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We are currently embroiled in the Great Shanghai Shareable Bike War 2017 that's being played out on the city's city streets, sidewalks, and sometimes, at the bottom of the Huangpu River. Although there are still new bike share companies joining the battle, most don't have a chance against top combatants and Ofo.

That's mainly because the new players are offering the same service, with less coverage and less backing. But is doing something different — their bicycles come with electric motors, hand throttles, and big batteries. I took the XQ e-bike for an electric-powered spin to find out what they were all about.

The Signup Process

Signing up with Xiang Qi is the easiest I've experienced with the bike share apps. Unlike Mobike, where it takes a day or two (or more) for passport holders to get confirmed, Xiang Qi's app did it instantly. You can download the app, pay the 299rmb deposit, enter in your passport info, and ride away within a few minutes.

You can also get their app directly from . Inside, the app displays a map with "station locations" and the number of bikes there. Unlike Mobike and Ofo, XQ e-bikes must be parked at these stations. There isn't a sign or anything, but the bikes have to be placed within the white lines of a bike parking space at the station address given on the app. Failure to do so can result in a 150rmb fine charged to your deposit. More on this later.

To begin a ride, just scan the bike's QR code behind the seat. The app will display the remaining battery percentage and a distance estimate. Pricing is 2rmb for the first hour, and 3rmb for each hour after that.

The Ride Experience

Once you get going, the XQ e-bike is freakin' smoooooth. It feels akin to an electric scooter. The acceleration is faster than you'd expect on a publicly shared bike and more than sufficient. You can pedal while accelerating to go even faster.

The handlebars feature a horn, front light switch, and battery meter. You twist back on the right handle to engage the electric motor and accelerate.

The bike is heavier than a first gen Mobike, which is to say, it's pretty damn heavy, but that's expected with a big 36-volt battery pack strapped to its frame. Despite this, you don't feel the weight because you're barely doing any pedaling on this thing.

So yes. You've got to pick up and park this thing at specific station points. Stations are plentiful throughout central Shanghai, however you do find random gaps here and there, but most are a block away from each other. If you want to make a stop but not end the ride (and potentially lose the bike to someone else), you can temporarily lock the bike from the app. You'll still be charged at the hourly rate during this time.

After you drop off your bike at a station, you can see a summary of your trip with a map view of where you traveled. Pretty neat.

Problems

Signup is easy and the electric motor works well, but it's not all good news. If you're like me and , you'll be sad to hear that the XQ e-bike's is even lower. It appears they've even glued shut the seat to the lowest height. My knees were constantly hitting the handlebars during turns. But since you don't have to pedal, it's less of a problem than on the Mobike.

The stations are a great way to make sure bikes don't end up in people's houses and personal parking lots, but it also means that you need to stop and check to make sure you're at the station location. The GPS isn't always accurate and you run the risk of accidentally hitting "return" at the wrong spot and incurring the fine.

The issues above are annoying but manageable. The biggest problem is finding a bike with a charge. The app gives an estimate of the number of bikes at the station, but it's often wrong about that number, with less bikes than what's displayed. On top of that, the number "available bikes" on the app is apparently of the bikes parked there, not the number of bikes with a useable charge.

Xiang Qi says they swap batteries about every other day, but that doesn't seem to be enough. There were a couple locations where I couldn't find a charged bike after scanning every single one in the vicinity.

Should You Signup for Xiang Qi?

Like any bike share service, Xiang Qi's main problem is availability. Sometimes it's going to take you a while to find a ride. So if your boss was okay with you riding a Mobike, the occasional "sorry I'm late, I couldn't find a bike" excuse, and you want a commute without physical exertion (and health benefits), then yes, go for it.