OCTOBER 2017 FORBES ASIA | 79TWO MONTHS AGO, during one of
my biweekly visits to Shenzhen to check
out the hardware scene’s latest develop-
ments, I met some people from a compa-
ny called Ancheer who told me they were
in the process of finalizing production
of an “ultralight electric bicycle.” Hav-
ing written about the growth of China’s
smartbike scene—as well as being a long-
time cycling enthusiast—I was eager to
put the bike to a test.
So imagine my disappointment when
the company informed me that the product was ready for me to try in
Shenzhen... days before I was set to fly to Los Angeles for a friend’s wed-
ding. I told them my visit would have to wait. “It’s okay,” they said, “we
have units in the U.S. you can test for a couple of days.”
It turns out Ancheer has long been a manufacturer of small electronic
vehicles like scooters, and it’s been selling on Amazon to the West for
years. Ancheer’s rep told me that because of Hong Kong’s import restric-
tions, it’s easier to ship the bike to L.A. Which is how I found myself riding
a tiny e-bike to my friend’s wedding. (Fortunately, the venue was nearby—
this thing isn’t meant to go long distances.)
I’ll get the slightly bad news out of the way first: Ancheer’s foldable e-
bike is so petite, so toylike, that a grown man riding it in the U.S. is destined
to get teased, and that’s exactly what happened when my friends saw me
rolling into the parking lot like Harry and Lloyd from Dumb and Dumber.
But the good news is great: The product is exactly as advertised! The
bike weighs only 23 pounds, which means it can easily be carried with
one hand by most adults. The handlebars can be folded down, shrinking
the bike’s height to just 2 feet. Such portability doesn’t bring much benefit
in L.A., land of vast spaces and giant houses. In New York, Tokyo or Paris
though? Being able to lug this up the stairs to an apartment without break-
ing a sweat is going to be a godsend.
This e-bike requires no pedaling—you simply rest your foot on a peg;
the 350w motor that powers its 12-inch rear wheel is enough to push the
thing to just over 10 mph for me. Ancheer claims the bike can reach 15
mph for most people, and I’m inclined to believe it, because at 190 pounds,
I am considered heavy. If the rider weighs, say, 120 pounds, I can see the
speed jumping 50%.
The e-bike can go 12 miles on a single charge (the lithium-ion battery
is made by LG). Again, L.A. isn’t the ideal place for this bike because the
city is so spread out and everyone drives. But for cities in China, Japan or
Europe, 12 miles is great for neighborhood commutes.
During my testing, the bike performed perfectly well on the road. On
sidewalks and unpaved dirt roads, the wheels struggled a bit with bumpsand rocks, but there was nothing that would de-
rail the commute—it just becomes a bumpy ride.
The bike could take me up slight inclines, but
steep ones might be a struggle. The left handle-
bar houses the bike’s on/off switch along with a
brake lever (it uses a rear disc-brake, like a stan-
dard bicycle); the right side has a battery meter
and the throttle. Simply pull back on the lever to
accelerate (there’s a cruise-control button if you
don’t want to be continually pulling back).
Being a smartbike from China, it of course
comes with a companion app, which works
quite well. Connecting via Bluetooth is easy, and
once synched, the app shows riding stats and a
map with your location. The app can also lock
the bike (you unlock it with a PIN or password),
but all the lock does is disable the bike’s throttle.
A thief can still pick the bike up and walk off
with it, so it would probably be a good idea to
use a standard bicycle chain lock.
The Ancheer e-bike is selling on Amazon
right now for $400. If you live in a cycling-
friendly city and have a walk-up apartment, this
ultraportable e-bike is for you.ANCHEER’S TINY BIKE
THOMAS KUHLENBECK FOR FORBES (TOP)BEN SIN IS A HONG KONG-BASED CONTRIBUTOR TO FORBES.COM WHO WRITES ABOUT CONSUMER TECH.
TECHNOLOGY BEN SIN // GADGETMAN
The perfect bike for short distances and walk-ups.F