The high brightness of the new 2W headlight effectively improves the safety of riding at night. The light irradiation angle has a new design that keeps the light below the line of sight to avoid headlight dazzle. The Xiaomi 1S is a foldable electric scooter designed by Chinese tech giant Xiaomi (pronounced "show-er-me"). It is manufactured by Ninebot, who also manufacture their own e-scooter (the Segway branded ES2). Like the M365, it has a simple folding design, 30 km (18 mile) range, 25 km/h (16 mph) top-speed, low weight and pneumatic tyres. It also boasts cruise control, front and rear lights, E-ABS brakes and a dedicated phone app (the Mi Home app seen below). The frame is also basically the same as the M365. The main plastic platform is slightly smaller than its larger Pro 2 sibling, but there’s ample room to have even large feet resting one in front of the other. Unlike rival scooters, the rear fender doesn’t double-up as a brake and carries a ‘no step’ warning with it, which is slightly annoying given the rear foot naturally wants to sit here, but it feels strong enough to handle it. You can delve further into the e-scooter’s settings using the three dots at the top-right of the main app screen. This section lets you activate cruise control, choose whether you want to keep your taillight on all the time, update your firmware and even change the scooter’s units of measurement (both on the LED display and within the app) from the default kmph to mph.

The 1S battery has the same capacity and power as the M365 battery, and the scooter retains the same top-speed of 25 km/h (15.5 mph) and range of 30 km (18 miles). The range is pretty accurate (at least to begin with) but the speed tends to hover around 14 mph. Xiaomi also claim the battery on the 1S has been improved so that it takes less time to charge (5 hours) and has a longer overall lifespan (partly by limiting its charge so that it reads 100% charged when it is, in fact, only at 93% of its real capacity.

Xiaomi Mi Electric Scooter Overview

Easily switch speeds at the touch of a button. When commuting to work, press S to go faster. When cruising around the park, press D, and in crowded areas, you can turn on the pedestrian mode to go slower. Simply double press the power button to switch between modes and easily adjust the speed to your surroundings.

There are currently 3 models in the Xiaomi Mi Electric Scooter range. Starting with the best value entry-level model, Essential, sitting alongside the mid-range, mid-priced 1S model and then onto the powerful top-of-the-range Pro 2 scooter. High quality batteries guarantee a riding distance up to 30km as the Forty 18650 li-ion cells offer altogether a high capacity of 275Wh. Smart battery management system (BMS). Dual braking system Outfitted with regenerative and disc braking at rear wheel, E-ABS system at front wheel. After carefully removing the e-scooter from the box, pull up the steerer tube until it’s upright, then secure it in place by pulling up the latch at the bottom of the steerer tube; finally, secure this latch with the release that you simply drag across. It’s all fairly intuitive even though it may sound complex. Next, you need to attach the handlebar to the stem using the four screws and Allen key provided. The biggest upgrade on the Xiaomi 1S is its LED display and three riding modes. The M365 has only two riding modes and four battery indicator dots, making it the only e-scooter I’ve reviewed without a display. The 1S also seems to have ironed out any kinks with the patchy Bluetooth connectivity I experienced when I rode the M365. When the headlight is turned on, the tail light will automatically turn on. When the brake lever is pressed, the tail light will blink to alert pedestrians and vehicles behind you. The tail light also has a rear reflector function to ensure safe riding.

Xiaomi Mi Electric Scooters : Compare Models

To fold the e-scooter, slide the release securing the latch on the steerer tube, pull down the latch until the steerer tube starts to fold, then secure it in place by attaching the lever on the bell to the protrusion on the rear mudguard. Again, it’s simple enough to do without even referring to the manual and you can fold or unfold the e-scooter in under five seconds once you get the hang of it. Pedestrian mode is indicated by a walking man icon and it tops out at 3mph; ideal for when you’re walking with your e-scooter because the throttle doesn’t activate in this mode. Drive mode is denoted by a blue “d” icon and has a top speed of 12.5mph. The fastest is Sport mode, denoted by a blue “s” icon, with a maximum speed of 15.5mph.