segway rate this e-scooter as being able to survive 20,000 km before major failure however every bump I go over and every misaligned paver makes me doubt that very much unless all of those kilometres were done on a perfectly laid road. I could not get the cruise control to work at all. I tried both modes - neither would engage. This could be due to custom firmware that the owner advised me about. If I could have engaged cruise control it would have taken away a lot of the wrist pain due to having to hold the throttle on the whole time. I was able to set the regenerative braking which automatically applies after letting off the throttle. I found the weak setting to be the most intuitive and safest. I found strong to be reasonably easy to get used to however due to the low power of the motor, I would not use the strong regenerative braking setting in hilly areas with heavy rider weight, as the regenerative braking introduces extra strain on the motor. As a heavier rider it might be better to leave regenerative braking off and coast instead, to allow the motor to cool down after long inclines. This is a shame because regenerative braking extends range. I love how the MAX G2 has a 3 amp charger built into the board itself and you only need to carry a clover style direct 240v power cable to charge it. I don't know how much extra weight this adds, however most people would be carrying the charger in their backpack anyway. There is also a DC barrel jack port for external power bricks. I prefer having less weight on my shoulders so this is an excellent design choice. Unfortunately I was unable to get the e-scooter to report that it is on charge/connected to mains power, neither in the app or on the physical screen on the stem. This was while using the inbuilt 3 amp charger and external 240v cable. This is a huge design oversight as every other PEV I've owned or ridden has a charging indicator somewhere on it or some way of letting the user know that the charging has commenced. It blows my mind Segway of all manufacturers would not have this simple indication. I wish the horn was a ringing bell sound not a beep sound. Pedestrians act more predictably when a sound is emitted similar to a bike bell. Sometimes they would not react to the beep at all. I tried riding forward stance and side stance. Both I found to be reasonably comfortable with little foot fatigue. Even the relatively short deck is ample for my height at 6'5 however my back foot was always on the rear guard not on the deck itself. While in side stance I would keep both feet on the flat of the deck. Braking feels more predictable and safe when in forward stance. Cornering feels more predictable and safe when in side stance. Toeside cornering is a piece of cake however heel side cornering is terrifying as a beginner which is strange because I had the complete opposite experience on electric skateboard. I was pleasantly surprised to find that shifting weight off of one foot to provide some respite was relatively easy and did not affect balance. I was able to shake the loose foot to provide some blood flow and rest. Again this may only be because I have experience riding EUC one footed, however having the handlebars must be a contributing factor. The suspension is very good and can handle going up and down 45° curbs without too much issue. I did find myself wanting for more suspension travel however coming from an EUC like the the S22 Pro+ that makes sense. I am now interested to know what the difference is between the hydraulics suspension on this MAX G2 versus the spring suspension on other escooters. Despite the suspension being so capable, every time I went up and down 45° curbs I did worry quite a bit about where the stem folds down. I think it's quite absurd to assume the manufacturers claim of 20,000 km before failure. One gripe I have is the fact that you cannot control the regenerative braking variably like you can on an electric skateboard. Basically if the throttle is off the computer controls how much regenerative braking to apply and your only option is to use the physical drum break to slow down further. As far as off-road goes I only took it on grass and very light gravel for short distances. I wouldn't dare take it anywhere else, as the stock tires do not have the tread for it, nor does the e-scooter have the power for it. I found it to be predictable and reasonably comfortable on grass, whereas gravel I would not corner at any speed over 10km/h. Generally speaking, I was pleased with the results of the MAX G2 considering a modest 36v system, 900w peak power / 450w nominal, and 550wh battery capacity. Very efficient, reasonably comfortable. However, if you weigh more than 75kg and intend to commute regularly in hilly areas, you need 1kw+ nominal motor power in my opinion. Note: the model I tested had a tuned controller, the stock controller would be even more lacking when it comes to climbing hills at a heavy rider weight. InMotion S1 Rider weight: 85kg Range (hilly areas): Top 50% - 22.5km Bottom 50% - estimated same as above or less Total range - 42.5km (would go further on flat areas) Top speed - 30km/h (device) 29km/h (GPS) on flat with nothing more to give (locked by firmware) Average speed - 15km/h Elevation gain (top 50%) - 268m Elevation gain (bottom 50%) - estimate same as above or less With a bigger 54v system and a 500w nominal power motor, the S1 takes off from the line a lot faster and with more urgency than the MAX G2. I expected the range would be a little more too, with 675wh battery capacity. The suspension system is also a little different and perhaps a little firmer than the MAX G2. I definitely feel more fatigue in the hands after short periods. I could not even finish the range test due to discomfort in the hands and wrist, I bowed out at 50%. I have a new appreciation for hands free PEVs! The power of the S1 is certainly excellent for commuting and effortlessly carries me up 10-15° inclines without much reduction in top speed, as I coasted up one such incline both in drive and sport mode with no problem. Eco mode does tend to suffer a little with hill climbing but not much. In drive mode I was able to ascend an incline of 20-25° and my top speed was only reduced to 13-15 km/h. I am definitely enjoying the slight bump up in power, whereas the MAX G2 felt a little too underpowered. Instead of user controlled indicators on the handlebars, the deck lighting indicates left and right depending on the lean angle of the S1. Not too good for letting those behind you know your intentions ahead of time, so I have to say I prefer the MAX G2 indicator system more. I am glad to report that the S1 has a simple physical ring bell on the handlebars which is my preferred way of letting pedestrians know I am approaching. Even though the deck space looks bigger on the S1 there is actually less usable real estate than the MAX G2 which is a problem for me being a taller rider. The stem latch on the deck also interfered with my rear foot position several times which was not an issue on the MAX G2. However the stem latch on the S1 is definitely more trustworthy when folded up and transporting by hand. Carving stability is a little more concerning and wobbly on the S1 due to the reduced deck space, particularly at speeds at or above 25km/h. Braking is definitely more aggressive and less predictable than the MAX G2. I feel like the S1 could definitely throw you over the front handlebars if you hit the brakes hard enough. This results in better emergency stopping lengths for the S1, however there is a trade-off in safety for the rider under normal conditions. The S1 applies both front drum and rear regenerative braking with the one brake lever. The throttle on the S1 is difficult to maintain a coasting speed without pushing the throttle down to maximum position. This is likely due to the increased power of the motor. Unfortunately remaining in sport or drive mode and trying to maintain lower speeds like 15 km/h is tricky due to the sensitivity of the throttle. I definitely found that the throttle was exceedingly twitchy in sport mode to the point of frustration. Having to ride with the throttle fully maxed out regardless of mode is a glaring oversight and definitely a cause for safety concern. Releasing the throttle however was smooth and predictable, which is important. For some reason, despite the extra power of the motors on the S1, I was not able to exceed 30km/h, which could be unlocked in the app or through some other firmware job. However, unlike the MAX G2 I was able to utilise the cruise control once I gained access to the settings in the InMotion app. The cruise control is wonderful on the S1 and is easy to engage simply by holding down the throttle as consistently as possible for a few seconds. It even engaged as low as 7km/h, however as the throttle is a bit twitchy I had trouble locking cruise control on at higher speeds. But at least it worked, and had me grateful to finally be able to rest my hand in the late stages of the test ride. Conclusions The S1 is definitely the pick for power and hill climbing ability for heavier riders as well as range capabilities, but the MAX G2 is the pick for safety and comfort on shorter rides. I would personally buy neither, but instead look for another e-scooter with the best aspects and attributes of both - possibly a Segway with more power or twin motors. InMotion need to sort out their twitchy throttle before I'd consider their e-scooters.

Set to S mode to reach max speed. The easiest way to check whether it is S1 and S1F is speed. S1F can exceed 18 mph at flat road

I'm about the same weight, I had an inmotion s1f, it was great while I had it, handled hills decently, range was solid. I only had it for 3 days before I got hit by a car, but put about 45 miles on it, it did everything I threw at it.

I'm right around that weight, I just got an inmotion s1f, I was sorta nervous that it wouldn't get around very good with as much as I weigh, but it's been great so far! Really easily gets up to the not-quite-25mph advertised on flat ground, and carries me around 16mph on decent hills. Handles my towns rough roads pretty handily as well, very satisfied with the performance. The rear fender did break almost immediately, it's just cheap plastic, but I just took it off and am planning on rigging together a sturdier break light setup. Can't speak for anything off pavement though. Probably depends on what light gravel means to you.

I'm about 290, my bag was about 20lbs, and when I had an s1f, it very easily got me to 24mph, and would go down to 15mph on the bigger hills in my area, but would handle them fairly easily, I was extremely impressed with the performance of it. Didn't have it very long so i can't speak to reliability at all, but it did everything I threw at it.

I previously had an e glide d150 which was a 36v dual 350w 15ah scooter that had 8.5 inch tires,  but I ended up putting 10 inch tires on it. That used to spin the front wheel when you took off but it topped out at 34kmh, I liked it and rode it for a few years but the stem snapped and so I got a climber as the replacement.   Since then I've put some good mountain bike locking grips on it, got a 5 amp fast charger and I used the escooter patcher app to unlock it to 40kmh and I've been really happy with it. I've measured and the front is the same size as a Ninebot max G30 so I'm pretty sure shark set or monorim front suspension will fit, or I'm sure you could make it fit, with an air shock that would be sweet.

I concur, I have the S1 and it pushes around 19-20mph on flat round (I’m 158lb) fully charged. The S1F should do 24-25mph under the same conditions. IMO, are you over 180lb, a joyful ride requires dual motors.

I recently bought the S1F and can top out in normal mode around 20-21 on flat surfaces and i weigh 225 lbs. i commute with it on avg 15 miles a day and typically have about 67% battery left left. Pretty solid scooter and satisfies my needs. In Sport mode i can get up 25mph. Hope this review helps.

From my understanding by reading the reviews on Amazon most of those reviews are for the older Inmotion S1 which has a significantly slower top speed and is front wheel drive. The newer updated S1F is significantly better and the one I bought a month ago came with proper turn signals like the ninebot max G2 . So I think the reviews are a little outdated on Amazon.

Half claimed range - if you're very lucky and you have to go very Slow ! Hills will flatten battery even more than speed. 30 miles , 15 each way ? 15 miles on a scooter is hard, and then work ? 30 mile trip ? Gruelling ! Duel motors use more power, so not good range. Some people claim things that are not possible. I got 34m equiv on infamous claimed 59mile range S1 @ 12mph it used 49% battery. I bet lower 51% of battery would NOT do same again heck most scooters slow down under 60%. Oh ,they don't like cold either.

Personally I'd bump Inmotion to A Tier. I've had the S1F for 2 years now and it's absolutely rock solid.

Anyone know the difference between s1 and s1f? I bought a s1f of marketplace not sure if it’s s1 or newer s1f

Also anyone know how to hit the 25mph stated on the s1f ? Even going downhill I only hit 19mph. Flats 18mph

I’ve got an inmotion s1 from a coupe years ago. Super smooth ride cause of suspension and huge range, but it is a bit heavy and the app that’s included is a bit jank. Got it for $1200 on sale

The Inmotion S1F or L9 has been around for years and it’s a decent scooter.

The S1F and S1 are pretty much the same scooter. The S1 is a bit slower but has a little extra torque. I’m just worried that the single motor might struggle with your weight going uphill. The Climber is smaller and has a poor range, plus it uses tubed tires. Besides the S1, the only other reputable brand with similar scooters is the Segway Max G2, but there’s no point in getting it for a big guy like you since it’s smaller, slower, and has less battery range. If you are looking around $1200, you might want to check out the Punk Rider Pro. It goes 31mph, has tubeless tires, an IPX6 rating, dual 600w motors, and suspension.