Remember "IT" (AKA Ginger)? (1 Viewer)

[Peter Kline]

IT has a name!

The scooter is called SEGWAY. It is battery powered (no Stirling engine yet) and will cost around $3000. A special higher priced and larger version will be used in tests by the Postal Service (obviously in warm weather areas). According to those in the know, it is practically impossible for the thing to tip over once you power it up. Unveiling after midnight possible at Time Magazine site as they have a cover story on it. Cover was to feature a picture of the scooter but was bumped when George Harrison passed away.

 

[Scooter]

You can go to Drudge..he is getting ready to break the story.

 

[Peter Kline]

Drudge got the story from an advanced copy of Time. He was asked to pull it from his site and he did. All that remains is the headline. Also, The New York Times, according to Drudge, is to do a front page story tomorrow.

 

[Philip_G]

what a let down :frowning:
I'm really dissapointed that after all the hype it's
A DAMN ELECTRIC SCOOTER
:frowning:

 

[Paul Jenkins]

PhilipG, that isn't confirmed yet, but is most likely accurate, although some speculate that will be very cheap to operate, on the pennies per hour range, as it potentially use a new type of engine. they just don't know yet, but we will tomorrow

 

[Peter Kline]

PhilipG.
Why are you disappointed. This scooter is self-stabilizing. What consumer mobility product (other then Kamen's iBot) can do this? Details to follow tomorrow.
Peter

 

[Kevin Coleman]

Here is a picture. I think I did it right.
http://home.kscable.com/kevshometheater/_borders/21.jpg
Kevin C.

 

[Philip_G]

no it's confirmed.. the time article is out
http://www.time.com/time/business/ar...186660,00.html
I just don't see the need for it. For where I live and where I go it's useless. Maybe if I lived in NY or something I could make use of it for short trips....
haha I hope he included a means to secure them to a bike rack or similar..

 

[Paul Jenkins]

saying this is revolutionary is so over the top it isn't even funny. i'd rather see the man invent a $250 DLP projector for my home theater. now THAT would be revolutionary

 

[Philip_G]

lol
btw, how is this any better than a motor scooter that gets 80mpg?
or my motorcycle that gets 40 and goes 0-60 in less than 4 seconds
I guess if his intended market is industrial/warehouse type stuff maybe... I just don't know.
I could see them used in airports in the future, why rent a shopping cart for a buck when you can rent one of these..

 

[Peter Kline]

PhilipG,
Obviously the Segway is not for you. But read the Time article... there are lots of businesses that are interested. When the automobile came out, people scoffed. When the personal computer was marketed for the first time (Apple, not IBM had that honor) naysayers laughed and said, "who needs it". Here's a Time Mag illustration:
http://www.time.com/time/2001/segway/index.html
And here's the inventor aboard Segway:
http://graphics.nytimes.com/images/2...y/03THIN.1.jpg

 

[Steve Enemark]

While I admit spending $3000 on a scooter seems a little silly, the Segway does look like the start of something big. Having purchased a hybrid gas-electric car, I think I've done my part for supporting advanced transportation technology for a few years .
BTW, how fast does it go?

 

[David Ren]

btw, how is this any better than a motor scooter that gets 80mpg? or my motorcycle that gets 40 and goes 0-60 in less than 4 seconds

Umm, SEGWAY goes up to 100MPH, so it's much better than your motorcycle.

David

 

[Travis Hedger]

100mph?

Time reports 3 times faster than walking, I guess we will find out tomorrow on that Diane Sawyer show.

 

[Phil Kim]

Umm, SEGWAY goes up to 100MPH, so it's much better than your motorcycle.

Segway's top-speed is 17 MPH, far slower than even the slowest motorcycle.

 

[David Ren]

I recall reading that it went up to 100MPH. What source did you get 17MPH from?

David

 

[Paul Jenkins]

try time.com msnbc.com nytimes.com apwire.com. all have details now, it is on the AP Wire.
$3000 for a scooter. what weed is that guy smoking and will he give me some?

 

[David Ren]

At an average speed of 8 miles an hour, or three times walking pace,

- NYTIMES

Damn, this thing sucks. I can run faster than 8 miles an hour. In fact, I can go faster than 8 miles an hour on a regular scooter. Who would pay $3000 for this? I bet SEGWAY will go bankrupt within a few years.

Why would I carry this big clumsy machine around if it only goes 8 miles an hour? Where would I park it? What if someone steals it? For $3,000, I can get a BMW bicycle that goes much faster than 8 miles an hour.

Unless they make a version that goes at least 30 miles, how can they possibly claim "it's to cars what cars were to horses/buggies"?

David

 

[Philip_G]

Umm, SEGWAY goes up to 100MPH, so it's much better than your motorcycle.

A. those little tires? ya they are not going to do 100 mph. even with balance sensors, it has no suspension period it's not going to take even a small bump at 100 without throwing you off (theoretically, since it's been proven it CAN NOT do 100, wherever you got that idea)

B. my motorcycle will do 160mph with me on it

therefore, this is not better than my motorcycle.

not to mention where would I ride it? on the sidewalk? no thanks. I get enough cagers trying to kill me in the lane, let alone crossing streets all day.

I've also heard much less than 40mph as a top speed for the wonder flop as I shall refer to it from here out

I do believe the very first motorized bike could go faster than this thing, over 80 YEARS AGO.

 

[Paul Jenkins]

top speed is 17mph. it will supposedly go 15 miles at 8 miles per hour on a charge of 6 hours. the charge will cost 5 cents. typical electric motor/battery system.

the only innovation in this invention is the balancing system. he first demo'd this on his iBot wheelchair, this is the next incarnation of that technology. 10 years in the making.

the man is a good inventor, and tinkerer. he just doesn't understand what people really need [hint, it is not a scooter...]