Ather Energy, one India’s leading electric scooter manufacturers, kicked off the year with the launch of its much-awaited software called AtherStack 5.0. Basically, Ather is the software used the run Ather 450 electric scooters. Speaking at the launch Tarun Mehta, Co-founder and CEO, Ather Energy said “With a fluid new UI and Google Vector Maps, AtherStack 5.0 takes our touchscreen and maps experience to a whole new level. It also enables us to leverage our hardware to unlock new experiences such as AutoHoldTM. Importantly, it allows us to roll out these new experiences to most of our existing customers as well, based on their scooter generation. AtherStack will continue to form a core of our product strategy, allowing us to constantly keep enhancing our product experience on the existing hardware platform.”
Here are some of the cool features that AtherStack 5.0 offers:
The UX/UI: The all-new AtherStack 5.0 update will offer a new and intuitive user interface. The home screen has been redesigned to allow users to set up their ride with options such as Bluetooth connections and navigation before starting the motor. New ride animation now shows both power usage and consumption in different modes, making them more intuitive and at the same time, rides more efficient. Quick controls have been added, allowing users to easily adjust settings such as brightness or turn off incoming call notifications with a single click. A new quick view section is now accessible through just a swipe, providing a centralised location for dashboard notifications and important information such as tyre pressure.
The new UI is an engineered experience achieved through a user-centred design trial where Ather analysed how users interact with the screen by monitoring every eye movement during the ride. The intent was to reduce distractions & improve accuracy multifold. With the new UI, Ather claims to have reduced the ride screen time by 50-60% and improved ride accuracy by 2X.
Google Maps:
Ather is the only scooter in the world providing onboard navigation powered by Google. With the new AtherStack 5.0, the UI will also feature vector maps, which are far more smarter and intuitive than the previous versions. The Vector Maps will allow the user to get the closest experience of google maps on a 2-Wheeler like smartphones. The new maps come with live traffic and a navigation view showing the rider’s perspective.
This also means that the onboard navigation is far more intuitive, providing far more context, and adapting to the user’s location and riding style in real time.
AutoHoldTM
AutoHoldTM technology ensures the scooter never rolls back or forward on a slope. Unlike manual brake locks or any standard Hill hold implementations available on other two-wheelers, AutoHoldTM delivers a fantastic experience backed by a combination of multiple sensors and algorithms. The experience is completely automatic, instantaneous, and consistent across any riding condition. It ensures very high rider confidence
and makes navigating through stop-and-go traffic on any terrain very convenient.
Ather Battery ProtectTM
Taking a significant step for first-time owners, Ather announced the Battery ProtectTM which extends the battery warranty to 5 years/60,000 km. This is the first such warranty program in the industry that not only covers battery failures but also guarantees a minimum of 70% state-of-health for the battery at the end of 5 years. With this, owners will not need to worry about the scooter’s range dropping after a few years of usage and will be able to extract maximum performance, ride after ride. This reaffirms faith in our battery’s performance and longevity for all Ather owners. The 450X comes now with Ather Battery ProtectTM included, making it a 3 + 2 years coverage. Ather 450 Plus customers can purchase this additional 2-year warranty for INR 6,999.
Colours
450 as a vehicle has always stood for its timeless design and performance. With four new colours, Ather plans to double down on creating more expressions of performance, thereby creating an elevated sense of identity for Ather owners.
Taking inspiration from the world of racing, Ather introduces the True Red colour. The Cosmic Black colour takes inspiration from Ather’s Series1 Limited Edition scooter, which was much loved. The Salt Green colour is Ather’s a modern take on retro classic scooters. Finally, the new Lunar Grey colour takes its inspiration from the world’s famous Nardo ring and with red alloys, this colour truly shouts out serious performance. In addition to this, the 450 Series has retained the Space Grey and White colours, making it a total of 6 colours for customers to choose from.
New Seat
Enhancing the comfort level of the scooter, Ather has introduced a new, redesigned seat on the 450X and 450 Plus scooters. The new seat is now narrower in the front, flatter in the middle, steeper at the back, and has a thicker throughput. The new seat now is also more accommodating to riders of a wide range of builds. The seat is also backward compatible with all generations of 450 and can be bought by previous owners at Ather Experience Centres
