Glion Balto X1 Review

Glion’s latest line of electric scooter, the Glion Balto x1, is a significant improvement of its predecessor, the Glion Dolly foldable electric scooter.

Balto x1 was designed for everyday use and comes with a 500-watt hub-mounted motor and 36 V 10.5Ah battery, providing a top speed of around 17 miles per hour with a 20-mile range per charge. When combined with a 500-watt portable power inverter (sold separately), the electric scoter transforms into a portable power source for all your needs.

If you’re looking for a great electric scooter for running errands, traveling to and from work/school, or simply strolling, you might want to consider the Glion Balto x1 scooter. It’s compact, comfortable, convenient, and comes with a mountable seat, carrier basket, and swappable battery. Additionally, it’s water-resistant, meaning that it rides in any weather. Here’s a review of this affordable top-class scooter/e-bike.

    Glion Balto X1 – The Lowdown

Glion Balto X1 Specifications 

Glion Balton X1 Cons

The battery could be more powerful as max speed is 17mph

 Not ideal for riders weighing over 225 lbs

Summary

The Glion Balto x1 employs a compact, lightweight design which can easily be folded up and stored in an apartment. The e-scooter incorporates a 500-watt hub-mounted motor with a 10.5 amp-hour battery providing a top speed of around 17 miles per hour and sufficient power to ascend slopes. The battery is detachable, making it easy for riders to recharge or swap out in the event of long-distance travel. Users have the option of attaching an inverter (sold separately for $ 75) to use the battery as a power source for smartphones, laptops, and other portable electronic devices.

When not riding, you can effortlessly tote around the scooter thanks to the two small traveling wheels and a lightweight, compact design. The traveling wheels are attached to a small rack, which props the Balto up when not in use. Moreover, it can be used to store items if you’re not scooting around.

The Glion Balto scooter operates in two modes, where you can drive around standing or seated. The seat is placed at the rear of the scooter’s footrest and can easily be mounted for added riding comfort. If you love to ride while standing, you can as well detach the seat and turn it into a stand-up scooter. The platform is wide and spacious for enhanced riding comfort.

The e-scooter integrates outstanding safety features assuring riders of their safety. Some safety features on the scooter include brake lights, sidelights, and headlights.

In essence, the Balto x1 is an exceptional e-scooter with versatile functionality plus enhanced performance. It’s lightweight, folds down easily, and safe. It’s versatile in that one can ride it while standing or sitting, as per your preference. This is a relatively good bargain for such a multifaceted scooter and with an introductory price of $699 in the United States (exclusive of shipping).

Performance Overview

The Glion Balto comes with a powerful Samsung 36V 10.5 Ah battery that can power the scooter for up to 20 miles. The battery has a charging time of 5 hours and can easily be swapped when it runs low. Make sure you get a spare battery (costs $199) so that you can swap in when running low on power. The batteries can be used to charge your portable electronic devices when attached to an inverter, which is sold separately. With the inverter, the Balto transforms into a powerful 500-watt portable power station—a feature no e-scooter or e-bike has offered.

Regarding performance, the new Balto x1 excels on the roads with moderate elevation. The scooter contains new performance upgrades that set it apart from its predecessors. The electric motor churns out sufficient power to propel the scooter to a maximum speed of 17 mph. The dual suspension enhances stability and offers a smooth riding experience. The braking system has been completely revamped with the added brake lever and rear disc brake for enhanced braking. The Balto x1 performance guarantees a comfortable riding experience, shorter journeys with longer-lasting charge thanks to the new and improved battery.

Top Speed & Acceleration

With a top speed of 17 mph/27Kmh and a driving range of about 20 miles on a single charge, the new Balto is no speed demon. There are better scooter options if you love speed. Balto’s top speed is an improvement of its predecessor, which topped a maximum speed of 15 mph. All in all, the 17 mph top speed is sufficient for casual riders running errands.

With a peak 750W geared brushless hub motor battery, the Balto’s acceleration is sort of average. However, when compared to its predecessor, Balto has enhanced acceleration guaranteeing shorter journeys. Nonetheless, the scooter is relatively slow compared to other scooter brands, such as the Mercane Widewheel Pro scooter, with a top speed of 26 mph (43km/h).

Controls & Display

The LED display on this electric scooter is actually not the biggest. Yet, it manages to deliver all the information needed for a quick ride as straightforward as possible. Frugal as it may be on the details, you’d be easily able to check the scooter’s remaining battery life, your current speed, and Bluetooth Pairing status. You’d actually not be able to see the cockpit at first glance if the scooter is turned off, as it’s just around the size of the scooter’s neck.

To zoom in on what the app does, it’s basically a more detailed extension of the dashboard. It offers a real-time speedometer, map routing, cruise control, and light control. It’s not really that useful, especially that your rides on this scooter are quick. But, it’s nice that they managed to develop quite an app for this specific model.

Battery Life & Range 

The Glion Balto x1 has an estimated range of 20 miles per charge that sets it apart from its competitors, such as the Xiaomi 1s, which has a lesser range. With such a high range, you’re assured of covering longer distances on a single charge. However, the range may change depending on the terrain or change if you’re using the battery to charge your portable electronic devices.

Motor Configuration

This e-scooter’s motor is quite peculiar, as it offers 300W worth of torque and speeds of up to 18 mph. There’s no indicated climbing range on the scooter though, but we would assume that it can power through most inclines with ease.

Construction & Build Quality

Constructed with a quality aircraft aluminum frame, the Glion Balto x1 has a solid, durable build. The construction encompasses wide (24″) fold-down handlebars that lock into the rear fender and a foldable stem.

Apart from being compact, the scooter is also quite durable. The frame is reinforced by alloy parts, notably in the stem, fork, handlebars, and locking mechanism, enhancing durability. The construction is solid enough for riders weighing up to 255 lbs/115 kg, edging out other e-scooters with a similar price range. With such a solid built, you’ll feel secure and comfortable even when riding at high speeds without navigation stiffness or annoying wobbles.

Ride Quality

The Glion Balto x1 offers an outstanding ride quality thanks to the quality dual suspension, military-developed 12-inch pneumatic tires with a honeycomb interior, and a comfortable seat. You’ll undoubtedly be amazed by the riding quality whether you’re riding while standing or seated.

Operating the scooter is also straightforward. Get the scooter freewheeling via a gentle kick-off and then gently press the throttle to accelerate gradually. The scooter offers effortless riding thanks to an outstanding suspension coupled with the wide air-filled pneumatic tyres, which seamlessly absorb shock from the road surface, enhancing comfort and creating a steadier ride.

Braking

Braking on Balto is pretty seamless, including at high acceleration, thanks to the electronic anti-lock brakes buried in the rear hub motor. There is also a rear fender foot-activated brake, further providing precise braking.

The brakes can be applied easily, even at high acceleration, while also reacting quickly to pressure, enabling it to achieve an impressive braking distance. If you’re a rider who highly values quick stop ability in an e-scooter (and who doesn’t?), you’d be hard-pressed to consider Balto x1.

Portability

The Balto is highly portable, attributed to its lightweight design with folding handlebars and stem. The scooter can fold into a space of less than one square foot, and its luggage rack converts into a stand. The 38-pound scooter can be pulled while folded courtesy of a couple of little wheels. Folded down, the measurements of the Balto neatly compact at 95 x 30 x 20 cm making it smaller than most scooters in the market. Besides, the scooter integrates a locking mechanism, safely allowing you to lock it in place when not in use.

Water Resistance

Unlike its predecessor, the Dolly electric scooter, the Balto x1 is water-resistant with an IP rating of 54. This means that you can use it in light rains as opposed to other non-water resistance e-scooters. However, in wet weather, proceed with caution due to slippery surfaces. Make sure to use your best judgment when choosing to ride in rainy or snowy weather.

Lights

With Balto’s new lighting system, you can be sure to enjoy a night ride. From high-powered headlights to ultra-bright sidelights and brake lights, the bright lights keep you visible and safe at all hours.

Tyres

The Glion Balto x1 comes with premium military-developed 12-inch pneumatic tyres with a honeycomb interior. The tyre provides remarkable riding quality thanks to the broader surface area absorbing shock from the road. When combined with the dual suspension, it helps stabilize the overall riding experience. The never-flat airless rubber tyres mean that you’ll never experience a puncture while riding the scooter. In essence, the tyres perform excellently in providing a smooth, gliding experience by cushioning you against the shock from bumps and uneven surfaces on the road.

Deck

The Glion Balto x1 electric scooter has a new spacious platform measuring 17.5″ x 9″, allowing seamless movement of your feet when riding, whether sitting or standing. The sizeable deck supports a wide range of feet, sizes, and height.

Reliability, Warranty & Customer Support

The warranty you receive when purchasing one of these electric scooters is spot on. It won’t cover you for the normal wear and tear of the scooter but should you have any mechanical faults, then they will either fix it or replace the scooter for you. If you need to report a defect to them if you purchased the scooter directly from Glion, then they have a section about this on their website along with all the contact details and instructions.

Maintenance

The Balto x1 requires little (if any) maintenance. There are no chains or gears; thus, there’s very little maintenance to be done on the scooter. Regular maintenance practices you can undertake on your Balto include charging it regularly, checking bolts, cleaning, checking the tires, and lubricating moving parts often.

Known Issues

From what we know about this electric scooter – we don’t have many known issues to report about it.

Accessories

The Glion Balto x1 offers several accessories for enhanced functionality. Some accessories are available at an additional cost. They include:

Included Accessories

• Battery Basket Seat Attachment

• Dual-Purpose Cargo/Vertical Self-Standing Rack

• Rearview Mirror Handlebar Attachment

• Balto Scooter 2A Charger 36v 10.5ah

• 36v 10.5ah battery basket

• Handlebar attachment

• User manual

Is this Electric Scooter value for money and is it worth buying?

This Glion model is a higher price compared to some other electric scooters, however, this one does come with a lot of accessories which are included in that price. It’s the perfect commuter scooter, it folds away neatly and is then easy to transport around. The seat and basket it comes with are ideal if you’ve had a long day on your feet and want to sit down until you’ve made it home or you need a scooter with storage! But saying that, these can be removed if you don’t want to use them.

Glion Resource

Glion Website