This scooter folds out in 20 seconds

When you fold up a conventional e-scooter, you usually do so by pulling down the handlebars and attaching them to the back wheel. With the Advance Flex, Pure has taken things a step further. You can really fold this one up.

Quick and easy to fold – but this scooter’s no lightweight

The most important feature of the Pure Advance Flex is its folding mechanism. Rather than simply tilting back the handlebars, you can also push them together and fold down the handles. Not only that, but you can essentially fold the e-scooter in half in the middle, turning the front wheel into the back one. Last but not least, you can fold up the two foot boards.

All these mechanisms turn this substantial scooter into a tiny little package. Folding it up takes about 20 seconds, as does unfolding it. You can watch me doing all this folding and unfolding in real time in the video below.

As a result, you can stow or transport the e-scooter without taking up much space. Folded into a cube, the scooter only measures about 60 by 30 centimetres, and is 60 centimetres tall.

Although you can halve the scooter’s size, you unfortunately can’t do anything about its weight. The Pure Advance Flex tips the scales at just over 16 kilogrammes. This is pretty average compared to the competition. In fact, plenty of e-scooters weigh between 15 and 18 kilogrammes. I recently got to see what lightweight models can do when I reviewed the Niu KQi Air, which weighs just 12 kilogrammes.

If you don’t need your scooter to be foldable, the Pure Advance also comes in a conventional, non-folding version with collapsible handlebars. It costs a whopping 300 francs less than its Flex counterpart.

E-scooters (standing)

Pure Advance

20 km/h, 40 km, 500 W

E-scooters (standing)

Pure Advance

20 km/h, 40 km, 500 W

Ski-like stance

Regardless of whether you go for the foldable or non-foldable version, the Advance Flex boasts other special features that make it stand out from the crowd. As soon as I unbox the scooter, it dawns on me that I’ll need to completely change my stance when riding it. Usually, e-scooters have a central footboard to accommodate both of your feet.

Depending on the board width and your preferences, you either have to balance on the ball of your foot or even angle your feet slightly – kind of like you would on a snowboard. The model I tested has two footrests, each attached on opposite sides of the solid frame. So, when you’re standing on the scooter, your feet are parallel – more like a skier.

This is unusual at first, but the advantages of the design quickly become apparent. You’re safer and steadier when riding, and not quite as high off the ground as on other scooters. If you ask me, this is more pleasant than being so far removed from the road.

Pure places a lot of importance on safety and stability in other respects. The scooter’s frame has a solid build and looks extremely robust. There’s also a mechanism built into the handlebars that automatically straightens them. Both of these things help keep the scooter on course and improve stability when you’re riding.

It takes a few rides for me to get used to the steering mechanism because turning it requires a little more force than usual. But making that extra effort doesn’t bother me. A nice side effect of the feature is that pushing the scooter one-handed is much easier.

The scooter’s three bright rear lights are another safety booster. There’s one in the centre, as well as two strip-shaped ones on the footboards. The two LED lights can also flash orange. Unlike many scooters from rival manufacturers, this one doesn’t just have a light on the outside of the handlebars. There’s also one at the rear, clearly visible to other road users.

The downsides of fixating on stability

With this design, Pure’s aiming to make your scooter journeys safer. Not only that, but the manufacturer also wants to make it easier to briefly ride one-handed. On cheap, compact scooters, it really is tricky to even give your nose a quick scratch. Giving hand signals is almost impossible without wobbling around dangerously, so I always do foot signals instead.

Signalling is genuinely much easier with the Pure. You can take one hand off the handlebars for a moment without swerving. However, you can’t ride one-handed or even hands-free for longer (like you would on a bike) anyway. The 10-inch wheels and the scooter design make sure of that. And besides, the Pure doesn’t have any suspension, so you feel the full force of any bumps.

As I’ve covered, the Pure Advance Flex is also pretty heavy. This is bound to be a consequence of its solid build. I wouldn’t necessarily say the thick frame is more attractive than a slim design. I’m surprised that the weld seams are clearly visible. Though they’re only a minor cosmetic blemish, I wouldn’t have expected to see them on a product in this price range.

Another of the scooter’s drawbacks is the positioning of its stand. Although it’s one of the most robust on the market, it’s hidden under the footboards. You have to fold one board up before you can kick the stand down. In other words, you need two foot movements instead of just one.

Ticks the standard boxes, but the range is below par

The Pure Advance Flex is approved for use on Swiss roads, meaning it has lights, reflectors, a bell and is limited to 20 kilometres per hour. The motor, with a maximum output of 500 watts, has no problem blasting even heavy riders like me up to maximum speed.

You can choose between three different ride modes – all without having to log in via an app. Of course, it does have an app, but I haven’t yet been able to use it with the Google Pixel 9 and Android 15. Besides the statistical data, I don’t feel like I’m missing out on much, so that doesn’t bother me.

The thing that really strikes me as a negative is the range. Both Pure Advance models only go up to 40 kilometres. In this price and weight class, ranges of 60–100 kilometres are more common.