The V11 is a significant development in the evolution of the Electric Unicycle, with a number of innovations in the areas of design, functionality, & for Inmotion, performance too. A key attraction in the  V11, is the all new pedal suspension, providing a up to 70mm/2.75″ of vertical travel, that is expected to provide a smoother ride for rough roads & trail riding; in addition, the motor is fitted with a 18×3″ XL tire, providing greater contact surface with the road, & improving the ride stability.

Other improvements include the brightest head/tail lighting ever to be installed on a Wheel & integrated folding kickstand. On the performance front, the max speed has been increased from 25MPH (on the the v10/F) to 30MPH, with a respectable 1,500Wh battery pack, for an anticipated range of 57 miles @ a 20MPH cruising speed.  Taken together, the V11 is expected to be among the most hotly anticipated new machines of 2020.

The Inmotion V11 was announced about a week before the King Song S18, so how do these two new suspension Wheels stack up against each other on paper? In the graphic on the left is a side-by-side comparison of the different design philosophies the two Companies have taken in producing their first suspension Wheel. In short, King Song’s S18 is intended as a comparatively short range ‘sport’ vehicle, with emphasis on being nimble & light, while the V11 offers a larger sized battery pack (the largest produced by Inmotion to date), which could be considered more a Cruiser. At the time of this writing, there has not been a head-to-head test to assess their relative ride qualitie—this information is gap is expected to be answered around mid-May.   

• Suspension: On paper the S18 has an extra 30mm of vertical travel, 100mm vs 70mm on the V10. Both the S18 & V11 have air suspension that can be adjusted according to the Rider’s weight and/or ride performance. On paper advantage goes to King Song.
• Battery & Range: the Inmotion V11 packs in an additional 20x LG M50T/18.75Wh 21700 type battery cells within the internal motor cavity, this compares with the S18’s 60x cells of the same type. All other factors being equal, the V11 should yield an addition 12 miles of range.  
• Max Speed & Motor Power: there are several factors that determine a machine’s true power capability, including the number of parallel battery cells, voltage, controller’s rate-limiting, & the motor itself—a higher wattage motor does not necessary translate into a higher operating speed. On paper, the S18’s 2200W motor has 10% more sustained power, but with only 3x parallels of 20x cells each, the limiting factor of the battery pack may see the two models at an equal pegging (this has yet to be determined). Both manufacturers have set a firmware max set speed to 50kph/31mph.
• Retractable/folding Handle: here the two models have adopted very different solutions for their trolley handle: the V11 has an external ‘scorpion’ style, which appears improved over the earlier V10/V5F type, while the S18 has the retractable telescopic rails extend through the Wheel’s body, similar to earlier models. From the standpoint of efficiency, the Inmotion V11 appears to use the internal body space more efficiently. 
• Lighting: both designs have jettisoned the typical side LED atmospheric light-show of models, in favour of dramatically increased headlight—in the case of Inmotion, taillight too—luminosity. The S18 has a unique high-beam/low-beam headlight, that dips when there’s an oncoming light source. Both the S18 & V11 offer substantially higher illumination than found on earlier models.  
• Weight: in this category, the King Song S18 has a clear advantage in being 11lb lighter than the V11. 
• Misc: there are unique features found on both models; for instance, the V11 has an integrated folding stand, to keep the Wheel upright; while the S18 will be shipping with a fanless 2.5A/84v charger as standard equipment. Each Wheel is fitted with XL >9″ grippy pedals & the lift for motor disengagement function.