India's first ever electric smart scooter Ather 340 features, price

To go on sale later this year, Ather S340 is India’s first ever electric, smart scooter.

Ather Energy, a startup by two IITians – Tarun Mehta and his batchmate Swapnil Jain, revealed the new Ather S340 electric scooter today at the SURGE conference in Bengaluru today.

Ather S340 is a fully electric scooter which will be launched later this year in India via online-only sales model. Yes. There will be no dealerships where you can buy the S340 from. This makes S340 India’s first two-wheeler be sold via online-only sales model.

It is powered by a lithium-ion battery pack, which delivers a driving range of up to 60 km and a top speed of 72 kmph. This battery pack can be charged 80% in just 50 minutes via fast charging mode. You can also charge the Ather S340 via a 5A outlet from your house in normal mode. Ather claims that the battery life is good to last for 50,000 km.

Featuring a lightweight hybrid aluminium chassis, Ather S340 has a distinctive, yet sporty design. It will easily manage to gel with existing lot of scooters on offer in India, yet keep a different appeal for itself. Thanks to a low centre of gravity, aluminium swing-arm, Ather S340 offers impressive riding dynamics. It also has intuitive LED lights that respond to ambient light conditions.

Apart from being electric, S340 is also smart. It features a waterproof touchscreen dashboard which is integrated to cloud-based data, thereby offering a unique riding experience to the rider. As a rider, you can sign-in via the dashboard, and the scooter will recognize who is the rider, and thus offer a personalized riding experience.

The dashboard touchscreen can be integrated to the S340 Mobile App. Once connected, you can change and configure user preferences and riding profile at the touch of a button on your smartphone. You can also sync navigation routes remotely. The more kms you clock, the better the scooter starts understanding you. Customized vehicle updates will be downloaded automatically OTA.

Also, on offer are 200 mm disc brakes in the front and rear, 90/90/12 tyres, all LED headlight and taillight, large floorboard to accommodate luggage, and a comfortable seating position, for rider and pillion.

Speaking about the launch, Tarun has confirmed that Ather S340 will be launched later this year. Pre-bookings will open in Pune, Bangalore, and Chennai starting next quarter.

Just like their futuristic scooter, Ather is also going to offer a futuristic sales and service experience to customers. Ather has said that S340 can only be purchased online while delivery and servicing will be done at your doorstep by the company. Ather is also planning on setting up public charging infrastructure in these cities.

This article first appeared on rushlane.com