Hello and welcome to the show!
My name is Alex and this is TechFlow!
Today we're looking at an electric skateboard - not a boosted board but a board from Slick Revolution.
Let's get in to this.
So, first off, a little bit about me.
I haven't really ridden a skateboard properly for the last 2 or 3 years.
I used to ride skateboards quite a lot and then I went through a period of my life where
I got a car and stopped riding them.
So, I do know how to ride a skateboard fairly well and I know the basic terminology.
Right - let's start with the name.
Slick Revolution.
So, Slick Revolution approached me and said to me: Do you want - do you want to play with one
of your boards?
We'll send you the top of the range one - you can do as you please with it - whatever.
So, I said: Yeah, of course.
As long as I can go online and say whatever I want about it and they said: Yeah that's
fine.
You don't even have to make a video about it.
But here I am, making a video about it.
Slick Revolution - if someone asks me what the name of my electric skateboard is and
I say "Slick Revolution," they're probably going to, they're probably going to do this:
MAN: Tickle, tickle, tickle!
ALEX: As someone - someone brought it up to me earlier.
It sounds like a cheap Toys R Us brand but still - that's not what it's about.
It's about getting on the board and having fun - not about what the board is called.
So, what's it like to ride?
Well, to figure that out, we have to look at the build quality of the board itself.
So, on top, we've got a massive, massive surface.
It's 91.5 cm by 27.4 cm by 14 cm and this thing is heavy - coming in at 12 kilograms.
It's got an integrated lie-on battery which can get you from anywhere, between, like,
5 and 8 miles in my testing - they say on the website 8 miles - I got between 5 and
8 so fairly good.
It has a fairly, fairly, fairly quick charge time - charging this board in about two and
a half hours from zero to one hundred and it also has a built in USB port on the bottom
of it for charging the controller which is charged by micro USB - included in the box
is that cable.
You can also use that port to charge any device you want - so if you're out playing on your
board and you want to stop and charge your phone up, you can do just that.
Really cool feature.
Next to this USB port on the board on the bottom, we've got some power indicators - we've
also got the charge import included in the box is the charger with a fairly substantial
brick.
We've also got an "on" button and dual motors up the rear.
Now, these motors run at 1200 watts each.
Each motor is 1200 watts so, combine that together, and you're getting some serious
power and it really shows that when you're riding it.
You can get up some serious, serious inclines with this thing and this thing goes fast.
I've been going fast - like it's fast!
25 mph they say - I don't know exactly how fast I'm going - but it's fast enough.
Moving now on to the controller.
Yeah, it's plasticy - it has a little handle so you won't lose it when you're travelling
at high speed and you won't drop it - it'll stay attached to you.
It has two buttons on it - pretty much, one on the back to turn the controller on and
off and a little joystick type thing on the top to activate the brake which, also, when
you brake, it charges the battery and also acts as your accelerator too.
Now, if you do get one of these boards, when you turn it on, it comes on every single time
in normal mode.
If you want to put it in high speed mode when you turn it on, push the throttle all the
way up to the top and then turn on the controller - that activates high speed mode.
Everything's done on the controller.
You can even do this mid-ride if you want to switch from normal to high speed mode.
Really cool.
Now, a very big question: Does it have reverse?
No, it doesn't.
But it has a very, very, very harsh brake and it's actually, it's very variable but
if you pull it all the way back, it brakes very harshly, so if you are about to crash,
you can crack those brakes on and you'll be absolutely fine.
And, also, I've only just realised this and put two and two together and read it on the
website but the brake, when you brake, it actually charges the battery.
Really cool.
The actual board itself is made out of bamboo and fiber glass - except, obviously, the battery
on the bottom - and everything, as well as the USB ports, has a flap over it to make
sure that, well, it's dust proof and splash proof so if you go through any puddles, you
should be absolutely fine.
And, like the boosted board, with this model, the battery is flushed to the bamboo finish.
There's nothing actually sticking out from the bottom to, well, catch on any rocks or
bumps or scrapes.
It's all flush on the bottom with a very, very large clearance.
So, what's it actually like to ride the thing?
Well, very enjoyable - it's really, really, really fun.
Now, I have never used an electric skateboard before and I was never going to get one - as
I've already mentioned to you guys and verbally mentioned, they sent it out for review - I've
loved every second with this board.
The only negative thing I could say is that it's kind of a bit loud when you're using
it, like, really loud.
I'm not sure if this is down to the wheels or anything - I'm not sure - but it's loud.
It makes a lot of noise.
But, other than that, this thing is an absolute blast.
Riding through town in the evenings, going to work on this thing, commuting on this thing
- I could imagine anyone going anywhere - even to the shops on this thing.
It's got a massive, massive range, you can check the battery percentage on the board
in case you're worried about running out - this thing, I really rate this thing, right.
But, I'm not really a speccy kind of guy as far as skateboards are concerned so I'm going
to bring in our editor - he's been skateboarding all his life.
JED: OK, so, as Alex said: I've been skateboarding most of my life for a couple of years now.
And, I don't know loads about skateboarding but I know enough to be able to tell you guys
stuff that you probably need to know.
So, when I had a go on the board on the first time, I noticed four different things.
Now, these are the four things that I always look for when I'm either buying a skateboard
or trying someone else's skateboard out.
First thing was the wheels.
The wheels are a massive thing and this is why the board is quite loud - it's because
the wheels on this board are quite hard.
They grip really, really well though - that's the, kind of, weird thing about it.
I remember skating around this, sort of, weirdly smooth car park with Alex and the wheels would
grip really well around the corners so that's always an A*.
The trucks - they seem to work absolutely fantastically - they're unbranded trucks and
they're not exactly the best that you can get but this board is considerably lower priced
than the boosted board or, pretty much, I think any other electric skateboard I have
ever seen, really.
So, with that lower price, you're also going to get lower priced components.
So, you're looking at a budget skateboard with budget components - that's kind of how
it works.
Now, that's kind of how it works with any skateboard, really.
The grip tape's really good and that's one thing I always look for when I buy a new skateboard
- I stand on it and if my feet grip to the board perfectly, then I can't grumble and
this board is great, especially because your feet don't really leave the board itself.
You're always stood on it - you're never pushing because you've got an electric motor - you
don't need to push - you're always stood on the board and you need that grip to stay put.
But the one thing that always helps a lot with that is the fact the board has something
called a "camber."
So, the camber is basically the dip in the board.
So, the bit that your feet sit in.
So, this is the board and this is your foot - your feet are going to sit flush in the
board and it's never going to let your feet slip out.
So, when you go around harsh corners and things like that, not only is the grip tape going
to keep your feet in place but the camber on the board is also going to keep your feet
in place, perfectly.
So, the four things that I always look for in a board, I looked for in this board and
as soon as I got on it, I realised straight away that this board is not something that
you mess with.
This isn't a toy - this is like the real deal.
It's really, really great - I would definitely rate this thing.
ALEX: So, as Jed was saying, you buy a budget skateboard, you're going to get budget parts.
You're going to get budget wheels, you're going to get budget grip tape, you're going
to get budget trucks and everything else involved.
Same with electric skateboards funnily enough.
You buy a boosted board - a top end, a top end electric skateboard, you're getting things
like Orangutan wheels and all this stuff.
You buy a Slick Revolution board - half the price - you're not getting the major components
that you're going to find in a boosted board - the top end stuff - but you're going to
get the stuff that's going to do the job and get you from A to B having fun at really fast
speed.
I've been using this thing myself and I can confirm that.
It's like, it's like the difference between getting a penny board and an unbranded penny
board.
That's the best, the best way to say this, right now.
The boosted board is like the Apple of consumer tech - it's like the hoover of vacuum cleaners.
It's, it's made a name for itself and it is the top brand because of its marketing.
Right, I'm going to wrap this thing up and I'm going to say: Look, if you've got £600
to spend, go out and buy a Slick Revolution.
If you've got double the money to spend, go out and buy a boosted board - you're not going
to be disappointed with either of them.
My name's been Alex, this has been TechFlow bringing you honest reviews.
We'll catch you in the next one.