Paul Somerville
Rider Guide’s Editor-in-Chief is a seasoned expert in the electric scooter industry. With a wide-ranging background that includes managing scooter warehouses, selling thousands of motorcycles, and restoring high value (+1M) European sports cars, his expertise is unmatched. Having personally tested more than 100 electric scooters, he offers invaluable insights and recommendations to our readers. We are fortunate to have him as part of our team, as his diverse skill set and extensive experience ensure top-notch reviews.
Segway Ninebot E22 Summary
Technical Specifications
Our Take: Low Maintenance, Low Speed Beginner Scooter
With outstanding stability, bicycle-like top speed and grippy next generation non-pneumatic tires, is this lightweight entry-level scooter the best for building confidence with new riders?
The E22 is set up perfectly for beginners. You can quickly unfold, power on, and get going.
The solid tires provide surprising traction and damping and will never go flat, so there’s no need to carry a tire pump or tubes (or learn how to change a tire). Because the speed and acceleration are limited, you won’t need super strong brakes or suspension, but the foot brake is a nice back-up if the regen brake doesn’t bring you to a halt.
As a direct descendant of the Ninebot ES2 and Ninebot ES4, which were dominant forces at the start of the scooter sharing boom, the Ninebot E22 is a solid addition to the E-series of Segway scooters as it includes improvements on the template.
It has intuitive thumb controls for regen brake and throttle, a simple centered display, and limited 13.0 mph top speed.
Although the Segway Ninebot E22 will get you where you need to go, we wouldn’t suggest going too far without a charger, as it’s great for last-mile trips but will give you range anxiety on longer routes. The E22 is strikingly stable, and a solid introduction if you’re shopping for your first scooter.
Segway Ninebot E22 Review
Performance Summary
| Top speed | 13.0 mph |
| Braking distance (15 to 0 mph) | 15.3 feet |
| Range | 10.1 miles |
| Hill climb | 26.4 seconds |
Acceleration
The Ninebot E22 has subtle acceleration that’s very easy to handle.
There’s no finesse required to operate the simple thumb throttle, and riding it feels a bit like stepping onto a moving walkway.
Once it hits its top speed, it stays there, but can’t go faster than that.
Top Speed
The E22 is excellent for beginners in part because it has a limited top speed of 13.0 mph.
When you’re just getting started on an electric scooter, it’s best to keep your speeds low to get used to how acceleration feels. Also, many cities that allow scooters limit their speed to 15 mph, so this is a great speed to keep you under the radar.
Note the average top speed that a bicyclist can achieve is 12 mph, so you’ll be able to keep up with bikers on the E22 but won’t be able to pass them.
Hill Climb
Like most entry-level electric scooters, the E22 is not built for climbing large inclines.
Our 10% average grade hill is probably the limit for this scooter, as it feels a bit silly “accelerating” at a snail-like 5.2 mph pace, taking 26.4 s to go the 200 ft distance.
However, some other scooters have failed to make the climb at all.
Range
With a real world range of 10.1 mi, the Ninebot E22 gives you enough for most commutes, provided you remember to bring your charger with you. It’s not what we’d call a weekend joyride scooter unless you plan well ahead, as range anxiety will plague your mind.
Braking
For normal stop and go, the regen brakes are effective and really easy to use. They’re controlled by a thumb throttle rather than a brake lever, which is nicely ergonomic. Stopping distance isn’t bad considering that it’s working with only regen in the front.
In our test, the E22 has a braking distance of 15.3 ft using the regen brake only. In an emergency stop, you can also use the foot brake (which is built into the rear fender) to slow down.
Find out how we do performance testing, and compare the Ninebot E22 to other scooters in our database.
Ride Quality
The E22 is a strikingly stable scooter. Its predecessors were pretty stable but the new solid tires, in combination with a lower top speed, make the E22 one of the most stable entry-level scooters we’ve ridden.
The 9.0 in polyurethane-filled solid tires are a huge improvement over the 8 in solid tires of its predecessors.
So much so that even without any suspension, it delivers a better ride than the Ninebot ES4, which has dual suspension. In addition to handling bumps better, the new tires have deeper tread for better traction in water and longer wear, and even have noticeably better traction in the dry.
Other than the intriguing next gen tires, our favorite thing about the scooter is the large, textured handgrips that are affixed to the handlebars, so they can’t spin freely.
They have a nice grippy feel and the large diameter makes them comfortable to hold. With simple thumb controls, the rider can keep their hands wrapped around the grips at all times while also keeping the controls within reach. The thumbs naturally fall in the right places to activate the brake and throttle, so riding ergonomics are very good.
This kick-to-start scooter can be paired with a mobile app to adjust basic features, like cruise control. The E22 provides an audible beep after sustaining speed for 5 to 10 s to let the rider know that cruise control has been engaged. There is no indicator on the display, so you have to remember it is active and pulse the brakes if you want to deactivate cruise control and slow down.
Segway Ninebot E22 Features
Portability
Although the E22 is only 30 lbs so very light weight, it’s not ultraportable because the handlebars are fixed (not folding).
However, their narrow width helps keep the package small, makes it easy to roll through doorways and feels wide enough while riding. It folds down quickly and easily, and the stem latches to the rear fender for easy carrying.
With a rounded stem, it’s light and compact enough to lift alongside you one-handed and very easy to fit into a trunk. The E22 measures 17 in wide by 45 in long by 14 in tall when folded.
When walking alongside the scooter, keep in mind that the battery is located in the stem, and the rear wheel can swing towards your ankles when taking it up curbs. This configuration can also make it feel a bit front heavy and like it doesn’t want to roll over bumps without flipping forward. However, this isn’t an issue while riding, as your weight easily counters that of the stem.
Cockpit
The E22 has a very clean cockpit with thumb controls, a simple centered LED display and bell (not pictured). Nothing else! There aren’t any cables to get caught on or buttons to get broken, as the rubberized controls and rounded handgrips feel durable and well made. The display is easy to read but doesn’t give you much detail.
One bugaboo is the display’s firmware. In spite of updating to the latest firmware before range testing, the battery indicator stayed at 100% through the entire test, alerting us that it wasn’t updating correctly.
Thankfully, the mobile app faithfully reported the charge level correctly, and it’s likely an error that will be fixed with future firmware updates.
Overall, the cockpit is like the scooter: purposeful, simple, easy to operate and overall best for beginners.
Lights
The E22 comes with a high-mounted headlight and fender-mounted tail light that activates with braking. There are also red reflectors on either side of the stem and on either side of the deck near the rear. The lights help with overall visibility, especially the rear brake light which is visible from behind as well as from the side. However, we would like a brighter headlight.
For more on what lighting we recommend for night riding, check out our guide.
Tires
The road tires on the Segway E22 deserve some attention and praise. Segway spent three years developing a 9.0 in solid tire that really feels more like a pneumatic tire, and have succeeded. They’ve created the closest approximation of a pneumatic tire that we have ever seen, while still delivering the low maintenance of a solid tire.
The diameter is larger than solid tires on other entry-level scooters, and are filled with a polyurethane foam that delivers good road feel, soaks up bumps reasonably well and provides improved stability and traction over the solid tires of previous E-series scooters.
Deck
The deck measures 6.0 in wide by 18.0 in long and is covered in thin rubber with a raised diamond pattern that matches the handgrips. It feels a little narrow and not especially long, but is actually only slightly smaller than the deck of the Segway Ninebot Max.
Build Quality
The E22 has a lightweight build that feels fortified from previous E-series generations.
Segway has added a third pair of bolts securing the handlebars to the stem, which should completely eliminate the handlebars being able to flex forward and backward too much with repeated riding. They have also doubled the number of fasteners connecting the stem to the deck, and added a brace to eliminate stem wobble.
The Segway Ninebot E22 is an easy to use, portable scooter that can get you where you need to go at about the same speed as a bicycle. It’s not a head turner, with a dark and light gray design that’s as appealing as an office printer, but it is low-profile and looks and acts professionally. It’s going to do its job so just hang out, and it’ll carry you to your destination… eventually.
The light weight, low maintenance build and easy to operate throttle and brake coupled with a limited top speed and outstanding stability make it an exceptional choice for first-time riders wanting to build confidence, but not for those seeking thrilling performance.
If the Segway line doesn’t fit your needs, check out our RG Editor’s pick of best electric scooters.
Segway Ninebot E22: Review Conclusions
While the regen brakes are very easy to use, having regen as a primary source of braking has its limits. When the scooter is fully charged, descending a large hill while braking can cause the regen to stop functioning, as the battery is full and the energy has nowhere to go. Using it this way also has potential to cause the motor controller to overheat and fail. The design has been improved over time to leave extra room in the battery to soak up power, but we strongly recommend using the foot brake when descending steep hills if the scooter is fully charged.
One thing that the Segway scooters do better than most: cable management. There are zero exposed cables anywhere on the scooter, giving it a very clean look from top to bottom. The simple design also makes the Ninebot E22 very easy to disassemble, as the handlebars are only connected to the scooter by one plug-and-play connector.
Like other Segway models, the E22 has an IPX4 water resistance rating. This doesn’t mean it’s weather- or waterproof, but does help fortify it against environmental damage. Keep in mind that most scooter warranties, even for those with IP ratings, do not cover water damage.
Segway Ninebot E22 Manufacterer Specifications
| Make | Segway |
| Model | Ninebot E22 |
| Weight | 30 lb |
| Folded dimensions | 45 by 17 by 14 in |
| Motor power, continuous | 300 W |
| Top speed | 12 mph |
| Range | 14 mi |
| Battery capacity | 184 Wh |
| Battery recharge time | 3.5 hrs |
| Max rider weight | 220 lb |
| Brake type | Regenerative + Foot |
| Tire type | 9.0 in Solid + Solid |
| Built-in lights | Front + Rear |
| Water resistance | IPX4 |
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