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New Nio EV has hot-swappable batteries

Hope you don’t have to re-set the clock every time

Chinese electric car maker Nio is on the curve. It got the world’s attention with its Nurburgring-smashing EP9 electric supercar, priced at US$1.48m, and now it’s unveiled its real-world car. The ES8 is a seven-seater electric SUV, about the same size as a Range Rover, and it’s due in 2018. Yawn? Not entirely, as it has a feature that has caused much chin-scratching around the Stuff office – hot-swappable batteries. Instead of waiting around for it to charge, you just ram in a fresh battery and (silently) roar off again. Now, it helps that it’s a Chinese market car, thus enabling Nio to build the necessary network of battery stops… but it’s an intriguing solution nonetheless.

Profile image of Fraser Macdonald Fraser Macdonald consulting editor

About

Fraser used to wear a Psion Series 3 palmtop in a shoulder holster. Perhaps he still does.Either way, his lifelong mission - including fourteen years for Stuff - has been to see whether the consumer electronics industry can ever replicate that kind of cyborgian joy.So far: nope. Despite a plan to combine a action camera and Olympus Eye-Trek goggles to become Man Who Sees The Vision Of A Man Three Inches Taller Than Himself.He also likes mountain bikes, motorbikes, cars, helicopters. Still thinks virtual surround is witchcraft. Dislikes jetskis, despite never having been on one.