For some time, an electric board caught my eye from time to time, but after several seasons passed, I never got around to trying one... It's just that there were all kinds of powerful scooters, unicycles, sur-rons, so there wasn't enough time for everything. Well, finally - our first flying saucer has arrived!
LAOTIE X5
Assessment:
What did we like?
What didn't we like?
Unboxing
Although LAOTIE is not some kind of high-end brand, we chose it because of its not bad parameters, attractive price and the possibility to order from the EU warehouse, so shipping took only 1 week. The unboxing experience itself is quite ordinary, everything is neatly put in its place, and most importantly, safely. Nothing is scratched, nothing is damaged, everything is luux! The board itself looks quite high-quality and solid, the wheels are rubber with gaps, the design is beautiful, there is also an LED strip at the bottom.
Preparation
If you need to assemble scooters and bicycles, you didn't have to do anything on this LAOTIE X5 longboard, just load the board itself, load the control panel and you could run to the track, that is, learn to stop and ride... Haha!
first time
As I mentioned at the beginning, it was the first electric board on which I had to stand and ride, so the experience and skills could be said to be 0... The posture here is completely different from that on any scooter, in terms of body balance and the position of the legs as well needed a few wheels to get used to. Well, of course, compared to any unicycle - everything is simpler here, and learning to drive and keep balance is faster and easier.
After about 15-20 min. I got used to the control panel, the ride became more stable, and the maneuvering became more confident. It was a lot of fun until we tried to switch between "low" and "high" power... Then it became DOUBLE FUN!
First impressions
For the first time, we basically tried to get used to the board itself, control, maneuvering. I managed to drive about 11 km with a load of about 85 kg + ~20% batteries remained. We tried to drive up the steepest hills of Vingios Park - there were no problems, because the LAOTIE X5 is equipped with 2x 1650W motors, which ensure not only a fun ride, but should also be perfect for extreme fans!
The manufacturer declares up to 40 km/h max. speed, but for the first time it was enough to accelerate up to 25 km/h. Next time you will need to put on full armor, a helmet and try faster! What else I liked is that with the electric board you can control not only the gas, but also the braking (motor braking). And braking is especially useful when driving downhill, when you don't feel completely stable on a new vehicle.
The control panel itself is charged via a mini USB connector, so you don't have to change the batteries, which I think is a plus. Anyway, although I can't compare it with something else, the remote control turned out to be a bit cheap, simple plastic, quite light, buttons, gas/brake wheel, nothing special either, but the most important thing is that it works. There is a slight dead zone and gas sensor, as well as a slight delay from pressing the gas to activating the motors, but it does not interfere with driving too much. However, this is only an entry / mid-range board.
With ~25% remaining in the battery - it felt like the power decreased when driving on "LOW" mode, but after switching to "Medium" or "High" - the board shot forward like a rocket again. Well, on the very end, something got stuck on the remote control itself, the gas was given suddenly and then when released, the gas remained for about 1 second. I don't know if it's because of the battery or something in the remote control itself, it will have to be checked during the next ride.
The last thing that could be better is the sound of the motors/belts. Personally, I would like the electric board to be quieter, especially at lower speeds. Now it turns out that it "makes noise" louder than the classic Xiaomi / Ninebot scooters. On the other hand, when driving at 20 km/h+, the sound of the engines decreases and is less noticeable.
Verdict
I really liked riding the electric longboard and it was a lot of fun! Due to its small wheels, such a vehicle requires a better and smoother road surface, because if you pass through some potholes or other larger irregularities, the insecurity factor appears. Plus, the stopping distance is longer than on a scooter, unicycle or bicycle.
If there is a good road from home to work, there are not many curbs or other road obstacles - then such an electric board can be used as a vehicle. However, in all other cases - I still think that it is more of a means for fun and, of course, a part of the trend!
The power is too much for me personally on the LAOTIE X5 model, at least for a while. I still don't feel stable and confident - I didn't want to press too much and the 80% was run on the lowest power settings. Maybe now I would even consider the cheaper and less powerful LAOTIE R5 model, I think it would be more than enough for fun!
