2022 Evelo Omega Review

When it comes to luxury and ease of use, the Evelo Omega electric bike is hard to beat. This step-through cruiser is comfortable, powerful, approachable, quiet as the crypt, and just all around groovy. The Omega is rocking a belt drive paired with a fully automatic continuously variable transmission, and man is this e-bike fun to ride. What an experience.

Video Review

Written Review

When it comes to luxury and ease of use, the Evelo Omega electric bike is hard to beat. This step-through cruiser is comfortable, powerful, approachable, quiet as the crypt, and just all around groovy. The Omega is rocking a belt drive paired with a fully automatic continuously variable transmission, and man is this e-bike fun to ride. What an experience. 

The Omega has a starting price of $4,699 USD, which is a big chunk of change to be sure. Thankfully, Evelo does offer financing, which can definitely help, and also a remarkable 4-year warranty, and of course free shipping of their nearly fully assembled e-bikes.

The Omega is one of Evelo’s premium offerings, and it shows. There is a ton to talk about with this electric bike, so let’s dive into the specs.

The Evelo Omega is equipped with a powerful Dapu MD750R mid-drive motor that can crank out an impressive 750 nominal watts of power and 960 watts of peak power, and can bring the Omega up to a top speed of 20 mph out of the box, or 25 mph in the unlocked mode. Combine that with 115 Newton meters of torque and you get a serious hill climbing and towing machine that can also cruise at high speeds for long distances.

But then, that’s what mid-drives are known for! And the Dapu MD750R is no exception. And because this motor is located low in the center of the frame, the Omega remains perfectly balanced, even with all that power on board. Very nice.

The Dapu MD750R also utilizes torque-sensing pedal assist, making for a beautifully responsive ride feel. There’s virtually zero latency with motor activation and deactivation, and better yet, the power output precisely matches how hard you’re pedaling. 

When you bring the Enviolo Automatiq continuously variable transmission into the picture, the Omega really steps into a class of its own. This internally geared CVT is located in the rear wheel and offers fully automatic shifting, just like in your car, so all you have to do is start pedaling, or hit the thumb throttle, and the Enviolo Automatiq does the rest. There’s no manual shifting of gears, no clicking or skipping, and since the Omega is rockin’ a Gates Carbon Belt Drive, there’s no derailments or messy chain grease.

Honestly, it’s hard to think of something to improve here, because this setup has it all, including an app that allows you to fine tune the shifting system and an optional wireless handlebar controller that can be used to adjust your cadence settings while riding. Am I gushing? I feel like I’m gushing. 

In the Omega’s downtube is a locking and removable 48 volt, 15 amp hour battery with Samsung cells that provide up to 60 miles of range when using a low pedal assist setting in ideal riding conditions. But if you plan on loading up a trailer or live in an area with tons of steep hills, you might want to snag the optional rear rack battery upgrade for another $800, or $600 after a $200 discount if you buy one with the Omega, which would provide an additional 14.5 amp hours of juice. All together, this would give you up to 100 miles of range — theoretically, that’s enough go-go to complete the entire Western States 100 trail without recharging. 

Let’s talk about the frame. It’s beautiful, it has a super low standover height of just 17 inches, and weighs in at a relatively light 64 pounds in the stock configuration. But with no suspension, it can be a bit of a rough ride at times, even with the top-tier Innova 26 inch by 2.8 inch puncture resistant tires. 

If you really plan on putting high miles on the Omega, it might be a good idea to check out some aftermarket handlebar suspension and seat post suspension options. Those go a long way in smoothing out the ride and making long journeys much more comfortable. 

Something I appreciate about the Omega’s frame design is that the saddle clears the optional rack, so even when the rear rack is installed you can still drop the saddle all the way to the bottom, for a minimum seat height of 32 inches, and a max of 42 inches. Since the Omega is billed for riders between 5 foot 4 inches and 6 foot 2 inches, this feature makes sense, and we’re very glad to see it. 

The ride geometry of the Omega is pretty upright, and feels like a true cruiser. This will help ease back and shoulder strain for those longer treks, and just makes riding through the city or neighborhood that much more enjoyable. 

To bring the Evelo Omega to a stop we’ve got Zoom hydraulic disc brakes with a 180 mm rotor in the front wheel and a 160 motor in the rear wheel. These dual piston brakes offer ample stopping power, but if I could pick one component to upgrade here, this would be it. It would be great to have the option of quad piston disc brakes for those who live in areas with long, steep descents and want to load the Omega up with gear.

I dig the plastic fenders on the Omega. Since this e-bike is geared for commuting, it makes sense to arrive at your destination without a racing stripe on your back.

I also dig the bright, 400 lumen integrated UGOE headlight. This headlight dramatically increases your visibility to oncoming vehicle traffic, bicyclists and pedestrians, and is even bright enough to adequately illuminate your trail at night. 

The UGOE tail light is also integrated, and is also fairly bright, though not quite as impressive as the headlight. Still, this is going to be great for increasing visibility to traffic behind you. 

Wire management on the Omega is great, with everything bundled nicely and internally routed. 

On the sweptback handlebars we’ve got the independent button pad and throttle on the left, and the optional Enviolo handlebar controller on the right. The ergonomic rubberized grips are a nice touch here, and again speak to the commuting vibe with the Omega.

In the middle of the handlebars we’ve got the super bright, full color IPS display that refuses to succumb to even the harshest glare. This thing is super easy to read during the day. 

Overall, the Evelo Omega is going to be a great fit for those who want a luxury commuter that can go the distance. The extra battery option is awesome, and the mid-drive motor with the automatic CVT is such a huge perk that makes riding an electric bike as effortless as humanly possible. The Omega costs a mint, as all fine things do, but the component layout, frame design, warranty, and fit and finish seem to warrant the cost.