While Velotric is a relatively new company, it's had lots of success and positive reception with its debut Discover 1 model in 2021. The company is led by Adam Zhang, one of the co-founders of Lime scooters. Building off of this, Velotric is expanding its lineup and looks to deliver a reliable, high-quality ebike that can handle your next off-road adventure.

The Nomad 1 features a 750-watt (peak 1,200W) rear hub motor with a 48-volt, 691.2Wh battery that charges in 6 hours and provides up to 55 miles of range.

As a Class 2 bike, you can ride this up to 20 mph using its throttle-only mode, which doesn't require any peddling. The Nomad 1 is quick and fun to ride, both on and off-road. Currently on sale, the Nomad 1 can be bought for $1,399. Use the coupon code MUONOMAD60 for an extra $60 off!

Models and Build Quality

The Nomad 1 is available in Step-Thru and High Step options. I opted for Step-Thru as I wanted a bike I could more easily get on and off when adventuring or discovering new areas. There are seven colors total to choose from; but depending on which frame you choose, the color choice will be more limited. Mango is the only color available on both frame styles. It would have been nice if all of their colors were available for both

frames.

The aluminum frame and battery look like one piece with only very minimal gaps between where the battery is inserted. Cheaper bikes tend to suffer with their finish, especially with their welded pieces. The craftsmanship appears to be very good. There are a few small decals on the bike which are printed on well and show no signs of defects. When fully assembled, the bike overall feels very well put together. It also looks very premium and on par with much more expensive ebikes, especially with its concealed wires except for where they come out by the front of the handlebars. The Nomad 1 is IPX6 waterproof (protected against high-pressure jets of water from any angle), so you should be able to ride this through all kinds of weather without issue.

Nomad 1 Battery

The Nomad 1 uses a "Tesla-grade" 48V 14.4Ah (690Wh) removable battery with 21700 cells certified by LG/Samsung, which Velotric claims "features a 50% longer range compared to similar bikes in the market", giving you up to 55 miles on a single charge. Using its full throttle mode decreases the Nomad's max range to about 45-50 miles, though results will vary depending on the terrain and weather.

The battery is top-loaded and sits flush with the frame. The paint, finish, and thickness of the battery matches perfectly with the rest of the bike, further concealing that this is an electric bike. Similar to other ebikes, the battery is removable using its key. Insert the key and turn once to unlock the battery, popping it slightly out of the frame, so it can be easily grabbed onto. The battery has a small indicator light at the top that, when pressed, allows you to quickly see if you need to recharge.

Motor

The Velotric Nomad 1 is powered by a 750W rear hub motor with 1,200W peak performance. Its pedal assist is quick to engage and the bike's throttle has a powerful torque. The power reminds me of a 50cc scooter. When set to level 5, it's almost effortless to pedal on most roads. Maintaining higher speeds and climbing hills will still require some input on your end, but it's no comparison to riding without pedal-assist.

The throttle response does take a bit of getting used to. In my experience, I found it to have a small lag. It takes about a second or so before the power kicks in, and when it does, it's rather tricky to adjust. Because of the lack of response, the throttle feels more like a go button which is either enabled or not. With some careful feathering, you can control the power a little more, though this is a key limitation of this bike which helps keep its price so low.

Compared to expensive mountain bikes like the ones from Trek with Bosch motors, which retail for upwards of $3000, those feel far more refined with power delivery, making them a better choice for technical riding where you need those precise inputs at exactly the right moments. That said, this bike is more intended for everyday riding on rough terrain, rather than taking on the trails, so it's easy to look past this, especially with the cost savings.

Unboxing and Setup

Something that isn't often considered, especially if you've never purchased an ebike before, is the packaging and shipping. While many brands offer free shipping, in my experience they do a poor job at properly packing and securing their bikes. With such a large and heavy box that is often being shipped from halfway across the world, it's expected that it will encounter some rough handling along the way. I've had some unfortunate issues in the past where bikes arrived with damaged pieces, bent wheels, and more.

Despite having a few tears and bruises to its box, my Nomad 1 arrived in perfect condition. The bike is extremely snug in its box with plenty of padding keeping the frame, wheel, and other parts from moving at all during shipment. Additionally, Velotric did a great job using cardboard and wire ties to protect the pieces from bumping and scratching against each other.

The box has two top flaps and an opening from the top which would suggest that you should remove the bike from the top. Though as the bike weighs 70+ pounds (32kg), it can be tricky to pull it out on your own. With the help of my father, this was easy enough to do together, but I probably would have cut the side of the box off if I didn't have his assistance.

Installation is fairly straightforward, and if you have experience assembling bikes, this should be pretty easy. It should be noted that some of the instructions in the quick start guide can be vague, confusing, or seem out of order.

For example, I found it very odd that the instructions do not tell you to install the kick stand until one of the very last steps. Unless you have someone helping you with assembly, or a bike mount, this makes the rest of the installation process significantly more difficult as you don't have anything to keep the bike upright.

Velotric does provide a very good installation video which I highly recommend following along with as opposed to the written instructions. As their first step, the video actually instructs you to install the kickstand, which makes the most sense. As we were following along with the written instructions, our total setup time took about 45 minutes.

What's Included

As part of their free included accessories, the Nomad 1 comes with a tool kit, charger, front and rear fenders, front and rear light, bell, and reflectors. Although the reflectors, bell and rear light are most likely just off-the-shelf parts, the included fenders match the size of the 4" tires and do an excellent job at shielding you and the bike from the elements.

The front light is powered and controlled by the bike while the rear light has a built-in battery and is turned or off with a click of a button.

Both lights only have a single brightness level and can only be set to on.

You can also buy additional accessories from Velotric including a spare battery for $399 and a folding lock.

It would have been nice to see front or rear racks also available as I that would really add to the utility of this bike. With its power, I can see myself easily hauling small bags on my trips. The official specs state a front rack load capacity of 33lbs (15kg) and 55lbs (25kg) for the rear. Hopefully, that's something we can see in the future.

Controls and Power Modes

The Nomad 1 uses a controller on the left side of its handlebar which has a power button, and an up and down button to change your pedal assist. On the left is a thumb throttle. This gives you five levels of pedal assist, a full-throttle mode, and allows you to trigger its walk mode too. Holding either the up or down button for a few seconds will turn the front light on or off.

As a class 2 bike with a 20-mph limit for throttle mode, you can reach the following speeds:

• Level 1: 9-10mph
• Level 2: 11-12mph
• Level 3: 14-15mph
• Level 4: 16-17mph
• Level 5: 20mph Max

The 3.5" display shows you the bike's speed, battery level, trip distance, and power assist level. The screen is monochrome with black text on a white LED background. It's plenty bright and easy to see even in direct sunlight. You can tilt the screen forwards, and backward, as well as loosen its clamp to adjust the position on the handlebar. It lacks smart features like Bluetooth or smartphone connectivity, however, it gets the essentials done right.

Performance and Ride Quality

The Nomad 1 is fun and capable. I had a huge smile on my first during my first ride. Once you accept that the throttle has a bit of delay, the bike is a blast to ride. It can easily throw you back as you quickly accelerate to 20mph. I had confidence merging onto smaller back roads with cars as well as crossing streets.

The bike has a rather upright seating position and its handlebars are easy to grab and hold onto. The seat is especially comfortable at 220mm wide and has two springs underneath. For more casual riding, I prefer to keep my seat a little lower. Combined with its step-thru frame, I had no problems hopping on and off.

This handles steep inclines without issue. It won't be as quick or fast, but it can still help carry you up difficult hills that competing bikes at this price point would often struggle with due to the lack of power.

At 72lbs (32.6kg), this is a rather heavy ebike. It won't be as nimble or easy to turn as its road-bike counterpart, the Discover 1. If your commute involves stairs of any kind, you'll probably be better off with the lighter Discover 1 or something comparable. Its extra weight and fatter tires might also make it difficult to transport, especially with smaller bike racks, so that's also worth keeping in mind.

But those fatter tires provide excellent traction, and the suspension fork helps eat up bumps and travel over smaller obstacles. However, it's still best suited for more casual off-roading rather than hardcore trail riding. Frequent and more intense hits, like traveling over larger rocks and branches can still be very noticeable.

Nomad 1 Lets You Go Anywhere

The biggest advantage to the Nomad 1, is that it can basically go anywhere. While its larger and heavier design may not make it as convenient for commuting over paved roads, this bike really shines for its ability to adventure off the beaten path and discover new places.