Though pedal-assisted bikes are proving a popular choice among commuters, some riders may prefer to add pedal assist to a regular bike when it's needed and doing without when it's not. That's where lightweight and compact ebike conversion kits like the one from Swytch come in, and now the company has updated the design to include a pocket-friendly battery pack.
London's Swytch has come a long way since launching a successful crowdfunding effort on Indiegogo for its first ebike conversion kit in 2017, updating the design in 2019 with a smaller power pack, increasing the workforce to 50 employees, and shifting almost 40,000 conversion kits in total to date. Now the company has updated the battery design again.
As before, the kit comes with a front wheel that has a 250-W hub motor at its heart, which is built to a user's specified wheel size. A two-part pedal sensor will need installing too, along with an updated battery connector. Then there's that new Air power pack.
This is reported to have similar dimensions to a large smartphone (or perhaps the phablets of old), tips the scales at 700 g (1.5 lb) and provides enough per-charge juice for up to 15 km (9 miles) of motor assist. It can be charged in just an hour, and can be taken on an aircraft in carry-on luggage.
That range figure, however, is certainly on the low side and may not be enough for city commuters. But Swytch has thought of that and developed a "slightly larger" power pack that weighs in at 1.1 kg (2.4 lb) and offers up to 30 km (17 miles) of per-charge range.
The new Swytch Kit will go up for pre-order next month – pricing has yet to be revealed, though there will be significant pre-order discounts available. As a rough guide, the current universal kit has a starting price of £999 (about US$1,300), and will still be stocked until mid-2022 – after which it will be replaced by the new version.
Also, as the new battery and connector are backwards compatible with the current generation motor and pedal sensor, existing Swytch customers will be able to order themselves an upgrade kit that contains only the components needed. The pre-launch video offers a taste of what's to come.
Source: Swytch Technology