The 'Tesla of scooters' is finally available and it looks incredible
The Tesla of scooters is hitting the market this month and its price is just about as stunning as its high-tech features.
The Smartscooter, made by the Taiwan-based company Gogoro, is becoming available for pre-order on June 27, the company said. While the scooter will only be sold in Taipei, Taiwan for now, the company does have plans to sell its scooter in other countries.
Priced at $128,000 in Taiwan's currency (or about $4,100 in US currency), the scooter is a steal. However, this was an introductory offer because Taipei is where Gogoro is piloting the scooter, so the price could be higher if the company succeeds in launching in other cities.
To make that deal even sweeter, the company is throwing in two years of free maintenance, one year of theft insurance and two years of free electric battery swapping from Gogoro's 32 charging stations in Taipei.
It's worth noting though, that the company didn't mention how much those batteries would cost after the two year period. And given that the scooters are only powered by Gogoro's batteries and those can only be retrieved at the companies charging stations, it could be awhile before the scooter makes it to cities outside of Taiwan.
Gogoro
The high-tech scooter, which is completely electric and powered only by Gogoro's batteries, is helping make Taiwan ready for the next phase of transportation, said the company's CEO Horace Luke, a former chief innovation officer at HTC, at a company press event on Wednesday.
It can be paired with your smartphone, features a digital display and comes with two removeable batteries, which give it a range of 60 miles.
The sleek scooter's digital dashboard colorfully displays the rider's stats, which can be customized to the rider's liking.
The venture-backed company garnered a lot of attention for its futuristic scooter earlier this year at the Consumer Electronic Show in Las Vegas. Since then, the company has continued to attract fans.
"It was beyond our imagination how well it was received," Luke said during the press event.