Seated electric scooter giant Yadea stands up, launching new standing e-scooters

Yadea is the largest electric two-wheeler manufacturer in the world, with a product portfolio that spans a variety of seated electric scooters and e-bikes. Now the company is adding standing electric scooters to the mix.

With today’s announcement of the Yadea KS5 and KS5 Pro, the Vin Diesel-repped manufacturer is standing up for lightweight electric scooters — literally.

Both scooters are lightweight folding models designed for zippy urban transit.

The entry-level Yadea KS5 houses a 350W motor and reaches a top speed of 18.6 mph (30 km/h). It also has a range of 25 miles (40 km).

Upgrading to the Yadea KS5 Pro earns riders a 500W motor (with a peak power rating of 700W) and a faster top speed of 22 mph (35 km/h). Its larger battery sports a maximum range of 37 miles (60 km).

Both models include rear-wheel motors, moving the center of mass further back than typical budget scooters with front-wheel motors and enabling those all-important wheelies.

They also feature a triple braking system that consists of a drum brake in the front plus a disc brake and regenerative braking in the rear.

Drum brakes have maintenance advantages over disc brakes (they usually outlive the scooter), while disc brakes provide better long period braking and more braking power. The combination of the two seems to offer up the advantages of both — reduced overall maintenance for the scooter and better, stronger braking.

The scooters also come with front suspension. There’s only an inch of travel (2.5 cm), so don’t expect to do any Evil Knievel jumps here, but it’s certainly going to be an improvement over rigid scooters.

Another improvement is the large wheel size, measuring in at 10 inches. That might sound small to the uninitiated, but it’s a veritable dinner plate for the scooter crowd.

The Bluetooth-connected scooters can interface with the Yadea mobile app, which includes a Smart Lock feature and also provides over-the-air (OTA) updates to the scooter’s firmware.

Unlike the wave of Indiegogo launches for new scooters we’ve seen recently, Yadea has skipped the pre-order process and headed straight to Amazon. Both models are available on the e-commerce giant, with the KS5 priced at $639 and the KS5 Pro priced at $759. I see a $40 and $60 off coupon box that can be clicked, so make sure you look out for that while it lasts.