Normal bike without drive or motorized e-bike? Anyone who drives the Lemmo One has both! SamaGame tried out the unique concept.
Table of contents
- Chic and light urban bike from Berlin
- Motor or muscle power: pull out the button and drive freely
- On the road: lively driving pleasure
- Lemmo One: Great technology, smartly packaged
- Operation: One button or your cell phone for everything
- What about the service? Insecure like Van Moof?
- Lemmo One: test conclusion, models, prices, accessories
Anyone who cycles a lot wants to use their bike differently depending on the occasion and route: On weekdays, they want to go to the office with an electric drive without having to struggle at every traffic light and end up completely sweaty at their desk. On the weekend, on the other hand, you can go on a bike trip with the family, where you can ride in a relaxed manner and don’t want to keep pulling away from the kids. You don’t need two bikes for this. The Lemmo should offer both – and at a reasonable price. Good idea or overshot? The combination of organic and e-bike in the test!
Chic and light urban bike from Berlin
The Lemmo One comes well packaged to the house from the Berlin startup Light Electric Mobility via a shipping company. It can be ordered and configured in a Berlin store, in one of the pop-up stores in many major German cities or on the Lemmo website. You can choose from two colors (sand beige and gray), three frame sizes (XL, L or ST with lowered crossbar) as well as a 10-speed Shimano derailleur or a maintenance-free carbon belt. Assembly is quick and explained better via video (scan QR code) than in the printed quick guide. After 15 minutes of plugging and screwing, the testers were happy with a stylish city bike. It is cleanly processed, nothing wobbles or rattles. At the front there is a fairly wide and sporty handlebar that “swallows” all the cables and leads them through a casually curved diamond frame. Unsightly weld seams cannot be seen. The bike is made of aluminum, the front fork is made of light carbon, the luggage rack for hanging bicycle bags is minimalist, and the mudguards are made of plastic.
Motor or muscle power: pull out the button and drive freely
This means the Lemmo One weighs just 15 kilograms. The Lemmo becomes an e-bike with a 3 kilo battery. It clips into the front of the frame and is removable. It is only needed for driving if you want the 250 watt motor with 40 Nm of torque to help. The unique trick of the Lemmo One is as simple as it is ingenious: there is a small wheel in the rear wheel hub. Whoever turns this physically decouples the engine from the drive train. The e-bike becomes a bio-bike in which the motor offers no resistance and does not slow down the muscle power used. If necessary, this is ensured by the hydraulic disc brakes, a Shimano replica that does not drag and applies well-dosed and courageous action depending on the pressure point.
On the road: lively driving pleasure
The Lemmo One delivered a good and dynamic driving experience in the test, especially with motor support. The lively drive pushed the Lemmo to a speed of 25 km/h, depending on the support level selected. Even beyond this permitted maximum speed, the car moved lightly over the asphalt – without electric boost. At no point did the rider feel like he was pedaling to death, even though the Lemmo was used in the test with a belt drive and as a single speed bike. Nevertheless: If you want more flexibility depending on your speed, the maintenance-free 10-speed derailleur is the better choice.
The tires don’t necessarily seem puncture-proof, but they do have good tread. The bike then glides smoothly over paths and safely into curves. Only on cobblestones did it get a little bumpy due to the lack of a suspension fork or other suspension. The lively driving behavior only suffered when starting off, because the motor on the rear wheel switches on with a delay after you pedal and only then noticeably pushes forward. Here the Lemmo lacks a torque sensor that activates the motor immediately.
Lemmo One: Great technology, smartly packaged
All the smart technology is in the “Smart Pac”, which can be inserted into the front of the frame. Its robust fabric cover is stylish and withstood the Hamburg rain well, but could look dingy in the long run. In addition to GPS for location determination as well as Bluetooth and 4G radio for connection, the package also houses the 540 watt-hour battery, which ensures plenty of endurance. The manufacturer states a range of up to 100 kilometers. In practice, a 90 kilo driver could travel 70 to 80 km on a flat route, with good surfaces and temperatures of well over 15 degrees. The comparison to the competition: On a Cowboy 4 or one Van Moof S5 a maximum of 60 kilometers is possible under the same conditions. At the beginning of the test it was noticeable that the battery lost up to 5 percent a day during breaks in driving. Not good energy management, but the manufacturer has now significantly improved it with a software update. The Smart Pac can be removed. This is practical for driving without a motor or for charging at home or in the office. The package and the power supply are plugged into the socket for around 4 hours. Thanks to the USB-A and USB-C socket (up to 45 watts), it can also be used as an oversized power bank that provides energy to a notebook, cell phone or drone while on the move.
Operation: One button or your cell phone for everything
There are small buttons on the handlebars to control the functions. When pressed to the right, the bell sounds (a horn that takes getting used to) or the light switches on. That lights up well. The front light can also be used as a portable flashlight, the permanently installed rear light is small but bright. On the left, the driver switches through the three support levels using a button or activates a boost mode, which whips the Lemmo forward properly. A small display in the top tube of the frame shows what is set. It has an extra battery and shows its information even without the Smart Pac inserted.
The bike connects to the cell phone and Lemmo app via Bluetooth. In addition to the Smart Pac, you can also lock the bike itself – thereby protecting it against theft. If the bike is locked, the engine and rear wheel will block. In addition, a shrill alarm sounds as soon as someone tampers with the Lemmo One. To prevent this from happening to the driver, his smartphone in his pocket serves as an electronic, contactless key. Here the driver can unlock the bike by long pressing the two buttons on the steering wheel and start driving immediately. This usually worked reliably in the test. Only rarely was the rider ready to go before the Lemmo: the somewhat sluggish Bluetooth connection had not yet unlocked the bike and the alarm went off unintentionally.
What about the service? Insecure like Van Moof?
The Lemmo One tested was in use for several weeks and covered almost 400 kilometers. No problems occurred during this time. If something does happen, initial contact will be made via chat. Major repairs are carried out by service partners in Hamburg, Düsseldorf, Berlin or Munich. If in doubt, the bike must be returned to the manufacturer in the capital. It offers a guarantee of up to 5 years. On-site service is also planned: The driver parks his Lemmo One in the service area, the Lemmo mechanic locates it, repairs the bike on the spot or takes it to the service station. A fate completely without support, like that of many Van Moof driver after bankruptcy the company is currently experiencing, Lemmo should not be threatened with this.
Lemmo One: test conclusion, models, prices, accessories
The Lemmo One is an ingenious urban e-bike and a successful combination of the smart Van Moof and the sparkling one cowboy. It is suitable for short, quick journeys in the city, but also for longer commutes. The bike is well made, lasts a long time and rides comfortably and quickly at the same time. The simple trick to quickly turn it into a light organic bike was really successful: uncouple the motor, remove the battery, and you can easily hit the slopes without a drive. The price is also impressive: the e-bike version of the Lemmo One is available for under 2,000 euros – and is therefore significantly cheaper than the popular competition.
It starts at 1,090 euros for the version with derailleur gears. The belt drive costs an additional 200 euros. If required, there is also a bicycle bag (69 euros), chain guard (9 euros), folding lock (49 euros) or trailer hitch (30 euros). For the Smart Pac, which turns the Lemmo One into an e-bike, an additional 900 euros are due – for the purchase, because renting the Smart Pac is also possible. This currently only works in Berlin – for 35 euros per month.
