Logo of Phnom Penh Post newspaper Phnom Penh Post - Scooter connects to phone

Scooter connects to phone

Terra Motors’ new A4000i electric scooter
Terra Motors’ new A4000i electric scooter, to be sold in the Asian market in December, includes a smartphone connection. PHOTO SUPPLIED

Scooter connects to phone

Japan-base Terra Motors said it plans to sell its smartphone-compatible electric scooter in Cambodia by the end of this year.

The lithium-battery-powered A4000i, introduced last week in Tokyo, can be connected to an iPhone, delivering live data while driving.

The cost per bike? Around $4,500.

“We will start to sell this scooter in December in all Asian countries, including Cambodia,” said Tetsuya Ohashi, a spokeswoman for Terra Motors. “We are now planning to have a branch office in Cambodia in one to two years.”

First, users download the required app from the company’s website. With the iPhone plugged into the scooter and covered with a protective lid below the odometer, the screen shows live updates on electricity consumption, battery power and location.

A more advanced model with navigation software is in the works.

Going at a maximum speed of 65 kilometres per hour, the electric vehicle has a length of 1.79 metres and weighs 118 kilograms. It takes about four to five hours of charging to regain a full battery.

“We think [of] Cambodia as a big potential market,” Ohashi said.

Some aren’t so sure about its prospects.

“My personal opinion is that this scooter will be too highly priced to be successful for your average Khmer,” Kevin Stainburn, president of the Phnom Penh Vespa Club, said.

“While it looks young and trendy, I think only the young rich Khmers of the more well-to-do-families will be able to afford it. These gimmicks on the scooters, such as hooking up to an iPhone, are not practical nor needed in this country, and therefore, I don’t think it will attract buyers.”

Terra Motors said they plan to develop less expensive models in the future and enable the connection to cheaper devices using Android smartphones.

Demand for both transport and personal technology is nothing new.

AEON Microfinance (Cambodia) Co, part of Japan-based AEON Group, said in May that sales by instalment for electrical appliances and motorbikes increased by 715 per cent in the first quarter of 2013 year on year, an upward trend that industry experts say will continue.

Since AEON Microfinance started business in December 2011, loan disbursement reached $2.5 million, with 5,000 new customers in the first quarter of this year, compared to $343,000 in the same period of 2012, according to a May interview with managing director Daisuke Maeda.

“Smartphones and PCs are the most popular, followed by motorbikes,” he said at the time.

The battery-driven scooter is not the first product Terra Motors is banking on introducing to the local market.

In March, the company told the Post that they were thinking of introducing their e-tricycle, an electric tuk-tuk.

Mass production doesn’t start until later this year.

MOST VIEWED

  • Wing Bank opens new branch in front of Orkide The Royal along Street 2004

    Wing Bank celebrates first anniversary as commercial bank with launch of brand-new branch. One year since officially launching with a commercial banking licence, Wing Bank on March 14 launched a new branch in front of Orkide The Royal along Street 2004. The launch was presided over by

  • Girl from Stung Meanchey dump now college grad living in Australia

    After finishing her foundational studies at Trinity College and earning a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Melbourne in 2022, Ron Sophy, a girl who once lived at the Stung Meanchey garbage dump and scavenged for things to sell, is now working at a private

  • Ministry orders all schools, public and private, to close for SEA Games

    From April 20 to May 18, all public and private educational institutions will be closed to maintain order and support Cambodia's hosting of the 32nd SEA Games and 12th ASEAN Para Games, said a directive from the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport. Cambodia will host the

  • Wat Phnom hornbills attract tourists, locals

    Thanks to the arrival of a friendly flock of great hornbills, Hour Rithy, a former aviculturist – or raiser of birds – in Kratie province turned Phnom Penh tuk tuk driver, has seen a partial return to his former profession. He has become something of a guide

  • Almost 9K tourists see equinox sunrise at Angkor Wat

    Nearly 9,000 visitors – including 2,226 international tourists – gathered at Angkor Wat on March 21 to view the spring equinox sunrise, according to a senior official of the Siem Reap provinical tourism department. Ngov Seng Kak, director of the department, said a total of 8,726 people visited Angkor Wat to

  • Angkor Beer strengthens national pride with golden new look and fresher taste

    Angkor Beer – the "Gold of Angkor" – has a new look, one that is more stylish and carries a premium appeal, as well as a fresher taste and smoother flavour, making it the perfect choice for any gathering. Angkor Beer recently launched its new design, one