Ampere is a company that’s been around for quite a while now (since 2008, our research found) and has manufactured, among other things, a slew of user-friendly electric bikes that more than a few people have been raving about.
So, we decided it’s time to wade into the electric-bike waters and do a review. As you probably know by now, we mostly review road and mountain bikes, but rest assured that our team is more than capable of picking an electric bike apart and giving the relevant consumer advice based on our, how shall I call it, expert assessment. Of course, it isn’t our first time to try an electric bike—indeed, we ride all kinds of bikes here—but we hope we can pick the Ampere Angel Electric Cycle apart in a helpful and detailed manner so that you, our dear readers, can decide whether it fits in your everyday life and whether it’s something that you might like to purchase.
First impressions are, well, it looks… cute.
It looks like your everyday e-bike, which is definitely not a bad thing, but you won’t be getting that “go anywhere” kind of feeling that you normally would from a newly purchased road or mountain bike. But, hey, let’s not allow our trail-biking biases to skew our ability to be objective with our review of this electric cycle here, because this is a completely different product, which was designed for different, albeit similar and overlapping, needs.
So, yes, we appreciate that it looks just like any other bike because this means it is familiar and will be easy to use. New owners won’t be scratching their heads trying to figure out how to use this bike; it doesn’t look like an alien form of transportation because it employs, for all practical purposes, a garden-variety bike design. Some might like this about the Ampere Angel Electric Cycle, some, who might prefer products that are more attention-grabbing, might not. But we, in particular, appreciate the fact that it’s a product that knows what it was made for and doesn’t try to stray away from what most people need it to be.
We noticed that it had a step-through frame for easy mounting, which mightily adds to the ease of use. One doesn’t mount or dismount this bike, rather one steps in and out of it. This little detail might be something a lot of people won’t even notice, but they’ll definitely feel it—it definitely makes this electric cycle easier to live with as an everyday mode of transportation. The sturdy rack attached to the rear of the bike can also, surprisingly, carry more items than one would think at first glance—I was able to lug around my gym bag and an extra knapsack that contained two pairs of shoes.
Night-riding or riding in low-light conditions will, of course, be of very little concern to the owner of an Ampere Angel Electric Cycle, as it has all the requisite light fixtures to make you visible to oncoming traffic, as well as a powerful LED headlight that can make you see a good distance into the night. It is, as they say, “fully loaded” with all a commuter’s needs.
At approximately 100 pounds, this electric cycle isn’t light—it is far from light, especially to someone who, like us, is an owner of a $10,000-dollar carbon-framed bike. In fact, you can’t expect to be able to lug this thing up and down a stairwell or onto a bus without a whole lot of effort. It wasn’t made to be lugged around. But we appreciate that the strong stand underneath the electric cycle can more than handle its weight. Some of the electric bikes we’ve owned were always dangerously close to tipping over because of the weak and wobbly stand it came with, and the Ampere Angel Electric Cycle had none of those issues.
The BAFANG motor, which is being run by a 36 volts 11 amp hours Panasonic lithium-ion battery, is concealed in the crossbar and is more than enough to power the Ampere Angel Electric Cycle. Also, we appreciate the placement of the battery within the bike—it is genius, and is put in such a way that, by my lights, actually helps in spreading out the weight and giving the bike more balance.
The Ampere Angel Electric Cycle is advertised as having a range of 45 km. Of course, these things don’t typically perform as well as advertised, so we naturally had to test the bike and see for ourselves. In mixed driving—i.e., driving in a slew of traffic conditions—we were able to achieve 41 km, which was amazing and not far from the advertised range. We were definitely impressed that it got this close to the advertised range since many electric bikes we’ve tested went nowhere near as advertised.
Removing the electric cycle’s battery to charge was simple, too. A key is used to unfasten the battery from the frame, and it comes with a dedicated charger. All-in-all, the length of time from completely empty to fully charged was 7.5 hours, which was not bad.
Now, for the bike’s more analog parts, it’s fitted with Shimano components, particularly a 7-gear Shimano Altus that is right thumb controlled and Kenda 26″ 1.95″ semi-slick tires, which are definitely good for riding over tarmac but don’t think you can go off-roading with these, because you can’t. You can, however, replace them with more off-road worthy tires.
We appreciate the Shimano components because this means the bike can be easily serviced at any bike shop. And Shimano is an extremely reliable brand, so using this bike as an ordinary pedaler when the battery is empty won’t be much of a problem to owners, aside from the fact that it’ll be much heavier than a normal road bike.
The Bottomline
This is a solid—solid!—choice for someone who’s looking for an electric cycle for everyday commuting. It’s not that expensive too for all the features you’ll be getting. We appreciate the power of the battery—the throttle is excellent and confident. And it is definitely comfortable on the road. So if you’re looking for a quality electric cycle, you can’t go wrong with the Ampere Angel Electric Cycle. It is definitely on our recommended list!
