Start riding your scooter. Push down on the throttle in the thumb position of the right handle. The brake is on the left handle, and there is also a bell to let people know you are coming through! These are just the bigger issues we faced with the Bird One - each is enough to deduct a few stars from our score, but together they’re a recipe for disaster. Even if you can look past one or two problems, there are enough more that it doesn't matter. Riding the Bird One was a stressful experience, one we were nervous to embark on every time we took the thing for a journey. People are looking to micro-electric vehicles to replace their gas-powered car trips and move efficiently around their cities,” said Brian Buccella, Senior Vice President of Consumer Products and Government Partnerships at Bird. “By offering a new product line of personal micromobility devices, we can help significantly expand access to eco-friendly transportation across the United States.”

We deconstructed and reconstructed the thing multiple times, but could never get the stem feeling safe and rigid. Since we’re used to assembling scooters, and even we had trouble putting the thing together, we’ve got to imagine most will have an issue with this same thing. This is a massive issue for the Bird One, as shaking handlebars makes the thing feel supremely unsafe, as we’ll explore more in our ‘Riding’ section. PortabilityYou may need to push off the ground with your foot once or twice to get the scooter going. You can refer to the app on how to properly start and ride the Bird scooter. In fact, the Bird One is built accordance with 31 separate safety and quality certifications,so that you can rely upon your e-scooter day-in, day-out.

Here's where the Bird One gets really interesting – its app – because Bird isn't just an e-scooter company, it's a software and service company. This information is available in the app, but we think it's useful to have it right in front of you as well. Protective equipment must be worn when riding. This includes a helmet, shoes with rubber soles, and wrist, elbow, and knee pads. Well, you can buy a Bird One, but to get here you’ve already scrolled through our star rating, our verdict and our ‘cons’ list, so you know that we don’t think you should buy the scooter. The reasons why are hard to condense to a two-minute review, so read the longer article for our full review, but we’ll highlight some key points here. Out of the box, not much needs doing to the Bird One; there are just four simple bolts which need securing with an Allen key.The Bird One’s battery, located in the base, is rated at 12800 mAh (12.8 Amp-Hr). That's enough fuel for a journey of around 25 miles (40 km), and, once depleted, it takes around six hours to recharge.

Sleek-looking, built like a tank, with super impressive connectivity features – as well as battery life galore – the Bird One is about as versatile and as future-proof as e-scooters get. It's not the most compact or portable option available, especially as it doesn't fold, but if you’re looking for the smartest e-scooter around – this is it. In the interest of fairness, we should say the Bird One has one or two redeeming qualities. Its range is one of the best of any electric scooter we’ve tested, so it’ll suit people with longer commutes, and its acceleration speed was perfect for comfortable starts. The app was originallydeveloped to help rentalriderslocate Bird One e-scooters in their local area,but Bird’s companion app now alsooffers you complete controlover your e-scooter. What’s more impressive is that usually, electric scooter makers quote the distance you’ll get on the less-power-intensive slower modes. In this way, while the figures are technically true, they often don’t reflect the real experience of riding a scooter. The Bird One doesn’t have different modes though - we got our distance when traveling at the scooter’s top speed, so the range feels doubly correct. First of all, setting up your new Bird One is incredibly easy – just scan the QR code located on the handlebar to add it to your profile.Help your child feel comfortable by practicing first to gain control of the vehicle. Always ride with caution to avoid falls or collisions. It's IP34-rated, which means you can take the Bird One outin showery conditions without voiding the warranty, and it can take a maximum load of 100 kg. The rubber handlebars are slightly tapered to make them easier to hold, and while they aren’t the comfiest in the world, we’ve used worse too. Plus, they seem more durable than most. This assembly issue won’t plague people who are using Bird’s rental scooters, instead of their private ones. So construction and handlebar problems aside, how does the Bird One ride? Well, it’s okay, but nothing to write home about.

Firstly, initially connecting the scooter is a pain. The option to do so is well hidden, and we spent a lot of time Googling and searching before we figured out the solution - there’s no unique way to register a personal vehicle, you just scan your own scooter as though it’s a rental one. This could be a lot clearer. The Bird One electric scooter takes six hours of charging to get from full to empty - that’s fairly average for this kind of vehicle, as four to eight hours tends to be what we see in most. You charge the vehicle by plugging a cable from mains into the base of the scooter, and a charging light on the handlebars lets you know something’s happening. Riding Crystal clear imagery and clever emergency features on the Nextbase 622GW prove that dash cams can do more than just capture footage in the case of an accident Of course, the inability to fold down might instantly make some people stop reading. We usually review electric scooters by using them as a 'last mile' solution between a car park and our office, but as this doesn't fold, it wouldn't fit inside our car. If you live in a city and plan on using the Bird One as your sole mode of transportation, then this is less of an issue.The Bird app has connectivity issues, and given you use the app to turn on the scooter, deactivate the tamper alarm, see your scooter’s battery and toggle the lights, that’s a huge problem. We frequently found the app seemed convinced it was connected to the scooter when it wasn’t. Adding to its stylish credentials is the sleek and streamlined design, with fully integrated brake wires and a built-in headlight unit. It looks aerodynamic, like an Airstream caravan. We got past this issue by gripping the handlebars tight and pushing them forward or pulling them towards us, to use our strength to stop the shaking, but this is a tiring and stressful way of riding. It’s better than the constant fear of falling off into traffic, though. Perhaps even more impressive than its aesthetics, though, is how solidly the Bird One is built. It feels like a tank. This is because it was originallybuiltfor Bird'srideshare schemes, and the hard life of abuse that that entails. The Bird app encourages responsible riding and can even incentivize good behavior. For example, it can give out rewards to riders who park in designated areas.