[NINEBOT Z10]THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN FIRMWARE 1.0.0 AND 1.0.5
Ninebot makes no official announcements about their releases, let alone why certain firmware is or is not offered to certain wheels.
Anyway, here is a non-exhaustive list of the differences between the 1.0.0 and 1.0.5 firmware that will be useful to all those who are not yet in 1.0.5 in case they are offered the update and wonder if it is interesting for them to do it or not.
For information I have so far covered about :
- 800km on firmware 1.0.0
- 1300km in modified firmware 1.0.0
- 100km in modified and unmodified firmware 1.0.5 included
The advantages of version 1.0.5 compared to 1.0.0 :
- Improved wheel agility, requires slightly less effort to drive
- Improved acceleration, you don't have to push forward as much to accelerate
- Improved manoeuvrability of the wheel above 25km/h which is much less likely to struggle to stay perpendicular
The -'s of version 1.0.5 compared to 1.0.0 :
- Loss of ultra-stable wheel feel above 25km/h
- Hard Brake", i.e. braking with a lot of pressure where you tilt your body completely backwards in an almost seated position are no longer possible, the wheel does not hold you anymore and starts to jerk if you force too much (this caused me to jump off the wheel every time I tried to avoid falling)
- The near-impossibility of falling off in corners has disappeared, the wheel now tilts more, you have to be careful not to be surprised by shifting your body completely to one side thinking that the wheel will want to go back perpendicular to the road
- Below 50% range the wheel tends to zigzag slightly when approaching or exceeding 40km/h
My Conclusions:
There is no doubt that Ninebot aims to make the Z10 faster to handle than it was at the beginning. You can feel the still subtle attempt to change the Z10's behaviour to make it more like other wheels on the market. The problem from my point of view is that this is done at the expense of safety.
The Z10 in firmware 1.0.0 is for me a real rock, a train that nothing can derail, the grip is certainly difficult and may put some off, but you feel 1000% safe.
In firmware 1.0.5 I felt that the train could derail at the slightest mistake on my part and even if the wheel is still pleasant to drive, it is for me less safe than in 1.0.0.
If you got your Z10 in 1.0.5 and are not used to hard braking, you won't miss it, but if you are in 1.0.0 with more than 500km under your belt, then you probably won't really appreciate the change in your habits.
The choice is yours!