VanMoof S3 e-bike impressions - incredible design with Apple Find My integration!

[@9to5Mac]

Full written post for those wishing to read: 9to5mac.com/2021/05/26/vanmoof-s3-impressions-a-ridiculously-good-looking-e-bike-with-apple-find-my-support-video/

[@rfp1999]

I am on my 3rd VanMoof and want to love the product. They appear to be going through growing pains but they have always done the right thing in terms of customer support, they are just slow responding. The performance, design, fit, and finish are A+ when all goes well. The electronics on the S2 and S3 went bad but VanMoof did rectify. The Find MY is a benefit and works well, the mobile app is good too. IMO, this is the best smart bike on the market but you have to be patient as they mature. Thanks for your review of the product!

[@Vojoor]

Love the HDR content!

[@9to5Mac]

Thank you! I really like it as well.

[@devvvvvvvvvvvv]

lmfao

[@flymax566]

I had two VanMoof now and the first one killed it self in 450 km and the replacement in 22.5 km and the took it back for repair but it came even more broken back! So I’m not sure what they are doing but the need to improve there service and for the past few week I’m at least 20-25 minutes in the waiting line!

[@willradford6357]

Sadly short term reviews don’t do the reliability justice. 300kms and 4 serious faults so far, months out of action waiting for repairs & spares I have to then install myself. Amazing bike but serious quality control issues. Lots to do before they nail the perfect bike.

[@sjoeaat]

Same for me. Returned three bikes so far

[@trellis1027]

Wow

[@timsnaden8937]

I love the design, ride and concept but demo bikes in pop up shop broken. I paid for one then found shocking reviews after so cancelled and bought a cube. If they sort it all out with a S4 I would be tempted though

[@Catandbeats]

Heard similar here in Amsterdam

[@odkKoma]

I have the Vanmoof S1 Smartbike (without motor) and still love it!

[@joost3732]

I've tried a few, and this is by far my favorite e-Bike. Such a smooth design, you can't tell that it has a motor built-in. And it's really not that expensive.

[@joey-pn3xe]

Try a Cowboy 3

[@chrizs]

Got mine 2/3 weeks ago and I love it

[@starkey21es]

Loved the review, one of the best I've seen on the vanmoof S3

[@a.d.whitsett6215]

Great video. I was actually thinking of getting one of these prior to the video.

[@hansmaristela7182]

Thank you. Once again, for all things -related, yours is the best review. I think I’ll get the S3; I can’t wait for October for the S5. Stay well, Jeff!

[@JerrysTechCorner]

Yes finally it is here!

[@krandoVision]

Great review!

[@9to5Mac]

Appreciate it Krandon!

[@TwoWheelCruise]

Wow, this is a really cool bike!

[@teoteo9212]

Any idea why they don’t ship to Canada? 18 countries included the states but no canucks. That’s odd.

[@swgtttt18]

That looks awesome

[@johnfreed4651]

Beautiful bike! Is the lack of suspension an issue?

[@albertolaluk]

I wish a foldable bike versión + light weight + heat ressistant tires

[@BasicFolders]

This video plays VERY bright and blown out on my iMac Pro... unlike any other KZbin videos that I click on or ever saw before.... is there a setting I don't know about or a reason for this? I change the settings to all of them, even the 720p and it still is over exposed (I think that's the term) does anyone know what I can do to fix this, or why it's just on this video? I didn't see anyone else comment that the video had an issue. Thanks!

[@9to5Mac]

Are you using Safari? It's in HDR, and the latest version of Safari should make sure it's tone mapped correctly.

[@BasicFolders]

@@9to5Mac Wow! Thanks for the reply! It looks awesome in Safari, that's strange that in Chrome (refreshed a zillion times) that it's basically a white page. First time this ever happened, something about the HDR or something I have running on my browser... but Safari it looks awesome. Thank you! 👍

[@9to5Mac]

@@BasicFolders Awesome! Yeah, oddly enough, Chrome sometimes acts weird with HDR.

[@SenseiSasquatch]

is it good useable in off-road settings?

[@maxdondada]

Good review. I may buy one

[@francisacemaglalang1701]

waiting for this. Thanks Jeff!

[@9to5Mac]

Thanks for your patience.

[@jaybee70]

great review

[@solstar4778]

Do the colors come In gunmetal?

[@michalziobro1984]

But how to charge it id battery is built in

[@arilebon]

Wonder what the maintenance would be like for a non-mechanical plodder like me?

[@huubjoanfranssen8980]

Probably it would look like a quick walk to a bike shop. ;-)

[@goodelectronics4170]

Wish to have that kind of stuff soon....

[@hyperdell72]

Audio level is markedly lower than other videos.

[@tangocash342]

2200 $?

[@travelingman4850]

This bike looks great but it’s hardly the only e-bike out there. The price is perfectly fine or actually really competitive for what it offers. The BIG elephant in the room is the quality issues the company has had with the automatic gearbox and the electrical system/ battery. One minute of googling will be enough to find plenty examples of what I mean. I think it’s pretty bad journalism not to mention this in your “review”. I love many things about this bike but I would really like to know what the company thinks and does about those serious quality problems rather than listening to the different ringtones again. They have been demonstrated in MANY other YT-videos... Your review would have been much more relevant if you had mentioned the problems but also what the company has done with the latest version of the S3 to try to fix matters. Is the new gearbox much improved or not?? As it stands today, this video is just another ad for VanMoof which really is a missed opportunity..

[@Thijs.]

VanMoof is the best

[@kevindaniels676]

Can you mount an iPhone on the bike , for Air pods and maps ?

[@9to5Mac]

Yes, there are many iPhone mounts for bikes on Amazon. I wouldn't recommend listening to headphones while riding a bike, however, as you need to hear the world around you to stay safe.

[@jasonreynolds7444]

I have the VanMoof S3 and use a quad lock to center mount my iPhone for navigation. It works like a dream 👌

[@9to5Mac]

@@jasonreynolds7444 Can you drop a link? Thanks Jason.

[@jasonreynolds7444]

@@9to5Mac Of course - this is what I use: www.quadlockcase.com/collections/shop-ride

[@joesmooth226]

There is a German company selling these with their own logo out there for $65. I bought them both the are exactly the same and returned the German one.

[@SasduPlessis]

Amazing!!

[@allwheeldrive]

Nice review. There is one elephant in this room, however. That sleek look from permanently hiding the battery is a deal killer if you have to take your bike up a few floors into your apartment. Every time you need to charge the battery, you have to take the bike with it. For many of us who really use a bike daily in the city, we regretfully have to pass. Truly one of the best-looking, well-though-out rigs.

[@arsefff]

Then something like the Cowboy 3 or C4 sounds better suited for you

[@derekschinke2512]

They have an extra removable battery you can use instead

[@A-Grat-A]

@@arsefff Cowboy has too sporty seating position.

[@joey-pn3xe]

@@A-Grat-A correct I have a Cowboy 3 and love it but it’s not very comfortable. The power delivery is much better/natural than a Vsnmoof

[@everywherelocal]

yeah! 👍

[@pep537]

why is the video all blown out?

[@9to5Mac]

Watch on Safari...

[@pep537]

@@9to5Mac ew no thank you.

[@howellschan]

it almost perfect except the price....

[@allwheeldrive]

Given the features and design, it's actually a pretty decent value. It's the non-removable battery that ruins the rest of it.

[@votdfak]

@@allwheeldrive and awful QC

[@derekschinke2512]

Surprisingly cheaper than a lot of other e-bikes

[@Thijs.]

@@allwheeldrive they made a powerbank to solve that issue

[@cfgodwell]

Gee, I figured with me spending over $2000 on a bike that it would cater to more than Apple users. Not cool, but nice video.

[@NanneWielinga]

Apple FindMe will come with an Android finder app. Also VanMoof has other ways of finding the bike which work on Android as well. Anyways, 2000 dollar is not much for an e-bike, especially one as good as VanMoof. Having said that: checkout non electric urban Cube bikes, they are amazing and between 1000 and 1200 dollars.

[@cfgodwell]

@@NanneWielinga I already own a brand new S3, so I'm definitely not looking for a new bike. I was lucky enough to get one from someone who never opened it at $1700 and the warranty intact. My issue is I don't receive the Peace of Mind insurance because it wasn't added to the initial purchase and had it been, it's not transferrable. I live in NYC and theft is a possibility. I need to be able to locate my bike and initiate my own brand of justice should I come across it if it's stolen.

[@WesleyDechavez]

I didn't noticed it's HDR until I checked the video quality. I guess HDR doesn't matter that much.

[@XujieLi]

Does anyone know when apple will release the new Mac Book Pro 16in? WWDC?

[@9to5Mac]

Hoping so.

[@JustIssybee]

Forgot to mention it cost $2,200 🥵🥵🥵

[@gesa5187]

For an e-bike it is cheap, unfortunately you notice that also in the quality.

[@trellis1027]

@@gesa5187 sub $1000 is cheap for an e-bike. Not $2,200. Are you a software engineer or something?

[@Davidplays2016]

The tire is schwalbe wooow

[@gesa5187]

If the bike would ride then I'm sure it would be a great bike. But my bike was broken from the start and they couldn't get it to work. Back and forth it was shipped. In the end I bought another bike that rides. I'm glad to have gotten rid of the VanMoof.

[@IvanPauletti]

Did you really intended to put your email and phone on the video? Lol

[@PDXNY]

The reliability on a VanMoof is shite! 3 months in my automatic gears went. 5 months in my kick lock became inoperable. 7months error20 which is the battery and the bike is currently a brick. :(

[@heyheytaytay]

It's not worth the money especially when you have to wait weeks for parts, etc and it's not nearly as reliable as you'd hope.

[@quintenadema923]

If anyone's interested in getting this bike, don't forget to use referral code ADV-VR11-DRBG-04CQ to get $100 off 😉

[@Jonathantuba]

I have an Vanmoof S3 and love it. It is pre Apple Find My, but I have the smaller X3 on order for my wife which will be so fitted - good because she had her previous ebike stolen the first time out! I do like this video being in HDR which looks fantastic on my new M1 iPad Pro

[@SkyeDaMan]

Jeff, your phone number is visible at 2:53

[@UnoHuang]

$2198?????????????

[@donpayne1040]

Yeah...that would get stolen from where I live. Leicester (uk).

[@parkerduff9064]

Is that Cherokee Park? lol

[@9to5Mac]

Nope, Bernheim/Long Run.

[@ctlspl]

Just dump an airtag in the tube of any existing bike, bam you have findmy for $ 39 in any bike.

[@9to5Mac]

True, but it's not just Find My that makes it so nice, it's the full security suite: Find My, Alarm, Kick Lock, Auto Unlock, Wheel Locks.

[@ctlspl]

@@9to5Mac Yeah, I agree 100%. I would love to buy it one day. I was referencing to the backlash from the S3 owners who didn’t get findmy for their „older“ bikes.

[@TheUnrevealer]

Bike what looks like nineboot e-scooter. Now I've seen it all.

[@ibu46]

🤑😟😢 but to watch it’s amazing

[@goobfilmcast4239]

Van Moofs are beautiful....but under-powered

[@joesmooth226]

only limited by motor vehicle laws

[@MrBlaq]

Meh. Needlessly complicating an activity that was already refined and efficient.

[@9to5Mac]

You mean e-bikes in general? I can respect that. That's one reason why I like the option of disabling assist and pedaling on my own at times for that workout.

[@MrBlaq]

@@9to5Mac IMO if you’re commuting to work/school and don’t want to get sweaty on the way, e-scooters and e-skate boards make more sense than an e-bike. As far as needing assistance up a hill, that’s the whole point of gearing. At that point you might as well commit to a full on electric motor cycle, which is way more fun.

[@bugsygoo]

Sorry, dude. That thing doesn't just scream ebike. It screams I've got an ebike, loads of money and an iPhone!