Your interested in buying a Hoverboard. Maybe for you or your kids or as a gift for a friend. But your worried. You’ve heard about cheap knockoffs coming in from China and and burning out after only a few months of use. And at a $300+ price tag, you don’t want to waste your money on something that won’t last more than the batteries in your TV remote.

In order for people to make an informed choice, we have listed the key things you should see in a hoverboard before you buy (these are the standard criteria used to evaluate every hoverboard).

Price

Hoverboards range in price from $250-$700 in price. Anything less than $250 most likely won’t last very long and anything above $700 is just paying too much when lower cost options exist at the same price.

Lifespan

Hoverboards lifespans are generally 1.5 to 4 years depending on the level of usage and quality. The electric motors in them do wear down over time. You will notice that your hoverboard will become less responsive and not accelerate as quickly over time. Most hoverboards will maintain their brand new operating level for about 6 months before they begin to decline. However, just because your board isn’t as fast as it was doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy it!

Range

Typically, you can get about 10 miles of distance and medium speed on one battery charge. Some hoverboards can go farther, some go less. Each manufacturer will tell you the range and we test them to make sure that information is accurate.

Top Speed

You want to go fast and many hoverboards can provide you that top speed, flying feeling. However many hoverboards have speed restrictors. After about 8 mph, it can be very difficult to balance on a hoverboard and above 10 mph it can get dangerous. We tracked how much time we spent at various speeds:

Below 4 mph: 50% of our time
Between 4-6 mph: 40% of the time
Between 6-9 mph: 10% of the time

Remember that 4 mph is a brisk walking speed while 9 mph would be a sprinting speed.

Stability / Responsiveness

When you get on your hoverboard, you want it to go where you go and not throw you off balance. Stability is one of the most important criteria for a hoverboard. If you don’t feel stable and in control then you won’t have any fun on your board.

Charge Time

You want to get out of the house and on the streets with your hoverboard as quickly as possible. That means having a good charge time. Most hoverboards charge completely within about 2 hours.

Incline Climbing

This is the largest incline that your hoverboard can overcome (for example going up a hill). A combination of motor power and speed will effect what the include climb can me. Almost all hoverboards come in at around 15 degrees of incline.

Unit Weight

Hoverboards are heavy and are not fun to carry. All those gears, motors and stability units are heavy. This causes most hoverboards to weigh around 27 lbs.

Maximum Load

This is the maximum weight your hoverboard can carry around on it before it starts to take on damage. Important to note for that overweight member of your family or if you think about moving heavy furniture while on your hoverboard (we don’t recommend it). Most hoverboards can hold 120kg or 260 lbs. That’s more than enough to hold most people and then some. We will let you know in the board has a higher or lower rating in the review.

Warranty

When you buy you want to make sure you get something that works when it arrives but will also last. We will let you know if the seller offers a warranty. Remember: Amazon will cover you if the hoverboard arrives defective or broken.

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