Review: Navee S65

It was close to 10 pm when I first hit the streets on the Navee S65. I had a meeting in Manhattan the next morning so I wanted to give this electric scooter a quick test ride first to make sure it worked fine before I took it on an 18-mile roundtrip from Brooklyn. The first words out of my mouth?

“What the heck?”

Not in a good way. On this quiet street in the middle of the night, this electric scooter was like a screeching banshee. I've tested a lot of electric scooters. They all vary in how much sound the motor produces, but I've never tested a model that gets this loud. Surely, something is wrong with this scooter, right? Apparently not. I was so flabbergasted that I even turned on my phone's recorder and put it in my pocket to capture the audio (you can listen to it below!). I played it back to my wife when I got back home, and her mouth was ajar. It's loud.

I still took it to my meeting the next day, and after my first full trip, it was a completely different story. I was grinning ear to ear, and my wife was surprised to hear me say, “This thing is great!”

Photograph: Navee

Navee is a relatively new escooter brand operated by Brightway Innovation Intelligent Technology, based in China. Brightway has received investment from Xiaomi, but Navee is adamant that it doesn't have a cooperative relationship with the Chinese megacorporation, and it doesn't affect Navee's operation or product development.

Despite this disclaimer, the scooter's app is the very same as Xiaomi's Mi Home app (Android, iOS), which I also use to monitor my Smartmi air purifier (a subsidiary of Xiaomi). When I open the app, the scooter pops up right next to my purifier. It seems bizarre, but I'm all for consolidating apps. I'm glad I didn't have to download another one.

Setup was a snappy affair and took no more than a few minutes—just hook up the handlebar. Even pairing the scooter to the app via Bluetooth was fast. Too bad the app itself isn't all that useful. Apollo's scooter app, for example, lets you control the speed of the scooter, the acceleration, and the strength of the regenerative brake. The Navee's app … lets you see your ride history.

OK, you can also lock the scooter, turn on the cruise control, and choose to keep the taillight always on or off. It's also how you'd update the firmware, but there were no firmware updates waiting for me, despite the fact that I received it several months ago and only unboxed it and started riding recently. This is either good or bad. Either the S65 is so flawless it hasn't needed any updates, or there are issues but the company has yet to address any of them. Either way, the app is super basic, and I hardly bothered to open it after my first few rides.

Let me address the sound. The reason why the S65 is so loud is due to its 500-watt geared hub motor. Most scooters I've tested have gearless hub motors, which use electromagnets to turn the wheel and push the scooter forward. Geared hub motors use gears to create the movement to push the wheel. They have better hill-climbing ability and faster acceleration, but they aren't as easy to repair and lack regenerative braking. They're also loud.

I generally hate the idea of irritating anyone, so I was apprehensive when I took the scooter out the next day for my first ride. The good thing is, New York City is Very Loud™ when the sun's out. Yes, on some streets, I was the loudest thing rolling through, but the S65's high-pitch whine quickly disappeared into the everyday bustle of the city once I got onto a busy street, over the bridge, and into Manhattan. There were a few occasions when people looked to see who was making that screeching sound; I felt guilty.

The benefit of this geared motor was thankfully immediately obvious. This is a snappy and nimble scooter. At a red light, it can quickly vault you away—acceleration isn't a slow build-up like on some scooters. And over the Williamsburg Bridge, it maintained a respectable 15 miles per hour speed on the incline. Speaking of, it can go up to 20 miles per hour on flat roads when you're on the highest speed mode.

It's a shame you can't customize these three modes. I wanted to ride at 15 mph, but the second mode only goes up to around 10 mph, which is just too slow. The first mode is “walking” mode, which moves the scooter around 3 mph so you don't have to push it up a hill while walking alongside it.

Photograph: Navee

The S65 has a front and rear suspension system that makes the scooter look pretty unique. When you hop on it, it feels a little bouncy. This system handled big bumps and holes on the road well enough, but I was still able to feel many of the tiny ridges on the road. I think that's partly due to the rigid exterior of the 10-inch tubeless tires. My teeth weren't chattering, but it didn't feel noticeably smoother than other scooters I've tested recently, whether that's the Taur or the Apollo Phantom V3.

I do want to point out that the suspension system may come alive when you go off-road. It fared well on stretches of grass and gave me a bit more confidence to even try that in the first place. (I wouldn't have tried it on any other scooter.) But I live in New York City and don't have much of a reason (or chance) to go off-roading.

Photograph: Navee

I had a comfy time putting nearly 60 miles on the Navee S65, and what made this scooter really shine for me is its range. The 48-volt battery was able to tackle an 18-mile round trip with 8 percent left in the tank. On another 17-mile trip, I was left with 18 percent left. That's a great range for me, as it covers most of the trips I'd usually take, and I'm a 6'4", 240-pound man (the scooter supports up to 265 pounds). Most people will probably be able to net 20 to 25 miles out of this thing at top speed. (Note: This is still a far cry from Navee's estimated 40-mile range.)

The rear disc brake isn't anything to write home about, but it does the job. You also get a bright front light, an LED display that's visible in sunny conditions, and IPX5 water resistance, so it should be OK to ride in wet conditions (though I don't recommend you do this).

It folds down really easily, though I wish the stem locked into place when it's down, and I also wish the stem stayed parallel to the deck. Instead, it's somewhat angled to the side and makes the scooter wider than it needs to be when you're carrying it. It's 53 pounds, which is manageable for me, especially for the power and range it offers (much better than the 77-pound Phantom V3 I just tested).

But as much as I enjoyed riding on the S65 (and getting accustomed to being a noisy nuisance on the street), my biggest concern is customer service. The company tells me customers can contact its service department if any issues arise, and there are “local service stations.” However, look at comments from people that backed Navee's successfully-funded Indiegogo page. Some folks have mentioned issues. Navee responded asking them to email their service team, to which the complainants have said they haven't heard back after weeks of waiting.

This is a problem for a lot of escooters, and as with any gear that you use for so many miles over rough and bumpy roads, it's fair to expect that it will need repairs. Before you buy, you may want to check with Navee if there are any local service stations in your area, or ask your local escooter or ebike shop if they have any experience with the brand. At least the battery is UL 2272 certified, which means that it meets the gold safety standard for e-mobility devices.

The S65 is the company's first big push into the US, but it's also launching cheaper models like the V40 and V50. Presumably, as it grows its lineup and establishes a foothold, its repair network will improve.