Want to reduce how much time you spend behind the wheel on your way to work, and avoid gas stations entirely?

You’re probably considering a new bike, but should you go for the standard multi-gear, manual pedal ride, or enjoy enhanced power for less effort with an electric bike?

Why Choose an Electric Bike?

A bike will get you from A to B. You probably won’t aim to go too far, as there is a risk of getting worn out and potentially looking terrible at the end of the journey (think commuting by bike for the first time).

An electric bike will get you from A to B. You can aim a little farther, the risk of being worn out is reduced, and you’ll look reasonably unflustered when you get there (think commuting by taking your bike on the train).

The Eskute Polluno is an electric city bike, intended for urban and suburban travel, and “built for commuters.”

With a hub motor designed to “flatten every urban incline” and a step-through frame, the Eskute Polluno has an LED display, removable battery, and easy peddling. It ships partially assembled—as with most bikes, you’ll need to fit one of the 27.5-inch wheels, front fork, and the handlebar—ships within days of your order.

But at £1,199 (around $1500; it retails for just under €1300 in the EU), is the Eskute Polluno a bike you should consider?

Unboxing and Assembling the Eskute Polluno

Thanks to the motor and the battery, the Polluno is a rather hefty bike. Lugging the 147 x 23.5 x 83cm box through the front door was one thing, but I also had to drag it out the back for assembly.

The bike ships in pretty thick corrugated cardboard, is packaged in plastic and polystyrene, and all the pre-assembly components and tools are secured in place with cable ties. Basically, there is no suggestion that anything could come loose and cause scratches, get bent, snapped, etc.

Assembly means attaching the front fork and wheel to the aluminum alloy frame, which I managed to insert backwards, something I didn’t work out until it came to aligning the handlebar.

In the device we received for review, while the assembly of the bike was straightforward, the manual lacked clarity in several places. For example, there is nothing about attaching the mudguards to the bike. Elsewhere, hooking up the cable to the display was perfectly simple, but there is an unexplained unconnected cable (possibly for an optional accelerator, but it's not referenced in the manual, and its omission doesn't appear to have any consequences.)

Meanwhile, although it appears everything you need is shipped with the bike, ours arrived without the nuts and to fix the kickstand in place.

Eskute Polluno Features and Specs

The key to this e-bike is the 250-watt Bafang G010 rear hub-drive motor, with a maximum 15.5 miles per hour (24.95 kilometers per hour) speed. The Eskute Polluno has a 125kg (275lbs) capacity, making it suitable for most physiques. But keep in mind the rear pannier rack, as whatever is loaded here will contribute to the overall weight.

Mounted on the handlebar is a bell, the Shimano seven-speed gearshift, and the bike’s backlit LED display. This is a basic system, displaying motor speed setting across the top, current speed in the middle, whether the front light is enabled beneath this, and the remaining battery charge along the bottom.

Finally, a USB-C port is mounted at the front of the display, pointing toward the saddle.

Battery Life and Range

An estimated 65-mile (104.5 kilometers) maximum distance can be traveled on a single charge thanks to the 522Wh 36V battery, commonly used in lightweight electric vehicles. A mains charger is included in the box. The battery is locked to the bike normally but can be unlocked and taken elsewhere for charging.

When unused, the battery does decrease. A full charge of the test device reduced by 50% when the bike was left standing for a week. Unless you’re planning to cycle unassisted, it’s smart to keep it topped up in advance of traveling. Charging doesn’t take long---around 120 minutes to top up from halfway, but five to six hours for a full charge from empty.

If charging with the battery detached, holding the button on the device will reveal the level of charge.

One thing to note with the battery. The charging port is covered with a little rubber door, but this comes off far too easily and is tricky to replace. Leaving it uncovered---particularly in the British rain---isn't smart, so a more secure solution would be preferable here. On the subject of rain, riding in heavy rain is not recommended. Obviously, that makes the Polluno less useful in some parts of the world than in others.

Taking the Eskute Polluno for a Ride

All the usual checks are required before taking the Polluno out, and this includes the tires. While they arrived partially inflated, they were well below the recommended pressure, so needed pumping up.

Of course, as this is an eBike, the tires aren’t the only thing that needs to be full.

While the battery comes partially charged, you should always calibrate it first by fully charging before use, so I topped it up before setting out on a roughly 10-kilometer ride. This took a total of about 35 minutes with stops for traffic and railways, and included the most diverse non-off-road terrain I could find in an urban environment. Under bridges, over bridges, long stretches of open space along the waterfront, on and off curbs, main roads, and side streets.

Anything I threw at the Polluno in a strictly urban sense, it seemed to handle. The bike is intended for flat roads, hard surfaces, and inclines of less than 15 degrees.

Of course, this is an eBike, with that hub motor playing an important part in the journey. It uses a cadence sensor, so the motor won't kick in until it detects a bit of pedaling and forward motion. More expensive eBikes use a torque sensor, which can assist almost immediately as you start to pedal. In a relatively flat urban environment, this doesn't matter so much.

So you can enjoy a power-assisted ride---but is it noisy? Well, yes and no. On a still day, you'll notice the hum of the motor, but on a windy day (or traveling at top speed) you probably won't. It's an unobtrusive hum, too, almost like the rubber-on-pavement rubbing of a flat tire. I must admit, I had to check my wheels a few times until I got used to the sound.

The Eskute Polluno’s Display and Interface

While you’re not looking at the road ahead and behind, you will need to momentarily check the LED display. It’s clear enough, and the backlight helps visibility during the daytime.

At the foot of the display are two buttons. On the left is the power button, which initiates the display; a second press enables the front and rear lights. On the right, meanwhile, is the mode button, which cycles through the motor’s five speed settings. Between them is a rubber disc that looks like a functional button, but is probably just covering a fixing screw.

The two buttons cover a number of extra features. For example, hold the mode button to initiate a 6 km/h cruise speed, known as cart mode. Alternatively, hold both for 20 seconds to unbind any Bluetooth connections.

Bluetooth? Why, yes. The Eskute Polluno has Bluetooth capability, but the manual omits to explain how it can be enabled, connected, or used. You’ll spot the Bluetooth symbol when switching on the display, but no combination of power and mode buttons seems to enable connectivity or accept a PIN.

Instead, you'll need to try Eskute's dedicated app, currently available only on iOS. After registering, you can easily connect to the bike, which shares distance and speed data with the app. It's a handy tool that records total mileage, calories, the amount of CO2 saved, and lets you manage the multitude of other Eskute bikes in your collection.

The lights can also be remotely controlled, as can the battery lock and even hub motor speed. Meanwhile, issues with the bike can be highlighted in the app via a collection of error codes.

Overall, it's a useful app. But as noted, we had to go looking for it as it was not referred to in our version of the manual.

Eskute Polluno: Time to Ditch the Car?

Overall, riding the Polluno is a pleasure. However, I did find a couple of niggles.

Despite the step-through frame, this isn’t really a bike for women—certainly not one under 160cm (5’ 8”), which rules out my wife. Also, the bike is a hefty 25 kilograms (55 lbs), which means it is going to be difficult to handle and maneuver safely by all but the most athletically built women—and some men.

Going out on a limb, I’d say that the athletically built are not the target market for the Eskute Polluno. I’m not an expert in bike design, but I feel as though a bike that uses a body shape traditionally aimed at female cyclists should be suitable for anyone who needs to ride it.

Further quirks mar the Eskute Polluno. For example, the motor speed setting doesn’t reset after parking up. It doesn’t even reset after 24 hours, which can have some serious consequences. Starting off your journey you will probably want to step up through speeds 1-5 as you step up each gear. But if you start off on speed 5, you’re at risk of an accident.

In testing, I discovered this while riding on a footpath on waste ground. The result was the bike shaking and rattling a fair bit until I was able to drop the speed right down and hit the brakes. Sitting on a rattling, shaking bike with an electric motor is not something I want to experience again! As a result, I now ensure the speed is reset to 1 when I lock the bike away.

“But,” I hear you say, “surely all of this is outlined in the manual, you fool!”

No, it’s not. The manual does the job of telling you how to put the bike together; bits of paper from Shimano link to the manual for the thumb shifter, and of course there is a warranty. But the 96-page, 6-language manual does not—at least not in English—explain the power of the five speeds or advise you to reset before setting off.

Now, it’s possible I’m being a little unfair here, as the manual is full of good safety advice. Just not that particular important piece of information.

On Yer’ Bike!

I haven’t ridden a bike in years. Getting on the Eskute Polluno was, well, like riding a bike. It was wonderful, whether using the power-assisted peddling or not.

The Polluno is a solid street bike, perfect for commuting. Its controls are basic—perhaps more than is practical—but the overall takeaway is that this is a reliable bike that will get you to and from work (or wherever) with a minimum of fuss.

On reflection, the Eskute Polluno is a bike I like, but don’t love. It promises more than it delivers, thanks to missing components, and an incomplete manual, but the mobile app is good.

But, the actual ride experience is perfect, and that’s kind of what you expect from a bike.