Hoverboard vs. electric scooter

Both the hoverboard and the electric scooter are planet friendly, electronic personal modes of transport that are a lot of fun to ride, but how do they compare?

When it comes to hoverboard vs. electric scooter, price is a consideration. While you can buy a decent hoverboard for around the £200 mark, you should expect to pay more for a really good e-scooter. At least £400. When it comes to either, you don’t want to scrimp on quality.

E-scooters are a modern version of the good old fashioned kick-scooter. You stand a deck, but rather than having to propel yourself with a leg, the motorised engine does it for you. The same goes for a hoverboard, although you don’t have a handlebar to grip and you’ll use your body to maneouvre.

In the hoverboard vs. scooter battle, the hoverboard is more responsive than an e-scooter and your preference will be a matter of taste. It’s harder to ride a hoverboard because you have to learn to balance your body as you are riding.

Both the hoverboard and the e-scooter are portable, with the latter, it is best to choose a foldable model if you want to use it for daily commuting (remember, at the moment it is illegal to ride your own hoverboard or e-scooter on roads, pavements or any other public land).

When considering the self-balancing scooter vs. hoverboard, consider battery power. Both run on a lithium battery and while a hoverboard can be ridden for a distance of up to 20km on a single charge, some e-scooters will give you a range of up to 100km, which is pretty impressive.

Speed is another factor when it comes to electric scooter vs. hoverboard. Most hoverboards reach a maximum speed of around 15km/h whereas an e-scooter can go up to 50 km/h.

You’ll feel like you’re going much faster on a hoverboard though and if it is a really stable and secure ride you are after, then an e-scooter will be your best bet.

When it comes to safety, both hoverboards and e-scooters have to meet strict EU guidelines. There have been stories circulating about hoverboards exploding, but that rarely happens nowadays and if it does, it is usually caused by faulty batteries on inferior models. If you buy from a reputed manufacturer or reseller, you are unlikely to run into problems.

Really, whether you go for an e-scooter or a hoverboard, will depend on your lifestyle, what kind of ride you are after and whether or not you want something that’s just for fun or will take you into work and back on a daily basis (in which case you should opt for the e-scooter). You can hire e-scooters in certain towns, which means you can ride them on roads. If these schemes take off, it is likely that e-scooter laws will be relaxed and we’ll be seeing more of them on Britain’s roads. As for hoverboards, they’re still seen as a leisure pursuit, but as technology improves and tastes change, there’s no reason why the hoverboard won’t be popular with commuters of the future.