JackRabbit review: An electric bike like no other | Engadget

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JackRabbit review: If a scooter and an e-bike had a baby

an electronic bike, but it’s categorized as a scooter in some jurisdictions. Thanks, in part, to its size, at 48 x 21 x 39 inches it’s comically/helpfully small. There are no pedals, chains or gears – it’s throttle mode only, like a tiny electric motorbike. At 24lbs it’s also pretty light. The advertised range is 12 miles, the top speed is 20mph delivered by a 300W motor / 150Wh battery combo and it will cost you $1,200 new in a range of four spiffy colors.

Or, if like me, you live in an apartment block and maneuvering a full-size bike downstairs with a small elevator is just straight-up hassle, the JackRabbit is a pure delight. No kidding, I have to stand a regular bike on end and hope no one’s waiting downstairs as I barge the door open with the front wheel. With the JackRabbit, I can actually just ride into and straight out of the elevator if I want.The first time you take the JackRabbit out, the center of gravity takes a little getting used to.

Some other quirks of the JackRabbit’s size include your feet occasionally rubbing against the wheels, tight turns definitely require a little more forethought and I do wonder the addition of footrest pegs on the front wheel too might give an alternative riding style – almost putting you in a slight “chopper” seating position.

It actually didn’t take long before I found myself just taking this thing out for fun rather than as a means of getting somewhere. Although it had already usurped my scooter and regular-size e-bike as a means of transportation, I was now just using it for the fun of the ride, too.not I subsequently discovered that each LED appears to remain on as you accelerate until it’s about to drop down to the next one. At which point the LED remains lit unil you apply the throttle and it dims. This is a way of letting you know you’re at the lower end of that section of the battery indicator. So it’s slightly more informative than just three LEDs, but it’s still not a great indicator of remaining time or range.

If there was another small addition that might help here, it would be regenerative braking. Right now, the JackRabbit doesn’t have it, but with just one rear brake to speak of, it seems something that might be easy to implement and enable a modest saving of power, especially as most inner-city commutes require a fair amount of stop-starting anyway.

 

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No pedals? Then that's a small electric motorcycle

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