Ninebot Segway ES4 Review

Summary:

To be honest, not much, because it’s part of the ES series and isn’t really noteworthy.

In hues of grey, the ES4 has a utilitarian appearance and design. It’s simple to operate and was the industry standard for a reason — but it’s been surpassed by rival scooters (including those from the Segway line-up).

The ES4 is well-made, long-lasting, and quick enough to keep up with traffic. With twin batteries as standard, the ES4 has a 35 percent longer range and a peak speed of 29.5 kmh, which is 5 kmh quicker than the ES2.

The ergonomic cockpit with comfortable, rounded handgrips and the interesting under-deck (or swag) lights are two of our favourite aspects of the ES4. A Bluetooth-enabled smartphone app may control the lights, including colour schemes and patterns.

It’s quick enough to keep up with bikers in traffic, and its shared market appearance may deter thieves. The ES4’s firm tyres, on the other hand, prevent you from feeling any suspension dampening, making extended rides quite unpleasant.

Acceleration:

The Ninebot ES4 is quite simple to use. Acceleration from kickstart does not require experience or finesse. In just 6.6 seconds, it accelerates from 0 to 24 km/h. It’s not painfully sluggish, but it’s not a good place to start if you’re seeking for a quick fix.

Hill Climbing:

The ES4 doesn’t zoom up our 10% average grade, taking 19.7 seconds to climb 60 metres. It does, however, a decent job of sustaining a 26 kmh average speed up a 6 percent incline.

Top Speed:

The tested peak speed of 29.5 kmh is just fast enough to feel safe in traffic. It’s fast enough to pass cyclists in a shared bike lane heading up or down a hill.

Range:

We were startled by the low 24.6 km range for a scooter with two batteries. Unfortunately, the ES4’s sturdy tyres made the ride seem more like 32 kilometres, and it’s not a scooter you’d want to spend that much time on at once.

Braking:

The Ninebot ES4 has a regenerative brake as well as a foot brake. The regen brakes are effective and simple to utilise for everyday stop-and-go driving.
The rider must retain their back foot free to strike the rear fender, which activates the foot brake, in an emergency stop. Even with both brakes on, the stopping distance was only 5.4 metres.

This braking is acceptable given the limited peak speed, but it takes roughly 2 m longer to stop than comparative scooters like the Segway Ninebot Max (G30LP), which slows from 24 kmh to 0 kmh in 5.4 m.

Ride Quality:

Although the ES4 has dual suspension, it is insufficient to compensate for the roughness of the solid tyres. Over severe bumps, the front suspension clacks so loudly that it can startle surrounding bicyclists (and the rider themself).

The ES4’s riding ergonomics are excellent. The user may easily manage the scooter while keeping both hands on the handlebars thanks to easy thumb controls for the brake and throttle.

The ES4 is remarkable in that it feels fairly stable at its measured peak speed of 29.5 kmh. You won’t notice any speed wobble, and sudden inputs to the handlebars at high speeds will resolve instantly.

The ES4 is a little awkward to push up curbs with two batteries in the stem, and it doesn’t enjoy rolling over bumps without sliding forward, but this isn’t an issue when riding.
Finally, when the kickstand is folded, it emits a loud, echoing clack, which is fantastic for letting the rider know it’s securely in place but may be distracting in calm places. It performs a good job of keeping the scooter upright and fits neatly into a deck pocket.

Portability:

The ES4 seems lighter than it is when you move it about, thanks to its relatively light 14 kilogramme design. The stem telescopes but does not fold, and the handlebars do not fold but are somewhat small. Its folded footprint is 114 centimetres long, 43 centimetres broad, and 36 centimetres tall.
The handlebars’ breadth keeps the package compact and makes it easier to manoeuvre around doorways. When folded, the step’s clasp easily secures to the fender for better handling, although the broad stem makes it a little tough to grab one-handed.

The internal battery of the ES series is located in the stem (rather than in the deck). The ES4 feels more substantial than the ES3 since it has an external battery.

The stem is released by a flip-down tab in the folding mechanism. To fold, turn the tab down, then step down on the tab while applying modest forward pressure on the handlebars. The deck will be released from the stem via a mechanism on the scooter’s bottom.

Make sure the tab is turned up when standing upright so you don’t fold the scooter while riding.

Cockpit:

The ES4’s cockpit is straightforward, with thumb controls on either side of a single-button dashboard. The rider can power on, cycle between riding modes, and switch on the lights using the LCD, which is rather straightforward to see.

You may also link your scooter to the Ninebot smartphone app through Bluetooth, and when connected, an icon will display on the screen. Among other things, the app allows you to customise functions, execute firmware upgrades, control the lights, and lock the scooter.

The wide textured handgrips that are indexed to the handlebars are perhaps our favourite feature of the Ninebot ES4. This means they’ll remain there as you ride, which is a little but useful feature. They feature a wonderful gripping texture and a big diameter that makes them simple to grab.

Lights:

The Ninebot ES4 has a high-mounted headlight, brake-sensing fender-mounted taillight, and under-deck swag lights (also called as road effects) that can be tuned to a variety of colours for nighttime riding (through the app). On the sides of the front of the deck, on either side of the rear wheel, and on top of the fender, there are also reflectors.

The headlamp isn’t very brilliant, but the complete lighting package on an otherwise average mid-range commuting scooter is a pleasant surprise.

Tires:

The solid tyres, which are among the worst on the market, are one of the most unforgiving aspects of the ES4. When riding over bumps, they are rather stiff, and the narrow tread means they don’t give much grip and wear out rapidly.

On the bright side, the very firm rubber prevents flat spots in your tyres from forming during severe braking, which may occur with solid tyres made of softer materials.

Deck:

The deck is coated in a diamond-shaped pattern of thin rubber. It is 15.2 cm broad by 43.2 cm long with 9.1 cm of ground clearance and feels a touch narrow and short. Although the deck isn’t very small, there isn’t much room for varied standing postures.

The rear fender has three functions: it serves as a fender, a foot brake, and an anchor point when the scooter is folded down. As some scooters attach to the deck, this is a great design that keeps the deck clear of obstructions.

Build Quality:

The Ninebot ES4 fits well in with the rest of the ES series, with a similar build quality and overall strong build quality. Segway excels at cable management as compared to other manufacturers. The ES4 has no visible cables whatsoever, giving it an extremely clean appearance from top to bottom.

Segway has encased the motor controllers in transparent plastic since June 2019 to protect them from water.

Because the handlebars are joined by a single plug-and-play connector, the scooter is also incredibly straightforward to disassemble.

Water Resistance:

Although the ES4 is IP54 water resistant, early versions of the device have been known to experience motor controller failures owing to water damage in the stem.