Review: Slidgo X8 

All I want to do is travel around New York City on a stylish ride that I can easily carry indoors to grab a cup of coffee, instead of hunting for a spot to park—something like the hoverboard from Back to the Future.

Hoverboards might not exist as we originally imagined them, but electric kick scooters are the next best thing. They’re just hoverboards with handlebars, right? And wheels. Well, close enough. They feel futuristic, but many are heavy and bulky, as I found with the escooters I tested over the past year. It’s near impossible to tote one around like you would a skateboard. So I was overjoyed when the Slidgo X8 arrived on my doorstep.

Compared to the more than 60-pound escooters I’ve been testing, this 30-pound vehicle feels positively lightweight. I did carry it into an ice cream shop to grab a pint of masala chai (it was delicious), and I didn’t struggle or bang it into my shins in the process. However, the lighter an escooter is, the more likely you’ll notice the host of sacrifices made to get there. The big one?  Comfort. 

In more than a few of my escooter reviews, there's a theme. There's usually a lot of snags in the setup process: a missing screw here, forcing a wheel into a fork there. You know, the usual. That’s what makes the Slidgo X8 more special. It took just five minutes to get it up and running. 

It’s almost entirely in one piece out of the box. All you need to do is take it out, attach the handlebars by rotating them into the threads at the top of the stem, slot the battery into the stem, and tighten the brake/LED display with the included hex key. That’s it. You’re ready to go.

Unfolding it is dead simple too. Push down on the rear mudguard to free the stem, lift it up, and close its clamp to keep it in place. You can secure the clamp by rotating a lock over it. Do the reverse to fold it, and it all takes less than a minute. You can carry the X8 by grabbing the stem, and it really is lightweight. 

The first thing I noticed aside from its sleek and simple looks? This is a noisy escooter—and I don’t mean the motor. It makes a loud chime when you turn it on and off, and frequently makes beeps when you ride (more on that later). It’s not so bad when you’re outside surrounded by traffic and other ambient sounds, but it’s loud indoors.

This kick scooter is also made for people much shorter than my 6'4" self. My extra-large hands take up the entire length of the handlebars, and the whole thing is a tad shorter than I’d like. The deck is so narrow that I can only fit one foot on it, with the ball of my second foot behind. 

At least you get important extras, like a bell, an LED display that shows your speed, and a headlight and a rear brake light. It’s also IP54 water resistant, and I had no trouble when I was forced to ride the scooter in the middle of a sudden light rain. Just make sure to wipe it down as soon as you’re back, and don’t plug in the charger until it’s completely dry! (Despite touting the IP54 rating, the manual says not to ride it in the rain, so I'd avoid it when possible.) 

The best perk is the removable battery. The idea here is to buy a spare battery and carry it with you, so when the scooter starts to lose juice, you can swap in a fresh cell to keep going. The battery is around six pounds, though, so maybe it's a better idea to leave the spare at home or the office so you never get range anxiety. It takes around four hours to recharge it fully. 

Without a spare battery, you will feel a little anxious. Range on electric vehicles like ebikes and escooters vary widely, depending on factors like rider weight, assist level, and terrain. 

I found that the X8 usually lasted around 12 miles before needing a fill-up, which was disappointing given that I tested the $599 version of the X8 that’s supposed to hit 20 miles on a single charge. I'd avoid the base model, which only has a purported range of 16 miles—especially since the 20-mile version of the X8 is very often discounted for just $10 more than the 16-mile model.

The throttle sits on the right handlebar, and you gently push it down as you kick off to get the 350-watt motor going. When it hits the six-second mark, you’ll hear a beep (it’s noisy, remember?), which means that the cruise control has turned on. That means you can leave the throttle alone and simply worry about braking. It’s a nice touch. (If you don’t release the throttle after the first beep, the X8 just keeps … beeping.)

It’s nice to not have to think about pushing a throttle, especially since braking isn’t as simple as pressing the brake lever on the left handlebar. This disc brake works in tandem with an electronic brake and the foot brake. You activate the latter with your foot by pushing down on the rear mudguard. It’s not the strongest brake system, but I never found it hard to come quickly to a full stop. 

So how’s the ride? It’s fine on well-paved roads, but the slightest crack, the smallest pothole, the tiniest rock, feels like you’re getting bucked off a bull. Seriously, you can feel every bump in the road with the 10-inch rubber tires. This was a nightmare when I accidentally drove onto a milled road. I felt like every pedestrian was interestedly watching me struggle to stay on the X8 as it bucked and snorted away.  

There are three different ride modes (or “gears”) you can choose from that regulate the scooter’s speed: Eco, Beginner, and Sport. You toggle through them via a button, but seeing as Beginner capped me at around 9 mph, I just left it at Sport. In this mode, I usually hit around 19 mph, which is perfect for dense urban environments with lots of pedestrians and traffic lights. Anything more might be overkill unless you’ve got long stretches of roads (and more generous speed limits).

The X8’s speed may be reasonable, but acceleration will leave you wanting. Too many times did I watch others on scooters, bikes, and cars shoot past me as soon as the traffic light hit green. It also struggles up small hills—it’ll climb up them fine, but only at 11 or 12 mph. 

Riding the X8 may not be as comfy as pricier escooters I’ve tried, but I’m happy I can fold this thing up in seconds and carry it into a store without much effort. That alone makes up for much of its flaws.  

The one gray area? Slidgo is a new brand under Adorama, and the retailer is new to the e-scooter space. You only get a one-year warranty on the X8 and a six-month warranty on the battery. Adorama has a customer service team you can reach out to if you encounter an issue, and the company says it offers replacement parts, but it does not have its own service center. 

If you don't mind taking a chance on the brand, you’re in an area with nice roads, and the places you travel to usually aren’t far, the X8 is a solid way to get around. My 8-mile round trip to an ice cream shop was perfectly enjoyable, except for when I yelled “Jesus” while going over a pothole.