Electric bikes are a great way to get around town and even on long bike trips. They help you ride farther and faster than you would with a regular bike, saving you money on gas costs, making it easier to get to your destination, and reducing pollution.
Electric bicycles come in several different types, depending on your needs and riding style. Some of the most common styles include mountain, commuter, road and hybrid bikes.
E-bikes with pedal assist – the most popular option – can help you pedal harder and more efficiently, especially in a city environment or when riding over hills. They can also give you the added boost you need when hauling heavy cargo or when you need to go fast.
You can set the level of assistance on an e-bike, and most allow you to adjust it by using a dial. That lets you choose how much assistance you want to receive and whether it should be a constant or peak-level boost.
If you want to go all out and really push the pedal-assist capabilities, a high-end e-bike with a large battery can let you cover more distance in less time, thanks to a powerful motor. You can also select an e-bike with a cadence sensor that allows you to manually adjust the amount of power the motor provides.
Fat-tire e-bikes – another popular category of electric bicycle – offer a higher volume of tire, allowing for improved traction over soft terrain. They can also have more knobby tires, which help dampen vibration and increase stability.
Foldable e-bikes – a great choice for people who need to travel light, these models are compact enough to fit in a car trunk or in a closet. They usually have easy-to-access battery compartments and user-friendly features such as lights, fenders and pannier racks.
Some e-bikes also have a throttle that can be used to propel the bike up to 20 miles per hour. While it can be useful, this type of power-assistance eats up the battery quickly and can reduce your range significantly.
A throttle can also be used to turn on the pedal-assist feature, which can make it easier for you to go up hills when you don’t feel like pedaling. That’s why most mid-drive electric bikes have a throttle as part of the drive system, rather than a separate battery pack.
Most e-bikes are classified into one of three classes: Class 1 – is a bicycle that can achieve a maximum speed of 28 miles per hour with the use of a pedal-assist system, and may also be capable of achieving that speed without a throttle.
For most riders, this is the perfect choice for getting around town or going for a short bike ride. It has a 500 watt-hour battery that can be charged from a standard outlet, and it can handle up to 170km on a single charge.
Aside from its range, the Transend E+ has six levels of pedal-assist to keep you powered up when you need it most. It’s also an ideal choice for urban riders, because it’s easy to get on and off the bike and is made for navigating crowded streets.