CHARGED AND READY
Four e-scooter brands are rolling on Auckland streets. They all offer something different. We road tested them to find the best.
Lime and Wave are no longer, but Aucklanders now have four rental e-scooter options to choose from – including two newcomers. Michael Neilson spent a morning riding the machines on the city's pavements for 20 minute trials. Here’s what he found – and how he rated the scooters.
NEURON ★★★★ ½
Price $1 unlock, 38c a minute thereafter. Also a range of passes including monthly.
Speed Good, steady acceleration to the top speed of 25km/h, which due to the solid design still felt super sturdy. There is a button to change the speed limit to 15km/h – handy for low speed zones, and for inexperienced riders.
Experience I felt by far the safest on this e-scooter, while still having a great time. The handling is excellent. It has a solid build and design, and the widest foot area of the bunch.
Verdict 4.5. In short Neuron was on top because it was fun, fast, but most importantly, the safest option.
JUMP ★★★★
Price $1 to unlock then 38 cents per minute. Owned by Uber and runs through the same app, making it quite an easy option for users of the rideshare service.
Speed Acceleration is gradual up to the top speed of 21km/h, and it has an inbuilt limiter to 15km/h in specified zones. It seemed to have less power than some of the others, especially Flamingo, and really struggled on slopes.
Experience Sturdy design and good brakes – probably the simplest to use given they're the same as on bikes – made it feel really safe, and it was almost as fast as Neuron, slightly quicker than Beam, but well behind Flamingo.
Verdict 4. There was little to separate Jump from Neuron, but I felt it was a little less sturdy, a little slower, and lacking a helmet definitely took away from the safety factor.
FLAMINGO ★★★3/4
Price $1 to unlock, and 38 cents a minute thereafter.
Speed Flamingo will get you from A to B faster than the rest, just hold on tight. It had the fastest acceleration probably due to its smaller size – up to a maximum of 25km/h. It also performed the best going up slopes.
Experience While fun there were times I didn't feel totally safe. Mine was a bit rickety and worn, perhaps due to its lighter build and it might be unfair to compare to some of the others that are a mere few days old. Handling was a little loose, too. It doesn't come with a helmet either, and given the speed and lack of other features, it was the only e-scooter I really felt like wearing one on.
Verdict 3.75. There is nothing really wrong with Flamingo, and it is a great option to get around the city, especially with speed. Just in comparison to the others the lack of safety features and less sturdy – older – design let it down.
BEAM ★★★ 1/4
Price For January it is free to unlock, then bumping up to 45 cents. It also costs 45 cents a minute to run, meaning it might be a cheaper option on shorter trips until January ends.
Speed I found the acceleration a little slow. You also need to push twice before you can press the accelerator, which may be good to burn a few calories, but it's not why I want to ride an e-scooter. It does have an in-built limiter which automatically drops the maximum speed from 25km/h to 15km/h when in specified low speed zones.
Experience It felt well put together, handled really well, and took the cracks and footpath dips a lot better than Flamingo. That said, having just a front brake made me a little nervous, and this was just on the flats.
Verdict 3.25. A little slower and a little less safe feeling with just the front brake.