Paxson Lim, Author at Electric Skateboard HQ

August 7, 2021January 18, 2022 by Paxson Lim

Cloudwheels Discovery & Cloudwheels Donut Review – Everything you need to know

Today we will be reviewing iWonder’s Cloudwheels Discovery and Cloudwheels Donuts.
(This is the updated version of the previous Cloudwheel review here)

These wheels became a showstopper in the eskate community. People are either top fans or serious haters for the Cloudwheels. So what is the real deal? Are these wheels as fancy as they say?

For those who don’t already know, Cloudwheels are $139-169 urban “off-road wheels,” that come in sizes 105mm and 120mm. A donut version is also available for hub boards. The wheels are marketed as all-terrain wheels, which is something that we might not be able to just take their words for.

So, what are the Cloudwheels?

Cloudwheel Discovery Wheels are built with urethane in a durometer of 78a. These babies are very soft because of their foam core. iWonder calls the technology Dampening Foam Core or DFC when they try to sound cooler, I call it “pretty bubbles inside the wheel.” Aside from the softness, the style also allowed a lighter weight as compared with your normal big urethane wheels.

A softer wheel should offer more grip, but it’s the opposite for Cloudwheels. This is due to the fact that Cloudwheel has a very narrow contact patch. iWonder didn’t provide a measurement for the contact patch, but it’s pretty obvious to the eye. The curved tread design means only the center of the wheel is in contact when riding on flat ground.

This gave a specific ride feel for Cloudwheels that not everyone became fond of. We will discuss more on the ride feel later.

Abit of scandal on the initial days of Cloudwheels:

Every product can use a little bit of scandal on launch, eh..?

Now, here are a few more things to note about the core. Back when it was launched, the first version of Cloudwheels used a regular ABEC core. This version seemed to crack for some riders.

To resolve this concern, iWonder used Nylon Fiberglass to reinforce the core and also made the spokes thicker. This design was named Discovery core.

Installing Cloudwheels

By the looks of it, the latest Discovery core might still look like an ABEC core, but it’s not! The Discovery core has a thicker spoke than the average ABEC wheels core. Your ABEC pulley might not fit the Cloudwheels.

However, the Cloudwheels pulley can still be used with your typical ABEC wheels, but there will be slop on the wheels, which means, it will be loose, and that’s not very nice (or safe).

No worries for the pulleys though, since Cloudwheel has made pulley kits for almost every eskate on the market. Cloudwheel has pulleys, if you have coins. (You can check the list of Cloudwheel supported boards by going here)

Now, let’s talk about Cloudwheel Donuts. For hub motor lovers, the Cloudwheel Donuts may just be the greatest thing since sliced bread. Cloudwheel Donuts are basically sleeves for your hub motors. It is not difficult to see where the name came from.

Donuts are compatible with a lot of hub motors but not all, so be sure to check the list of compatible hub motors first when buying Cloudwheel Donuts.

To check out other eskates compatible with Cloudwheel Donuts, click here.

It will take around 15 minutes to install these wheels, depending on how quickly you maneuver from unscrewing bolts to slide out the hub motor’s back wheels up to secure all the new screws for the Cloudwheels.

For a quick look on how to install Cloudwheel Donuts:

What an introduction, huh? Now let’s go to the part you’re all excited about—the pros and cons of Cloudwheels.

Like we mentioned, people are pretty divided on their opinions for Cloudwheels. They either love it or hate it.

Let’s begin with the good things about these wheels.

PROS

Safer and smoother ride

Obviously, the main advantage that the Cloudwheels can give is a safer and smoother ride.

We’ll say upfront that iWonder’s Cloudwheels are basically semi-AT. We would never even dare to call it all-terrain or made for off-road like how it was marketed. Still, the wheels provide significantly better cushioning on a roughly paved road. The ride won’t be as harsh for you.

Riding with Cloudwheels Donut 105mm — Exway flex with 105mm Cloudwheel Donut

Cloudwheels is probably most popular among eskate commuters who simply aim to travel from point A to B safely but consider the bulky AT set up to be a trouble for carrying around. Not to forget, Cloudwheels are a lot lighter than even the standard PU wheels of similar size.

Cloudwheels also help a lot in cushioning the ride though super rough roads, making some unbearable – leg-numbing road bearable. And obviously, big wheels means less lightly to get thrown off the board when hitting a stone.

Cloudwheels = All-terrain?

While the 105mm wheel will do enough to make rough pavement significantly more tolerable, the bigger 120mm is obviously better, and almost necessary when you plan to go off the standard path.

To handle grass, small cracks, and stone, the 105mm wheels are enough, but if you’re gonna go through sand and pebbled roads, a safer choice would be the 120mm wheels. BUT, if that’s the kind of terrain you’re gunning for, then you should probably go for AT wheels instead.

Riding over a pothole with 105mm Cloudwheels Donuts — Challenging a pothole with 105mm Cloudwheel Donuts

Pretty good Durability

Another surprise we have with Cloudwheels is their durability.

We rode the Cloudwheels for almost 200 miles and there was zero chunking. And nope, we weren’t careful at all! Also, regarding the new Discovery core? It held up without cracks too. Combining our experience and the fact that there aren’t any more complaints on the internet after the switch to Discovery core, we are pretty confident that the new Cloudwheel will be just fine.

Cloudwheel that's beaten up — This is an old, pre-discovery core version of cloudwheels.

Now, what are the not-so-nice thing about Cloudwheel?

CONS

Less fun with carving

As we said, you’ll get a less grippy ride with Cloudwheels due to its pretty narrow contact patch. Not to worry though, the narrow contact patch doesn’t actually cause the wheels to lose grip, so there aren’t actually any safety concerns.

Riding with 120mm Cloudwheels with Wowgo AT2 — Carving with 120mm Cloudwheels on Wowgo AT2

It did mean that carving became a lot less fun, though, if you compare it with riding on street wheels. Simply put, carving on Cloudwheels will never be as fun as carving on Caguamas; but it’s still better than carving on 6” pneumatic wheels.

Next, let’s talk about the range.

Decrease range

As uncle Ben used to say, with great wheel size comes great battery consumption. The bigger the wheels, the lesser the range. However, the range drain wasn’t actually as significant when it came to Cloudwheels. This is probably the result of the narrow contact patch on the wheel, resulting in better use of energy.

If you do the math, our test showed us that going from 90mm hub motors to 105mm Cloudwheels gave a drop of 25% in range. We got 16.8 miles on 90mm wheels but when we started using 105mm Cloudwheels, we only got 12.4 miles. From a different perspective though, switching to the 120mm Cloudwheels will allow you to size down from all-terrain wheels and your range will significantly be better.

Now that we’re done with the rundown of specs, pros, and cons, what’s our verdict?

THE VERDICT

The Cloudwheel Donuts is hailed as the savior for hub boards, and it might not be an overstatement.

The biggest pet peeve that eskaters have on the hub boards is the thin urethane sleeves and hence agonizing vibration when riding on rough roads. Remarkably, Cloudwheel Donuts basically solved that problem. The 105mm wheels probably won’t open up new ride paths for you, but would make commuting much safer and more comfortable.

The verdict on the regular 105mm and 120mm Cloudwheels (for Belt drive) are pretty clear too. If you like big wheels for its safety, semi-AT use, and don’t mind the less grippy ride feel, you will love the Cloudwheels.

If a big wheel with a narrow contact patch is not your style, then you should already know that Cloudwheels is not for you. Eskate connoisseurs would probably prefer something like 107mm Super Flywheels or 110mm Torqueboard Wheels instead.

Basically, Cloudwheels are just very practical wheels, period.

If you are interested in buying the Cloudwheels, be sure to check out our affiliate discount link here and uses code: “ESKATEHQ” to receive $10 off during check out.
It will help you get a small monetary discount and helps us out too. On top of that, you’ll be tagged as an Electric Skateboard HQ customer and probably be treated better. Cheers!

July 9, 2021July 22, 2021 by Paxson Lim

Wowgo 2S Pro Review- the gold standard of budget eskate??

Today we will be reviewing the WowGo 2S Pro—a $429 electric skateboard that aims to be the leader of the best budget boards in the market.

Before the WowGo 2S Pro replaced WowGo Knight on the shelf, WowGo Knight was our reigning champion for the best budget electric skateboard.

So being a theoretical upgrade over the Knight, 2S Pro should inherit that throne, right?

As usual, let’s run through the specs.

Build and specs:

Wowgo 2s Pro specification chart — *red = tested number

Deck: Canadian maple + Bamboo + Fiberglass; mild flexible deck; wide mild concave; flat camber/rocker
Electric speed controller: 12s Hobbywing ESC with smart power-on; remote with telemetry, 4 speed modes
Trucks: Poseidon Trucks by WowGo, 50° front truck, 8 inches, Reverse Kingpin
Bushing type: 85 A
Motor: 500W dual hub motor (not compatible with Cloudwheel Donuts)
Marketed top speed: 25 mph or 40 kph
Battery: 12S2P 5.2 AH battery
Marketed range: 15-16 miles or 24-28 km
Wheels: 78 A soft PU wheels

The deck of WowGo 2S Pro is a combination of Canadian Maple, bamboo, and fiberglass. A mild flex can be expected on this board. To secure your feet, the board features a wide but subtle concave, and it’s flat without any camber or rocker.

Most entry-level boards try to put as much flex on their deck as possible, unlike the 2S Pro. At the end of the day, your personal preference would probably decide on how you feel about the choice, but after reviewing so many budget electric skateboards that went for the similar flexi-deck ride feel, we are just happy to see variations among entry-level eskates.

You can also notice that the design underneath the board is a head-turner.

If you’re familiar with the Loaded Vanguard, WowGo 2S Pro feels like it has the same approach in design. Do you like it? We think it’s dope!

The WowGo 2S Pro also uses the 12s Hobbywing ESC with a smart power-on feature for the board’s electronic speed controller.

We all know how silky smooth the 12s Hobbywing ESC is, and how convenient the smart power-on feature is for your rides.

It’s no surprise that WowGo went with what works. If it ain’t broken, why fix it?

Stable at turbo mode

There are 4 speed modes, with the highest speed mode as Turbo, and the remote is the generic Hobbywing ESC remote with telemetry.

The WowGo remote’s design has always been our favorite. It’s not different from your generic remote when it comes to function, but the way it looks is elegant.

The trucks, on the other hand, are something more special. These are reverse kingpin trucks especially made by WowGo and they call it the Poseidon Truck. The Poseidon Trucks are 8 inches and are 50° at the front. It also has a bushing type of 85 A.

Poseidon Trucks

These trucks look like a Caliber II clone instead of the Paris clone that was on the previous entry-level WowGo boards.

With this kind of choice, we bet the Poseidon truck is more likely going to prioritize stability over maneuverability. We will go deeper into that when we talk about the riding experience.

The WowGo 2S Pro also uses 500W dual hub motors. This is where WowGo took a tiny step back by going with a weaker motor than its predecessor, WowGo Knight, which was using a 540W motor. Still, this 500W is quite good compared to other budget boards.

For reference, WowGo’s fiercest competitor such as Meepo V3 uses 540W hubs, but Backfire G2 Black only has 400W hubs.

To check out Meepo V3’s review, click here.

The marketed top speed is 25 mph or 40 kph and in our tested top speed, it hit 26 mph or 42 kph. Awesome!

As for the sleeves of the hub, it’s sad to say that they aren’t compatible with Cloudwheel Donuts.

Don’t worry though, because WowGo is working on a similar semi-AT sleeve which will be released in a couple of months.

For the wheels, WowGo 2S Pro is using the standard for entry-level boards—78A soft PU wheels.

And let’s not forget about power. The WowGo 2S Pro uses a 12S2P 5.2 AH battery. The marketed range is 15-16 miles or 24-28 km and our tested range reached 11 miles or 17 km.

WowGo kind of made an overstatement with the range, but also note that 11 mph is the usual range for most entry-level boards that have a 2p configuration. This is nothing new for us.

Another thing we observed is that WowGo 2S Pro didn’t provide any waterproof certification.

We learned not to trust the “water certification,” anyway, so it doesn’t mean much.

Basically, WowGo is just emphasizing that it’s never a good idea to ride when it’s wet outside.

For a sneak peek at how WowGo 2S Pro can ride on dry pavements, click here.

Riding experience

All build and specs considered, it’s time to ride!

As expected of the 12s Hobbywing ESC, WowGo 2S Pro’s speed and speed control are perfect.

Both the acceleration and braking of the 2S Pro are silky smooth and intuitive. The brake strength is pretty strong, too.

The 500W hub motor’s torque also performs well. By using one of the strongest hub motors amongst the entry-level hub boards, WowGo 2S Pro can conquer any humps on the road.

Although the torque and the thrill are still a step behind what a set of powerful belt motors would offer, WowGo 2S Pro is still one of the strongest hub boards amongst all the entry-level boards we tested.

When it comes to maneuvering the board, carving is fairly fun but more on the tight side.

The Poseidon trucks rebound to center well, and are very stable at high speed.

WowGo 2S Pro definitely favors stability over maneuverability, as it is often the case with Caliber II clones.

To help you picture it out, Poseidon trucks are not as good as genuine Paris Trucks or genuine Caliber II trucks.

But when put alongside with entry-level boards, the Poseidon truck is definitely on par with other good proprietary trucks such as Exway’s Trist truck or Meepo’s Shredder Trucks.

To round up the riding experience, WowGo 2S Pro is a great ride that both beginners and veterans will enjoy.

The wide deck with mild concave is comfortable and helps with both control and knowing your foot position.

The board is both powerful and smooth in speed controls.

The stability from the trucks allows us to go on turbo speed with confidence. The stiffer deck also adds to that stability.

Carving, while not experienced to the fullest, is still very enjoyable thanks to the decent trucks.

For a better comparison, WowGo 2S Pro rides pretty similarly to the WowGo 3. But with a more flexi-deck and genuine Paris truck, WowGo 3 obviously is more fun for carving.

We should also note that the 2S Pro freerolls well, so we guess they probably used good bearings for this one.

If we were to nitpick anything on the 2S Pro, it would probably be its vibration dampening ability, which again, is no surprise for a hub board.

The soft wheels and composite deck did a bit to cushion all the vibration from riding over rough roads. It’s… better than we expected, but we did have a pretty low expectation on this part, to begin with.

We are hoping that, in the future, the Cloudwheel-ish PU sleeves that WowGo is developing will be a good option for those who couldn’t tolerate the vibration.

So, what’s the verdict on the WowGo 2s Pro?

THE VERDICT

Did WowGo 2S Pro inherit the throne from the WowGo Knight as the best budget board?

Well, yes.

It seems to me that WowGo knows what they are doing with WowGo 2S Pro. After all, they were the first among the earliest and most reputable budget brands.

When it comes to entry-level boards under $450, Wowgo 2S Pro now replaced the gold standard that was previously set by the WowGo Knight.

The board’s performance definitely matches its competitors, and the ride feel leads the affordable segment. WowGo 2S Pro’s polish is much beyond the asking price.

Simply put, for any rider that wants an entry-level affordable hub board, Wowgo 2s Pro, for now, should be the first consideration.

Ride safe, guys!

If you are interested in buying a Wowgo, be sure to check out our affiliate discount link here and receive $5 off during checkout.
It will help you get a small monetary discount and helps us out too. On top of that, you’ll be tagged as an Electric Skateboard HQ customer and probably be treated better. Cheers!

July 3, 2021July 2, 2021 by Paxson Lim

Electric Skateboarding is quietly having a very good year

When Boosted went down, I was very concerned. I was concerned not to the fact that we lost an eskate option, but to the fact that the electric skateboarding sport has lost its biggest advocate.

Without Boosted continued effort to promote electric skateboarding, fewer and fewer people might get into the sport, or so I feared.

However, time proved that the worry was unfounded.

Boosted went out of business in March 2020, and then the pandemic hit. These should be two huge blows to the niche, but what we see is that the interest in electric skateboarding remains strong.

Take a look at the Google Trend:

The interest in Electric Skateboarding (blue), based on the number of google searches on the term “Electric skateboard”, stayed the same as before the pandemic hits.

Since 2020 and into 2021, we see existing brands continue to expand and release new products, and from where we (ElectricSkateboardHQ) sits, we received even more request for reviews from both existing and new brands that we could barely keep up.

If new boards and new brands are not a good indicator of sales, sales of electric skateboards on Amazon definitely should be. Not sure if anyone noticed, but electric skateboards are selling quite well on Amazon to the point that Meepo V3 once sat on the bestseller list under the board category “Longboards”. Everyone who was looking for a standard longboard on Amazon will be greeted by this thing call electric skateboards. Free promotion for electric skateboarding!

Yeepee!

I guess I’m just happy that the sport is growing. Hopefully, with more people into the niche, electric skateboarding can be as mainstream as cycling both as a form of commute and as a hobby. Maybe then, legislators will stop asking us to install handlebars on eskate!

July 2, 2021July 2, 2021 by Paxson Lim

Evolve launches the Hadean Series – How does it fare amongst competitors?

Yesterday (1st July 2021), Evolve Electric Skateboard launched a new line-up of electric skateboards, the Hadean series. Unlike many assumed, the Hadean series will not replace the existing GTR series but lives alongside it, or to put it more accurately, “above it”.

The most unexpected part of it? The price!

Evolve Hadean Bamboo starts at $2,549 USD and the Hadean Carbon at $2,899 USD. This put it amongst boutiques boards such as the Metroboard X ($2,574-$2,699), Kaly board ($2,850-$3,600) and the Lacroix family ($2,500 – $4,000). Heck, you could even get a heavy-duty all-terrain board such as the Propel X4s ($2,650) that has a spec that blew Hadean series out of the water!!

Evolve Hadean Series, the specs:

What’s great about the Evolve Hadean Series

To summarised the points on Evolves’ YouTube marketing video for the Hadean (as compare to Evolve GTR):

Big battery with 21700 cells (12s4p)
Stronger Motor (3000W x 2, 6368)
More durable remote
More refined speed control (FOC finally)
Smart power on (finally!)
Cool Design
- Forged Carbon Chassis for the Hadean Carbon
- Board length RGB LED lights
Other things that refined the riding experience
- Less likely to overheat
- Refined deck: Wider deck, and longer wheelbase for comfort

The best Evolve yet

After laying down all the strengths of the Evolve Hadean, everybody should agree that the Hadean is a significant improvement over the older GTR series. Many in the sport love Evolve for the refined design, polished build, and the feel-good factor that comes from the power of the brand.

The critiques, however, will be quick to point out that the best Evolve, are no better than other boards that we already have, and Hadean is at this point, just playing catch up on spec, while also being massively overpriced.

What Evolve fixed with Hadean, has always been what they are notoriously bad about. Evolve’s speed control has always been lagging behind the popular Hobbywing ESC, which had been using FOC for years; having 2 powerful motors doesn’t justify the price when you can just instead put 4 regular motors and make it an all wheel drive.

Evolve Hadean, will inevitably be compared to the Exway Atlas, which are only shipping now after delays due to battery supply shortage, and I’ll leave you with the charts to compare.

At the end of the day, Evolve’s Hadean Series is a great board for Evolve Rider that wants something more.

At the end of the day, Evolve Hadean is a product designed and made for Evolve fans who wants more. Better control, better power, more range, more refined ride, Hadean is definitely going to deliver on those. If you aren’t an Evolve fan to begin with, Hadean is very unlikely to be the product that makes you fall in love with the brand.

Evolve’s Press Release: Evolve skateboards launches the Hadean Series
Queensland, Australia, July 1, 2021 – Evolve Skateboards, the global leader in electric skateboards, has announced the official launch of the Hadean Series. Haden will offer four times more performance than its predecessor the GTR series which was launched in 2019 and 37% more battery capacity with a top speed of 31mph, making it the most advanced electric skateboard ever produced.

The Hadean Carbon is the world’s first chassis style frame, a patent-pending design that allowed Evolve to increase performance without compromising on size and the sleek low profile look they are known for. To achieve the strength required in the deck frame construction Evolve came up with another first for electric skateboarding – forged carbon fiber, the likes of which can be found on top-of-the-line high-performance supercars like Lamborghini. The deck also includes another first for the industry, air vents, which help to keep the internal electronics cool.

“Since the successful launch of our Carbon GTR series in 2019, we have looked to advance our product into a board that produces greater performance while maintaining the sleek, integrated electrical design the GTR is famous for,” said Jeff Anning, Founder of Evolve Skatebaords. “Improved performance required increased size of the battery and motors and this innovation overcame a size constraint that could improve the users’ control and riding experience.”

A NEW LEVEL OF CONTROL
Evolve has teamed up with an Australian company that excels in motor controller design to create an entirely new proprietary motor controller for the brand, the E-FOC. With experience in military drones and other high-end products, the teams collaborated on everything from schematics to the highest quality bill of materials to ensure the E-FOC is the most advanced motor controller Evolve has ever created, revolutionising how smoothly a rider can harness the intense power produced by the Hadean’s dual 3000w motors and 12S battery structure.

FORGED CARBON CHASSIS
The Hadean Carbon is the world’s first “chassis” skateboard deck, composed of forged carbon fiber, a material found in aircraft and race cars. The seamless integration of technology and ride performance is achieved through a forged carbon composite frame. The high fiber content and variation in strand orientation creates the strength needed to support a next-generation electric system without adding unnecessary bulk. With this board, the rider will experience better performance, including speed and range, without compromising the best riding feeling.

SUSTAINABILITY
The Hadean Series uses 21700 lithium-Ion battery cells and 2 x 3000-watt electric motors to power itself. It produces zero carbon emissions and can travel up to 43 miles on a single charge. Due to its portable nature, it is an ideal, environmentally friendly urban form of transportation. Sustainable and active commuting is here to stay.

NEW INNOVATIONS

Remote: The Phaze remote has a new design for hardcore conditions. It is built to last, housed in a machined alloy frame with rubber sides. It also hosts an array of smart features such as speed control, light adjustments, and board diagnostics.

Smart lighting system: The Bluetooth connection between the Phaze remote and deck provides real-time hazard lights when the brake is applied, enhancing both the rider and surrounding individual’s safety when travelling. The lights also serve as an indicator for low-battery, board updates and various other scenarios.

App: The Explore by Evolve App opens even greater levels of customization, with the introduction of power, acceleration and brake curves and a user may also dial in their inbuilt lights with dual colors and full RGB color selection. The app can also be used to view board diagnostics and track their rides using GPS to compete on a global leader board.

Perfect Stance: We have refined the contours and widths of our decks to provide the optimal stance for all riders, creating space for a wider foot stance without expanding the wheelbase of the board.

Versatility: The 2-in-1 version, which includes the all-terrain and street set up, are available for both decks.

To learn more about Evolve Skateboards visit www.evolveskateboardsusa.com/
and follow along on Facebook and Instagram.

About Evolve Skateboards
Evolve Skateboards is the leading company in the electric skateboard industry. We spent ten years meticulously designing, testing and optimising every part of our boards so riders can experience the best electric skateboards in the world. With more than 15 awards and service centres and distributors now servicing over 40 countries, Evolve Skateboards has a growing number of loyal customers worldwide.

The company was born on the Gold Coast, Australia, through sheer passion and obsession for finding the link between snowboarding, surfing and all things carving on land. Evolve’s electric skateboards are made by riders for riders. Since 2008, Evolve has been developing aesthetically refined, quality electric skateboards focused on the best feeling ride possible. In 2011, Evolve designed the world’s first carbon fiber electric skateboard and the world’s first 2 in 1 electric skateboard and in 2021, the world’s first “chassis” skateboard deck.

June 12, 2021June 14, 2021 by Paxson Lim

Ecomobl ET2 Review – Powerful AT board! Too powerful?

Today we will be reviewing the Ecomobl ET2, a $1599 All-Terrain electric skateboard powered by two planetary gear drives.

For those who don’t know, Ecomobl is very competent at one thing—making powerful monster machines capable of traversing the harshest terrain. They’re a brand that focuses on creating supreme All-Terrain boards, and they do not disappoint.

We’ve reviewed the Ecomobl ET a while back, and liked it, so we are pretty excited to see how this new and improved second version is going to be.

Let us run through the specs first!

Build and specs

Deck: Canadian Maple with a wide concave and aggressive drop, IP56 waterproof
Electronic Speed Controller: 12s LingYi ESC
Battery: Samsung 40T cells (out of stock); Lishen 21700 cells LR2170SF (temporary)
Marketed range: 20-25 mph (32-40 kph)
Motors: Dual 3050W motors, 6374 Dual planetary gear drive motors, 190 kV
Marketed top speed: 35mph (56kph)
Wheels: 200mm airless rubber wheels
Trucks: 18” wide all-terrain trucks
Weight: 37 lbs (16.7 kg)
Lights: Headlights and Taillights (remote controlled)

Deck

Ecomobl ET2’s deck is made of Canadian Maple with a wide concave. The full-length metal enclosure underneath the deck made the board completely rock solid. It’s impossible to flex.

What the deck flexes, though, is its aggressive drop. This drop allows a lower ride height and also functions as a foot stopper. When going on or off a steep incline, you can also use it as a step.

Electronic Speed Controller (ESC) & Remote

For the electronic speed controller, 12s LingYi ESC was used and paired with a specialized remote. On its LED screen, you’ll see your range, speed, and battery percentage.

Functionality-wise, the remote is superb. By design though, the plastic material felt cheap. We don’t admire the remote that much but it’s still comfortable on the hand and doesn’t disconnect.

Choosing a LingYi ESC also means the board has a push-to-power-on feature—a very handy and welcome function.

Battery & Range

For the battery, ET2 will be using Samsung 40T cells. Samsung ran out of stock for these batteries, so in the meantime, Ecomobl is using Lishen 21700 cells.

ET2 is also on a $100 discount for this product since Lishen batteries are less recognized. According to an internet listing, Lishen batteries have a rate of 4.5 mAh per cell.

Samsung 40T cells (out of stock); Lishen 21700 cells LR2170SF (temporary)

The review unit we received is running on a Lishen battery, so you can expect a better performance if you’re watching this in the future and Samsung 40T is being used.

For the Lishen configuration, ET2 went with 12s4p 21700 cells which can give you 18 AH and 777.6 WH.

Our tested range hit 18 miles or 29 km which is not bad for a marketed range of 20-25 miles.

The range was not the focus of ET2, after all. Compared to the first-gen ET which will run you a marathon, ET2 was configured to prioritize power.

Dual 3050W motors, 6374 Dual planetary gear drive motors, 190 kV

Motors & Power

Ecomobl ET2 used dual 3050W motors and 6374 dual planetary gear drive motors with 190 Kilovolts.

Want to know what part Ecomobl does the best? Check out their planetary gear drive.

Ecomobl’s planetary gear drive has a very strong torque without the belt. It has a similar function with belt motors, but it’s actually built into the wheels. These babies will scream a high pitch noise when running and won’t roll freely as hub motors.

But how competent is ET2’s motor, on paper?

To help you picture it out, the first version, ET, has 2000W motors which already felt extreme for us.

ET2 has a marketed top speed of 35mph or 56 kph but we didn’t try it out because we wanted to stay alive.

From every factor the board revealed during our test, we expect a top speed of 28-31 miles or 45-50 kilometers per hour, and that’s intense.

Wheels

The wheels are 200mm airless rubber wheels. The thread patterns are more aggressive in this version, and the wheels are noticeably thicker. Did it affect the ride? We’ll talk about that later.

Trucks

The trucks are much wider than your typical All-Terrain trucks. They’re 18 inches wide and are 3 inches wider than Ecomobl ET. The wider the trucks, the more stability there should be.

Weight & Other Features

Ecomobl ET2 also weighs 37 lbs or 16.7 kg which is nothing new with beast machines like these. It also has a built-in headlight and taillight which can be turned on and off using the remote. Pretty convenient! Compared to the original ET though, ET2 did not come with the board-length underglow light, which will definitely be missed.

The board is also IP56 waterproof with a fine-looking polish.

If you ask us, this board can surely be your wingman with all the attention you’ll attract. Do you agree? Let us know in the comments below.

You can also check out Ecomobl ET2’s unboxing here.

Now, it’s time to ride!

Riding experience

ET2 has 4 speed and brake modes that you can configure independently. When it comes to smoothness, I’ve got to say that Ecomobl ET2 was a little bit rough on the edges.

LingYi ESC’s jerkiness in control, in our opinion, gets worse when paired with a tougher motor.

You would love what ET2 has in store for you if you’re a fan of punchy and powerful rides, but if you want a chill one? ET2 will be a bummer.

Of course, the acceleration on the 1st and 2nd modes is pretty gentle. However, do know that the top speed is capped pretty low with the first 2 acceleration modes, so you would need to go into 3rd mode to ride faster.

The brakes are strong and fine. Most eskaters will probably choose the 1st or 2nd braking mode as they are both smooth and strong.

When maneuvering ET2, the trucks came in pretty loose from the package. We chose to tighten it to the max. After doing that, we found that these 18-inch trucks are pretty solid.

Turning was effortless, allowing the board to have a good turning radius and comfortable carving. We did get great stability with the wider trucks, but we expect a heavier rider might need to swap a bushing here.

From our modding experience, we know that a wider truck actually requires a harder bushing, and a regular 100A bushing probably will still be too soft for someone who weighs heavier than us scrawny Asians.

Overkill on the streets

As you can guess, Ecomobl ET2 is overkill when riding on typical streets. You might be thinking of giving away some of the power in exchange for greater control smoothness, especially if you ride on regular roads most of the time.

Even if the wide trucks provided lots of stability, we weren’t able to push the board to its limit because of the harsh control.

The big wheels helped eliminate vibrations from the road, but it’s not the most fun carving machine, either. Let’s not forget that ET2 is still a heavy AT board.

Where the Ecomobl ET2 gets more spotlight would be in off-road situations. The motors are powerful enough to conquer any steep incline. Combine that with big 200mm wheels and you can ride through almost any terrain.

The stiff deck also adds stability on rough roads. You might bounce off the board when riding through bumps and rocks if the deck is flexible. Yikes.

Aggressive drop

The aggressive drop on the deck acts as a foot stopper and gives you more balance on the board. If you want to change your foot position, the drop also acts as a step when going up and down steep inclines.

Unlike pneumatic wheels, the 200mm airless wheels won’t cushion the vibrations when riding on rocks, but the vibrations are still tolerable.

We always prefer pneumatic tires over airless rubber tires, but at least with airless rubber tires, you won’t be concerned with puncturing the wheels or maintaining tire pressure.

If there’s one place the Ecomobl ET and ET2 should avoid, that place would be the beach. Sand will get caught in the exposed gear drive easily.

So what’s our verdict?

THE VERDICT

Is ET2 really an upgrade of the first version or nah?

Ecomobl ET2 got better at what it’s meant to do: to be a powerful off-road electric skateboard.

Coming from ET, the second version ET2 became so specific for off-road use that, sadly, it’s not as versatile as it used to be.

While ET2 got better at being an off-road beast, it also got worse at being a relaxed ride on regular streets. But hey, it’s what it’s designed to do. Also, compared to the original ET and most all-terrain boards in the market, ET2 is much stronger and powerful while also having wider trucks and larger wheels.

This makes ET2 an excellent choice for those who love power and off-road rides or heavier riders who are looking for a board with maximum torque. However, being an even more powerful beast means ET2 won’t go easy on you on a common road.

If you want the strongest monster for off-road use, ET2 fits the bill well.
If you want a versatile board that is still wildly powerful, the tamer first version of Ecomobl ET may already be enough.

To check out our review on Ecomobl ET, click here.

If you are interested in buying an Ecomobl, be sure to check out our affiliate discount link here and uses code: “Electric Skateboard HQ 5％OFF” during check out.
It will help you get a 5% off and helps us out too. On top of that, you’ll be tagged as an Electric Skateboard HQ customer and probably be treated better. Cheers!