Urtopia’s tech-heavy, ebike finally nails it software

A new, curious entry to the ebike market was made at the end of last year: Urtopia. The company’s mission seemed pretty clear, to make the most feature-rich, connected bike the world has ever seen. With a built-in 4G SIM card, WiFi, Bluetooth and GPS, as well as mmWave sensors to detect collisions, it is likely that this goal was achieved. The only problem is that the prototype we tested was not yet available for us to evaluate the more exciting features. Until now.

The bike retail version is almost identical to its counterpart. We tested the pre-production versionThe year ended with minor cosmetic adjustments. The D-pad on your left hand has been slightly modified and the button that activates the fingerprint reader is on your right. The dot-matrix display has undergone a minor redesign. It is now more flat and easier for users to read.

Perhaps one of the main features we couldn’t test wasn’t available at all – the app. With so much going on in the bike, it’s more important to have a companion tool on your phone to confirm settings and to extract more use out of some of the sensors (ride tracking, for example).

All I’ll say is, the bike might be the final hardware, but the software side of things started out a little… less complete. Within a matter of weeks, the app was redesigned as well as firmware updates. Now the user experience is much more fluid.

First, a reminder. The Urtopia bike has a fixed-gear (Gates carbon-belt), single-hub-motor ebike and three speeds (20 MPH in the US and 15 MPH in Europe). The 360Wh battery provides approximately 60 miles of assistance for the 30 lb/15 kg city bike. That’s a fairly common spec for an ebike, but one look at the Urtopia will tell you this isn’t really a normal bike.

Last time around I was able to test Urtopia’s cred as a general road bike, and despite a slightly stiff ride (there’s no suspension) it performed well, with smooth pickup from the torque-based motor. The voice control for changing speed, locking the bike and more was also fun but perhaps not the smoothest experience (and even if it were, I’m not sure we’re collectively ready to be speaking to our bikes in public yet).

The 4G connectivity was what I first wanted to test here. Utopia isn’t unique in having a cellular connection (newer VanMoofs, for example, also offer connectivity), but the 4G here is behind a few interesting features. For once, you’ll (theoretically) get a log of your ride in the app every single time you go out. I say theoretically as it often didn’t work for me. Sometimes it worked. I couldn’t quite pin down what caused it to work sometimes and not others, but I suspect it’s to do with whether you leave the bike in standby while at home, or if you power it down (thus fully resetting the sensors).

This feature became more reliable after one firmware update. Which is good, because it was frustrating to put in double-digit miles only to come home and find your ride wasn’t logged. Right now, there’s not a lot you can do with the data other than see where you went and how fast in a slick animation. It, of course, logs all your miles and… as I went to check the app for what other data it records there was an app update (duration, calories, average speed and even CO2 saved is the answer). Right now, you can only share the rides with the in-app “community” but the option to share to services like Strava would be a real positive.

Similar to the previous example, the app can tell you where your bike is at any given moment, provided that the battery is charged and the internet is able to ping it. It will stop working once the battery totally dies, of course, but if someone steals your ride, you should have plenty of time to ping it and locate it before they realize it’s the world’s most connected bike and what a fool’s errand stealing it was. 

Another security feature is also the fingerprint sensor. The fingerprint sensor was already installed on the prototype. However, the app was required to enable it to be set up. It works well and lets you quickly turn on the alarm or turn it off. You can still ride the bike without assistance without unlocking the bike with your finger, but it’s effectively a cumbersome fixie at this point. Unless you turn the alarm on, then it’ll start sounding an alert at the slightest, and I mean slightest Movement that cannot be disabled by registering digits

One of the more intriguing additions to the Urtopia’s spec sheet are the mmWave sensors. These sensors can detect vehicles approaching from either the back or side. If something is detected, you’ll be alerted through a visual signal and vibrating handlebars. In practice, it’s a little hard to test without deliberately endangering yourself, but it does seem to work. However, it is possible that the alerts might cause you to be more distracted by traffic than the alerts. That’s to say, this is clearly a valuable feature, but the outcome of it is hard to quantify at this time.

It is easier to assess the onboard navigation. It’s the ability to input a destination and get visual and audio directions via the display and speaker on the handlebars. Of course, there are other options. You could either mount your phone or keep it in your pocket, with audio instructions via headphones. But having it here right in the handlebars feels a lot more futuristic and means you don’t have to expose your phone to the elements/thieves.

The dot matrix screen has a retro vibe and feels a lot like KITT, especially when it speaks. This works well enough for navigation as the arrows/directions can be seen clearly enough to allow you to glance at them without becoming distracted.

Urtopia calls this screen and speaker combo the “smart bar” and it has other plans for it beyond serving up data and other visual feedback. One example is using the bike’s speaker as a Bluetooth speaker for music. It may have been an accidently my idea. I suggested it to them the first time we tested it, and now it’s part of the app. It’s kinda fun, though I have never felt quite so self conscious as I did riding through a busy park with phonecall-quality Drum & Bass playing from my bike. Although podcasts may be slower than the speed of sound, I am happy to see this feature.

There is… more. Another addition that was conceived after our initial testing is “game” mode. It’s not quite what you’re likely imagining. It’s not what I thought it was. I assumed it might be some sort of virtual race where you have to “catch” up with a ghost rider like in a Mario Kart time trial. Maybe it is a fun way to train/intervals? But no, it’s actually a game of Snake you can play on the display using the control buttons which, to be fair, are basically a D-pad. It is not recommended to be played while you are moving.

The biggest change since the last time we looked at the bike was the price. The $2,000 early-bird price is now gone and the bikes will be ready to ship. It is in a similar price bracket to the Cowboy C4Although it has fewer technological features, it still provides important theft detection capabilities and locating capabilities.

The Urtopia certainly has tech appeal. However, it still feels like the software is settling in. This will be a great choice for anyone looking for an e-bike with a capital E.