Inmotion S1 review: as good as it gets!

Let’s be honest and… quick with this review: if you’re searching for the best VFM electric scooter in the market currently, then you’re in luck! Meet Inmotion S1 and buy it ASAP from here!

Let’s go over now the reasons we liked it so much…

Electric Scooters have been around for quite some time now, but their sales have began to rise only the past few years during or after COVID. Their main usefulness is probably for people living in urban and inner city areas, or in areas which have good bicycle paths. They’re also easy to use, easy to maintain and not so hard to drive 😉

Buy the Inmotion S1 from here

Inmotion has been working extensively on urban electric transportation like electric unicycles, E-bikes, and e-scooters for years. The S1 is one of their latest creations, an adaptation from the InMotion L9 model, which was crowdfunded on IndieGogo successfully back in May 2020. The L9 and S1 look very similar, they share the same controls and share the same smartphone application.

Basic Package

The Inmotion S1 has a multitude of features, the most noticeable of which are its big LCD screen display and Bluetooth Mobile App. Riders can set and access their performance settings, ride information, and performance diagnostic for any troubleshooting with a simple touch of the screen. Inmotion is leaps and bounds ahead of other electric scooter manufacturers in terms of technology and connectivity, and they’re a joy to watch. The S1 also includes a headlight, taillight, side mood lighting, and a bicycle bell for added safety.

Design: heavy duty

As you can see from this review, the Inmotion S1 is not light. In fact at a weight of 24 kilos, it will be a bit difficult to carry it around while commuting in metro lines etc. I loved the footrest deck. It’s solid and anti-slippery and able to withstand the weight of (max) 140 Kg (!). It packs 2 suspensions, one front and one at the bottom back so any ride is a treat, no matter how bad the road is.

One thing you should note from our review: the height of the handlebars is not adjustable, and it may be a bit high for children or small sized adults.

The S1 comes with full IPX5 certification, and the battery is rated at IP67. This means that you can easily use it while light rain, driving through wet roads etc. with no problem at all.

First time? Let’s connect the app

First thing to do for our review is to pair the smartphone app with the scooter. It’s called Inmotion app and you will find it available in both Play Store and App Store for free of course. It’s quite easy to pair it with the scooter. Just press the On/Off button of the handlebar, then go to the app and search via Bluetooth for the scooter. A single beep signals that you’re connected! With the app you can make any available setting of the scooter such as turn on/off lights, signal leds, typical LEDS, unlock the default speed limit and also check the remaining battery life. There’s support for miles and kilometers (you make the change from inside the app settings).

By default, the speed of the S1 is limited to 25 km/h (15 miles/h), but it’s easy to go into the app and turn this limit off (under vehicle settings). Doing this lets your scooter achieve the max speed of 30 km/h (18 miles/h).

Review: Control panel & display

The InMotion S1 is surely a scooter for beginners but also more experienced riders. It’s easy to use the control panel placed on top of the handlebar and the large display in the middle of the handlebars. There’s only one button, and it can perform the functions of power on/off, headlights on/off and to toggle through the three riding modes (Eco, Drive, Sport) by double clicking.

Quite straightforward and very easy to use even if you’re a novice. The throttle is thumb-based for increased safety: you press, and the scooter moves on after a small delay for security reasons. You stop pushing: the scooter decelerates. The pressure needed is excellent, so you won’t get tired after a long commute.

 Safety is all: nice braking

The S1 comes with an automatic electric brake on the back wheel, which kicks in automatically if you are going downhill and picking up speed rapidly, or have exceeded 30 km/h. You can feel the little push backwards (which could be a bit frustrating if you’re used to higher speeds) but it’s really for safety reasons. It could feel strange the first time you ride it but after some rides it becomes an acquired taste.

The InMotion S1 has a maximum speed of 35 km/h in flat roads but the manual brake on the left side works like a charm and can stop it in just a few meters. The placement on the left side may seem strange for some, but it’s soft to the pull and nice when needed to stop. It uses drum breaks – in both wheels which are preferable to disk brakes on a scooter because it means no parts are exposed, and so there are fewer mechanical parts to maintain.

Auto turn signals and full LED’s

At first it might seem as extravagant but to be honest, you NEED the LED’s this scooter packs. It comes with a set of roadfacing LED lights down each side of the deck. When commuting they stay Blue to mark your position on the road for other drivers. When turning the scooter, a bit to the left or right they turn RED to notify others of an imminent change of direction. The whole idea is great since it’s not safe to to take one hand off the handlebars to indicate your turn manually (as per a bicycle) due to instability.

The only downside to the auto turn lights is that they don’t activate until you either tilt the scooter or turn the handlebars in the direction you are going, so the guy behind you will see the signal only when you turn. Not sooner.

I loved the headlights. They’re placed high, at handlebar height, making them extremely visible at night to oncoming traffic. With the LED lights, the scooter really turns heads at nighttime.

Ready to go? Choose: Eco, Drive, Sport

If you’re a beginner, then you should choose ECO mode. It’s slow at just 12 km/h (7.5 miles/h) and the acceleration is soft. If you’re feeling sure about yourself then you can choose D (Drive mode) which is supposed to be a standard commute mode and limits your top speed to about 20 km/h (12.5 miles/h). It also limits the acceleration responsiveness to about 80% of maximum.

If you’re experienced scooter rider, then you can go for Sport Mode (S). This means that on a full charge you’ll get up to the top speed of 30km/h (18 miles/h) with the fastest possible acceleration. Personally, I used the D mode once, but it was slow for my taste. During my 2 weeks review I used S mode mostly. I think most users will choose this specific setting and they will love it.

Note also that I weight 100kg (yeah) but the S1 managed to carry me everywhere in my city, with no issues at all. It even reached 29 Km/h on a semi steep hill with me on it. The 500w motor with rear-wheel drive can tackle hill climbs up to 30% according to the manufacturer.  I wouldn’t advise you to try any steeper slopes. It’s quite powerful but be careful. Choosing each mode course will impact on the range you’ll get out of your battery charge; Eco will use the least amount of battery and Sport will use the most.

The scooter weighs roughly 53 pounds (24 Kg), which is slightly more than most $500 scooters, but this is due to higher-quality aluminum and a larger battery pack. As a general rule, the higher the quality of the scooter, the larger the battery and motor, allowing for greater range and top speed.

Range during our review

InMotion suggests that the S1 model can have a range of 95 km (59 miles) on a full charge. I fully charged it and used it for 6-7 days, and the total range I got was 68 Km. It’s not at all bad. The range depends on the mode you choose, your weight, the level of the ground you drive and so on. In any case, the InMotion S1 can easily handle my 19 km round trip daily commute, my wife’s chores trip (15 Km) and leaves some spare for other short journeys nearby to our home.

During our review, the scooter has enough power, range, features, and quality to carry you across the suburbs or inner city. You usually get what you pay for when it comes to electric scooters; the more you spend, the more you get. With the S1, you’ll surely receive more performance, comfort, and features for your money.

The charging ports are placed at the bottom of the scooter. Near its side. It packs dual ports for charging. With dual-port charging, it will take 3+ hours to get the scooter fully charged. However it comes with 1 single charging cable so it will need approximately 7 hours for a full 100% charge.

(More) Technical Specs in our review:

• Top Speed: Sport: 18.6 MPH, Standard: 12 MPH, ECO: 6 MPH
• Driving Modes: Eco, Standard, Sport
• Battery: 54V 12.5AH battery, 675WH
• Range: 59 Miles, (37 Miles tested in NYC) – More than enough for one day, good if you forget to charge the day before
• Charging: Dual Charge ports, 7.2 hours fully charge, 3.5 for dual chargers
• Power: 500W Nominal, Max 1000W
• Gradient: 30%
• Brakes: Powerful Drum and Electronic Brakes
• Tires: 10″ Pneumatic, Anti Skid tires, grippy, plush, easy to carve
• Comfort: Tall stem, long deck, anti slip surface
• Suspension: Dual Air Spring Shocks, super comfy, with 10″ tires
• Features: LCD Panel, Mobile App for Customizations, Bike bell
• Lighting: Bright headlight, taillight, side panels turning signals
• Portability: 3 Second easy fold stem (gym, Costco, work, groceries)
• Max Load: 309 lbs
• Materials: Aluminum Alloy, Rubbers, and Hard Plastics
• Weight: 53 lbs
• Waterproof: IP55, light rain, small puddles is fine
• Smart App: Connect to phone, blue tooth, changes settings

PROS

• Large display, intuitive controls
• Comfortable throttle during our review
  
• Remaining battery in display
• Cool LED lights, auto-turn signals, dual headlights
• Large non-slip silicon deck
• Front and back suspension

CONS

• Too heavy to take onto public transport
• Height of the handlebars is not adjustable
• High handlebar compared to other scooters

Conclusion

A long range commuter scooter with impressive performance. I loved the cool LED lighting and it’s easy-to-use controls. The application is excellent (but could be less Chinese in some parts). The large display is helpful while commuting but the weight of the scooter is NOT for extensive carrying.

I think it will be be perfect for any medium to long distance commute, given its large 68km real world range.

You can buy the S1 Scooter from here:

Buy the Inmotion S1 from here