NIU Electric Scooter for Adults - NIU E-Scooter for Commute 600W-900W Max Power. 18-41 Miles Long Range, 17.4-23.6 MPH Portable & Folding, UL Certified

I just crossed 100 miles on the KQi3 Pro yesterday, and I adore it. I can't afford a car in this economy, so I've been walking all over the place in Texas for years, and this gives me a massive amount of freedom. This thing's built like an absolute tank, and incredibly well-designed - you can definitely tell that NIU has been building actual sit-down scooters for years, and they're the only scooter company I know of listed on the NASDAQ, so I feel pretty confident that everything's above-board and I'm not driving around on a lemon. At the price I paid($500), it's clearly the best scooter for the money right this moment, unless you can still find the Max model for $600(I missed that by a literal day, they sold out). It might be worth it to look into the NIU 300P or Segway Max G2 for their suspensions, but if you don't mind feeling the bumps a little in your knees, this is well worth the price savings; those are $800+! Most bumpiness is absorbed by the tires, anyways, and I think for a first e-scooter, not having a suspension might be better for learning how your scooter interacts with the terrain.The KQi3 Pro weighs around 45 pounds, and the folding/latch mechanism is widely considered the best on the market by most reviewers. It's rock-solid and makes it easy to bring up and down a couple flight of stairs every day. It's not quite lightweight(look to their Air model for that, but it's twice the price), but I have no problem carrying it around. I use it for commute, and my 27-minute fast-walk to work turned into a 17 minute scooter trip at 9MPH and a 14-minute trip with speeds unlocked and 20MPH on long, straight paths. Previously I only walked around 2 miles out, and with this, I've made several trips 6+ miles from home. I've downloaded like 8 fast food apps in the past month, it's amazing, haha. I strongly, strongly recommend getting a U-lock and never ever ever leaving your scooter unattended without it locked down. I got a nice Kryptonite U-lock in a physical store for only $20, but Amazon seems to sell comparable locks for $40. I'm going to double up with a U-lock AND a chain whenever I have to leave it outside for over an hour, like at the DMV or when I'm giving plasma.I weigh around 195lb at 6"1 with very long legs, and it's comfy for me, even if I do have to look straight down to see the little display. At 9MPH you really do get 31 miles of range. At 13MPH I found that I'd get 26 miles, and at 20MPH, it was more like 21 miles. I rode at 9MPH for a couple weeks, raised it to 13MPH for a few days and then accidentally set it to 20MPH, only to find that 20MPH is totally comfy at my newbie level of experience. Throttle is good enough that I can go 20MPH on straight, flat paths, release a little throttle to drop down to ~12-14MPH on uncertain terrain, and release further for sharp turns at ~7-9MPH. Regen braking is spectacular, I have it set to Weak(the default setting) and I usually just let regen do the job, but the dual disc brakes are very effective for quicker stopping. Almost ran over a squirrel a few days ago when he ran across my path unexpectedly, they saved his bacon! Braking is arguably more important than accelerating, and they didn't skimp out at all here. The headlamp feels perfectly sufficient for illuminating the path ahead at night(double-tap the power button to turn it off or on), and it's freely adjustable. Some people buy extra lamps and latch them onto their scooter handles, but I feel zero need to do so. The headlamp is perfect. The KQi3 lineup is water-resistant and dust-resistant, IP54, so it should be able to handle the rain, but I'd recommend only scootering if it's a very light rain; if it's heavily pouring, you're not gonna have great traction and you're significantly more likely to suffer a bad fall. Same with the snow - if the path is iced over, you're a lot more likely to fall. Don't scooter over snow, and try to keep out of the mud and leaves. I recommend a tire cleaner spray and a microfiber cloth over hosing it down, it may be water-resistant but hosing down a device like this isn't really recommended. Better to baby an e-scooter, no matter how much of a tank it is.I went overboard my first week with a 3/4ths helmet that was way too hot and heavy, and found out I have an XXL head that needs a larger helmet, hence staying at the slower 9MPH for so long. Ended up getting a Bontrager Wavecel XL helmet, standard bike helmet design. Safety first, but you do need to consider comfort and heat. Motorcycle helmet'll provide maximal protection, but honestly, at 20MPH or below, a bike helmet'll probably cover your butt and it's significantly more comfortable. Don't be like me, get a well-fitted helmet from day one. Top dangers on a scooter are head injuries, then abrasions, then broken/strained wrists and knees. Helmet takes care of the main thing, and at some point I'll get some motorcycle armor for the rest of it. I haven't fallen a single time, but apparently it's an inevitability, especially at higher speeds and in unfamiliar areas.Recommended accessories: bike pump($10), Kryptonite U-lock/chain($20-$80), phone mount($16), a second charger($20), a scooter bag($25), a two-shoulder-straps backpack. I also ordered Armor-Dilloz self-healing tire solution, the 9.5" NIU KQi3 Pro tires are great but they aren't self-healing. This'll resolve small punctures even better than the more common Slime option that's cheaper and more readily available. At the moment, replacement tires only run you $27 each, brake disc rotors are $7 each and brake pads are like $2 each. I haven't had to change anything out yet, but apparently it's a pretty good scooter to maintain.Oh, regarding the app, some people complain about it but I think it's absolutely perfect for newbies. You have to scooter at a lower speed for a little bit before they let you unlock the higher speeds. You can turn off the setting that makes you go 3MPH before it'll activate throttle, but I'm going to keep that on long-term. It's a great safety feature, and I walk faster than 3MPH, so I just walk a couple steps with the scooter and hop on.So yeah, the KQi3 Pro is top-tier, can't recommend it enough. I'd like to get a Segway Ninebot Max G3 once that hits the market, that'd be the next step up, but it'll probably be more than twice the price of this and weigh 10 more pounds, so it'll be more of a hassle to carry up and down flights of stairs. I hope to use this for many years and thousands of miles, and I will definitely update my review if I run into any problems.

The KQi3 Max isn't perfect, but under $800, it can't be beat and does the basics well.The acceleration is good and it can take medium hills, unlike my entry-level M365. It's hard to modulate the throttle to gently accelerate or stay at slow speeds, but the regen is nicely tuned. The brakes are grabby, but once you get used to them, you can smoothly modulate them and stop very quickly. Shock absorption isn't great because there's no suspension, but that's hard to find at $750 and below. The weight is much higher than entry-level scooters, so it's harder to carry up stairs or sling over your shoulder. Battery life is excellent, with performance dropping a reasonable amount below 50% and the scooter still usable and capable of going above 15mph.Bonus features: I like the ability to "lock" the scooter so it can't be easily rolled away by a thief, which is nice for quick stops when a U-lock is inconvenient or difficult to affix. The headlight is bright but has a limited beam width/height. There's not too many firmware settings besides top speed, although zero start is available if you don't like kicking off. Be careful: it's easy to accidentally push the throttle and swing your scooter forward!Modding: There's no major firmware modding groups for NIU, but their firmware has most of the features you'd want. It's easy to replace the handlebar grips and add accessories since it's a standard 22mm diameter. There's a repair manual available online and it's easy to access the 48V wires and put small electronics behind the dashboard (I'm adding turn signals and a brighter headlight). Unfortunately, there's no kits to "drop in" front or rear suspension, so you'd have to do a lot of fabrication. Ditto for a rear cargo rack, which is inconvenient when you're getting groceries.The competition: Below $800, you might be able to find suspension or dual motors, but I couldn't find reputable scooters that do the basics as well as the KQi3. At $850+, the Ninebot Max G2 is an excellent scooter, but rarely goes on sale or is available refurbished. It also has merely adequate brakes and worse performance below 50%, so I don't regret skipping it (although I am jealous of the better accessory options).