You probably know Boosted for its popular electric longboards and skateboards. But did you know it's now branching off into e-scooters?
Announced in May, Boosted has started shipping its new Rev electric scooter, and — oh man — does it put all other consumer e-scooters to shame.
Like its electric longboards and skateboards, Boosted is quick to remind people that the Rev is not a toy, but a serious vehicle.
The Rev isn't a regular scooter with an electric motor and battery strapped to it. Everything, from the hefty frame to the fat wheels to dual motors were custom-designed to tackle the unpredictable streets and make riding safer.
I've ridden my fair share of e-scooters, from the likes of Lime and Bird and Bolt, and while they're undoubtedly convenient and fun for zipping around town, their biggest weakness is that they're not very safe to ride. A helmet is a must for riding an e-scooter, but it does nothing for actually making the scooter itself safer.
This is largely because most scooter-sharing systems use some variant of Xiaomi's Mi Electric Scooter, which is inexpensive to modify and deploy, but hardly the best when it comes to things like safety features such as stability and wheel traction.
The Rev, however, is arguably the safest e-scooter I've ever ridden and worth the $1,599 price if you intend for it to be your primary and daily mode of transportation. Note: The Rev I tested was a pre-production version and I didn't experience faults with the folding latch that other reviewers did.
Built like a tank
Compared to scooter rentals, the Boosted Rev is a tank; it's intentionally larger and bulkier for superior riding performance.
The frame is made of strong 6000-series aluminum and feels as high quality as Boosted's electric boards, if not more premium. I had my doubts about the bulky metal design, but came around to it as soon as I rode it down the first few rocky blocks in my neighborhood.
Really, Lime or Bird e-scooters seem wimpy next to the Rev. The handlebar is wider and less cramped, the platform deck is more spacious and lower to the ground for better stability, and the steering tube feels sturdier.
There are a couple of features on the handlebar. In the center, there's an LCD screen for displaying the scooter's speed, battery life, and riding mode (three in total). A single button switches between the different settings and is also used to turn the 400-lumen headlight on and off.
The handlebar is also home to a throttle wheel on the right and a mechanical disc brake on the left. There's also a tiny bell on the left bar — something I completely missed until Boosted told me it was there.
The Rev easily folds up for transport. But at 46 pounds, it's not an e-scooter you can carry around with one hand if your arms are weak. Just for comparison's sake, Xiaomi's Mi scooter weighs 27 pounds.
Boosted's industrial design might seem excessive to anyone looking at a dinky $500 e-scooter, but the company's CEO Jeff Russkaow told me the Rev will be able to endure years of punishing riding, whereas cheaper e-scooters are more likely to break down (wheels fall off, brakes fail, power drive weakens).
Glides right over bumpy roads
Size aside, the Rev is an absolute joy to ride around on. Whereas a scooter rental always feels semi wobbly — like its wheels could fall off during top acceleration or the steering column could loosen — the Rev feels secure.
The lower deck provides more stability and the thicker wheels hug the ground better compared to cheaper e-scooters. These intentional designs are key to smoother riding, especially on busted streets and roads, where any crack or pothole could send you flying through the air (it happened to me earlier in the month while riding a Lime e-scooter in Portland).
A more stable riding experience is even more important when you're pushing the Rev's acceleration to its 24 mph max speed; Xiaomi's Mi e-scooter tops out at 15.5 mph.
When going that fast, you want an e-scooter that can grip the asphalt, and grip really well the Rev does. I never once felt like I wasn't in control while riding. Compare that to other flimsier e-scooters where I'm always bracing myself for a potential accident.
The Rev comes with three riding modes: 1, 2, and 3. Each mode has a capped speed suited for people with beginner, intermediate, and advanced riding experience. I mostly rode in mode 1 and topped out at upper 12-14 mile speed limit on New York City's traffic-filled streets. But on a clear and mostly pedestrian-free bike path in a park, I definitely dialed the speed up to 20 mph and higher a couple of times.
At no point did I ever feel like the Rev would ever spin out, even at 20 mph. How good of a balance you have will of course affect how much of a learning curve there will be, but for me, it handled like a beast.
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I even rode the scooter up and down short grassy hills (above) without any issues whatsoever thanks to its 25 percent grade hill climbing. In Portland, the puny Lime e-scooter I rented couldn't even get up a steep street.
Range anxiety is also something you don't have to worry with the Rev. Boosted advertises the Rev with as capable of going up to 22 miles. To put that into perspective, the Boosted Mini S has a 7-mile range, the Boosted Plus and Stealth electric longboards have a 14-mile range, and Xiaomi's Mi e-scooter has an 18.6-mile range.
To me, the feature I love the most on the Rev is its three brakes. There's the mechanical disc brake on the handlebar that I mentioned, an electric regenerative brake activated by pulling to the right on the throttle wheel, and a manual stomp brake above the back wheel.
Though I said I felt in complete control of the Rev, the three brakes helped put my mind at ease. In the beginning, the regenerative electric brake slowed a little too abruptly so I tended to reach for the disc brake or stomp brake. After a few minutes of riding, the I quickly transitioned to braking with the throttle wheel. With three ways to brake, I always knew I had a way to stop the machine at any moment.
Bottom line: the Rev is really fun to ride (with a helmet of course). It also charges up quickly in three hours and connects via Bluetooth to the Boosted app to keep track of speed, range, and battery (all the things you can track with Boosted electric boards).
Quickly pays for itself
Many of my friends and colleagues were in sticker shock when I told them the Rev costs $1,599. And yes, it's a lot of money to spend on an electric scooter when compared to the many $500 (and under) e-scooters such as Xiaomi's Mi Electric Scooter that are available.
But the Rev's price tag really is no different compared to the same-priced Boosted Stealth electric longboard. You're paying more for better durability, performance, and safety.
The Rev is meant to be an alternative mode of transportation. I can see how it maybe makes less financial sense if, say, your commute to work involves taking a train and then e-scootering the last leg from the station.
However, if you're riding the Rev in place of the train or a car, the e-scooter pays itself off pretty quickly. For instance, if I lived in Manhattan instead of far out in Queens, I'd for sure get one of these babies to get around the city instead of forking up $127 per month for a 30-day unlimited MetroCard, which totals up to $1,547 a year. I'd save over $3,000 over the following two years (and countless more until the battery deteriorates).
A full payment for the Rev might be too expensive to pony up for all at once so consider Boosted's financing plans (though it comes with APR).
The Rev's not for everyone — especially the budget-strapped — but if you want the best and safest e-scooter, you gotta make the investment. Most great products don't come cheap.
UPDATE: July 22, 2019, 12:59 p.m. EDT: Clarified that we tested a pre-production Boosted Rev and didn't experience any design faults other reviewers did.
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