Xiaomi 1S Electric Scooter Review

A Mid-Ranged Scooter With a Top Speed of 15.5 mph and a range of 18 miles.

The Xiaomi 1S electric scooter is a brilliant entry-level offering of Xiaomi in their 2020 line of electric scooters. It does get the job done, but since it sits more on the affordable end, it is understandably missing a few enhanced features that come as standard on higher-priced e-scooter models.

Even so, it’s still quite a feat of an e-scooter worth reviewing, as Xiaomi made sure never to disappoint with any of their offerings — may it be a new phone or even an electric scooter. 

For more information about the Xiaomi 1S electric scooter, read on.

Xiaomi 1S – The Lowdown

The Xiaomi 1S E-Scooter comes with a 250W motor powered by a 7650mAh/275Wh Li-ion battery, which powers through almost all general road surfaces that you’d expect an electric scooter to zoom through.

It has a maximum climbing range of 14% and only weighs around 27.6 lbs, which is still quite heavy for an entry-level scooter. The good thing about it is that it has a maximum load capacity of 220 lb. On top of that, it only takes four hours to charge. 

It’s not really a powerful electric scooter, but the Xiaomi brand makes up for a trustworthy name that you surely won’t be disappointed in. It lets patrons and consumers opt for a quality e-scooter and a great price from a trusted brand, overall making the Xiaomi 1S a great option to weigh in when looking for an electric scooter for the daily commute.  

Read on for a comprehensive look at Xiaomi 1S and its specs.

Xiaomi 1S Specifications

Xiaomi 1S Cons

Its maximum range and top speed is relatively low

Picky on roads since it doesn’t have a suspension

Battery life is not that long-lasting

Can’t take on steep inclines despite the 14% promised

Xiaomi 1S Summary

The Xiaomi 1S electric scooter is far from being the perfect scooter, but the best thing about it is that you get what you pay for, along with a little more. 

Hailing from the 2020 lineup of Xiaomi, this entry-level scooter that’s cheap and accessible goes head-to-head with Xiaomi’s earlier releases as the two offerings go tooth and nail to compete on price and performance. 

Circling back to the Xiaomi 1S, it’s a convenient scooter that surprises its level and price point. Despite sitting at the Xiaomi 2020’s lower tiers, it offers three riding modes (Pedestrian, Standard, and Sport), a motor-lock, cruise control, which proves to be super useful, and regenerative braking. 

On top of that, it also features 8.5” pneumatic, air-filled tyres and a companion app that lets your phone connect to the e-scooter as an extended cockpit and to have some extended controls for certain features. Along with this, the motor can be pushed from 250W to 500W if needed be on certain situations, making it better at climbing slopes and inclines. 

But as far as aesthetics go, the Xiaomi 1S electric scooter is not a far cry from its predecessors despite being a 2020 release. I guess Xiaomi believes that you don’t fix what isn’t broken, but you improve on the things people are complaining about from the previous iterations. The same can be said for its weight and riding speed, only having minor upgrades and additions to consider it as the current and updated model. 

For what it’s worth, the Xiaomi 1S is not that far a version from the M365, which gives little to no point of argument to compare which one’s better of the two. Priced at £361 ($499), it’s really hard to complain, especially that Xiaomi made sure to give off a price that’s both competitive and reasonable for the market.

With all these in mind, it’s up to you to decide which scooter you should get. But for now, let’s get into the nitty-gritty of Xiaomi 1S. Read on.

Performance Overview

The Xiaomi 1S e-scooter comes with a 7650mAh/275Wh Lithium-Ion battery installed. To charge it, you may open the flap that conceals the charging point somewhere at the rear part of the deck. You’ll know it’s charging when the LED display turns on, and the speedometer shows the percentage of the battery that has already charged. 

One battery alone can take you up to 18 miles far and at a maximum of 15.5 mph. And if you’re looking to make your Xiaomi 1S more powerful, there’s always the option to crank it up to 11 — pushing the motor from 250W into 500W for more torque and overall power.

Top Speed & Acceleration

The best it can function on a single battery installed would be 15.5 mph with the motor running up to 250W or 500W.

Keep in mind, though, that the road conditions, rider and gear weight, and weather conditions usually affect the numbers, so the results would vary for everyone.

With a 250W motor and a 275Wh battery in tow, the Xiaomi 1S e-scooter can take you to speeds of up to 15.5 mph, but getting there would need roughly a few seconds of waiting time. If you want to speed things up a bit, you can always opt to switch to the 500W torque at the cost of lower battery life.

Battery Life & Range

The battery of the Xiaomi 1S electric scooter is not the most powerful, sitting only at 275 Wh and 7650 mAh, and it’s starting to become the scooter’s main point of complaint. 

As it offers several riding modes — Pedestrian, Standard, and Sport, going for more powerful and power-heavy settings quickly drains the batteries up. 

For charging, its battery only needs four hours to fully charge, which is quite fast for an e-scooter like this. 

Motor Configuration

The Xiaomi 1S comes with a 250W motor powered up to 500W when needed to be. It offers enough torque to push the electric scooter to a climb rating of 14%, which is impressive for an e-scooter at this tier. 

Construction & Build Quality

Although Xiaomi doesn’t particularly specify what this electric scooter model is made from, its weight only clocks around 27.6 lbs and can carry riders up to 220 lbs. It’s also surprisingly easy to set up after unboxing, making it one of its most formidable selling points alongside its low price. 

All you have to do is unfold the scooter from its lock, push the rear fender down, and pull on the steerer tube until it locks into place. From there, you’d need to attach the handlebars using the provided Allen wrenches and four screws. 

The last thing you’d need to add is the bell included for a layer of safety. Then, you’re good to go as long as you have the batteries already charged! 

Suspension

There is no installed suspension on this e-scooter model. The only thing that acts as its “suspension” are the pneumatic air filled tyres that it has installed. 

Surprisingly, they do work like a charm and give the electric scooter a comfortable feel and overall quite decent ride quality.

Ride Quality

The Xiaomi 1S isn’t the best one out there, but at least you get a bit more than what you paid for. For one, its motor tends to struggle on slopes and inclines despite its 14% climb rating. 

The stock tyres it comes with do give a good amount of suspension This electric scooter does present you with three modes to ride in, but the sport one seems most logical at most times, especially when you’re in a rush. 

Lastly, its cruise control makes the entire riding experience easy and bearable — making up for a doable and enjoyable ride. 

Braking

The braking system of the Xiaomi 1S electric scooter is a wee bit peculiar, with its front sporting a regenerative Kinetic Energy Recovery System (KERS). In layman’s terms, it only means that using it pushes and feeds a part of the kinetic energy it creates back to the battery to sustain the power. 

This disc brake is a bit mellow. So, if you need to stop faster, opt for triggering the mechanical rear brake by stepping on the rear fender.

Portability

The Xiaomi 1S electric scooter weighs only 27.6 lbs, roughly the load weight of two average-sized babies combined. 

Since its neck snaps and locks to place when folded in, it’s not a big problem to try and carry it around or park it indoors when the batteries are charging, or the scooter is not in use. 

Water Resistance

Much like any Xiaomi electric scooter from the 2020 line, only the underneath of its chassis and a part of its controller is waterproof. But, everything else is IP54 rated, which means it can’t really power through heavy rain or deep puddles. 

The Xiaomi 1S is built to withstand some water passing through it, but it’s not something expected to take a full dip. Take care of its motor and battery to only go out in light rain – avoiding deep puddles, and you’d be good to go. 

Lights

The lighting set up on the Xiaomi 1S electric scooter is pretty simple as it offers a 1.1W headlight and brake lights. 

The lack of side lights is compensated for by great quality reflectors, and that the rear light’s settings can be controlled with the app that comes with the electric scooter. 

Tyres

The Xiaomi 1S electric scooter features standard, run-of-the-mill, 8.5” air-filled pneumatic tyres that are grippy yet offer enough suspension. 

They’re a great pair to work with, especially that they’re the only source of suspension on the electric scooter, yet it manages to make the entire ride comfortable and overall peaceful.

Deck

The deck offers ample space to stand on but is not that big. It also allows for a seat to be installed whenever you feel like riding without cramping or tiring your legs by standing. 

Its entire length and width are also padded by a grip, ensuring you’re safe to go no matter what driving speed you are riding on. 

Controls & Display

This high-performance electric scooter boasts ergonomically designed controls that are comfortably latched onto the two handlebars. Since this scooter comes with rear and front brakes, the brake levers are placed on both handles. The left handlebar also houses other controls, such as the key lock, horn button, signal-light buttons and on/off headlight button.

The accelerator sits to the right, alongside the clear LCD display. This latter shows the power level, ride time, battery level speed, and more. In addition, it boasts two switches that allow riders to switch between modes.

The LED display is simple and straightforward, as it displays the following:

• your speed and remaining power
• what mode you’re currently in
• some maintenance lights to alarm you if need be
• the Bluetooth prompt to show that the e-scooter is connected to the app that’s in your smartphone.

The riding modes can be toggled by pressing the power button twice. Meanwhile, pressing the power button thrice quickly turns the headlight on. To know which riding mode you’re in, note that a blue “d” beside the speedometer means you’re in drive mode. A “blue s,” on the other hand, denotes the sporty mode. Lastly, a walking man means you’re in pedestrian mode (maximum 3 mph). Its drive mode has a speed that maxes out at 12.5mph, while its sport mode takes you to top speeds of over 15.5 mph. 

Additionally, the Xiaomi Home app easily acts as an extended dashboard that connects via Bluetooth and replicates the E-scooters LED display. This app can also be used to lock the scooter wheels when you need to leave it for a while. It is the only place where you can access the scooter’s cruise control as well.

To give you a better idea of how cruise control works, it more or less checks in if you’re travelling at a constant speed for five seconds. Once it recognises the pattern, it beeps and takes over the driving for you without needing to hold down the throttle. 

On top of that, its app takes care of your backlight, as you can choose if you want it always on or choose an instance where it comes on or flashes. Not to mention, you may also control when acceleration is fed to the scooter between 0 to 5kph, as the default is set to 4kph. 

Reliability, Warranty & Customer Support

Stemming from Xiaomi’s smartphone tenure, the globally renowned brand makes sure not to break its name by offering excellent quality electric scooters at the fairest of prices. 

People appreciate how well-built the e-scooter is and how it’s filled to the brim with unique features, maximising both design and quality control that you don’t usually get from low-tier budget electric scooters. 

From the tyres to the app and even the upgraded specs, Xiaomi made sure this 1S entry would not disappoint. It looks great, feels good to ride on, and performs super well. It’s not known to break easily unless you have someone over 100 kg ride it — then problems would start popping out left and right. 

Astounding as the product may be, the only problem is their customer support, which is not particularly all that responsive or understanding of consumer problems and complaints. 

Maintenance

Aside from its tyres, it would also be wise to check on its batteries from time to time. Charge cycles can be tricky to track, but the only thing that’s going to give up first on this e-scooter would be its source of power. The good thing is that it’s super easy to replace. 

Accessories & Upgrades

The sole accessory that comes with this electric scooter is a bell for added safety on the streets. Aside from that, its free phone app allows you to duplicate the LED display and even have some extra controls for the scooter.

Known Issues

There’s an actual problem going on with this e-scooter model that is factory-born — and that is how weak the battery is. 

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

And this concludes our Xiaomi 1S review. Overall, it’s not a bad scooter, but it also isn’t the best. 

For its price point, it does offer and give a lot of added functionality that you won’t get from other electric scooters at the same level. Sadly, its weak battery and motor don’t make up for its weakness just because it’s well-accessorised, which still pushes it back a bit from the list of top scooters in the price range. 

Nonetheless, the Xiaomi 1S electric scooter is a bang for the buck product that can easily be improved yet again with a bit of research and tweaking. 

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