Espin Nesta Review: A Fun, Foldable Electric Bike That Delivers Power and Versatility

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The Lowdown

After a few weeks of testing, I can honestly say that I love riding the Espin Nesta. It’s a ton of fun tooling around the neighborhood using what I call “motorcycle mode,” which is just using the trigger throttle. Our house is on a hill, and the Nesta can take me up the hill at around 12 mph, which I thought was impressive.

Overall
4.5

Pros

  • Nicely designed bike
  • Great power
  • Foldable
  • Fat tires
  • 8 gears
  • Fun to ride
  • LED screen
  • Pedal Assist, motor-only modes, and manual modes

Cons

  • Very heavy
  • Still large when folded

Electric bikes have gotten super popular recently, and Espin bikes have taken full advantage of the trend. With the versatile Espin Nesta, you can take your bike on offroad adventures or commute to work, thanks to the all-terrain tires and folding frame. The Nesta is a really nice bike that sometimes feels like a motorcycle and retails for $1,400.

A woman sits on the Espin Nesta electric bicycle.

The Espin Nesta is a ton of fun to ride. It’s a class 3 e-bike that’s rated up to 28 miles per hour, and I can attest to that speed rating, even as a guy weighing almost 190 pounds. Thanks to the 750-watt motor, the Nesta has some real power and got me over 25 miles per hour on a flat road. The 504wh lithium-ion battery has a minimum range of 20 miles and a maximum range of 40 miles so that you can take it almost anywhere.

The Nesta features an Espin color LCD that tells you your current speed, battery level, and it even has an odometer to track your miles ridden. In addition, the LCD can tell you the time, pedal assist level (from 1 to 5), and the watt output. It’s a very easy to read screen, even in the bright sunlight.

Color display on the Espin Nesta.

The Espin Nesta’s 750-watt motor can provide torque up to 85 Nm using the rear-mounted geared hub. You can engage the motor in one of two ways, by using the cadence sensing pedal-assist or using the trigger throttle on the left handlebar. The trigger throttle is a fun way to feel like you’re riding a motorcycle since the motor is so powerful, or you can feel like you’re simply riding a bike, though without as much struggle, using the pedal assist.

The one warning I’ll give is that if you’re not used to the pedal-assist, it can give you a jolt because it really takes off once you start pedaling. But if you’re prepared for it, it’s a lot of fun to ride and makes it a lot easier going up hills.

Using the trigger throttle with just the motor (no pedaling), I was able to get up to 25 miles per hour, which felt really fast; it’s an excellent testament to the motor’s power and the quality of the Nesta. The throttle is simple; the harder you press it down with your thumb, the faster you go. You can start slowly by pressing down softly but then ramp up your speed the harder you hit the throttle. What’s great is that the Zoom hydraulic disc brakes work very well, and I never had any concerns about my safety.

The Espin Nesta.

The frame is a 17″ step-thru design, which means you don’t have to step over the middle of the frame to get on. This makes it really good for both men and women of any size, though the lowest seat height was just low enough for my wife, who is 5’4″. If you’re shorter than that, you might have trouble riding his bike even though Espin says this bike is suggested for those 5’2″ – 6’4″.

The frame is foldable, making the bike much easier to store and travel with; however, it’s not exactly compact. We hoped to bring the bike with us on a family vacation, but it took up almost the entire trunk of our Nissan Rogue, so it had to stay home.

Another thing to note about the foldable nature of the frame is that while it does fold, the bike is very heavy at 65 pounds. It’s not something you can easily take with you on the bus or train during a commute to work. In my mind, the foldability is excellent for storage and local travel, assuming you can fit it in your tr; however, it’s not something you can easily fold up and carry inside your office.

The Espin Nesta into the back of a vehicle.

The fat 20 x 4.0 tires are a great touch on this bike, as it improves balance on such a heavy bike while also allowing you to take your bike offroad without worrying about busting a tire. The pedals are Wellgo aluminum alloy, simple but effective, and the saddle is a comfortable Velo saddle. The handlebar grips were surprisingly enjoyable, and they’re molded so you can rest your palm comfortably on them while you’re riding around town.

The front and rear storage racks are an excellent accessory to have, especially if you’re taking your Nesta on longer rides. The racks are solidly built and can carry enough for a day trip; the rear rack can carry 66 pounds, while the front rack can carry 22 pounds. The bike even has an LED headlight that’s mounted to the front rack. The gearing is an S-Ride 8 speed, 11-32T, and is great to have while pedaling manually up hills or off-road.

A woman rides the Espin Nesta.

After a few weeks of testing, I can honestly say that I love riding the Espin Nesta. It’s a ton of fun tooling around the neighborhood using what I call “motorcycle mode,” which is just using the trigger throttle. Our house is on a hill, and the Nesta can take me up the hill at around 12 mph, which I thought was impressive.

The fact that it can fold was nice because I was able to take it around with us in the back of our car without having to install a bike rack; however, as I mentioned before, the bike is pretty heavy and kind of awkward to maneuver when folded.

The Espin Nesta, though heavy, was not difficult to pedal manually, so it really does work well both ways, as a manual bike or electric bike. The pedal assist was also a really nice feature, and the amount of assist can be adjusted using the easy-to-use LCD screen and buttons attached to the handlebar. This is one of those reviews that I wish I could hang on to because we had a great time testing it out.

The Espin Nesta.

The Espin Nesta starts at $1,400; it is available directly from the manufacturer

Source: Manufacturer review unit on loan

What I Like: Nicely designed bike; Great power; Foldable; Fat tires; 8 gears; Fun to ride; LED screen; Pedal Assist, motor-only modes, and manual modes

What Needs Improvement: Very heavy; Still large when folded

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About the Author

Perry Brauner
I'm an architect by trade, but the overarching theme of my life has always been trying to keep up with the newest, coolest technology. Ever since I picked up an NES controller, I've been hooked on the latest and greatest gadgets, gizmos, and toys. Whether it's gaming, mobile phones, and accessories, or PCs and Apple products, I'm interested. I use many Apple products in my daily life, such as the iPhone, iPad, and my MacBook Pro. I've also built a few PCs in my day, so I'd like to say that I'm a pretty well-rounded techie.