Batt:RE One IOT Electric Scooter : Testing Notes

By Team PluginIndia

The Batt:RE team sent us their connected electric scooter called Batt:RE One IOT to our workshop in Santacruz, Mumbai. We spent few days understanding, clearing doubts, riding it and testing connectivity features. We feel this young startup has done a lot of work over the last year or so to improve their models and we can see the results. Read on to find more.

Batt:RE - The Company
Batt:RE is a young company with just little more than 1 year old. They have dealers in 9 states as of July 2020. And manufacturing in Jaipur, Rajasthan. They have completed Seed round of investment and will move on to Series A funding soon. We must admit the company has done a lot of good work in terms of updating their models and offering choices to consumers. 

• They have 2 models and 2 more variants
  • ​Batt:RE LoEV
    • ​Batt:RE LoEV gps:ie​ 
  • Batt:RE One 
    • ​Batt:RE One IOT
  • ​Batt:RE LoEV gps:ie​ & ​Batt:RE One IOT variants offer connectivity.
• Both models have financing 
  • Financing is available Bajaj finserv, IDFC, Manappuram. EMI starts from Rs 3966.
  • Tie up with PayTM, pine labs where the customers can pay through debit or credit cards and convert their payments in EMIs. 
• Warranty
  • Battery : 3 years
  • Charger : 3 years
  • Motor : 2 years
  • Controller, convertor, : 1 year
• Battery is made in India. Manufacturer is Okaya which is a 29 year old company and has operations in 50+ countries. So looks to be a reputed battery company. LFP chemistry is used which is also good. 
• About localisation - The Batt:RE team also said that 60% of the vehicle is indigenous. They are now working with multiple suppliers mainly for motor and controllers. Target is to take the indigenous components contribution to more than 80% by year end.
  So kudos to the team for rapidly progressing and wanting to Make in India.
• Another awesome option offered by Batt:RE is range options 24Ah will get you 60 km, 30Ah = 78 km, 42Ah = 100+ km. 
  Another unique offering. No scooter manufacturer offers range options.
• Another awesome option offered by Batt:RE is drivetrain choice. If you want more acceleration, you can opt for a 60V system instead of 48V system. 
  We asked the team if you want to change the motor, controller, battery, but Batt:RE team told us that only the battery changes, there is a setting in the controller that changes the drivetrain voltage. Which is very interesting.

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Batt:RE One IOT Electric Scooter
The Batt:RE team sent us the bright yellow color model for us to test. When you first look at it, you are drawn to it. It definitely is a conversation starter on the roads. 
Just take a look at the photos of it. Very pretty design indeed. 
This scooter falls under CMVR exempted category and thus you will NOT need to get it registered at your local RTO.
FAME 2 subsidy is not applicable applicable and it will cost you Rs 79,999 in Mumbai. Subscription Fees : 1st year included, 2nd year onwards annual subscription is Rs 1500

The Design and Externals

• Nice bright colors and glossy coat on the plastics looks pretty fine.
• The fit and finish look of the bike looks good.
• Quality of the materials used is decent.
• Front and rear disk brakes is fantastic. Very good stopping power.
• Buttons are good quality. 
• Mode changing button is a push button instead of a switch which is so much better and softer on the finger than most we have seen.
• Handle bar looks like a luna or a motor bike shape, which seems weird design choice. We would have preferred a normal scooter handle.
• There is a "Park" Button which acts like a safety lock as well, and the vehicle does not start off immediately as its switched on. You need to press it "off". Good feature to have.
• Ample space in dickey for a small helmet along with the charger.
• Rear lights - One piece stylish cluster that appears very stylish. 
• Headlights has Lower LED DRLs (Daytime Running Lights) not on the handle but on front of the scooter. 
• Turn indicators are recessed in the handles so they don't break as a result of collision with another vehicle on road.

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LCD Display

• Single colour, Digital display.
• Boots up with REVOS, like a computer booting up - when you start the scooter.
• The Batt:RE One IOT uses the AI enabled IoT Solution called REVOS - which tracks, monitors and controls the motor, controller, BMS etc
• This is an interesting connectivity platform developed in India and is used by multiple electric scooter brands.
• The LCD shows the ODO Meter and Speed indication in nice big fonts.
• Show battery voltage.
• 6 Bars on the SOC Indicator. No SOC percentage indictor here. We use the mobile app to see that.
• Prominent display of modes - Parking, Economy, Ride, Sport, Reverse

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Batt:RE One IOT : Battery Pack

• This is a 48V system.  50.1 V is shown when the battery is fully charged.
• 1.44 kWh battery pack.  Range claimed is 85 km.
  • Option to upgrade to 2.016 kWh battery pack whch will give you 100+ km range
• LED indicator on battery itself. Says % of charge, Amp hrs, and Voltage. Which is a very good feature since its a portable battery.
• Removable Battery option, easy to move in and out. Portable battery is a good option. Can be taken home if need be. Connectors are smooth and easy to use.
• Okaya brand battery which uses LFP Chemistry.​

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Ride and Performance

• Short round in local neighbourhood and highway
• Highway riding needs sport mode 40-45Kms/hr for a comfortable ride.
• Ride mode - Local City area, crowded traffic area
• Economy mode is slow, has its uses.
• Same acceleration profile in all 3 modes, just top speed changes. Like most electric scooters we have tested apart from Ather and Chetak.
• Regenerative braking is sharp. Decelerates rapidly. SOC Battery meter rises to the top to show regeneration happening.
  • Let go of your accelerator and while coasting, regen is activated. 
  • Very nice to see regen in an electric scooter as we get so many opportunities to coast in city traffic. Good to get back energy.
• The ride and feel is comfortable.
• Suspension - tight. Felt little jerks on rough roads.
• Seating position and riding posture is nice. Broad seat.
• Economy - 20-25km/hr
• Ride mode -30-33 km/hr
• Sport mode - 40-45km/hr
  • We did feel the need for more speed on highways. But most of the times this speed is more than enough. Flyovers are not a problem.

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Connectivity

• It is a connected scooter. App connects via bluetooth. Only available for Android as of now.
• Mostly worked smoothly.
• You can sync rides, and it ideally gives statistics of the rides done.
• Shows the % of Battery charge, locate your vehicle etc
• Can use navigation options to see directions on Display
• Syncs with your contacts to notify you of the calls.
• Also diagnoses the vehicle health and shows status.

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Final Words

• All in all a pretty good effort by such a young company to offer a connected scooter experience - which a lot of young people like.
• The price seems steep for the performance offered.  Although it seems the customer is paying a premium for connectivity. 
  • But Batt:RE offers simple Batt:RE One without IOT option for those who wont need connectivity.
• The suspension can improve. The Batt:RE team needs to see how PureEV team improved the ePluto 7G's suspension and eliminated vibrations etc. 
• All in all great going. We expect more from this young team.

Batt:RE product website