This Beautiful 'Tesla Of Scooters' Ditches Charging Cords In Favor Of Battery Swap Stations
Everyone's been buzzing about the Gogoro, the so-called "Tesla of scooters," so I decided to check it out at this year's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.
The Gogoro is a futuristic smart scooter that is entirely electric.
It can reach speeds just shy of 60 mph, and it features a killer design with parts that are machine tooled using the same techniques that high-end sports cars use.
The high level of design also extends to software inside the Gogoro, which allows for an incredible amount of customization. Riders can use the Gogoro app with their iPhone or Android to change the colors of the lights, monitor their battery usage, find a battery swap station, call for help if they crash, or locate where they parked.
When you speed up, the Gogoro's headlight increases in brightness to throw the light further in front of you.
The real genius of the Gogoro, however, is its state-of-the-art battery switching system, which gets rid of the hassle of charging up your battery by having users swap out the two batteries nestled underneath the seat instead.
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No more sitting around waiting to go somewhere with your scooter plugged in.
When I was shown a demo of the battery switching in work, the entire process of turning in your batteries and getting two fresh ones was incredibly easy, and while I wasn't counting, Gogoro claims it only takes 6 seconds.
You just pull out the batteries, slot them into the station, grab the two fresh new batteries that are released to you, slot them into the scooter any which way, and you're on your way again.
The scooter's intelligent software not only monitors your Gogoro for any potential issues, but it also monitors your riding habits to see when you tend to recharge, and it can actually talk to the other charging stations so that they can anticipate where and when you'll stop by, much like a commuter's tendency to stop by the same gas station on the way home from work.
Besides being convenient, this also helps the Gogoro stations use energy efficiently and extend the life of the batteries by not continually charging them.
You really notice the top-notch design of the Gogoro when you take a look at the scooter's machined skeleton.
A large majority of the vehicle's structure is one, machined piece of metal, and there are also multiple places to attach accessories such as saddle bags, clips for attaching grocery bags, baskets for groceries, and even a frame for holding a basketball if you're on your way to work out.
While there still isn't a launch date or price, Gogoro CEO Horace Luke told me that they're targeting people between the ages of 18 and 28, and since you'll pay for access to the battery station with a subscription like Netflix, the company will be able to offer a highly designed scooter for a competitive price.
You can see what the Gogoro looks like in action below, or head on over to the website for more details.