2022 Velotric Nomad1 Review

Video Review

Written Review

The Nomad1 from Velotric is an unusually charismatic Ebike that seems to be engineered from the ground up as a sleek, future-ready ride. This Ebike has frame bosses for additional accessories and some cool color options such as Spring, Sky Blue, Cyan, and Mango, which gives you, as the rider, the option to personalize your ride to fit your style and use case. Normally, you have to fit yourself to a bike and what it was designed to do, but with the options and color palette, Velotric left quite a bit up to the imagination, which is a big plus for us creative types. 

The Nomad1 has a starting price of $1,399 USD and includes free shipping, a 14-day return policy, and a limited 1-year warranty. Not too shabby. 

So, let’s take a look at what makes this thing tick. 

The Velotric Nomad1 is outfitted with a Velotric-Branded 750-watt rear hub motor that churns out a healthy 85 Newton meters of torque. This is enough torque to climb up most hills, but it was lacking a bit at throttle only hill climbs, meaning that if you want to get up larger, steeper inclines, you’ll need to add a bit of human power along with the pedal assist. But once you do just the slightest bit of pedaling, the Nomad1 seems like it could climb walls. 

So, Velotric’s official specs for the Nomad1 show it has a top speed of 20 mph, but that top speed can be unlocked to 28 mph after receiving an unlock code from Velotric.

Either way, the top speed can be reached using the cadence-sensing pedal assist or the thumb throttle. The sensors on both were well tuned and fit in with the bike well. Not too torquey, and not too slow, adding to the refined visuals that Nomad1 hits you with. 

Alright, let’s take a look at the battery. 

The Nomad1’s locking and removable 48 volt, 14.4 amp hour battery is nicely nestled into a recess in the downtube. It’s such a smooth fit that if it wasn’t for the pops of black, you’d hardly be able to see it. Velotric did a great job here, and the overall look and finish may be the highlight of the bike, from a visual perspective. 

This battery uses Samsung cells and offers a max estimated range of 55 miles in ideal conditions. This estimate feels a bit high, even in pedal assist level 1, and I think the real-world range is going to be around 35-40 miles, which is still quite a distance to cover on an Ebike.

Velotric did a great job with the Nomad1’s frame. This electric bike weighs in at around 73 pounds and has an incredibly high max payload capacity of nearly 440 pounds. That means you are almost unlimited with what you can carry on this thing!

Continuing with the frames, Velotric offer this bike in two flavors: a step-over and a step-through. The main difference is the standover height, which is 30.5” on the step-over version, and 16.5” on the step-through version. The other difference is the reach, which is 18” on the step-over frame, and that shrinks to 15” on the step-through.

At the front of the frame, we’ve got adjustable suspension forks with 80mm of travel. Now, 80mm of travel is not enough for catching big air, but between these shocks and the monstrous CST BFT 26” x 4” fat tires, the Nomad1 is ready for some moderate trail riding.

The Nomad1 is sporting unbranded, hydraulic brakes, with 180mm rotors both in the front and the rear wheels. The stopping power here is quite impressive. Having this control means you can really stop in a hurry. The extra stopping power, combined with the oversized rotors, is fantastic and would really come in handy when dealing with muddy trails. 

To switch gears we have an 8-speed Shimano Altus derailleur paired with a trigger shifter. This is another one of the components on the Nomad1 that makes it feel like it’s a machine purpose-built for going down a few dusty trails here and there. When you’re tackling technical terrain, it’s hard to beat the ease of trigger shifters.

The Nomad1 has an integrated headlight that’s bright enough to increase visibility, but not bright enough to illuminate a dark trail on a moonless night. If I were riding this in a neighborhood, or anywhere with ambient lighting, I think they would do the trick! 

The Nomad1 we received for review does not have an integrated taillight like its little brother, the Discover1. This is one of the main extra components missing on this bike, and if Velotric can figure out the integration here, we’re looking at a complete package at an incredible price point. 

The half trail-looking, half ergonomic shape of the handlebars really offers the best of both worlds when it comes to the ride feel. This setup offers a great deal of control, but also the ease of use of something designed for long rides, that won’t cause major wrist pain after a long trek.

On the left side of the handlebars, we’ve got the independent button pad, connecting to the bright and easy-to-read LCD display, which we find front and center.

Overall, the Velotric Nomad1 is well suited for those looking for some adventure. The powerful hub motor, monster tires, suspension, hydraulic brakes and myriad mounting points mean this Ebike is just waiting to have some fun. 

What did you think of the Nomad1? Let us know you your thoughts down in the comments.