Deciding to buy a wheelchair is not an end in itself. Rather it is a beginning. It is the beginning of a world of mobility like you have never experienced before if you have been using manual wheelchairs in the past. It also has a learning curve to it no matter how easy the process. The very first task though, when you have decided to buy yourself or someone you love and electric wheelchair is to decide what kind of power wheelchair to get them. If you are new to this there is probably a lot that you do not know. If you do not know what seat memory settings are and you have no idea what a wheelchair leg extension is then it is best if you start with the basics.

All power wheelchairs can be classified into basically two main categories. There are indoor use electric wheelchairs and outdoor electric wheelchairs. There are also nowadays, new kinds of mixed used wheelchairs with motor that can be used both indoors as well as outdoors, but these are weird devices that are neither fish nor fowl. They try to cater to a niche and do not do it well. Mixed used power wheelchairs are a compromise and are not great to use, either indoors or outdoors. The right thing to do is to evaluate which setting you will be using your electric wheelchair in primarily and then get an indoor use or an outdoor used motored wheelchair according to your needs. You may even need to have two power wheelchairs if you need them and can afford the costs.

Indoor wheelchairs are smaller and lighter, not to mention a lot more compact so that they can be maneuvered and turned inside houses, apartments and cramped spaces. They have a lot less power than outdoor used electric wheelchairs as they do not need to go as fast. They also have smaller batteries as they do not have power hungry motors and they do not need a long range. They have smaller wheels and are easier to control. Indoor used power wheelchairs are also much easier to learn to get a hang off, especially for first time power wheelchair users. Outdoor used electric wheelchairs are larger and heavier, weighing up to four hundred pounds for versions that can climb stairs. They have larger wheels and tires, powerful motors, bigger batteries, accessories that are needed for outdoor power wheelchair use such as a wheelchair umbrella holder and they are not as easy to use as indoor use motorized wheelchairs.