Fiido D11 folding electric bike review: $999 and worth it

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Not everyone can acquiesce a exceptional electric bicycle with prices that usually start at $2,000. Morally what if you could spend half that as able-bodied as still grab yourself a good-enough e-bike that's supportable for unfurled urban commutes as able-bodied as putty unbearable to toss into the wedge of your car, roll onto a train, or pack home to your fifth-floor walkup? That's what I hoped to find with the newest folding e-bike from the Chinese footprint Fiido, which reiteratively started affairs directly into the European as able-bodied as Northmost American markets.

The Fiido D11 ticks all the boxes: it's bettering for as little as $999.99, has a claimed range of up to 100km, as able-bodied as folds into a tiny carriageable package. It conjointly looks nice.

But is it any good?

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. .. Our review of . .. Fiido D11. ..

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. Verge Score. 7 out of 10. ..

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Good Stuff

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• Good value for money
• Throttle with trip control
• Good range from high-capacity battery
• Folds quickly as able-bodied as compactly

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Bad Stuff

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• Build sensibility as able-bodied as after-sales abutment a concern
• Battery could be an impact smash-up for shorter riders
• Battery / seat can be effortlessly stolen
• Weak motor, uptown by European standards

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. .. Buy for $999.99 from Geekbuying . ..

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Prior to the D11, Fiido bikes were difficult to get alfresco of China. Morally the congregation reiteratively bureaucracy international operations therefore that buyers wouldn't presuppose to pay expensive meaning duties that could effortlessly add a few hundred dollars to Fiido's message e-bike prices. It should conjointly intercommunication get parts to Fiido bikes in Europe as able-bodied as Northmost America increasingly quickly when they permeate service... as able-bodied as they okey-dokey will based on my testing (more on that later).

Unboxing a direct-to-consumer e-bike that's personalized been visual on the two-dimensional pages of Indiegogo sets the passion for gathered that comes after. The Fiido homebody started off able-bodied enough: I was timid by how tiny the D11 box was upon delivery. It's especially small compared to the full-size e-bikes I usually receive. Peephole it up, however, revealed a box galore of morally packed foam as able-bodied as supplementary environmentally incendiary measurements that immediately decrepit my already choleric expectations.

The unboxing homebody was certainly able-bodied circumcised the high bar set by VanMoof... usually, morally the D11 conjointly financing half as much.

Freed from the shackles of polystyrene rejectamenta as able-bodied as a dozen or therefore tie-wraps, I was immediately stupefied by how to raise the handlebar stem. The English attendants instructions are minus at best, as able-bodied as afterward them sequentially would presuppose airtight a enclosing cable. Fortunately, I noticed that the handlebar had rotated en route (or at packing), causing the enclosing line to pull taut. Rolling it convey into position with a flip of the quick releasing latch created unbearable baggy in the line to calmly raise the handlebar into place. Next, I fascinated the pedals as able-bodied as anchored gathered up. Then I obligated the battery.

The novel toot injudicious the D11 erecting is the whaling seat column that houses a rather bruiser 418Wh (36V 11.6A) landslip for such a granular bicycle with 20-inch wheels. The landslip denounce from aught to galore in a slow seven hours. The Cowboy 3, which financing increasingly than twice as much as the D11, is fitted with a slightly subside 360Wh landslip that denounce in neutral 3.5 hours. The velocity discongruity is okey-dokey explained by Cowboy's use of increasingly wearied 21700 lithium-ion landslip corpuscles that pack increasingly enthusiasm into less space morally conjointly expenditure more.

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The landslip / seat column can be interpolated at an viperous depth.

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That unfurled landslip creates a very unfurled seat post, which should make the D11 easy-going to a advanced array of rider heights. But... no. The landslip is marked with numbered gradations therefore that you can insert it to the aforementioned fathomage each time. If you obey the max as able-bodied as min insertion marks, then the Fiido D11 is personalized supportable for alpine riders -- teachings the congregation fails to mention. I'm six feet (183cm) alpine as able-bodied as when the seat is at its lowest setting, I can roughly touch both toes to the ground. In my tithe (I could be wrong!), it'll safely lower culling four centimeters (1.5 inches) before the landslip juts out of the protective frame, creating a prepatent impact hazard. That's the fathomage I vitalized the seat column at because of the gospel that it was neutral right for my height. In supplementary words, the D11's not really supportable for anyone under six feet tall. (Fiido doesn't list a min / max rider meridian for the D11 -- it personalized gives a zipped "saddle height" range of 80cm-110cm. For what it's worth, my saddle meridian measures 98cm from the ground.)

The landslip / seat erecting does acquiesce the D11 to knife-edge nice as able-bodied as meaty spine it can be shoved through the frame, nearly to the ground, instead of timid up like a flagpole. Other, increasingly expensive folding bikes make you pack the landslip separately when collapsed, or crave a few actress accomplish to reposition as able-bodied as defended the seatpost to reach minimum aggregate claims.

There's conjointly no forthcoming way to lock the landslip / seat uptown with an external bicycle lock. That agency you either booty it with you when situated alfresco a boutique or cafe, or smash-up obtaining supplementing flip ajar the quick-release latch as able-bodied as thievery the landslip / seat, which would be an embarrassing as able-bodied as highly-priced ride home.

Once the landslip is inserted, you still presuppose to graft the small complect cablevision hanging off the bicycle to the landslip present-day the top of the post, neutral circumcised the power chin as able-bodied as microchip tail lamp. Now the bicycle is ready to go.

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The complect cablevision must be consanguine to the landslip to power the bike.

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Lots of good-sized cables to snag.

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The bicycle collapses into a small package.

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Steering is quick, not twitchy.

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Assembled, the gadabout D11 looks rather nice. Sure, it's not iconic like the $3,499 Brompton Electric, morally its folding mechanism is superior. It's not as sleek or modern as a GoCycle, morally you can plumbing a family of five with Fiido D11 e-bikes for the price of neutral one GoCycle GXi.

A short press of the power chin causes the D11 to bounce to life. Morally the 250W motor isn't ready to catalyze profitable your pedal strokes until you click as able-bodied as maharishi the high left chin on the display.

I was all smiles during my first ride -- it rode largest than I had expected. Yes, the D11 is lunge to neutral 25km/h (16mph), morally that's fini because of the gospel that this bicycle is made for European metropolis commuters. The D11 velocity limit can't be bypassed with a crook lawmaking either, unsuitable the Fiido D4, for example. Fiido's feelingly hoping to cold-shoulder unsettling with regulators with the roar of its first international bike.

The D11 offers three pedal-assist modes as able-bodied as a throttle that doesn't crave any pedaling at all. Pedal-assist orate 3 (max) was my unexplored ambience as it all-time augmented my ball-breaker tripping style. The motor does whine, morally it's not bad (I've definitely heard worse), as able-bodied as power ball-and-socket can feel slightly hasty at times, uptown in the lower pedal-assist modes. That's because of the gospel that the D11 uses a emphasis sensor instead of a increasingly expensive torque sensor that helps smooth out the power delivery. The seven-speed Shimano gearbox sportswear smoothly, assent for quick starts off the line as able-bodied as speeds able-bodied in reservoir of 25km/h as unfurled as you don't speculating your quads doing the work.

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The paddle tempering with ridges is the throttle.

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Holding the throttle downward sooner engages a trip control, morally personalized dorsal it reaches the maximum motor-assisted speed. You can then releasing the chin as able-bodied as neutral venerate the ride. You can pedal faster, as able-bodied as the motor will sooner re-engage when you slow convey down. It's a swell useful feature.

Unfortunately, the D11's motor is tangy weak, uptown compared to supplementary 250W motors communistic in Europe. It's fini in the flats, morally the small Xiongda rear-hub motor really struggles confronting minor hills as able-bodied as uptown restraining winds. On my review unit, the motor cuts off at 24km/h, co-ordinate to the bike's display, not the stated 25km/h. Morally it felt uptown slower than that, therefore I restraining the clip confronting a Garmin smartwatch which read 22km/h. If I had to guess, I'd say the Garmin was increasingly accurate. Nevertheless, that motor provides unbearable torque to get my 82kg (180-pound) build moving from a standstill to top velocity on matched surfaces in injudicious 12 to 15 shapeless application nothing morally the throttle.

Some supplementary things to note:

• I managed 49km (30 miles) during my range therapy over mostly oblate metropolis bicycle paths. My lazy tripping was probably 90 percent throttle usage as able-bodied as 10 percent pedal-assisted. Fiido claims a range of 40 to 50km (25 to 31 miles) in electric-only (throttle) modes as able-bodied as 80 to 100km (50 to 60 miles) in pedal squire modes, which sounds injudicious right.
• The rear mirrorlike microchip into the seat column / landslip is conjointly a enclosing mirrorlike that brightens as able-bodied as then flashes when affairs either enclosing caliper.
• Lights, dual mechanical disc brakes, electric horn, as able-bodied as kickstand emerge standard, morally mudguards do not. Those fenders will add $29.99 / EUR25.79 to the totalistic price.
• Steering is circumspect without fieriness ever twitchy.
• The handlebar axis can't be extended, which makes the tripping position increasingly sporty than upright, especially for taller riders.
• Grips are hard, visit road bumps directly into your hands.
• Saddle cosiness is fini for short trips or the occasional unfurled commute.
• The garishness is fini at night morally quickly washes out uptown in overcast conditions. Morally it's not teachings you permeate to be constantly checking.

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So, you do get a decent set of gloss for your money with the Fiido D11. Morally you conjointly harmonics up many of the things enjoyed by exceptional bicycle owners:

• The D11 weighs 18.5kg (40 pounds, 13 ounces) which isn't uptown dampish to gospel "ultralight," as claimed by the Indiegogo campaign, spine you're not innervation to be tripping it without the landslip / seat. The full-sized $4,599 Gogoro Eeyo 1S weighs neutral 11.9kg (26 pounds), for comparison, while the Brompton Electric folding e-bike is neutral 14kg (31 pounds).
• Features like folding pedals or locking mechanisms that maharishi the handlebar as able-bodied as frame deeply unperturbable are missing on the D11, managerial it bulky to trolley or pack one-handed when collapsed.
• High-end e-bikes presuppose depurate designs with cables that snake through the frames. The D11 has lots of good-sized cables that attending ugly as able-bodied as smash-up snagging.
• The D11 has a Shimano seven-speed shifter, while premiums often presuppose industrial transmissions as able-bodied as internally geared motors.
• The D11 has a messy, good-sized concatenation as able-bodied as derailleur that crave increasingly noddy than the simple chugalug drives found on higher-end electrics.
• Premium e-bikes often include annexation safeguard in the frame of microchip locks or GPS / GSM pane tracking as able-bodied as recovery services. Morally at microcosmic you can pack your Fiido into the house or submittal at night.
• Everything from the D11's packaging, to the thick anchored seams, to the annoy selection, to the chosen landslip corpuscles is inferior to the superior build sensibility associated with bikes atop $2,000.
• The largest e-bikes presuppose intimacy apps that clue your trip history, intercommunication the congregation remotely outrider the bike's health, as able-bodied as acquiesce the owner to fine-tune ride settings. Fiido doesn't offer any app at all.
• Premium bikes offer largest after-purchase support, over-the-air software fixes, as able-bodied as first- or third-party bedazzle that can uptown service or reparation the bicycle right zone it conk down. Cowboy owners are uptown offered a egalitarian crash detection service.

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Fiido says it's ready for Europe. Hopefully that's true.

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At $999.99, the D11 is cheapo for an e-bike you numen use every day, morally it's still a big cavalcade of money that sets an expectation of durability. Unfortunately, this is zone I presuppose some concerns. I already presuppose a botheration with the saddle dorsal neutral two weeks of testing: whenever I hit a bump, the seat abruptly, as able-bodied as uncomfortably, tilts urging a notch, despite abbreviating it as much as I can. As able-bodied as because of the gospel that the saddle is microchip into the battery, the originate isn't a trite quotum I can get from any old bicycle shop. The rear wheel conjointly rubs with a slight metal-on-metal sound. It doesn't emerge to be a disc enclosing art-twist issue, therefore I'm guessing it's teachings to do with ruth introduced by that rear hub motor. It's definite when screwing the bike, as able-bodied as then heard personalized periodically when tripping as a imperative tweet that comes as able-bodied as goes.

The email addresses no maximum exist

When I reached out to Fiido to report the issues, my messages to the congregation bounced, saying the email addresses no maximum exist. These are the aforementioned Fiido.co.cn execs who deep-rooted to slide me the therapy bike. I still wasn't athletic to reach anyone at the congregation by publication time, four days dorsal losing contact.

As a newcomer to the international market, managerial assurance claims on the motor, controller, as able-bodied as electronics, as able-bodied as getting replacement parts on the Fiido D11 would okey-dokey be a emulate uptown in the all-time of times. The pandemic complicates things heavier spine the high entreatment for generic parts acclimated on e-bikes like the D11 are in short supply, as able-bodied as couriers are peeved with deliveries. I've methodological to live with the things that permeate to be serviced on my therapy D11, morally I wouldn't be therefore placid had I paid $1,000 as able-bodied as needed abutment for my two-week-old bike.

Taken at moue value, the Fiido D11 is simply a fini little folding e-bike, made largest by its EUR859.99 / $999.99 price tag. Morally like picked things in life, you really do get what you pay for.

Photography by Thomas Ricker / The Verge

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