Amazon: Segway S1 for $299, Mistake? Getting Out of Single-Wheel Business?

[novazeus]

my first one came dead. would not charge either. it went back. the second one was fine.here’s the battery info on the s2 and s1.

[LanghamP]

3 hours ago, steve454 said:

Not sure yet, Got to charge it a few times and see if the batteries are any good.  So far , they seem subpar.

Hey, can you post your battery information like @novazeus? 

[novazeus]

i’m sure i could figure these numbers out with the help of the internet and ambition, but i have no desire to, i just wanted to compare the batteries to see if there are any clues to the differences between the s1 and s2, other than 2.5 mph more top end. i see s1 is 58+ volts and s2 is 62+volts. i guess that’s why the chargers aren’t interchangeable even tho their plugs are but different bricks.

[steve454]

19 hours ago, LanghamP said:

That can't be right. I've gone twice around my local park which is over 12 miles distance, and I was under 40% from a full charge (but noticeably weak pedals!). 

So for me it would be at least 12 miles, maybe even 15 although realistically we aren't talking more than 12 miles. 

7.5 miles seems like a broken wheel, and you say it's also weak, but my S1 has harder pedals than my KS16s on hard when idling. S1 is weaker than my Inmotion V5, though. 

I remember my S1 not turning on, I had to plug it in, got impatient after five minutes, and it was suddenly alive and above 50%.

I'm hoping the batteries just need to be charged a few times,  both times I charged it the app showed over 16 miles remaining,  I didn't mean the wheel was weak, just a little weaker than the E+. 

The pedals feel hard, even though there is no adjustment like on the E+, they have a good feel.

[steve454]

16 hours ago, LanghamP said:

Hey, can you post your battery information like @novazeus? 

Nope, haven't figured out how to post screenshots yet, but the battery information @novazeus shows for the second wheel with the 59V charger, looks real close to what my app shows, mah, voltage, BMS firmware.  After I got used to it, I was riding a lot near the tiltback speed, maybe that drained it faster.  Plus only having 59V to start with. 

Did yours come with the 59V charger?

[steve454]

18 hours ago, novazeus said:

my first one came dead. would not charge either. it went back. the second one was fine.here’s the battery info on the s2 and s1.

The second set of screenshots look very close to what my app shows.  The 59V charge is like you said, probably the reason the top speed is 2.5 mph lower.

[steve454]

19 hours ago, LanghamP said:

That can't be right. I've gone twice around my local park which is over 12 miles distance, and I was under 40% from a full charge (but noticeably weak pedals!). 

So for me it would be at least 12 miles, maybe even 15 although realistically we aren't talking more than 12 miles. 

7.5 miles seems like a broken wheel, and you say it's also weak, but my S1 has harder pedals than my KS16s on hard when idling. S1 is weaker than my Inmotion V5, though. 

I remember my S1 not turning on, I had to plug it in, got impatient after five minutes, and it was suddenly alive and above 50%.

At least 12 miles it should get, I think so too, the battery is almost the same size as the E+.  It's been drizzling rain all day, hopefully tomorrow I can do a second range test.

[steve454]

6 hours ago, novazeus said:

i’m sure i could figure these numbers out with the help of the internet and ambition, but i have no desire to, i just wanted to compare the batteries to see if there are any clues to the differences between the s1 and s2, other than 2.5 mph more top end. i see s1 is 58+ volts and s2 is 62+volts. i guess that’s why the chargers aren’t interchangeable even tho their plugs are but different bricks.

Yeah, Ninebot really went conservative on the S1 as far as voltage and speed.

[LanghamP]

@steve454, I'm also really close to what @novazeus posted on his second Screenshot for my set of batteries. I've got the 58-59 volt charger too.

So probably our wheels behave identically although it's curious we have such different perceptions of our modest wheels. 

It might be because I only ride it on sidewalks where there is dense pedestrian traffic. 

[steve454]

4 minutes ago, LanghamP said:

@steve454, I'm also really close to what @novazeus posted on his second Screenshot for my set of batteries. I've got the 58-59 volt charger too.

So probably our wheels behave identically although it's curious we have such different perceptions of our modest wheels. 

It might be because I only ride it on sidewalks where there is dense pedestrian traffic. 

I bet that's it, 95 percent of my riding was on dirt walking trails, with some riding through the grass.  I'm going to ride on the concrete trails next.

[novazeus]

i haven’t tried the s1 because it has no protection at all but the s2 is the most reactive of any of the wheels i bought. tried the 18s tonight and every wheel is set to hardest pedal and the 18s seems the least reactive. very comfortable with all the padding. almost feels like riding a motocycle because when u tip ur holding the bike weight too.

[Rehab1]

22 minutes ago, novazeus said:

i haven’t tried the s1 because it has no protection at all but the s2 is the most reactive of any of the wheels i bought. tried the 18s tonight and every wheel is set to hardest pedal and the 18s seems the least reactive. very comfortable with all the padding. almost feels like riding a motocycle because when u tip ur holding the bike weight too.

The most protected wheel I’ve seen. You can dump it all you want and that baby will survive. Great job! It also looks like a great pillow to rest your head on between excursions. 

[CaptainKBLS]

58 minutes ago, Rehab1 said:

The most protected wheel I’ve seen. You can dump it all you want and that baby will survive. Great job! It also looks like a great pillow to rest your head on between excursions. 

OMG....this is not how I want to live my life.

[Rehab1]

2 minutes ago, CaptainKBLS said:

OMG....this is not how I want to live my life.

If @novazeus wants to use a thick condom for added protection more power to him. 

[steve454]

21 hours ago, novazeus said:

my first one came dead. would not charge either. it went back. the second one was fine.here’s the battery info on the s2 and s1.

Thanks for the very informative screenshots.  It seems the battery capacity is the same for the S1 and S2, only the voltage is higher on the S2.  So it looks like they both have the same batteries, but the firmware on the S2 is set for higher voltage and speed.  Either that , or the two wheels have different mainboards.

[litewave]

12 minutes ago, steve454 said:

Thanks for the very informative screenshots.  It seems the battery capacity is the same for the S1 and S2, only the voltage is higher on the S2.  So it looks like they both have the same batteries, but the firmware on the S2 is set for higher voltage and speed.  Either that , or the two wheels have different mainboards.

 

@novazeus - could you upload close-up photos of the S1 and S2 mainboards for us to compare? Thanks.

[steve454]

9 hours ago, novazeus said:

i’m sure i could figure these numbers out with the help of the internet and ambition, but i have no desire to, i just wanted to compare the batteries to see if there are any clues to the differences between the s1 and s2, other than 2.5 mph more top end. i see s1 is 58+ volts and s2 is 62+volts. i guess that’s why the chargers aren’t interchangeable even tho their plugs are but different bricks.

That could be an interesting experiment.  @Keith said that the wrong charger might not raise the voltage past whatever the wheel was designed for....No, nevermind, I guess the US chargers are built for safety and long battery life.  Besides, does anyone know what the configuration of the S1 S2 batteries are?

[JES]

This has been discussed in the Segway Minipro forum. The S1 and Minipro for the US market does not get charged to 100% for battery longevity.  You can buy a 63 volt charger from More4mini ($55) and charge to 100% for an extra couple miles of range. The battery life would be affected but negligible, you will have moved on to something else before you count or charge that many cycles! Top speed is not affected.

James

 

[Duf]

On 12/20/2017 at 5:03 PM, steve454 said:

The lack of padding will be interesting to experience.  

Like you said, at that price it's hard to not buy one.  I saw a video by @Duf a few days ago where he did a review.

I don't notice the lack of padding at all on the S1 because I normally ride with my legs off the wheel anyway.

[LanghamP]

48 minutes ago, Duf said:

I don't notice the lack of padding at all on the S1 because I normally ride with my legs off the wheel anyway.

I found it very difficult to mount without touching the sides.

Don't you ride an MSuper V3s? I ride that wheel with the padding gripped quite firmly.

[Marty Backe]

11 hours ago, LanghamP said:

I found it very difficult to mount without touching the sides.

Don't you ride an MSuper V3s? I ride that wheel with the padding gripped quite firmly.

You should work on your technique more - the sides of wheels should never need to be gripped firmly unless under special circumstances such as navigating steep terrain.

[LanghamP]

30 minutes ago, Marty Backe said:

You should work on your technique more - the sides of wheels should never need to be dripped firmly unless under special circumstances such as navigating steep terrain.

I float my KS14c, V5, and S1 between my legs, only touching the sides to mount or ride one-legged.

But I grip the KS16 and the MSuper quite firmly because then it feels like this solid mass below my waist, like it is part of my body and not a wheel anymore. Like there's no give at all, and I've even considered the somewhat ludicrous idea of having bicycle clip-ons. I don't want those wheels going anywhere at high speeds. I mean, anyone ever seen a modern sport bike with skinny forks and slop in the front axle? 

 

[Marty Backe]

13 minutes ago, LanghamP said:

I float my KS14c, V5, and S1 between my legs, only touching the sides to mount or ride one-legged.

But I grip the KS16 and the MSuper quite firmly because then it feels like this solid mass below my waist, like it is part of my body and not a wheel anymore. Like there's no give at all, and I've even considered the somewhat ludicrous idea of having bicycle clip-ons. I don't want those wheels going anywhere at high speeds. I mean, anyone ever seen a modern sport bike with skinny forks and slop in the front axle? 

 

Interesting. I can't relate in any way to this.

[LanghamP]

8 minutes ago, Marty Backe said:

Interesting. I can't relate in any way to this.

I thought it's the way you ride too.

Let me ask, when you go through a bumpy turn at high speed leaned over quite a bit, don't you lock the wheel against one or the other leg so the wheel doesn't move at all?

[Marty Backe]

7 hours ago, LanghamP said:

I thought it's the way you ride too.

Let me ask, when you go through a bumpy turn at high speed leaned over quite a bit, don't you lock the wheel against one or the other leg so the wheel doesn't move at all?

In that situation I will gently press against the wheel but I wouldn't use the term "quite firmly". The vast majority of the time I'm loosely holding the wheel between my legs, thus the lack of padding on the KS18S isn't an issue with me.