EXPLAINING WHICH SCOOTERS BIRD USE
Written by Ed Wiles, Scootered Founder
Bird, along with Lime, is one of the two biggest players in e-scooter sharing in Europe. Both companies began in the USA before spreading elsewhere. They have not come to the UK, except in the Olympic Park, where Bird has been renting M365s, though the government has announced various cities will start trialling them from August 2020 (see this article on e-scooters and UK law). These hire schemes are great, but many users realise that it makes sense to buy their own electric scooter and thus want to know which e-scooters they have been riding with Bird or a similar scheme.
The answer bears some discussion. Simply put, Bird first used the Xiaomi M365, then added the Ninebot-Segway ES2 before moving on to bespoke scooters. So the Xiaomi M635 (which has now been replaced by the Xiaomi 1S) is the scooter Bird have been most associated with. This was the e-scooter with both a black and white version and the battery in its base (making the base a couple of inches deep). The Xiaomi 1S (and Essential) uses the same frame. However, Bird also started putting the Ninebot-Segway ES2 (or the ES4) on the streets. The ES2 is the one with the battery in the stem and thus a shallower base.
The ES2 Sandwiched by Two M365s
But just to complicate matters, Bird then started commissioning bespoke scooters, the first being called the Bird Two. Of course, this is not so useful for private ownership because there is not a foldable version. These bespoke e-scooters also tend to be made to stay out on the street - being heavier and larger than most Xiaomi or Segway models. So, basically, if you want to buy the same e-scooter as you have been riding, a Xiaomi is the best option: the Xiaomi 1S being the closest to the M365.
