Summary

Apollo has demonstrated that practical scooters don’t have to look or feel boring with the Air and Air Pro. The Apollo Air screams sporty, quick, and fun with its all-black, angular design.

At an entry-level pricing, it provides a superbly steady ride with the presence of a high-performance scooter.

The Apollo Air sports a mixed tyre design (bigger front than rear tyre) and front spring suspension, both of which are comfort-inducing elements.

The Apollo Air feels quite durable and well designed for riding in clement weather without breaking, with a sizable rubberized deck, an IPX4 water resistant rating, and legitimate fenders.

The progressive profile tyres, which allow you to easily carve through bends and accelerate down straightaways, are by far our favourite feature. The Air’s tyres put 30% more rubber on the road than the narrower tyres of a scooter like the Xiaomi Mi M365, which results in outstanding stability.

The Apollo Air falls short of the ideal beginner scooter’s requirements since it should have dual brakes (a front and rear brake setup) and be able to stop in less than 5 meters.

When you stop to park your scooter, the kickstand is not the most convenient to locate with your toe. Additionally, because to the Air’s low 8.3 cm, the bottom edge of the rear fender may catch when descending curbs.

The Apollo Air is a fantastic first scooter since it looks great and handles even better, but with a top speed of 25.1 km/h and a range of 22.4 km, you have ample performance for daily commuting.

Acceleration

The Apollo Air has instant power, unlike the majority of kick-start scooters, which require repeated kicks or double-tapping the throttle to get moving. Unlike the Gotrax G4, which has a finicky throttle and requires many strikes to accelerate, there are no amusing timing concerns.

The basic Air, like the majority of entry-level scooters, has mild acceleration, reaching 24 km/h in 7.1 seconds.

Hill Climb

The Air performs well on incline gradients of 4 to 6 percent since it loses less speed going uphill.
The Apollo Air is no different from most tiny scooters in that it struggles to ascend steep hills.
The Air climbed our 60-meter hill test at a 10 percent slope in 32.2 seconds and at a speed of 6.9 km/h.
If you are of a comparable build and need to ride up hills with a 10% slope, our 74 kilogramme rider would not recommend the Air.

Top Speed

The Air has a fantastic ride, but not a fantastic top speed. The maximum ESG speed is 25.1 km/h, which is the restriction in several countries.

Despite being a little slower, you can easily pass the majority of bikers (average 19 km/h pace), preventing traffic congestion in the bike lane. For the majority of regular commuters, the Air’s top speed is enough.

Range

The Air achieved an ESG range of 22.4 kilometres, exceeding Apollo’s specifications. With some room to spare, this is cozy for a 16 kilometer roundtrip commute.

Braking

With the exception of hydraulic brakes, disc brakes are the most effective type of brakes, and the Air has both a rear disc brake and a rear regen brake.

Although having a primary and secondary braking system is excellent, the Air’s emergency braking distance with both brakes on the rear tyre is 5.3 metres. To put things in perspective, an automobile is typically 4 metres long, so it would take you a little bit longer to stop than that.

Ride Quality

The Air truly shines in this situation. The ride is quite sporty, steady, and smooth.

The Air carves really effectively because to the progressive profile tyres and spring suspension. While still using cruise control and riding smoothly and quietly the entire trip, we discovered that we were being a little more daring than on the typical entry-level scooter.

The brakes’ abruptness makes it difficult to gracefully come to a gradual stop. The response to applying the brakes comes a little later than you might anticipate and stops you a little quicker than some others. It is mild enough for novice riders, yet it doesn’t feel like it will throw you off.

This sensation may be caused by the regen brakes, which are adjusted a little more aggressively than we would want. Due to the lack of performance settings (p-settings) on this scooter, the regen braking strength is unadjustable.

The Air’s sportiness and simplicity, on the other hand, make it ideal for beginners. In contrast to the majority of novice scooters, which have straight handlebars, these feature a lovely tilt toward the user. The only controls are a single brake lever on the left, a small display in the middle, and a thumb throttle on the right.

Although the kickstand keeps the Air upright, it can be a little challenging to aim your toe at it. Hoping off the deck, tilting the scooter slightly, and pulling it down with the side seemed to work best for us.

Portability

The Air lives up to its moniker in that it weighs a light 16 kg, which most riders could lift into a trunk or take up a few flights of stairs.

The Apollo Air is heavier than some other models in its class, lacks folding handlebars, and has fairly large folded proportions of 119 cm long by 56 cm broad by 53 cm tall, therefore we would not classify it as an ultraportable.

Folding hook and ring

The Air includes a neatly constructed folding hook that, when not in use, magnetises into a cavity.

The scooter folds down rapidly, and to keep it in the folded position, you loop the hook through a flip-up ring (anchor point) on the deck.

The area where the cables enter the stem serves as the ideal point of balance when folded. The weight of the scooter isn’t as pleasant to handle if you hold it higher or lower.

Cockpit

Because it is so tidy and uncluttered, the cockpit is easy for newcomers to understand. Even the assembly is simple thanks to the single plug-and-play connector that connects the handlebars to the scooter within the stem.

They are ideal for new riders when it comes to controls. With the straightforward cockpit, you can manage the scooter with both hands while using the left hand for stopping and the right hand for accelerating.

The thumb throttle has a decent reaction and is placed in an ergonomic way for regulating speed.

Although it requires a little more effort to use, the brake lever is efficient. The handlebar form is distinctive and athletic, with comfortable handgrips, and has a terrific look and feel, in contrast to most entry-level scooters.

A bell is located on the left handlebar to alert pedestrians and other bystanders, but it won’t be loud enough to alert drivers of cars that you are nearby.

The oval display in the centre offers straightforward information, but it could be brighter and easier to read outside. The display can be used as shown above.

Display controls

Power, riding mode, the lights, and cruise control are all controlled by a series of clicks on the one button, with indicators for each function, as well as a power metre and speedometer, displayed on the screen.

Lights

The Apollo Air has a high-placed headlamp that can be adjusted up and down, a taillight mounted on the fender that responds to the application of the brakes, and orange reflectors on either side of the back wheel. A reflector is also included beneath the headlamp.

We like that you can change the angle of the light to better fit your needs, but we’d prefer it if the headlight were a little brighter and the projection was a little more focused.

Tires

The tyres are our favourite component and the one that has the biggest impact on ride quality.

The 25 cm front and 22 cm rear pneumatic road tyres on the Apollo Air have a progressive shape and offer excellent cushioning.
The contact patch, or area of the tyre that meets the ground, is broader on the Air’s tyres compared to other entry-level models’ tyres, like as those on the M365, giving it a more steady feel.

Although flats are still possible, the smaller rear tire’s location on a split rim makes it simpler to change in the case of one. The other tyres on the standard Air and Air Pro models have solid rims, so you must remove the wheel to replace them.

Deck

The complicated, geometric tread pattern on the rubberized, angular, all-black deck holds your shoes but also collects dirt in the grooves, necessitating the occasional brushing with a toothbrush.

You have plenty of standing room on the deck, which is 49.5 cm long by 49.5 cm broad and tapers in at the back.

Build Quality

The Apollo Air feels sturdy and well-made, with very few visible screws and cables. It has a straightforward, elegant design that, although not being one, resembles a performance-level scooter.

The Air is well-built for beginners, from the dual fenders and pneumatic tyres to the racing-style handlebars and lighting package.

Fender performance

The front and back fenders are substantial and offer great water defence. Water cannot leak from the rear fender’s sides onto the deck because they are filled in.

The deck remained entirely dry throughout our actual water test, proving how effective the fenders are.

There is a handy spot on the rear fender for a plate if you live in a place where electric scooter users must have licences and be registered.

One issue with a full-coverage fender is that it is prone to getting trapped on curbs, especially the rear. It is constructed of hard plastic that is brittle and can crack or break off entirely.

Weather resistance rating (and build)

The Air has excellent fenders and an IPX4 rating. We even looked inside the “hood” and were really impressed with what we discovered.

The motor controller is set high up, against the deck, and the bottom cover of the scooter is placed over an inner cover. The connectors are covered by heat shrink wrap but are not waterproof once inside the deck. The scooter will function properly in the rain as long as the display does.

The motor controller is set high up, against the deck, and the bottom cover of the scooter is placed over an inner cover. The connectors are covered by heat shrink wrap but are not waterproof once inside the deck. given that

Folding mechanism