When I saw the price tag for the Ramblas, Aventon’s first electric mountain bike, I scratched my head and wondered, “How did they do this?” OK, so $2,699 isn’t exactly cheap. But most top-of-the-line, full-suspension e-MTBs are pushing $15,000. That’s a difference of more than $12,000, which can’t be explained away by the lack of a rear shock.
The company has been around since 2013, the year it started manufacturing fixies in Long Beach, California. In 2015 Aventon’s women’s Factory Team won the Red Hook Crit in Barcelona, a 20-lap race around a 1.2-kilometer course at speeds upwards of 35 km an hour. Despite a devoted fixie following, Aventon pivoted into the commuter ebike space in 2017. Seven years later, the e-MTB Ramblas was born.
Now based in Ontario, California, the company does almost everything in-house, from engineering and development to assembling small parts and manufacturing its own frames. On the Ramblas, Aventon even designed its own mid-drive motor. As a result, the maker can take out the middleman and do higher volume than competitors, which means lower prices to the consumer.
Make or Break It
Aventon works with more than 1,500 bike shops nationwide but also sells direct to consumers, so I had the company ship a demo Ramblas directly to me. My partner built the bike in under an hour, thanks to his mechanic skills and the easy-to-follow instructions accessed by the QR code on the box.
At first glance, I was impressed with the bike’s nicely specced components, which include a Rockshox 35 suspension fork with 130 mm of travel, a Sram NX 12-speed drivetrain, and Sram DB-8 mineral four-piston hydraulic disc brakes. In less technical jargon, that means more brake fluid is distributed across a larger surface area, making it easier to stop. Plus, the Ramblas comes with a dropper seat post and built-in front and rear lights.
As for e-components, the Ramblas uses an Aventon 708-watt-hour, rechargeable lithium-ion battery and the brand-new Aventon-designed A100 mid-drive 36-volt motor with 250 watts of sustained power and 750 watts of peak power that’s customizable via the companion app. I had never ridden an e-MTB that wasn’t powered by Brose, Bosch, or Specialized, so I was curious to see how the A100 would compare.
Photograph: Stephanie Pearson
My first ride in early May was a 25-mile loop of dirt and paved roads interspersed with chunks of singletrack dry enough to ride. My first adventure on a new ebike always triggers battery anxiety, so I stayed almost entirely in Eco mode, the lowest of the Ramblas’ three power modes, which is standard on most e-MTBs.
Even in Eco mode, I was impressed with the smooth, consistent power throughout each pedal stroke. If I kept up my cadence and completed each stroke, Eco mode provided enough steady power to drive up steep, long grades without having to toggle up to Trail or Turbo mode. The tiger in the A100’s tank is likely due to its 100 newton meters (NM) of torque (the higher the torque, the greater the motor’s power and responsiveness), about 20 NM more than most other e-MTB motors.
Heavyweight
At 52 pounds with the medium frame, the Ramblas is not light. At one point on a steep, paved uphill, I turned the bike off to see how well it pedaled under my own power. That didn’t go well, and I had to turn the bike back on long before I crested the hill, quickly realizing that it would be a very big bummer if the bike ran out of battery during a long ride. The positive, however, is that after 25 miles, I still had 70 percent of the charge remaining, which indicates that Aventon’s promise of an 80-mile range is accurate.
Of course, it’s good to be prepared with the essentials. But ultimately, festivals are about having fun. Here’s a list of festival accessories you might like to have on hand purely for the joy of them.
Kandi-making kits: Trading beaded bracelets is a hallmark of electronic music, but thanks to the Taylor Swift Eras tour, more music genres are joining in. Any beads will work, but I highly recommend Stretch Magic elastic ($20)—the cheap stuff falls apart way too easily.
Flow props: There are tons of toys that some dancers like to use. I’m partial to the Fiberflies Pixel Whip ($85), but the Flowtoys PodPoi ($135) are another popular choice. You can even get levitating wands and light-up staffs. These are super fun to dance with (and they’ll entertain your fellow attendees).
An instant camera: Most of us have a perfectly capable camera in our pockets. But I like bringing my Instax along when attending festivals. You’ll get physical, tangible memories, and they can also be fun to photograph strangers (with their permission).
Little gifts:Tiny ducks. Sprouts for your hair. Squishy animals. Festivals often have a culture of gift-giving. It’s not expected, but it can be nice to have something to pass out to the folks you meet. Consider bringing some trinkets with you—you might even make a new friend or seven.
A night-light: If you’re at a camping fest, moving around in the dark can be treacherous. And sometimes you just want to grab a snack from the cooler without shining a flashlight around. I like this nightlight because it provides a gentle glow—enough to see with but not so bright that I wake up everyone in the vicinity.
A camping towel: Sometimes it rains outside. Sometimes you accidentally spill an entire Beatbox in your tent. Whatever the case may be, a camping towel is handy. They’re super absorbent, and they dry quickly.
Fun clothes: When it comes to festival clothing, you can be as bold or as practical as you’d like. Don’t sacrifice comfort in the name of fashion! But if you’re looking for fun clothes to wear, I recommend checking out IHeartRaves and Rave Wonderland. These are EDM-adjacent, but they’ll work for everything from Bonnaroo to Burning Man to EDC. Your favorite artists’ merch is probably a good starting point, too. And when in doubt, you can always accessorize—consider a bucket hat or a Pashmina-style shawl to make your outfit a little more adventurous.
A bandana: We have a lot of feelings about the importance of a small multipurpose cloth. Music festivals are often dusty and dirty. A bandana works as a face covering, a sweat absorber, a quick place to sit, and an easy way to wipe up spilled drinks. Stash a few in your bag and you’ll be better prepared.
In practice, this is the first 360 camera I’ve used where the video footage is still very sharp and clear, even when reframed to 16:9. You still have to deal with the stitch line, which is where the edges of the two lenses meet and software (imperfectly) fills in the gaps, but otherwise postproduction use of this footage feels like, well, just editing video. I mixed it with footage from a Sony A7R II, GoPro Hero 12, and Insta360 Ace Pro, and aside from the wider angle of view, it’s hard to tell the footage apart.
That alone is enough for me to say that this is the 360 camera filmmakers will want. The 8K footage still doesn’t reframe to 4K (you’ll have to wait for 12K footage before that’s possible), but it looks good enough for anything you’re going to put online.
It’s not just the high-end specs that have changed in the X4 either. Frame speeds have been improved in lower-resolution footage, with new options to shoot 5.7K video at 60 fps, 4K at 100 fps, and 4K at 60 fps when shooting in wide-angle mode. None of that is earth-shattering, but it does give you some better slo-mo options, thanks to the higher frame rates.
The color profile options remain the same as the X3: Standard, Vivid, and Log (for those who prefer to color in post). I shot primarily in Standard and found the colors to be nicely rendered, perhaps a little on the warm side. I find Vivid too garish, and of course if you plan to mix footage with other cameras, you’ll want to shoot everything in Log and do your coloring in software.
Film Crew in a Box
Testing action cameras is always one of the best parts of this job, but it was especially fun with the Insta360 X4. I don’t even like shooting 360 video, but shooting 360 video knowing that I can crop, reframe, and still get sharp, clean footage with lots of detail and smooth pans? Yes please.
In many ways the Insta360 is like adding a small film crew to your bag, especially if you get Insta360’s hilariously oversize 9.8-foot selfie stick, which makes it possible to fake surprisingly realistic boom shots.
At $99, the new Extended Edition Selfie Stick isn’t cheap, but is well worth it for the versatility it creates when paired with the X4. Fully extended and held behind you while you walk, it mimics a low-flying drone tracking shot, but without the whole crash-in-the-trees thing.
Speaking of trees, shade, and shadow, the X4 excels in bright sunlight. High-contrast scenes like a forest floor at midday are more challenging (this is true for any camera). HDR mode can help sometimes, but then you lose the ability to shoot Log.
A few months back, my friend and fellow bicycle enthusiast Eric prepared for his first 100-mile bike ride. Concerned about how sore he’d be afterward, he wondered what he could do to improve his ride.
As a convert to the Church of Fat Tires, I was excited to share with him an idea I’d learned from other cyclists: Cram on the fattest soft-sided tires that will fit on your bike, then inflate them to a pressure that will seem surprisingly low.
I’ve been a volunteer bike mechanic in Seattle for almost 10 years and have gently modified my own midrange 1988 Peugeot into something modern and capable. Yet nothing prepared me for the impact of fat tires with pliable (aka “supple”) sidewalls and inflating them to a pressure much lower than what I was used to. I remember my amazement riding down a big hill, listening to the different sound my tires made and experiencing the sure and solid feeling the bike suddenly had. It felt grippier, more comfortable, less twitchy, and maybe even faster. In car terms, it was like going from a well-cared-for old Camry to a modern sport truck. It was exhilarating.
“Tires are probably the single most important component on your bike and the only part that touches the ground,” says Russ Roca, who has 175,000 subscribers on his YouTube channel, The Path Less Pedaled, which focuses on enjoyment over speed and typically spotlights bikes that can ride on both gravel and pavement. “A wider tire means more volume and built-in suspension. It makes the bike feel more stable.”
Roca says wider tires are just more fun. “You’re not being jarred to death. You’re not bouncing off of every rock and pothole. They are the most noticeable upgrade you can make to your bike.”
This made sense, and I’d learn that not having my wrists and keister being jarred helped keep them from getting sore on longer rides.
Yet somehow, fat tires still feel like a bit of a secret. Us cyclists put pads in our shorts and buy heavy suspension systems for off-road bikes, but we’re somehow reluctant to experiment with the part of the bike that actually touches the road to help make for a nicer ride. Big, global bicycle brands still seem unsure about embracing the trend, perhaps trying to ensure that you buy a skinnier-tired road ride and wider-tired gravel bike instead of one “all-road” bike that can do both.
“Cycling has a lot of tradition, and sometimes we do things because they’ve always been done that way,” says Roca. “The industry says lighter equals good, which is easy to explain and market, but selling on ride feel and supple tires is more amorphous.”
Plus, wide tires are relatively new to the market. Models with supple sidewalls made with high-thread-count fabric and a coat of rubber thick enough to protect the weave but thin enough to let the tire be plenty flexible have become widely available only in the last decade. Throw a pandemic in there, and an industry that’s long on inventory, and you can understand why adoption has not been widespread.
Hidden in the buyers’ reluctance is the belief that a wider, softer tire is slower than a high-pressure skinny one, that the fatter tire weighs more and has more rolling resistance. But that’s not always the case.
Last year, I hit a, um, milestone birthday and bought myself a fancy new all-road bike from Rivendell Bicycle Works. It accommodates tires north of 40 millimeters wide. (I currently use 38s.) The frame is made of steel, and the bike is not particularly light, but I love how it feels and how it encourages me to ride as much as possible—and fast. A lot of that has to do with the tires.
Toward the end of a summer when I rode a lot, I ended up at a stoplight next to a spandex-clad racer on a skinny-tire bike. When the light turned green he shot off, and I thought: What the hell.
The first thing to consider when buying a cooler is how you’re going to use it. If you aren’t heading out for days at a time, you probably don’t need an expensive high-end cooler. All the coolers we’ve recommend above are capable of holding things at a safe temperature for a day, provided you keep them in the shade. Similarly, if you aren’t going to be hiking into a campsite, don’t spend the extra money for a backpack cooler. A wheeled cooler, however, is well worth the investment. Your back will thank you.
Hard-sided coolers: These range from the old green Coleman coolers—once a staple of every camping trip—to Yetis, which cost as much as cars did when Coleman started making coolers. You might wonder why the Yetis are so expensive. That I can’t answer, but Yeti did upend the cooler industry by introducing rotational molding, or “rotomolding,” where melted plastic is molded over foam insulation in one piece. Rotomolded coolers offer seamless, uniform density in their walls and lids, which drastically improves a cooler’s performance. In contrast, those ancient, affordable plastic coolers we’ve all used have thinner walls, leaky seams, and less insulated lids. Whether you need the extra insulation depends on what you’re doing and how hot it is when you’re doing it. Want to learn more? Our In-House Know-It-All has a more thorough insulation explanation.
Hard-sided coolers generally have the luxury features you want, like leakproof lids and drain plugs, and some are even bear-resistant (check this list of bear-proof products if you’re headed into grizzly country). The downside is that these coolers are generally huge and heavy.
Soft-sided coolers: Soft-sided coolers include everything from well-padded, impressively insulated sling bags (like the Yeti Hopper Flip above) to roll-down, dry-bag-style coolers perfect for those mild beach days. The best soft coolers are easier to carry, pack away better when not in use, and have a versatility that traditional hard coolers lack. (I have used dry-bag-style coolers as, well, dry bags.) Ice doesn’t last as long, but for short outings where you don’t need a large cooler, these are what we recommend.
Electric coolers: If you’re headed out on longer adventures and have access to power, these are the way to go. You’ll need some kind of power source, but you’ll never have to worry about your ice melting. There are quite a few of these available now, and I am working on a separate guide for them, but for now I’ve included our top picks here.
Other Features to Look For:
Drain plug: This greatly simplifies life by making it easy to drain the water out of your cooler. If you’re buying a large cooler, make sure it has one of these.
Divider: One of our top tips for long-term cooler use is to have two coolers: one you treat as a fridge and hardly ever open, and another for drinks. If that’s not possible, you can achieve some of the same by getting a cooler with a dividing wall in it. That way you can pack one side tightly with ice to keep that meat at a low temp, and use the other side for chilling beverages with cubed ice.
Wheels: Coolers get heavy and wheels are awesome. They won’t always work (good luck wheeling your cooler over tree roots), but when they do, they are completely worth it.
It’s Every outdoor fanatic’s favorite time of year. Snow is melting, birds are migrating, and REI is holding its biggest sale of the year, the annual anniversary sale. This year’s event ends on May 27. Many items are up to 30 percent off, but REI Co-op members save up to 20 percent off any full-price item of their choice and an extra 20 percent off any REI Outlet item. To get the discount, add the promo code ANNIV24 at checkout.
We’ve highlighted some of our favorite deals on gear we’ve loved over our years of testing. There’s something for nearly all our favorite summer activities—tents, stoves, sleeping bags, and plenty of outdoor apparel. Be sure to have a look at our guides to outdoor gear, like the best tents, best sleeping bags, best sleeping pads, best rain jackets, best merino wool, and best binoculars.
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WIRED Featured Deals
Tent Deals
Be sure to have a look at our guide to the best tents for more options.
Photograph: REI
Our pick for Best Two-Person Backpacking Tent, REI’s Half Dome is rugged and lightweight (4 pounds), and offers generous living space for two with gear. The tent body is made of 40-denier ripstop nylon for durability at the base and on the floor, with 20-denier nylon mesh (both fabrics are bluesign-approved, which means it has been independently certified to meet strict environmental and manufacturing requirements). It also comes with a footprint, which is a rarity these days. The tent poles are aluminum and interchangeable, which makes it easy to setup and take down.
The Big Agnes Copper Spur series is the king of ultralight tents. I’ve used both the two-person and four-person models over the years, and Big Agnes has continually refined the design to the point that I have nothing left to complain about. This is a high-quality, well-designed tent. It’s lightweight, easy to set up, and stable even in strong winds. The Copper Spur is also very livable, with steep sidewalls to maximize interior space. The ingenious “awning” design makes getting in and out a snap. The only complaint I have is the price, but on sale it’s a little easier to handle.
Most people do not need the Trango 2, but if you are headed into harsh, 4-season, alpine conditions, this is on the best, most bombproof tents I’ve ever used. It’s heavy (almost 9 pounds for the two-person model), and something of a pain to set up, but it’s built to withstand high winds and hard weather, and it does just that. If you’re anticipating bad weather at high altitudes, this is the tent you want.
Photograph: Big Agnes
Are you bikepacking yet? I’m in the early stages myself, but this is the tent my fellow WIRED bikepacking experts recommend. Big Agnes’ bikepacking tents have shorter pole lengths, enabling them to fit between drop handlebars, or in panniers. The superlight, super-premium Copper Spur HV UL3 weights just 3 pounds and 11 ounces, and it has enough space for two (a squeeze for three). It’s also available in lighter, smaller, one- and two-person options, all with twin vestibules and doors, hidden helmet storage, and external webbing for hanging out wet clothes. And yes, if you’re wondering, it works great for backpacking too.
Sleeping Bag and Sleeping Pad Deals
Confused by the options? Check out our guides to the Best Sleeping Bags and the Best Sleeping Pads.
Photograph: Scott Gilbertson
REI Co-Op’s Magma 15 is our favorite bag for shoulder season trips, when the temps might drop more than expected. It has an excellent draft collar that’s very good at keeping out the chill. The outside is a 15-denier nylon ripstop (bluesign-approved, with a non-fluorinated DWR coating to keep moisture at bay). Baffles are variably spaced and not stitched through, which helps the fill stay put and minimizes cold spots. The Magma doesn’t have a lot of frills; it just gets the job done.
Our favorite summer time car-camping sleeping bag, the REI Siesta Hooded 20 is plenty warm and affordable. It’s also not a mummy bag, because you’re not climbing Denali; why cramp yourself if you don’t have to? The Siesta’s rectangular cut makes for a much roomier, more comfortable bag. The Siesta’s 20-degree rating makes it enough for three-season trips, and unlike most rectangular bags, the Siesta has a hood, which helps on those cold nights.
Nemo’s Forte 20 is a 20-degree synthetic-fill sleeping bag, but the comfort rating is 30 degrees. In my testing, this feels more like where you’d want to stay temperature-wise with this bag. The outer shell uses a 30-denier recycled polyester ripstop with an inside liner made from 20-denier recycled polyester taffeta. It does a good job of holding back the moisture that often forms inside a tent, which I discovered after one very soggy night of testing. The fill is what Nemo calls Zerofiber insulation, which is made from 100 percent postconsumer recycled content fibers. The Zerofiber packs down remarkably small—this is the most compact synthetic-fill bag I’ve tested in this temp range—and retains its ability to trap warmth even when wet.
Photograph: Nemo
Nemo Equipment’s new 2024 Tensor-insulated sleeping pads (8/10, WIRED Recommends) have the best R-Value to weight ratio of anything we’ve tested. The Tensor All-Season featured here sports an R-Value of 5.4 and weighs just 18.2 ounces. That alone is impressive, but what I love about the Tensor is that it’s thick, comfortable, and most importantly, dang near silent. The slightly lighter Trail model is also on sale, as is the Extreme Conditions pad, which is the lightest, warmest sleeping pad on the market.
This minimal pad isn’t the most comfortable I’ve used (that would be the Nemo above), but it gets the job done and is considerably cheaper. It has an R-value of 4.9, and the 30-denier ripstop polyester with TPU lamination has held up well through years of testing. I also like that this pad is relatively wide and roomy—even the “regular” model (I have not tested the wide, but that’s also an option).
This is the beefy, ultra-luxury pad that started the trend of huge car-camping pads. And for that we thank Exped. The MegaMat is one of our favorite sleeping pads, and has slightly better insulation than our top pick in that guide, making it a better choice if you sleep cold or are headed out in the shoulder seasons where colder temps are possible.
Backpack Deals
Don’t forget to check out our guides to the Best Laptop Backpacks and the Best Travel Bags.
Photograph: REI
The Flash 22 is possibly the best value day pack on the market, especially on sale. I was surprised by how comfortable this thing is, despite the very lightweight straps and minimal padding. It carries loads up to 15 pounds without straining the shoulders, and the side stash pockets are fabulously large—big enough for a Nalgene bottle or rain jacket.
The ultralight cousin to the Flash 22, the Flash 18 lacks the hip belt, side stash pockets, and floating lid. What you’re left with is a stripped-down, bare-bones pack that’s great for traveling since you can stuff it down to almost nothing, stash it in your carry-on, and have a nice backpack whenever you need it. Don’t load it up with more than about 8 pounds of gear though, and avoid anything with pointy bits as there’s no padding here.
I spent several days in Michigan’s Porcupine Mountains with this pack, and I loved everything about it except the fit. The organization, the pockets, the lid—everything was fantastic, but it rode up on my hips. That doesn’t stop me from recommending it. Everyone is shaped differently. What didn’t work for me might be perfect for you. As with any pack, we suggest you head into an REI store and try them on if possible.
Apparel Deals
Photograph: REI
Every year, I (Adrienne) repurchase one of these rain jackets for each my children. It’s really hard to find rain jackets that are better value than REI’s at the price point. The kid’s version is a 2.5-layer shell with nonfluorinated (read: PFAS-free) durable water repellent (DWR), taped seams, and an adjustable hood. These will last all year long (at least, as long as your kid doesn’t lose theirs).
This is wildly affordable compared to some of the other sun hoodies that we tested for our guide to the Best Sun Protection Clothing. WIRED reviewer Jaina Grey found it to be super soft and breathable, with thumb holes to protect the back of your hands. It’s UPF 50, and it may be a lot easier to get your kids or sensitive family members to wear clothing instead of smearing sticky sunscreen all over their bodies.
I (Adrienne) cannot tell a lie; I have been wearing Halle pants for almost 15 years, and as the nylon content has gone up, they have started pilling very quickly. Nevertheless, the fit is still dialed for women with straighter hips and, er, athletic thighs. ReZion fabric is UPF 50, will not wrinkle, and is light and breathable. This is a good, versatile summer travel pant that looks nice, can accommodate all sorts of activities, and won’t stifle you.
Fitness Deals
Don’t forget to check out our guides to the Best Fitness Trackers, the Best Barefoot Shoes, the Best Garmins, and the Best Smartwatches.
Photograph: Garmin
Garmin’s two best outdoor sports watches—the Fenix and the Epix lines—are both $200 off. The Epix Pro (Gen 2) (8/10, WIRED Recommends) now has much better battery life, a brighter touchscreen, and nifty features like an in-bezel flashlight for when the battery on all your devices has died and you need to find something in your dark tent, and more navigation features, like being able to find Points of Interest like a coffee shop while you’re on a long run. Can you also do this with an Apple Watch Ultra? Yes, but not if you have an Android phone!
Photograph: Danner
These classic hiking boots are in both our guide to the Best Hiking Boots and our Buy It For Life guide. However, as crazy it is to say that one pair of shoes will last a lifetime, these are it. Each piece of the upper is made from a single piece of leather—that is, one piece of folded leather for the tongue. Fewer pieces means fewer seams and less chance of leaking or points of failure. All you need to do every year is wipe them down with a cloth and a tin of Danner conditioner, and when they finally break down you can send them back to the factory for a full recrafting.
On the off-chance that you’re even remotely interested in what I (Adrienne) am buying, these climbing shoes from La Sportiva are in my cart (all La Sportiva climbing shoes are 25 percent off). Summer climbing season is about to begin and I just wore off all the rubber on the rand on my current pair of La Sportivas, which is a legacy climbing brand. I like the crossing Velcro closures, which make it easy to get the shoe on and off quickly and still allow you to fine-tune the fit if you have high arches or narrow feet.
My favorite running shoes are Altras, which have a zero heel-to-toe drop (there is no difference in the height between the toe and the heel) and a wide toebox so that you don’t crunch your little tootsies. The Timp is the company’s latest trail running shoe, which I have been running in for the past two months. They do feel a little stiffer and tighter than previous versions; I size up a full size from my street size to avoid getting crunched. However, I like the breathable mesh and the padding. The Lone Peaks are my usual shoe and are a whopping 40 percent off.
Stove, Cookware, and Camp Deals
Don’t forget to check out our guides to the Best Camping Stoves and Best Portable Grills.
Photograph: Coleman
The luxury upgrade pick in our camp stove guide, Coleman’s Cascade 3-in-1 (8/10, WIRED Recommends) is my favorite way to cook outdoors. The included cast iron griddle and grill plates open up more cooking possibilities—the flattop is great for heating tortillas and cooking pancakes. The flame control is good—dialing in a simmer isn’t hard—and the electronic ignition means you’ll never be searching for a lighter.
This is the fancy version of our favorite camp stove. Here you get electronic ignition and a nice pale green paint job. Is it worth the extra $25? That’s up to you. If its not, you can snag the less fancy version for $52 at Walmart.
Jetboil’s camp stove packs up smaller than most car-camping stoves, making it ideal for you #vanlifers. It offers a spacious cook area when unpacked and I found it easy to get a simmer. What I don’t like is the lack of any windscreen, but provided you can keep it protected, this is a good if somewhat pricey stove. There’s also an all-in-one cook system version that works just like Jetboil’s backpacking stove.
As we note in our guide to the Best Water Bottles, the Hydro Flask was the popular choice before the giant Stanley cup took over the internet. The standard 40-ounce is on sale, and it has double-walled insulation, a variety of lids, and lots of fun colors; it’s also not very easily damaged. If you find you must simply have a similar handled tumbler with a straw, Hydro Flask also has one.
Nemo’s backpacking chair is lightweight—just 1 pound, 14 ounces—and surprisingly sturdy. I love the reclining aspect, and both the mesh and poles have held up well in my testing.
If you’re looking at bikes online—or anything, really, whether it’s headphones or monitors—you have to consider price versus payoff. Gazelle has billed its newest ebike, the Eclipse, as a long-range comfort cruiser. It is basically the expensive Dutch version of the direct-to-consumer (DTC) Rad Power Bikes’ Radster Road (8/10, WIRED Recommends).
I brooded over that price difference while I was riding, until I realized that I really was much more comfortable, and for a really dumb reason. The handlebars on the Eclipse are much narrower than the Radster’s, as well as the other DTC bikes that I have tested. Most bikes have smaller parts for smaller frames, but if you’re a smaller or newer bike company, you might standardize your handlebar sizes due to restricted supply or economies of scale. That’s just not something you would do if you’re Royal Dutch Gazelle, which has existed for more than 130 years and holds the royal warrant in the Netherlands as a distinction of high quality.
You can swap out handlebars pretty easily on acoustic bikes, but doing so on an electric bike is a more complicated matter. Finding a narrower handlebar was such an unexpected comfort. It’s just … a really nice bike. Even the paint job is nicer than other bikes I have, with four hand-applied coats and dimensional shading to make it look slimmer. If you’re not trying to pinch pennies, there are a lot of really nice things about the Eclipse.
So Much Information
There are two different models of the Eclipse. Both have an aluminum frame, but the T11+ HMB has a Shimano Deore XT derailleur gear, while the version I tested is the C380+ version, which has the Enviolo CVT gear hub and a low-maintenance Gates belt drive. May I never have a chain drop out while crossing a busy street again!
Both come in a step-over and step-through version with three different frame sizes, with the smallest being a 46 centimeters. I’m 5’2″ and was positively thrilled to find a Dutch bike that comes in a size this small as the Dutch are tall people and this is unusual. Of course, the bikes all have UL certification, which means that the bike has been certified to comply with Underwriters Laboratories safety standards and won’t inadvertently set your garage on fire.
Photograph: Adrienne So
Probably the first thing you’ll notice is the new Bosch system. It has a Bosch Performance Line motor with 85 nm of torque and a 750-Wh ginormous battery integrated into the downtube. After about 45 miles of biking up hills and hauling gear, I only got the battery down to 45 percent. It’s a class 3 ebike with a maximum speed of 28 miles per hour.
Control is all I want in an electric scooter. OK, that’s a lie, I also want decent range, good power, and a reasonable weight. Being able to control speed, regenerative braking, and how turn signals work—if they’re even available—is not something you find on most escooters. And even if you can access those things, tweaking them isn’t always intuitive. The new Apollo Go changes all of that.
I’ve tested Apollo scooters for a few years now, and the Apollo Go is my favorite yet. It’s speedy, isn’t terribly heavy, has a decent folding system, includes perks like turn signals and a bell, and delivers satisfying range. Best of all, I have easy control over some core features through the companion app.
Good Control
The sleek-looking Apollo Go has a pretty simple setup process once you take it out of the box. Just add some screws to affix the handlebar to the scooter’s stem and you’re good to go. In the box, you get a nice tool kit for handling basic repairs yourself.
It’s worth noting that while Apollo does have service locations across the country, it recently shut down its New York City service center, citing “the current regulatory environment.” There’s still a third-party service partner you can take your scooter to in Manhattan, but you can check this map to see if there’s a location near you. It’s always smart to make sure there’s some kind of ebike or escooter servicing shop in your area before buying one.
Photograph: Julian Chokkattu
Connecting to the app is a snappy affair, and you do need to use the app to unlock the scooter’s top speed for safety reasons. Lo and behold, you can finally customize the speed modes on the Apollo Go. Most escooters have three speed modes you can cycle through, but these speeds are usually fixed. Apollo lets you set a preferred speed for Eco, Comfort, and Sport. Now I no longer have to deal with the speed modes that are too fast or too slow. I’ve set the Comfort mode here to 15 miles per hour, the speed limit for New York City, and I can still switch to Sport mode if I need a boost. (It has a top speed of 28 mph, but you can lower this if you’d like.)
The app also lets you choose how much regenerative braking you want—this feature recharges the battery slightly every time you use the regen brake—as well as the acceleration response to increase the torque. I maxed out both of these. You can choose a max speed for the Go, control how long it takes for Cruise Control to kick in (so you don’t have to keep holding down on the throttle), and even whether the turn signals should turn off automatically after seven blinks or manually by pressing the signal button again. The best part is I don’t have to bother with the app after I’ve done all this initial setup.
Go Go Go
Photograph: Julian Chokkattu
The aluminum Apollo Go weighs 46 pounds, which is manageable for me, but might be a smidge too heavy for some people. The good thing is the stem isn’t too thick to comfortably carry, and there’s a grab handle at the end of the deck for two-hand toting. If you will have to carry this scooter up and down more than two flights of stairs regularly, I’d suggest getting a lighter model.
Nothing says summer like cooking over an open flame. Whether it’s the salty sweetness on that lightly charred corn or the rich smoothness of smoked meat, warm weather begs us to get outside and light a fire.
This is time of year when, like a groundhog, the grill starts to poke out of the snow and show its rusty, neglected self. If you’re in need of a new grill this year, here’s our guide to the very best portable grills. We’ve researched and tested dozens of them to see which can brat the best.
For your other outdoor needs, check out our guides to the Best Camping Gear, Best Tents, Best Rain Jackets, and the Best Binoculars.
Updated May 2024: We’ve added the Skotti grill, some accessories for the Nomad grill, and the Ignik propane growler, and we’ve updated prices throughout.
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The Best Portable Charcoal Grill
Of all the charcoal grills I tested, the Weber Jumbo Joe strikes the best balance of affordability, features, and ease of use. It’s big enough (18.5 inches in diameter) to smoke two racks of ribs or to fit burgers and corn for six people (admittedly, this was crowded) but small enough that you’ll still have room in the trunk for a cooler and camping supplies.
It’s one of the most versatile grills I tested. Grilling, barbecuing, smoking—you can do it all with ease. Thanks to its dual-vent system (one at the bottom, one at the top), you get the same fine-grained level of temperature control you’ll find in Weber’s full-size kettles.
It weighs 22 pounds and has a handle with a bar that fits over the top to keep the kettle and lid together for easy carrying. I tossed mine in the back of the car for trips to the lake and the park and it never tipped over. The ash catcher at the bottom makes cleaning less of a hassle by allowing you to dump the excess without removing the grill grates.
The Jumbo Joe has a considerable following on the internet. Fans have added thermometers, fastened knobs to make it easier to open and close vents, attached hanging ashcans, and come up with creative ways to cook taller items, like beer-can chicken.
It’s not perfect, though. No thermometer is included, and Weber does not make a storage cover for the Jumbo Joe. If you want to do any indirect-heat cooking, you’ll want to buy the hinged grill grate for $40 so you can feed in fresh fuel without removing the top grill, and the $26 charcoal basket is also useful. Do yourself a favor, throw away your lighter fluid and get a charcoal chimney starter ($28).
Smaller Alternative:
The Weber Smokey Joe Premium costs $46 at Amazon and $57 at Weber. This is our top pick for anyone who doesn’t need the larger Jumbo Joe. The downside is you lose the lower vent, which means less temperature control. That’s not a huge deal unless you’re slow-cooking. The Smokey Joe was also more difficult to clean. But if you want a smaller kettle, this is a good option.
Best Luxury Upgrade Charcoal Grill
Nomad’s striking, suitcase-style cooker (8/10, WIRED Recommends) is to grills what the Yeti is to coolers: better in every way, but expensive. The Nomad is well built, sturdy, and easy to carry. It is heavier than the the Jumbo Joe at 28 pounds, but the shape and large handle actually make it easier to carry in my experience. Like the Jumbo Joe, the Nomad uses a dual venting system to achieve good airflow even when the lid is closed. The vents, combined with the raised fins on the bottom of the grill (which elevate your charcoal allowing air to flow under it), allow for every precise control of both high and low temperatures.
The Nomad ships with a single grate, giving you 212 square inches of cooking space, slightly less than the Jumbo Joe above. In practice, this isn’t a big difference. I managed to smoke nine chicken breasts, and another time I fit two racks of ribs. If you need to grill for a crowd, pick up the second grill grate for $158, but even without it I never felt cramped while cooking for five (two adults, three ravenous children). For 2024 Nomad has introduced some new accessories, one of which is essential: the ash and coal shovel ($88). The shovel greatly simplifies cleaning out your Nomad and frankly should be included when you buy one. The other thing I really like is the Carbon Steel Griddle ($168). It requires seasoning, but once you have it set up it turns your Nomad into a flattop that would make a Waffle House chef proud. Ventilation holes around the sides of the griddle help keep the air flowing and the heat up. Nice as it is, using the griddle made me realize what I’d really love is a half-grill, half-griddle option for maximum cooking flexibility. (Technically you can get this by using your grill plate on half the grill and griddle on the other, but that requires double the charcoal.)
I now have a moisture sensor in my garden bed that tells me how dry my soil is, which is an awesome way to know I need to turn on my remote sprinklers while on vacation. An air quality monitor inside my workspace tells me temperature and humidity (important to monitor for some of my acoustic guitars), and another monitor really made me open the window when cooking indoors. All of these things are trivially combined by the system and displayed alongside my other metrics on the Ambient Weather dashboard. It’s the easiest thing to set up ever.
Ambient Weather recently added a better digital display that you can buy aftermarket. As I said, the one that comes with the unit is a bit retro-chic, requiring you to use physical buttons to input logins and passwords, and with only a few selectable layouts. The new Weather Window, as the brand calls it, is much larger and more modern-feeling, and it does include touchscreen controls and variable layouts, but it’s still not as fantastic as it could be.
Photograph: Parker Hall
I wish there was a way to show the weekly weather forecast on the main screen, instead of having to tap the display to see that, among other UI niggles. I do like that the Weather Window comes with a frame-like edge, which makes placing it where you might place a family photo, or hanging it on the wall, particularly easy.
By the Numbers
Most of us don’t need such minutiae in our lives, and that’s fine. For the person who wakes up and plans their whole day based on the temperature and precipitation, or who constantly checks weather radar and talks about it, the Ambient Weather system is the closest we will come to reaching nirvana on Earth.
That might not be you, but it is almost certainly someone you know. I love being away from home and knowing how wet the soil in my garden is, that my house temp and humidity are correct. I like seeing when the sun and moon are going to rise and set at a glance, and knowing how many inches of rain, at a spot above my head, we have gotten in rainy north Portland. Every time my dad and I get together, if we’re not talking about Formula One or the local soccer team’s current woes, we’re talking about what our stations are telling us.
If learning the micro-trends of your yard and chatting, meaningfully, about the weather to friends, relatives, and strangers is your kind of thing, then an Ambient Weather system, really any of them, is probably a fun thing for you to check out. You might even find it useful.
