Segway Hits the Auction Block

fmita writes: "Amazon.com is auctioning off 3 Segways to the public. The proceeds are to go to a foundation started by the inventor. These are the first Segways to go to the public. Since there are only three, they sure aren't cheap." Women drool over a man on a Segway.

Comments

Sudden stop?

[richie2000]

I still haven't figured out what happens if you should run into something that blocks the wheels, like a curb or any random piece of debris that may be lying on the road/sidewalk. Would the Segway suddenly throw you off like a high-tech mechanical bull? Should you wear a helmet on this thing?

Re:Sudden stop?

[segfaultdot]

Better question yet: If your segway suddenly stops and throws you off, would that be called a seg fault? [rimshot]

Re:Sudden stop?

[micromoog]

I was also wondering about the "senses your every intention" technology. What happens if you're patiently waiting at a crosswalk, and someone bumps you hard from behind? Does the thing assume you want to run out in front of a bus at full speed?

Re:Sudden stop?

[BeBoxer]

Well, they list the top speed as 17MPH. So if you plan on riding into walls at top speed, I would recommend a helmet. But seriously, I doubt that the HT would just fall over if it ran into something that forced it to stop. You would probably just get the wind knocked out of you as the handle bars plant themselves into your solar plexus.

On the other hand, given the diameter of the wheels, you might be amazed at the curbs it could hop. I can't find any specs for the exact diameter, but the web pages do state that it raises the rider 8" off of the ground. The pictures make it appear that the top of the riding platform is maybe half way up the wheel, if even that. I would guess that they might be up to 20" diameter wheels. Large wheels in combination with a lot of torque forcing the HT to stay upright might enable it to jump some pretty amazing curbs. Not that I want to be the person to test the theory. :-)

Re:Sudden stop?

[kubrick]

I still haven't figured out what happens if you should run into something that blocks the wheels, like a curb or any random piece of debris that may be lying on the road/sidewalk.

I'm not adopting this technology until we get something like the smart skateboards from Snow Crash :)

Re:Sudden stop?

[Anonymous Coward]

The segway utilises a full sized clutch mechanism and handbrake obviously. Acceleration is achieved by leaning forwards - you whole body becomes a giant foot hitting on the gas in reality.

I pity the car that I hit with my segway. "Eat segway dirt, loser!". Segways are complete beasts of machines. Oh yes, baby! The complete pulling solution in 6 sq. ft. - you can pull multiple girls in one go and they _will_ submit to each and every whim of yours. -- Segway Inventor

Re:Sudden stop?

[Shiny Metal S.]

I still haven't figured out what happens if you should run into something that blocks the wheels

Or when you want to accelerate (you bow forward) over the maximum velocity. There'll be a point where whis thing won't be able to accelerate any more to prevent you from falling, and too bad it will be at max speed...

Re:Sudden stop?

[lastninja]

better not give one of these to Linus Torvalds then, we can`t afford to have him hit by a bus.

Re:Sudden stop?

[Anarchos]

The acceleration isn't what balances it, it has specific motors for rotating the chassis based on input from the gyros (hence "self-balancing").

Re:Sudden stop?

[Anarchos]

Another problem is storage. It weighs 80lb and is pretty big, so you can't exactly take it up to your office. The structure doesn't look like it has much of a place to put a bike-lock type of security device, plus it could be cut easily anyway. Give their high price and low weight compared to a car, theft is going to be a major problem.

Re:Sudden stop?

[laserjet]

I would like the hoverboard on Back to the Future (2). When I was a kid I wanted that thing so bad...

We could make a "hoverboard" rink in reality too... Just get a highly electromagnetized floor and a hoverboard would glide across it. You could sell the boards or rent them.
of course, I would think if the board tipped over it would become almost impossible to remove from the floor due to the magenet attraction when the poles are switched. Ok. bad idea. Nothing to see here...

Re:Sudden stop?

[WolfWithoutAClause]

If you run into something that totally blocks the wheels- yes you go flying. BUT-

Something big enough to block the wheels would have to be almost 1/2 the diameter of the wheels; I bet they chose the wheel diameter to be bigger than any curbs you're likely to meet. And if you make it over the curb at all, the balancing mechanism will almost certainly recover the balance.

Re:Sudden stop?

[Anonymous Coward]

specially encrypted keys, unique to the device and also help to decide the maximum speed of the unit. In essence the unit is a brick without the key.

Re:Sudden stop?

[DevilsTower]

Stealing one is harder than you might think.

They're keyed on a digitally encoded key. So while you might run away with one, it's nothing but an 80lb doorstop -- which, admitedly, might not be much comfort to the person missing their ride.

Re:Sudden stop?

[Anonymous Coward]

Thanks for the corn dump!

Re:Sudden stop?

[SuperRob]

No. Because YOUR natural reaction is going to be to right yourself, and thus, the Segway will do the same.

People really like to try to outthink this thing, not realizing that regardless of anything you can think of that might "surprise" the Segway into doing something unintended, the fact that YOU are on it and will instinctively try to NOT hit the Bus, is what makes Segway WORK.

Re:Sudden stop?

[Alex Kalita]

It wouldn't be that hard to get it up to your office. Most new buildings are designed to be wheel chair accessable, so a Segway shouldn't pose any problems. Sure you wouldn't be able to walk up the stairs with it but you could take an elevator. This assumes your company doesn't mind you riding the segway indoors.

Re:Sudden stop?

[Shiny Metal S.]

Or when you want to accelerate (you bow forward) over the maximum velocity. There'll be a point where whis thing won't be able to accelerate any more to prevent you from falling, and too bad it will be at max speed...

The acceleration isn't what balances it, it has specific motors for rotating the chassis based on input from the gyros (hence "self-balancing").

Those specific motors for rotating the chassis based on input from the gyros are attached to the wheels. See how it works: "When the vehicle leans forward, the motors spin both wheels forward to keep from tilting over. When the vehicle leans backward, the motors spin both wheels backward." I don't really know what are you talking about so please explain it, however as far as I know the whole idea behind Segway is that when you fall forward it accelerates forward and when you fall backward it accelerate backward (breaks when you already go forward) so you're "falling" but you never fall. It's like when you're standing in breaking or accelerating train and you lean forward when the train accelerates and backwards when it breaks to not fall. But with Segway it's the other way around, i.e. you lean first and the Segway accelerates/brakes accordingly. So, my concerns remain valid.

Re:Sudden stop?

[Gaijin42]

Not true, to stop you quit leaning forward, and that makes the wheels spin backwards to stop you. no brakes.

Re:Sudden stop?

[Tardigrade]

A stronger, oppositely charged magnet above the floor?

Re:Sudden stop?

[Anonymous Coward]

If they ran into you, and not the segway, you would lose your balance and lean forward. How could the segway possibly differentiate this from you leaning forward on purpose?

Imagine...

[KingKire64]

If you had a beowulf cluster of these you could take over the... Block?

Re:Imagine...

[Jonny Ringo]

Hey I just wrote a Perl script that automatically posts The famous beowulf cluster joke on /. for every new article submitted. Let me know if you want it.

Women drool over a man on a Segway??

[TechnoVooDooDaddy]

Women drool over a man on a Segway?
..
Women drool over a man on a Segway????

is that because they're laughing so hard they can't help themselves?

Re:Women drool over a man on a Segway??

[bigdreamer]

Women drool over a man on a Segway?

I would drool over a man who gave me the Segway for Valentine's Day.

Then again, I'm just a geek, so what do I know?

The Adventures of Girl Geek! Comments enabled.

Re:Women drool over a man on a Segway??

[discogravy]

I think it's because it shows he's got money and isn't too bright with it or particular in how it gets spent.

Re:Women drool over a man on a Segway??

[big_cat79]

I guess this is how Michael figures Cmdr. Taco got Kathleen.

Re:Women drool over a man on a Segway??

[DaedalusLogic]

If I wanted a two wheeled beautifully designed vehicle I would have already bought a V-Rod at this auctions prices... Or I would have bought two of these Monsters first... I love my Monster... They have more sex appeal than any gyro oriented battery operated piece of tech, and are 100x more fun! If you're looking for transportation on this scale... I would walk.

Re:Women drool over a man on a Segway??

[ksheff]

The V-Rod looks like one sweet bike. What do you think about the Thunderrod - a motorcycle with a 355HP V8? I saw one once and it was interesting. It's about 2x the price of a V-Rod, though and I'm sure the mileage would suck.

Re:Women drool over a man on a Segway??

[Anonymous Coward]

Hey men drool over topless big breasted
women on segways too!!

Re:Women drool over a man on a Segway??

[Anonymous Coward]

-1, unfunny, unoriginal

listen you moron if u wanna be funny dont use crap jokes, dont even fucking try because u have no sense of humor

u r just a dumb karma whore

Re:Women drool over a man on a Segway??

[Master_Ruthless]

Of course they do... nothing's sexier than a man who's too lazy to walk short distances!

"Women drool over a man on a Sedgway"

[Anonymous Coward]

Provided he's wearing a brown UPS shirt?

segway = waste of money

[Anonymous Coward]

the benefits vs the cost just isn't worth it right now. maybe in 10 years or so, when the price comes down and they up the speed.

Re:segway = waste of money

[brondsem]

Why are people talking about how much a segway costs? It isn't available for consumers yet and I'm sure the selling price won't be the same as the bidding price at amazon.com

Re:segway = waste of money

[SerpentMage]

I serously doubt it will ever be worth it...

The problem is not just cost, but the follows:

Weight) Ever go to an office, house or whereever with an eighty pound paper weight?

Space) To big to be truly portable skooter is smaller and lighter (even the electric model)

Trust) Do you really trust a machine to balance you? What happens when clutzy folks use this? Me being a totally uncoordinated person. Or how about people who weigh a bit more and runs into a person who weighs a bit less?

Hills) I live in Switzerland which has many many hills. What happens going uphill? Or worse downhill?

The thing is that this gadget has not been tried in with mass public. And VERY OFTEN the results are very different than having a couple people run up and down a couple of little obstacles

Re:segway = waste of money

[SuperRob]

"Trust) Do you really trust a machine to balance you? What happens when clutzy folks use this? Me being a totally uncoordinated person. Or how about people who weigh a bit more and runs into a person who weighs a bit less?"

How many times a day do you just "fall over?"

Your natural instinct to right yourself, even if you trip on something, is what keeps Segway upright.

Re:segway = waste of money

[Alex Kalita]

That's a matter of opinion. I would easily pay $3000 for one of these, and I'm just a student on a limited income. Consider how much money you spent on your computer, and how often you have to replace it. $3000 wouldn't be that bad of a deal. For me, it would save a lot of time getting to campus and getting from one area of campus to another. They don't allow bikes or motor scooters on the sidewalks here, and I can't exactly drive across campus. (The nearest parking lots that have spaces are ~15 minutes walking from the academic buildings). Several people are saying that cars are so much better than Segways, but they're not supposed to replace cars. The idea is that you would spend 5 minutes on a Segway instead of 15 minutes walking.

Re:segway = waste of money

[sfm]

While you bring up good points here, cost will be the killer on this "machine". 80 Lbs is not so bad, as long as you are not trying to go up stairs. From all I have seen, it is not that much bigger than a folded scooter. Trust will come with riding it, Hills are not a big problem (just hurts your battery life). But the cost, unless you can get this thing under a grand, most people are not going to waste their hard earned $'s on it. Not when an electric scooter is faster, longer range, just as portable, less complicated, and can be had for ~$500. IMHO, the Segway is just a toy for the rich.

-- But thats just my opinion, I could be wrong - D.M.

Re:segway = waste of money

[sfm]

Everyone will have to form their own opinion of the "value" here. It seems to me that the Segway offers little benefit over an electric scooter, hence the previous post. If they don't allow scooters on campus do you think they will allow one of these ????

Re:segway = waste of money

[SerpentMage]

Believe it or not too often...

Seriously I actually fall over because I am usually day dreaming somewhere else and hence clue in a bit late.

Yes my instinct is to right myself. But I fear with this device I will right myself at 17 MPH to the floor instead of the usual 1 or 2 MPH

Re:segway = waste of money

[SerpentMage]

"Hills are not a big problem"

Where do you live? I live in Switzerland, have lived on the Cote'D'Azur (French Riveria for Anglo's) and have a house in the Laurentians. All of these regions have mountains (big ones). My turbo powered sports car has to be shifted down to go up these hills. (Ok driving is fun since there are lots of cruves)

The segway will simply croak when trying to manuveur these hills. And if the road is leveled out then the segway will run out of juice simply because the distance is too long.

My other question is what the segway will do going down the hill. Remember no brakes!!! Here again I have to shift down in sports car to stop using the brakes. Will the segway have enough electrical resistance in the motors to use electrical braking? If not there goes more battery power.

The Segway is a great thing for factory floors of large corporations. Another popular scenario is as a toy for guys when they want to show off while they are beer drinking.

Easy to ride?

[dodald]

By participating in the FIRST Edition Segway(TM) Human Transporter Auction, you agree that, if you win one of 3 auctions, you shall attend a training session conducted by Segway prior to delivery of your Segway(TM) HT

I thought these things were supposed to be easy, and intuitive to ride. I wonder how long the training is.

Re:Easy to ride?

[dhovis]

I thought these things were supposed to be easy, and intuitive to ride. I wonder how long the training is.

I'm sure the training involves more than just how to hop on and go. There is probably some maintenance that must be done.

One of the things I remember reading about the Segway company is that they were developing a set of "rules of the road" for their scooters. People will start cursing the scooters if the people who use them just drive like assholes all the time and don't follow any expected rules. They probably will be tring to stress those rules on the early purchasers so the scooter itself does not get a bad reputation.

Re:Easy to ride?

[wizarddc]

When the machine was first debuted on Good Morning America, the two hosts were offered to ride them. It appeared they didn't have any practice before going on camera and mount this thing, and from what I saw, two non-athletic, non-techie white bread Americans hopped on and were doing pretty much everything the device could do. Kamen said, and the two hosts confirmed, that the thing just does what you want it to do. "You think left, it goes left." Unless this was more rigged than it seemed to be, Joe Couch Potato will have no problem gaining more weight due to his daily excersize of walking from house to car and car to job.

Re:Easy to ride?

[Anonymous Coward]

Um, of course there'd be some training. Think about this from a marketing point of view. If you're going to be giving 3 of these things out for free, what you're really doing is making 3 roaming salespeople for your product. Let them show it off to all thier dripping-with-dough friends (You gotta figure that the people who can afford to win the auction have some well-off friends as well) and generate alot of want (watching someone use it on TV is one thing, getting on one yourself is another).

Anyhow, if you're gaining 3 unpaid salespeople, you want to be damned sure they know *EXACTLY* how to use the thing, and make it look as easy as you think it is. The last thing you need, is for your 3 person salesforce running down poor old ladies on the street and making alot of bad press.

Re:Easy to ride?

[Anonymous Coward]

two non-athletic, non-techie white bread Americans

Is that a new way of calling someone a "doughboy?"

Re:Easy to ride?

[_ph1ux_]

Rule 1 in Segway training class: No-one talks about segway training class!

Rule 2: you will give 50% of you money to Segway.

Rule 3: Your first born is property of Segway.

Rule 4: No-one talks about segway training class!

Re:Easy to ride?

[k2enemy]

People will start cursing the scooters if the people who use them just drive like assholes all the time and don't follow any expected rules.

great, i can't wait for a whole new era of road rage where there's no locked door between me and the 300 lb. guy that i just cut off.

Liability?

[SpookComix]

Since these babies aren't really released to the public yet, is the manufacturer going to assume the liability for them if they falter, crap out, or kill someone?

Imagine some rich, lucky bastard steaming down the sidewalk in a crowded city, taking out old ladies with his 75 lb. beast and his 300 lb. fat ass. From what I remember, these initial models were more suited for mail carrying, military testing, etc.

Also, if the toy breaks, will the manufacturer repair it? Three "someones" are gonna spend a lot of scratch on these bad boys...I hope they don't fall apart right out of the chute.

--SC

Re:Liability?

[Anonymous Coward]

I agree. If it breaks, who do you sue?


(score: -1,000,000 blatent anti open sores troll)

Re:Liability?

[Sc00ter]

When you buy a car and run over people is the company that made the car liable? And I'm sure it comes with some kind of warranty

Re:Liability?

[Bob McCown]

Didnt stop idiot parents from suing Honda over the 3 wheel ATV's they bought for their kids, who then went out, unhelmeted and untrained, and got themselves hurt on them.

Boo Hoo

Re:Liability?

[Amarok.Org]

How is this product any different than any other product released? Sure, they're the first ones sold, but... they're still just a product being sold by a company. You get whatever warranty is granted to you by the company (or otherwise mandated by law), and the same with liability. The company will be liable according to the laws and regulations in the place where they're sold.

Re:Liability?

[Sc00ter]

I'm talking about the meatball on the segway that's running over people causing problems. Not about product safety. Go drive a 3 wheeler, they should never have been out on the market, they're hard to ride (vs. a 4wheeler or a bike).

Re:Liability?

[Anonymous Coward]

From what I remember, these initial models were more suited for mail carrying, military testing, etc.


Mail carrying???? Hahahahahahah! These things have no cargo room! Sure, they claim like 75 pounds of 'cargo', but that's only if the rider wears it like a backpack! Not even to mention the theft issue, the weather issue, the 'mailmen are lazy enough NOW' issue....

As for the 'military testing' thing- PUHLEEEEEZE! Battlefields aren't flat and paved!

Re:Liability?

[EggDye]

If you'll take a little look at the Amazon website, you'll see the words "first-ever consumer models" of the Segway HT.

These are not just the industrial models. When they start selling Segways to the public, you're going to be getting one very similar to the version being auctioned.

Given that these are most likely not prototypes and that they require you to undergo training, I think they're ready for the liability.

Re:Liability?

[Deagol]

You know... bicycles are hard to ride, too. It just takes practice to get it right. And even then, if you do sumething stupid, you're gonna get hurt.

I sure didn't sue Huffy every time I bit the dust during my early years.

Re:Liability?

[Anonymous Coward]

These things have no cargo room!

Um, how much "cargo room" does a mail carrier have when he's walking without a Segway? The idea was for them to be able to use the Segway, with their "slings", or whatever, and get places faster and easier.

As for battlefields not being flat...neither are staircases, and this guy has designed machines that climb them. It would be a mod, for sure, but don't rule it out.

--SC (posting AC to preserve karma)

Re:Liability?

[SuperRob]

You know, I wonder if you could even get away with selling a bicycle in this day and age if they hadn't already been invented. No inherent safety devices ... it would be a lawsuit waiting to happen.

That said, I just KNOW that someone is going to hurt themselves on one of these things, and immediately sue. I hope the case gets thrown out without even being heard, because if not, you probably COULD sue a bicycle manufacturer for falling off. It would be a nasty precedent.

since there are only three

[Transient0]

you can be the first to find out that they explode after 100 km.

honestly, i can't wait for these things to go public, just so that i can laugh at commercials of people traversing the Great Wall and exploring the Himalayas on them.

hmmm. does this thing have a stereo.

i need more sleep.

Re:since there are only three

[Anonymous Coward]

What they need to do is a joint auction with the Segue and the tennis ball cannons from the old American Gladiator show, then integrate the two.

What?!

[Mike Connell]

Women drool over a man on a Segway.

Yes, for only $9.99 a month on www.segway-drool-pr0n.com

Or maybe that was Michaels attempt to drive the price down so he can buy one of them. I dont really see being covered in other peoples drool when you trundle down the road much of a selling point. You can still get that with a C5 though :-)

Women drool over a man on a Segway.

[Navius Eurisko]

Yeah, women love men ride with a muscle bound 5 volt engine bravely facing speeds in excess of 10mph.

Re:Women drool over a man on a Segway.

[Anne_Nonymous]

Women just love men too f###ing fat to walk for themselves.

Re:Women drool over a man on a Segway.

[Anonymous Coward]

Point is, women love men with enough money to waste paying 10k for one of these.

why put the wheels on the side?

[asmithmd1]

Remind me again, why is it better to put the wheels on the sides instead of front and back like every other scooter? Sure it is possible using 3 gyroscopes, 5 computers, etc, etc. to balace but what advantage does this give you? If there is an advantage to the wheels on the sides why not add a third trailing caster to balance the thing and get rid of the gyros and computers. This is a technical solution looking for a problem

Re:why put the wheels on the side?

[Sorthum]

Because people are sheep. Putting a caster on it isn't sexy, blowing a hundred grand in R&D is.

Re:why put the wheels on the side?

[mr.ska]

Three words: Zero. Turning. Radius.

Any other scooter would take up more room (longitudinally) as well. Essentially, it's a space-saving feature. Total footprint is reduced.

Re:why put the wheels on the side?

[rootmonkey]

If you only have two wheels and no gyros you need to keep the scooter moving otherwise it falls over.

Re:why put the wheels on the side?

[radja]

pick up, turn around, put down. zero turning radius on every small vehicle (bike, skateboard, etc..)

//rdj

Re:why put the wheels on the side?

[aug24]

Nope, check out a definition of "differential steering" and then see why it's a Good Thing.

Diff steering gives you a smaller turning radius (zero at zero speed), more manoeverability etc etc. Oddly enough, we were discussing this in our robotwars team this morning.

If this *was* a technical solution looking for a problem, then all cars would be three wheelers.

Re:why put the wheels on the side?

[segfaultdot]

S-T-A-B-I-L-I-T-Y

A three wheeled cheapo version of the Segway would not be nearly as stable. Why? Just look at how close the two wheels are together. Adding a castor would only be stable if you were standing perfectly upright. Otherwise you'd topple over or backwards. IANAE, but the segway is really the only stable way to make such a small mobile platform for someone to stand on. Partially, the segway is like the old seal-with-a-beach-ball routine. As your weight shifts forward, the motors move the segway forward to keep everything in balance. The gyros and sensors help a lot, but that is the basic principle. The other main stabilising feature is its low center of gravity. Take a closer look at it. You are actually standing just a few inches above the ground, and the wheels' axis is above your feet. It's a lot more stable than say, a bicycle, where your center of gravity is way up high. Just my observations.

Re:why put the wheels on the side?

[FylB]

Some videos show that:
wohoohoo

By the way, people on segway look so... hum... how to say that...

Re:why put the wheels on the side?

[Zocalo]

Because if the wheels are on the side it's going to try and topple forwards or backwards, and you have two readily available wheels to counter that. If they are front and back, then there is no mechanism in place to stop the tendency to fall to the side.

Re:why put the wheels on the side?

[Anonymous Coward]

Ummm, the Segway is supposed to transport you, not the other way 'round.

Re:why put the wheels on the side?

[Anonymous Coward]

If [the wheels] are front and back, then there is no mechanism in place to stop the tendency to fall to the side.

Um, stick your foot out and touch the ground. Now it won't fall over. Just like on a bicycle or motorcycle. Duh.

Re:why put the wheels on the side?

[Lumpy]

several words...

a caster on a 2 wheeled platform to reduce tipping does not change turning radius by any means. hell put 2 casters on it one front one back.. the turning radius still hasn't changed and you just removed 98% of the cost of the device.

the reason for not having casters and horribly over-engineering the device is to allow it to climb steep inclines without discomforting the rider. that is the only reason... creature comfort.

Re:why put the wheels on the side?

[Anonymous Coward]

Three words: Zero. Turning. Radius.

Three words: Who. Fucking. Cares.

Sheesh.

Re:why put the wheels on the side?

[DustMagnet]

I agree. I still haven't seen how the Segway beats rollerscates, skateboards, scooters, bikes, and other existing technologies.

I'm mean, sure it's cool, but I haven't seen any sign that it's going to change anything. It's just a toy for rich adults.

Re:why put the wheels on the side?

[radja]

You mean you want to do a 180 at speed on a segway?

//rdj

Re:why put the wheels on the side?

[qurob]

Think about where your feet are.

Is it easier to stand on your feet when they are a shoulders width apart, or when your heel is in front of the toe of the other foot??

It's all about balance.

Re:why put the wheels on the side?

[rhost89]

180 degree turns at 17mph, i think i would pay to see that :)

Re:why put the wheels on the side?

[delphi125]

Lower centre of gravity yes, Low no.

From their site:

• Payload: Passenger: 250 lbs. (110 kg)
• Cargo: 75 lbs. (34 kg)
• Space: Platform height: 8 inches (20 cm)
• Weight: 80 lbs. (36 kg)

So I'd fit weight-wise - if I went slower than others I would blame it on wind resistance - but the centre of gravity (compared to walking) would move down only very slightly if at all.

Back of envelope calculation, assuming 100kg guy, 180cm tall, CoG at beer belly-height (my shape :), 1m, and a 'keel' keeping machine CoG at virtualy zero distance from the ground (presumably a 33.333 kg black hole engine, watch the scrape marks). 100kg now at 120cm, 33.333 at 0, (120 x 100 + 33 x 0) / 133 = 90ish. That is a minimum (standing).

So as far as Centre of Gravity is concerned, it would be no better than wearing heavy stage boots. And bicycles work by taking advantage of our sense of balance; you may not forget how to ride them but it is surprisingly hard to ride 'no hands' when you haven't cycled for a long time. Those weird and scary lay-back bikes must have a lower CoG, but they certainly don't look any more stable to me!

Having said all that to prove I truly am a nerd, efficiency is way more important, both fuel and time-wise. Better (medium range) mass transport in combination with better (long range)communication would help to make this work for short ranges by allowing people to drop their cars.

That BT timeline...

[EricKrout.com]

Now that I think about it, that BT timeline is incorrect (link to old /. story http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=02/02/17/225620 3 ).

The silly folks, they forgot to mention this one:

2007: Entire cities are rebuilt around Dean Kamen's dorky invention, the Segway

EricKrout.com :: I'm The Man Now, Dawg!

Segway final bid betting pool

[mr.ska]

Hey, CmdrTaco, how about setting up a pool like you did for Mir's touchdown time? We all know when these bids will end, but we don't know at what price. So pick which Segway you're betting on (1, 2, or 3) and pick its final bid price. The three closest win a T-shirt or something.

How about it? My bets:

1. $137,550 USD
2. $112,950 USD
3. $114,875 USD

I'm sure there are some CEOs, well-to-do technophiles, and even speculators that would pay that kind of cash for them. Me? I'll wait a couple of years. And then I'll buy a good bike instead. : )

Re:Segway final bid betting pool

[skroz]

They should've staggered the opening/closing times of the auctions. As each individual auction closed up to the last, they might see a bidding frenzy on the remaining two as the item became more "scarce." I've seen people do this with rare comics on eBay. It works like a charm.

Walking

[kill-hup]

Sure, they seem cool and you can't discount the geek appeal, but how much effort is really involved in walking to your destination? Is the company looking to outfit these suckers in 5 years with heavy-duty shocks because all the customers have become extremely out of shape?

I apologize for the flamebait here - I love the idea of people whizzing around on the sidewalk at 13mph, but how hard is it to walk down to the bus station/ATM/bar?

Re:Walking

[xTown]

It's not that there's effort involved in walking...it's that people don't walk at all, and instead use their cars even for short-haul trips that a Segway would be perfect for. For example, I only live two miles from my office, and less than a mile from a bookstore. I could and should walk to these places, but I don't: I drive. A Segway is perfect for something like that.

Re:Walking

[kill-hup]

Good point - I guess I wasn't looking at it from that point of view. The environmental impact alone might be worth the switch. I might still hesitate, living in the US northeast, as I would only be able to use it roughly 4 months a year...

Initially, I just like the idea of a gang of 400lb geeks screaming down the sidewalk on their Segways ;-)

Re:Walking

[mobets]

If I could afford it, I'd get one for running around campus. It would be especialy helpfull when I go in for my mid day class, and end up at the back of the parking lot.

Re:Walking

[Anonymous Coward]

For example, I only live two miles from my office, and less than a mile from a bookstore. I could and should walk to these places, but I don't: I drive. A Segway is perfect for something like that.

No- walking is perfect for something like that.

Lazy bum.

Re:Walking

[Anonymous Coward]

Yeah, so get off your ass and walk!

Re:Walking

[Anonymous Coward]

Look at how many people drive around for 20 minutes at the mall looking for a spot that is 10 feet closer to the door. These same people if they would just take the first spot they saw and walked would already be in the mall shopping. NEVER underestimate peoples laziness.....

Re:Walking

[llamalicious]

I concur about the walking... but try having to change tapes between 9 different buildings on a campus that's 4+ miles in circumference campus at 2 o'clock in the morning when it's 5 degrees farenheit and the company refuses to buy jukeboxes.

Handy I would think. Better than spending 10 grand on the little electric golf carts. IMHO.
I see more purpose in businesses for these rather than personal use.

Re:Walking

[heybrakywacky]

I apologize for the flamebait here - I love the idea of people whizzing around on the sidewalk at 13mph, but how hard is it to walk down to the bus station/ATM/bar?

If this is flamebait, I guess you can count me in as flamebait too, because I completely agree. I know, there have been these glass-is-half-full folks who have said that it's better than people jumping in their car to go short distances, and I suppose I can understand the lesser-of-the-two-evils argument. I also agree that there could be some specific industrial and other work-related uses for these that would make them practical.

But let's face it, what's really going to happen with these things? They're going to be used by millions of fat, lazy Americans who are unwilling to get even the most basic, minimal amount of exercise that they can, in favor of having a device that can do all the work for them. Meanwhile, people who actually do want to walk will be further hindered by inconsiderate "drivers" (oh you know they'll be out there in droves), taking up what space is left with their ridiculous techno-driving-gadgets.

The geek factor is one thing, but if these things become ubiquitous, they're not going to make the world a better place by my standards.

Re:Walking

[Anonymous Coward]

this thing will go for 17 miles on a charge, so thats 8.5 miles there and back. I wouldnt mind walking 2-5 miles depending on what I'm walking for. But after 5, I could see a purpose for this.

US Patent 2984574

[Anonymous Coward]

This clearly states that the Segway has a built-in Dalek style "short-term anti-gravity" mechanism for negotiating kerbs and other obstacles.

However it falters on drunk homeless people, preferring to get halfway over before the anti-gravity mechanism overloads and you land on the homeless drunk's gut. Apparently due to the "liquid" factor of the underlying material, which doesn't work well with the anti-gravity mechanism currently in use.

Re:US Patent 2984574

[Progoth]

Actually 2,984,574 is a patent for encasing sausage.

Cool Idea but does that guy wear anything else??

[Spliffy8]

He's been on a million talk shows and he wears that Jean Shirt everytime. Its frustrating enough to change the channel... You figure he's got quite a few bucks by now- get a few new shirts...

Excuse me?

[Anonymous Coward]

I
dont really see being covered in other peoples drool when you trundle down the road much of
a selling point.

One man's puzzlement is another man's fetish. Please stop being so insensitive.

SegOC

[ksw2]

Coming soon, Segway Overclocker geek sites...

d00d, check out the blowhole in my s3g, i'm getting THIRTEEN mph...

Re:SegOC

[The Evil Troll King]

Articles on Slashdot will tell us how to install sp33d h0lez on our Segways.

Steve

I rode one

[cprincipe]

The balancing system is generally very forgiving. If you run into a curb or some similar obstacle, it will generally stop forward movement altogether, giving you the choice to climb it or go around it.

I can't speak however for what would happen if you were barreling ahead at full speed and not watching where you are going. The Segway is not a mountain bike, so if you try to abuse it you will get the same results as when you abuse any other piece of machinery. Just as you would pay attention when using a bicycle or a car to the state of the path in front of you, you need to pay attention to what's going on in front of you on a Segway.

Re:I rode one

[skroz]

Well sure, but there's a slight difference; when you hit a curb at speed in your car, you jack up the car and get jostled around. When you hit a curb on a mountain bike you jack up the bike and get jostled around. If you hit a curb on a segway you jack up the segway and dine on pavement and teeth.

And yeah, if you're going fast enough on a bike you can eat gravel, too. But if you have even a little warning you can jump the curb, saving the front wheel and a faceplant. The back wheel may not fare so well, but you won't be eating mushy foods while you wait for dental surgery...

Re:I rode one

[ASCIIMan]

Hmm... Maybe this is what Kamen was reffering to when he said cities will be designed around them,

Re:I rode one

[SmittyTheBold]

The key here is the total stop of forward motion on the Segway's part, while the rider contines on due to the wonderful force of the rider's momentum. It may use itg gyros and wheels to attempt to stay vertical...but if the wheels run into somethign six inches tall (or maybe more, whatever it takes to stop it cold) the rider *will* fall off.

The best balance in the world can't overcome the momentum and leverage a 20 MPH impact with a ledge is going to give you.

Re:I rode one

[skroz]

Hmm... Maybe this is what Kamen was reffering to when he said cities will be designed around them,

Yeah! Foam sidewalks!

Wonderus Device for Programers

[TheLoneCabbage]

Now we don't even have to walk to the vending machines!! Wooo hoo! I can be even more sedentary!!

What is the theory behind segways anyway. Americans don't get much excersize to start with, now we've decided they should waste their time walking?

So you put on that extra 100lb and you need a bigger segway. It's ok, it's all part of the buisness plan!!

Re:Wonderus Device for Programers

[dodald]

From what I have read, the Segway can support 7tons but cannot operate with 7 tons. The auction says 250lb's + 75lb's cargo. I would guess it will only work up to 350 or so. Would a 350 guy fit on one of these things, assuming that the platform must be level?

Re:Wonderus Device for Programers

[Anonymous Coward]

This will not end well.


(I wanted to post a link to the EC comics version of the story, since it truly captured the flabby indolence theme, but couldn't google it up. WTF isn't everything ever printed on the web yet?!!! Tom Sellek promised!)

Re:Wonderus Device for Programers

[vrai]

350lbs ??? I'm 6'1" and I only weigh 160lbs. Anyone who weights 350 has rather more problems than being unable to use a Segway. Like avoiding a being harpooned by the Norwegians.

Re:Wonderus Device for Programers

[Anonymous Coward]

I don't recommend the segway for you either. A good stiff wind and you would be blown away. You need to put some muscle on you.

Comment removed

[account_deleted]

Comment removed based on user account deletion

industrial uses

[kin_korn_karn]

My dad came up with a good point. He works in a steel mill and when they have to travel a long distance, they use 3-wheeled bicycles. Segways would be great for them, because the bikes are slow and cumbersome.

Re:industrial uses

[Anonymous Coward]

Indeed.

The one market where Sinclair C5 electric carts succeeded was for people who wanted to get from one end of an oli tanker to the other.

tyhey sold quite a few, I believe

Re:industrial uses

[avandesande]

Yeah, but where is he going to put his toolbox and whataver else he needs to lug to the job?

Re:industrial uses

[kin_korn_karn]

backpack, maybe? I dunno.

Re:industrial uses

[Anonymous Coward]

Er, aren't "3-wheeled bicycles" generally called "tricycles"?

Re:industrial uses

[Anonymous Coward]

In the Time magazine story, they had a picture of a segway with two briefcase sized containers, one located over each wheel. I think it also had a small box hanging from the steering stalk.

Re:industrial uses

[dodald]

From some of the pictures I have seen, they can mount a selve thing over the wheels. The article also says 75lbs of cargo, I assume the tools would be no problem. They may need to have two smaller boxes, but sounds like it could do them some good.

Re:industrial uses

[Anonymous Coward]

I think it also had a small box hanging from the steering stalk.

Wouldn't this throw IT off balance and make it ride off intot he sunset by itself?

Re:industrial uses

[WNight]

I assume it'd only respond to a tilt on the pedals, more weight applied to the front than the back.

That'd be how that woman in the picture can lean her upper body over and rest of the scooter without it moving, because her legs are vertical.

Re:industrial uses

[Pope Slackman]

works in a steel mill and when they have to travel a long distance, they use 3-wheeled bicycles.

Did anyone else just get image of a big, burly mill worker frantically pedalling a
G.I. Joe BigWheel around the factory floor?

C-X C-S

Re:industrial uses

[kin_korn_karn]

ha, it is kind of funny to see them. They're tricycles with full size bike wheels, there's a basket between the rear wheels for carrying things. with the gearing they have they can carry a good load.

Re:industrial uses

[Cruciform]

Yeah, these things are going to be all over the place in large factories. They're smaller and easier to park then golf carts, and probably more cost efficient in the end.

I wonder how long before we see them on Carrier decks as well. You'd just have to lock it down so it doesn't get blown off the deck by an afterburner :)

It is brilliant

[Carmody]

This auction thing is brilliant because

(1) The publicity is amazing. I was watching morning TV today and it was like a huge infomercial for the Segway

(2) He is getting people to pay a fortune for the privilege of beta-testing the device.

(3) By only selling three, he is taking a leaf from business mastermind Eric Cartman's book. "Only three people get to ride today." The people who bid $100,000 and LOST will gladly pay any price once a few more become available.

My only worry is this: As a teacher, I am going to have to deal with a generation of students who cannot spell "segue".

Re:It is brilliant

[BlueUnderwear]

My only worry is this: As a teacher, I am going to have to deal with a generation of students who cannot spell "segue".

Or worse: twenty segways clogging up the back of the classroom. Just look at what mobiles have done to school. At least segways don't ring.

Re:It is brilliant

[Strange_Attractor]

>>My only worry is this: As a teacher, I am going to have to deal with a generation of students who cannot spell "segue".
It'll be another "R-O-L-A-I-D-S" for relief.

Re:It is brilliant

[Anonymous Coward]

At least segways don't ring.

Yet!

Re:It is brilliant

[sean23007]

This may be a little off-topic, but...

As a teacher, I am going to have to deal with a generation of students who cannot spell "segue".

As a teacher, what do you do to handle a whole community of people who cannot spell these funny things called "words?" Just curious =)

Re:It is brilliant

[Anonymous Coward]

My only worry is this: As a teacher, I am going to have to deal with a generation of students who cannot spell "segue".

I think you are seeing now generations of people who don't care to use that word. Why would drilling the spelling of such an obscure word matter? Do you have some agenda against the students to show authority by such cruel and pointless act? Lastly, I don't think the proliferation of the word Segway would have any impact on the intuitiveness of how segue is spelled at all.

$9000 and rising?

[Rogerborg]

So, we're looking for people with more money than sense, who don't give a damn what they pay for transportation, or how effective it as, as long as it buys them something that nobody else has. Candidates?

• The US military.
• John Romero
• Er...

I give up. Who's number 3?

Re:$9000 and rising?

[Pastor Fluff]

Most likely, Billy G.

Re:$9000 and rising?

[rootmonkey]

CowboyNeal of course!

Re:$9000 and rising?

[Anonymous Coward]

Teddy Kennedy, perhaps?

Oh, did you mean someone spending their own money, not the taxpayers' ?

Never mind... I don't think the Segway is immersible anyway, and besides, it was engineered in New Hampshire, not Taxachushits, so it probably can't be properly used by Machusetts drivers in any case. (Machusetts: take the 'ass' off the license plate and put it behind the wheel, and you have a Machusetts driver!)

Re:$9000 and rising?

[Rogerborg]

• Most likely, Billy G

Oooh, no, he'll wait until it looks like being a success, then either buy the company, or make a clone and give it away until he's killed Segway.

Not funny, I concede, but probably accurate.

Re:$9000 and rising?

[Niles_Stonne]

Just watch out for the blue screen of death!

Re:$9000 and rising?

[karlm]

Obviously Larry Elisson.

Remeber when he bought that MIG fighter jet and couldn't import it?

Re:$9000 and rising?

[sharkey]

NASA

Re:$9000 and rising?

[cpeterso]

I give up. Who's number 3?

US Postal Service

Re:$9000 and rising?

[Indras]

I give up. Who's number 3?

Oh, this is too easy. It's CmdrTaco, of course. He thinks the outrageous cost of the trip to Disney World is justified, because it's a wedding present. Plus, he gets a Segway for free!

Oh, and they're going for near $30k already!

Re:$9000 and rising?

[sean23007]

The US military again! Haven't you seen Contact? "Why buy only one when you could buy two for twice the price?"

Yeah, the Army will have two of these babies.

I figured . . .

[Anonymous Coward]

. . . that they were talking about Segway, the company. I guess there's enough vulture capital to keep this f*cked idea alive for a few more months, though.

~~~

Drawbacks of this device...

[c.r.o.c.o]

Well, I must say that I was quite impressed when they were first featured on TV. The Segway is a pretty cool device. And it may be usefull too, if it weren't for a few major problems.

The first one that comes to mind is its size. Imagine riding this thing during the lunch hour in a crowded downtown area (pick the city of your choice). And you obviously have to ride it on the sidewalk. But it would not be faster (if not slower) than walking, since you wouldn't be moving faster than the rest of the people. It pretty much defeats its purpose in the suburbs or in the industrial parks. There's enough room there just to hop into your car and drive where you want to get.

The second problem, as one of the previous posts mentioned, is what happens when you suddenly hit something (more likely someone). The thing might be self balancing, but I've felt what happens when one of your rollerblades gets stuck in a groove. Your body keeps moving with the same velocity, while one (if not both) feet are firmly planted in the obstacle. A split second later you find yourself lying face forward on the pavement. I see the same thing happening with the Segway.

Third, think of its battery life (I presume it is battery powered)

I think I'll stick to my bycicle for now, thank you.

Re:Drawbacks of this device...

[simetra]

Not to mention; how much would this suck in the rain or snow? How much would this suck if you had to carry anything that wouldn't fit in a backpack?

Re:Drawbacks of this device...

[simetra]

Sure, it'll work in snow, rain, etc., but unless there's a weather proof enclosure, it would suck to be riding it.

Re:Drawbacks of this device...

[Mattygfunk]

According to this article the maximum range of the i-series industrial Segway is 17 miles on a single charge.

Re:Drawbacks of this device...

[kruczkowski]

I think factories will be the first to buy these, goto any big factory and you will see a lot of the same looking bikes. Now I'm sure that Mercedes or BMW will have the cash to buy these. Give them to people on the factory tour and watch your sales rise... Another issue is that a factory will have a person from Segway onsite that will services them.

I have a feeling that fatories will purches a lot of these. My only question is how long does the battey last???

Re:Drawbacks of this device...

[Todd1]

Imagine riding this thing during the lunch hour in a crowded downtown area (pick the city of your choice).

What if I choose downtown Manchester, NH, home of Segway, for your example? Low population, wide sidewalks, no problem! And with global warming, winter conditions won't be an issue either! Maybe Dean needs to take a closer look at what a real city is like during lunch hour rather than just looking out his window?

Re:Drawbacks of this device...

[RazzleFrog]

It was made to have a small footprint, it is only a little wider than your body, size shouldn't be a problem.

But the human body is somewhat amorphous. I can turn, squeeze, suck-in-my-gut, etc. to get in and out of tight situations. I am a fast walker and invariably I find myself squeezing past people, jumping on and off of the curb, and taking other various detours. At 10-17 MPH this would be even more common. The segway just won't work well in highly populated areas.

Re:Drawbacks of this device...

[Anonymous Coward]

Don't knock Manchester, NH, I hear a whole 5 people work there now...

Have you everseen Elm St on a friday or saturday night? Imagine all of the G's chillin, just checkin on yo' segway, yo!

Re:Drawbacks of this device...

[argStyopa]

Didn't they say that this device ("IT") would revolutionize the tranportation industry, and would change the design of cities in the future?

I'm sorry, but this is one of the most stupid & overblown ideas I've ever seen (and that's NOT hyperbole). It's a magnificent idea...unless you have to carry something bigger than a pen. It's a tremendous idea...unless you live somewhere where there is WEATHER. Sure, I'm going to ride the segway my 46-mile one way trip to work, in Minnesota, in any month besides July or August. Yeah.

For the 0.00002% of the world population that could afford this stupid thing, and the 0.0000001% of them who live indoors their entire lives this is the perfect device. I believe that leaves 13/1000ths of a single human for which this is the ultimate vehicle.

More like revolutionize the hyperbole and change the design of your wallet in the future.

Re:Drawbacks of this device...

[Todd1]

I can see it now: folks cruisin' the strip in Manch Vegas with their tricked-out Segways. Ground effect lighting, bass tubes, racing stripes, extra-wide tires...

Re:Drawbacks of this device...

[Anonymous Coward]

You can't just look at the footprint and say that it's smaller than some people's asses. That's not the point. The thing will not go in (western) sidewalk crowds for the very simple reason that it's a machine. How'd you like to have an 80lb hunk of metal with a rich fat-ass riding it on your heels? In case you haven't noticed, human traffic is very fluid, people slow down, stop, dodge obstacles, turn, window shop, talk on phones... they're just gonna get run over by segways.

Re:Drawbacks of this device...

[Anenga]

Sure, I'm going to ride the segway my 46-mile one way trip to work, in Minnesota, in any month besides July or August.

Sounds like you need to move.

Re:Drawbacks of this device...

[horza]

It's a magnificent idea...unless you have to carry something bigger than a pen.

Um, didn't you read that it's been designed to cope with postmen with large mail bags and military with their packs?

It's a tremendous idea...unless you live somewhere where there is WEATHER.

Which applies to the bicycle, roller-blades, motorbike, ...

Sure, I'm going to ride the segway my 46-mile one way trip to work, in Minnesota, in any month besides July or August

For a start it will only travel 17 miles on one charge (for now). But you really are closed minded. Your journey is really a minority one. A large amount of commuters live in cities within close range of their work. The Segway makes a refreshing alternative to being packed in a subway or sitting in a traffic jam breathing in the toxic fumes of the car in front. Secondly it's a solution to "the last mile" that makes public transport so inconvenient. Hop on your segway to the train station, drive on to the 'segway carriage', relax in a seat, then zoom off at the station to work. Hopefully it will also even out house prices which tend to be disproportionately priced as to how far from a station you are (at least in the UK).

Phillip.

Re:Drawbacks of this device...

[nanobug]

"Your body keeps moving with the same velocity..."

In this case, if you are moving forward, your body hits the steering grip and control shaft. This will attempt to prevent you from falling flat on your face.

If the motors are strong enough, maybe it would succeed.

Or maybe you would just go flying over the top, just like I can remember flying over the handlebars of my bike several years ago and landing on gravel, then sliding on my back for 30 feet until my shirt was in tatters and my back was not much better. Yeehaa! (Serves me right for going downhill without brakes.)

Re:Drawbacks of this device...

[sphealey]

I think factories will be the first to buy these, goto any big factory and you will see a lot of the same looking bikes

Actually, I just received this month's copy of Boring Warehouse Stuff magazine (that's not really the title but you get the point) and someone (presumably Segway's PR agency) is already pumping them in the warehouse trade rags for exactly that purpose. I have to think that was their primary market from the beginning...

sPh

Re:Drawbacks of this device...

[Anonymous Coward]

Not if they clothes-line the bastard riding his silly rich-boy toy first.

Re:Drawbacks of this device...

[SuperRob]

"Crashing: Not exactly sure but I remember hearing that it has some way of slowing down slowly even if it hits something suddenly"

Inertial Dampeners failing, Captain! All hands, abandon Segway!

Re:Drawbacks of this device...

[ph0rk]

>>> A large amount of commuters live in cities within close range of their work.

which, of course, is why large metropolitan areas have no traffic issues from inbound non metro commuters.

*cough*

Re:Drawbacks of this device...

[billcopc]

Sure, I'm going to ride the segway my 46-mile one way trip to work, in Minnesota

Well then, either you really like your car or you're just not too bright. Hasn't the concept of 'moving closer to work' ever crossed your mind ? Burning 10$ of gas daily just to get to work, add parking fees and auto wear.. you might as well pay a little more and rent a nice place downtown, no ?

Don't badmouth the Segway just because you're living in the far yonder, beyond its practical range. You could complain just as well about a common bicycle (motorized or not). What it all boils down to is that the problem you mentioned is of your own fault, not the Segway designers'.

Re:Drawbacks of this device...

[pmw57]

The article that Time recently did about the Segway answers many (if not all of your worries.

Reinventing the Wheel
http://www.time.com/time/business/article/0,8599,1 86660,00.html

To avoid confusion, I've responded to each of your points with quotes pulled directly from the article.

Imagine riding this thing during the lunch hour in a crowded downtown area (pick the city of your choice). And you obviously have to ride it on the sidewalk. But it would not be faster (if not slower) than walking, since you wouldn't be moving faster than the rest of the people. It pretty much defeats its purpose in the suburbs or in the industrial parks.

[Kamen] wants his machine taken seriously, as a serious solution to serious problems. That anxiety was one of the reasons he and his team decided to concentrate at first on major corporations, universities and government agencies--large, solid, established institutions--rather than dive straight into the consumer marketplace.

The second problem, as one of the previous posts mentioned, is what happens when you suddenly hit something (more likely someone). The thing might be self balancing, but I've felt what happens when one of your rollerblades gets stuck in a groove.

Especially gratifying to Kamen was the reaction of Andy Grove, the chairman of Intel and, unlike so many Silicon Valley boosters, a bone-deep skeptic. Perched tentatively on the machine, the 65-year-old Grove was rolling slowly along when Doerr ambled over and pushed him in the chest. When the Segway kept him from losing his balance, Grove emitted a distinctly un-Grove-like giggle. "The machine is gorgeous," he said later. "I'm no good at balancing; it would take me a hundred years to learn to snowboard. This took me less than five minutes."

Third, think of its battery life (I presume it is battery powered)

This last piece is from the Segway Product Specifications
http://www.segway.com/consumer/segway/product_spec ifications.html

When most transportation companies talk about range, they reference it under optimal conditions--no wind, flat terrain, and so forth. While Segway HT's maximum range with NiMH batteries is approximately 17 miles (28 km), we expect you'll be able to travel about 11 miles (17 km) on a single battery charge--accounting for variations in terrain and other factors. This is far more than the distance we expect the average user will travel on a Segway HT in one day.

--
Paul Wilkins

On the Auction block?

[schlach]

What a brief run the company had! Sure, they look gay as tangerines, but to declare bankruptcy before even trying to market the product? Sounds like another Enron.

Ah well, let's form another co-op to buy up their scrap. =)

<\joke>

Re:On the Auction block?

[z_gringo]

What are you talking about? Read the article.

Re:On the Auction block?

[Anonymous Coward]

You totally missed his tag, didn't you?

Re:On the Auction block?

[nanoakron]

I've always been a strong believer that people with more money than sense deserve everything they get.

-Nano.

Winning the auction

[thelenm]

I'm selling my car so I can buy a Segway! After all, I won't need the car anymore, right? Well, maybe I'll have to sell my house too.

This is far superior

[modipodio]

I would rather have a one of these babies These babies

Where can you ride them?

[Ratbert42]

Where can you ride one of these without people constantly annoying you with questions?

Re:Where can you ride them?

[Aexia]

They were in Washington state's legislature as well. A friend of mine who works at the Capitol got to try the Segway out. He thought it was pretty cool.

Re:Where can you ride them?

[SuperRob]

Apparently, no one told the elected officials in Washington that they could have been arrested for riding one.

http://www.wa.gov/wsp/newsfaqs/nr112000.htm

Bids are already at ...

[Alien54]

ten thousand dollars.

How much you bet someone like gates or ellison gets into the bidding war? I could see this going really high, if people with deep pockets get into it.

we should only be so lucky, since both men are notoriously stubborn.

Re:Bids are already at ...

[jallen02]

They can probably get their own without bidding on Amazon :)

Re:Bids are already at ...

[Anonymous Coward]

I think Gates and Ellison already have segways. I wonder if ol' Billy boy has the SegwayXP yet?

Re:Bids are already at ...

[Anonymous Coward]

You'd think someone of Gates' or Ellison's stature would have better things to do with their day than riding a scooter?

10k a pop

[sinnerDOTcom]

10,000$ a pop for one of these things. Talk about your RICH YUPPY SCUM blowing cash on something that they're gonna keep in the garage after a week of use.

What a complete & total waste of money.

Re:10k a pop

[Anonymous Coward]

You'd perhaps prefer if they were given free of charge to, say, the 'leaders' (there are no actual leaders, of course...what with anarchy and all) of, say, the IMF/WOrld Bank protests so they can tool around directing their troops?

We've evolved...

[i am nude]

from legs to wheels. I await the day where i can get from point A to B without having to touch the ground anywhere in between ;-)

Re:We've evolved...

[nagora]

from legs to wheels. I await the day where i can get from point A to B without having to touch the ground anywhere in between ;-)

It's called "jumping"!

TWW

Re:We've evolved...

[Anonymous Coward]

A device for aiding the transport of a person without touching the ground was invented milennia ago.

They're called "shoes".

just what we need to make everyone more lazier

[Anonymous Coward]

I'm just not fat enough so i'm going to buy two
of them so I can ride one on top of the other

Wonder if they are setting a price?

[eaddict]

Hmmm.... if these things uction for 10K or more wonder what the average joe on the street will end up paying for these things? IN fact, this could turn out to be a new way to buy a house or a car. Ahhh!! Bidding for EVERYTHING!

Re:First Post!

[Frank of Earth]

Laf, not even close

Do the auction versions balance?

[Anonymous Coward]

If you go to the details page for the auctions and look in the large picture they have of the Segway, you can see a little kickstand that I'm assuming keeps it from tipping over. I thought these things were self-balancing, so why take a picture of it like that?

Re:Do the auction versions balance?

[snoozer20001]

I would assume that you would turn it off at the office or wherever you ride the thing to... You wouldn't want the batteries draining the whole time you're there trying to hold itself up...

Just my $.02

Re:Do the auction versions balance?

[Anonymous Coward]

But still, why not show it balancing on it's own in the picture you're using to try to sell it?

And personally I would just lean the sucker up against a wall when i got to work. I wouldn't want it in the way.

Just my $.03

Re:Do the auction versions balance?

[The_dev0]

I have a feeling it doesn't do diddly without the rider's weight activating the machine. It just sits there luring people to come touch it and muss up your shiny titanium finish.

How long before there are mods for these?

[ackthpt]

I live in California's central coast, I grew up in Michigan.

In Michigan nearly every hotrodded car had a Chevy 350 with a Holly 4 barrel carb, headers, glasspacks, etc. (I myself had a '65 Olds Dynamic 88, 425 with a Holly 4 barrel, dualies, just to be the geek 8) Probably due to the straight nature of the roads and ready supply of Novas, Chevelles, etc. to start from.

On the Cal. central coast, the cars of choice are Accords, Civics, Accuras, Sentras, Ecclipses, and the occasional VW. Probably due to the curvy nature of the roads and ready supply of cars to start from.

Let's roll a head about 5-6 years after the Segways have been out, prices have dropped and used ones are all over the place for a fraction of the new cost. It's the perfect vehicle for geek projects, cuz it's electric. Future slashdot features?:

Segway with Linux console

Beowulf cluster of 802.11b Segways

Fuelcell Segway

Segway wars (robot controlled, heavy plastic mayhem)

Cyberpunk gangs rove neighborhoods on Segways

Hey! Your big chance! Come up with slang terms for all these and beat the pros (like Jon Katz) so every now and then you get to hear your name in the news (the '5k00t3rz' term was coined on slashdot by ...)

Re:How long before there are mods for these?

[Anonymous Coward]

So, how long before someone replaces the batteries with a lawnmower engine and an alternator. This should offer better acceleration, higher top speed (may have to uprate the drive motors), and much better sound.
Eeeeeeeeee..... just won't measure up to Brrrmmmmm...

Re:How long before there are mods for these?

[geekoid]

Accords, Civics, Accuras, Sentras, Ecclipses, and the occasional VW
sad isn't it?
Mostly its do to kids thinking putting a loud ass pipe on the exhaust is the same thing as power.

Re:How long before there are mods for these?

[Anonymous Coward]

...Accords, Civics, Accuras, Sentras, Ecclipses, and the occasional VW.

Acura and Eclipse only have one 'C' in them.

Re:How long before there are mods for these?

[Anonymous Coward]

Shouldn't that be Acccords, Civvics, Sentrras and the occasional VWW?

Customers who bidded on this segway also bought..

[Frank of Earth]

- A trip to outer space in a russian rocket
- 2 tickets for the Taliban reality tour
- 100 acres of soon to be beach front property in Arizona
- Authentic area-51 paper thin like metal that can't be bent
- The elephant man's bones
- [insert porn star name here] underwear
- the red pill

Why is the/.-crowd so negative about the segway ?!

[Anonymous Coward]

- it's expensive.
- it is a solution to a non-existing problem.
- it isn't the best thing since sliced bread.

If it would run Linux people would be raving about it. It's just cool and the inventor built it because he could.
If I had the budget for I would buy one, cause IMHO it rates very high on geek-factor.

Re:Why is the/.-crowd so negative about the segway

[Frank of Earth]

It's just easy to make fun of. I wonder if staunch horse buggy drivers sat around in the local salon berating Henry Ford.

"For pete's sake, you have to turn the crank!"

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[account_deleted]

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[account_deleted]

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I'll bid on a Megway!

[Ratface]

I'd rather place my money on getting a first edition Megway
http://www.megway.com/

Remember - women drool at the sight of a man on a Megway??

Re:I'll bid on a Megway!

[Anonymous Coward]

You are a sick, sick man. :)

If you really want to make women drool...

[Anonymous Coward]

Offer a Slashdot Cruiser version of the Segway. Tell me that wouldn't be the ultimate in geek chic.

What do you do when you get there?

[TechnoLust]

Will it go up stairs? If so, am I going to keep this massive hunk of metal in my cubicle? If not, am I going to trust a dinky bike chain to keep someone from stealing it?

I guess if these things take off, I could make a fortune selling satellite tracking segway alarm systems! Put a blinking LED and a GPS tracking chip in it and sell it for a couple hundred... Anybody want to form an LLC?

Re:What do you do when you get there?

[Julian352]

It doesn't go up stairs, but it's only 80 pounds total weight. For most people, that's not too much to lift, especially if you have an elevator in your office.

As for it being massive hunk of metal in cubicle, it's only 19x25", which is about as big as 2 feet of a human. Considering that it can be leaned on something, it would easily fit into the corner of almost any room.

Check out www.segway.com for more information if you want.

Re:What do you do when you get there?

[RazzleFrog]

Most people? I would think that most women and many men would have a hard time carrying 80 lbs for very long. I don't know too many buildings that are going to let you ride or even push it on their lobby floors so you would have to carry it from the front door to the elevator which can be quite a distance.

Here's another important patent

[Anonymous Coward]

One of the more useful inventions to have been patented.

Questions answered

[Anonymous Coward]

If you read their website, segway.com, all the questions are answered there.

As far as size, two wheels, gyros, etc. It's designed to take up no more space than a person. That's why it's two wheels, that's why it's all gyro balanced. If it was bigger than a person, it wouldn't fit into a crowd very well.

As far as the overall purpose, it's designed not to save labor, but to save time and replace the car. Don't buy one if you're lazy, buy one if you drive your car 4 miles to work because it's a little too far to walk.

Personally I don't ride my bike to work because I don't want to be all sweaty when I get there and stink all day. If my office had someplace where I could shower, I would ride to work. Instead I drive two miles, and quite frankly this invention would be perfect for me. Ride to work, get there in ten minutes, plug the thing in, ride home, get there in ten minutes, plug the thing in again. It's still too expensive but maybe in a few years who knows?

Although the concept of clean electric power is still a hoax. Until we get away from coal, oil and gas fired electric power plants, these things still pollute the environment, they just do it in someone else's backyard.

Re:Questions answered

[Anonymous Coward]

As far as the overall purpose, it's designed not to save labor, but to save time and replace the car. Don't buy one if you're lazy, buy one if you drive your car 4 miles to work because it's a little too far to walk.

Of course you buy one of you're lazy. Otherwise you'd save several grand and buy a bicyle.

Why use a V-6 when you can use a straight 6?

[Scratch-O-Matic]

Why use deisel when you can use gasoline?

This technology is inherently different than a two-wheeled scooter. Better at some things and not as good at others. Just because they both transport you from one place to another doesn't mean there's no need for innovation.

The segway, it seems to me, is much more like walking than riding a scooter is. Anyone who can stand up can use it. It is more suitable for areas designed for pedestrian use. If you don't like them, then don't buy one. But don't act like it's the same as a two wheeled scooter.

Re:Why use a V-6 when you can use a straight 6?

[Anonymous Coward]

Why use deisel when you can use gasoline?

Because dIEsel engines produce significantly more torque than their gasoline counterparts. A medium size tractor may only have 120HP, but it's high torque enables it to pull tons! Try that with a 400HP Viper!

Why use a V-6 when you can use a straight 6

Straight 6's are smaller and thus take up less room.

Re:Why use a V-6 when you can use a straight 6?

[Scratch-O-Matic]

Thankyou for the info. Perhaps you missed the point that different technologies, while similar in many respects, have advantages and disadvantages when compared to each other. Using the logic of many who post about the Segway, gasoline and deisel fuel are both liquids that make vehicles go, so why have both? V-6 and straight 6 engines both have 6 cylinders and both make vehicles go, so why have both? Your answer implied that deisel and straight 6 were the better technologies...so why have the other? Different uses, different advantages, different disadvantages.

Re:Why use a V-6 when you can use a straight 6?

[asmithmd1]

The different technologies you mention have costs that are of the same order of magnitude. If you propose a new technology that has a cost 20X to 30X higher than an existing solution there ought to be a compelling reason to change to it. I am still waiting, what is the compelling reason to take away a freewheeling caster and replace it with gyro's, computers, etc?

Re:Why use a V-6 when you can use a straight 6?

[Scratch-O-Matic]

The high cost is due to the fact that this is brand-new, revolutionary technology. In a few years the cost will come down, just as it does with all technology.

To answer your question: I'm not sure of the wheel configuration you are asking about, but if you mean two wheels side-by-side, plus a caster for stability, then you have a totally different vehicle with different capabilities. The advantage of the technology used in the Segway is that it mimics the maneuverability and stability of walking. If you lean forward a little, it moves forward. If you lean back a little, it moves back. The machine moves to keep itself under your center of gravity, thereby making your every move a control input. No effort is required to maintain balance.

With your caster configuration, the machine will be unstable in one direction or the other. If the caster is in the front, you can fall over if you lean back. If it's in the back, you can fall forward if you lean forward. If you lean to the side without turning, you run the risk of falling over in that direction. The operator has two tasks to perform: drive the machine, and stay balanced atop it. Not so with the Segway.

The Segway also has a zero turning radius, and no minimum speed required for stability, as many two wheeled vehicles have. In short, it is a totally different vehicle with different capabilities and charactaristics. Asking "why not just put a caster on it" is the same as asking "why not just put a third wheel on a motorcycle." And please don't respond with an explanation of why a motorcycle is better than a three-wheeler...they are simply different. Why have an LCD screen instead of a CRT? Why have a switch instead of a hub? If a switch is better, why do hubs exist? These are just different technologies with different uses.

Hotrodding the Segway?

[Greyfox]

I want to be the first guy to fit a Chevy Smallblock V8 onto a Segway device...

Re:Hotrodding the Segway?

[Anonymous Coward]

Come on! Chevy smallblock? This is 2002. Try a nice DOHC 4-cyl with a side order of VTEC :)

Re:Hotrodding the Segway?

[fobbman]

Sounds great. We'll make sure the folks at the Darwin Awards get this link when you make their page.

Re:Hotrodding the Segway?

[Bezrayel]

what i've always wanted to do is hack the stem off. Kinda like the difference between a bicycle and a unicycle

Re:Hotrodding the Segway?

[Anonymous Coward]

And this is better why, exactly?

Re:Hotrodding the Segway?

[brad3378]

&gt I want to be the first guy to fit a Chevy Smallblock V8 onto a Segway device...

sounds like a good hack, although somewhat underpowered for my tastes ;-)

What I'd like to see is a lawnmower attachment.
Imagine how sweet it would be to cut grass with its zero turning radius & gyroscopic balancing. It would require less effort than a self-propelled walk behind mower (effortless turns) yet it would be able to get into the small areas that garden tractors can't squeeze into. Fitting it in the garage would be a breeze too.

Segway EULA??

[starman97]

From the web page: "Additionally,
you shall operate your Segway(TM) HT only in accordance with the guidelines provided to you by Segway."

I guess that means no Segway/halfpipe tricks...
But what if you do, will they take it away?
How about if soneone takes it apart and posts the link to pictures on Slashdot??

Re:Segway EULA??

[geekoid]

..Segway/halfpipe tricks...
great, now I want one...

Re:Segway EULA??

[Anonymous Coward]

nono 2006 Winter Olympics - Segway aerial - be very afraid.

Re:Cool Idea but does that guy wear anything else?

[MikeD83]

I have met Dean Kamen andhave seen him many times at FIRST events. The denim is a trademark for him. He will never let it go.

Re:Why is the/.-crowd so negative about the segway

[Anonymous Coward]

A car can't get you home when you're drunk. A horse can find it's own way home.

Take that you techelitist bastards!

37 days left!!

[ackthpt]

Sheesh, with 37 days left to the auction, they probably haven't even been built. Wassup with that? Another Tucker? Driven from the face of the business world by evil automobile and oil tyrants colluding with bought-n-paid for public officials?

Nah, give em a chance. I'm wondering how long before they go bust because the price of these things is so damn high. I mean, what makes these things cost so much? I'd want to know I can park it somewhere without it being stolen because the parts are worth mucho. The battery? Special motor?

Re:37 days left!!

[Iffy Bonzoolie]

The cost is mostly NRE: Non-Recoverable Engineering. They've been working on this for a long time, and they've been paying engineers money to figure it all out and stuff. They recover this by "value-based pricing", charging insane amounts of money for the things to the people who will pay it. As the price drops, people will pay for it when the cost meets the value for them.

-If

How is that a good point?

[dave-fu]

When I was working helldesk and had to travel between job sites, I had to use the company beater, when a Lamborghini Diablo would have gotten me there way faster.
In a world with unlimited money, we could have unlimited toys. In the real world, we sometimes have to use cheap, simple equipment because we're in harsh industrial climates and you need to either be able to cheaply repair or replace shit. Is an $8000 Segway really that much better than an $80 3-wheeled bike?

Re:How is that a good point?

[kin_korn_karn]

Oh, stop it with the karma whoring. Everyone knows espousing the cheapass libertarian view will get you modded up.

The point is that the Segway HAS no real use. It's all just a 'isn't this neat' kind of thing.

If you don't get that, I feel sorry for you.

Re:How is that a good point?

[Reality Master 101]

Is an $8000 Segway really that much better than an $80 3-wheeled bike?

Well, first, I don't they're going to be $8000 in quantity.

But beyond that, yes, it would be worth $8000 if you can save someone time. The thing goes 17 mph, and doesn't use up any of the workman's energy. If the guy is peddling all over hell, he's not going to get as much work done.

I think the great example is postmen. I could see this cutting in half the number of postmen you need to cover an area.

Re:How is that a good point?

[Tenebrious1]

Sure it has real uses. Especially in warehouses. My dad ends up walking 5 miles a day around the warehouse. The large warehouse is the ideal place for a Segway, perhaps the only legitimate place. Small, maneuverable, quick, exactly what is needed to carry people around. It would be great for security patrols at night as well.

Another great feature would be to cart stuff around. All deliveries go to the receiving bay, including office equipment. So when they get large boxes for the office, they toss it onto a dolly and wheel it all the way to the front office. If they attached the dolly to the Segway, they could just drive it there, save a lot of time and possibly injuries to the guy pushing the handtruck around.

Is it worth $8000? To balance against less injuries, less fatigue, more productivity, I don't have those numbers, but I'd say it might be high enough to really catch on in warehouses.

Re:How is that a good point?

[Anonymous Coward]

I think the great example is postmen. I could see this cutting in half the number of postmen you need to cover an area.

No it won't. When was the last time you've worked a union job?

Re:How is that a good point?

[sulli]

Yes it will. Postmen quit and retire all the time. Productivity improvements can always save labor, even if union rules mean you can't save as much as you might have in a non-union shop (but you also might not have workers as skilled or loyal).

USPS in particular will find this useful, but it needs to be a helluva lot cheaper than $8K or $13K or whatever to make sense even for them, methinks.

Re:How is that a good point?

[Anonymous Coward]

It might. Although you most probably will have to wait until the next contract re-negociation, which happens every few years. That's how union jobs get cut were I work (there are other loopholes as well that can be used to cut these jobs). In the meantime they get assigned to another job.

Re:How is that a good point?

[dimator]

I think the great example is postmen. I could see this cutting in half the number of postmen you need to cover an area.

And I could see the price of the stamp jumping to 95 cents to pay for the overpriced scooters.

Re:How is that a good point?

[Reality Master 101]

Um, do you really think a scooter is more expensive than an entire employee?

Re:How is that a good point?

[Zog]

> $8000 Segway

You gotta remember - the auction won't keep the company alive. They have to sell mass quantities of them at reasonable prices (albeit they may not be as cheap as something like a wal-mart bike), or else they won't bring in enough revenue to stay alive in the market.

Re:How is that a good point?

[_ph1ux_]

uh yeah - if you work for nike.

Re:How is that a good point?

[Xerithane]

You do realize they would get mugged for their segways right?

Just envision a troop of geeks hiding behind a set of bushes. Kind of like the Far Side comics.

Re:How is that a good point?

[bgarcia]

Sure it has real uses. Especially in warehouses.

I doubt it.

Name one thing that a segway can do in a warehouse that couldn't be accomplished using one of the following:

• motorized wheelchair
• motorized dolly
• forklift
• bicycle, possibly w. electric assist.

My point being that the flat, even terrain of a warehouse does not require the segway's special abilities.

There are cheaper alternatives for warehouse work.

Re:How is that a good point?

[Mirus Nex]

I don't see it as helping mail carriers. First of all, what percentage of mail carriers walk their route? Secondly, how many mail carriers only work for 1 hour? The batteries are only good for 1 hour, people always seem to forget this fact. Not many mail carriers work within an acceptable distance to the post office to make this viable. They could cart their Segway to the neighborhood, hop on and cruise the streets. This really wouldn't save time because the majority of time is spent stuffing the mail box. Here's a test for ya next time the mail carrier is in your neighbor (driving the truck) walk the route they take and see who wins within a mile. Unless there's only 1 or 2 houses per block (common only in rural neighborhoods) the mail carrier will lose even though they are driving a vehicle because they have to stop and stuff each mailbox... Not to mention, some people actually like footing it for the great excercise. I wish I could excercise and get paid for it.

BTW, my dad's a mail carrier who drives a jeep and works an 8 hour shift within a couple of miles radius, this would only hinder him because he wouldn't be able to carry a few hundred pounds of mail with him.

Re:How is that a good point?

[cronio]

Let's see, except for the bike, none of the things you listed can go 17 mph, and even the bike would be hard pressed to do that on a constant basis.

And do you really think a forklift costs less than a segway?

Re:How is that a good point?

[sfm]

One solution to the distance problem would be to have a bank of batteries in the mail jeep. When the segway ran low, you could just swap them out.
It may even be possible to charge them from the engine powered alternator. But, all these comments could also be applied to a scooter (and for a lot less $'s)

-- Just my opinoin, I could be wrong - D.M.

Re:How is that a good point?

[bgarcia]

Let's see, except for the bike, none of the things you listed can go 17 mph

And how many warehouses do you know of have large enough isles to permit safe travel at 17 mph? Besides, the top speed for the segway is listed at 12.5 mph, not 17.

And do you really think a forklift costs less than a segway?

Let's see. Here are some recent forklift prices, and here are some current segway prices. I don't see a single forklift in that list that costs more than the segway, do you?

And, do you really think that a segway will allow you to carry as much stuff as a forklift?

Yes, I'm being a smartass, but so were you. I know that segway prices will eventually come down. But you also know that I wasn't recommending a forklift as personal transportation. The forklift's benefit is that, in a warehouse, one is often walking around to find some part and bring it back. If the part is heavy, a segway just won't help.

Re:How is that a good point?

[uspsguy]

FWIW: the Post Office is already testing about a dozen as an experiment in dense city routes.

I'd rather have a "megway"

[mencik]

Why waste your money on the "Segway" when you can have a Megway instead? Personally, I like upcoming "MegRyan" model.

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[account_deleted]

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What about opposite reactions?

[dnoyeb]

how does one lean forward while suspended on this device? Leaning is a function of pushing in some direction.

But to lean forward will require some part of you to essentially 'lean backward'. This usually amounts to sticking your but our behind you. But the net result should be a 0 lean.

I suppose you can allow gravity to pull you forward or backward, but that would cause a nice bit of latency, especially while trying to change from forward to backward.

Just try it. Stand straight up, and see how fast you can lean forward then backward.

I see that it works, but there is something im missing in the concept.

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Some people have too much time on their hands.

[Scooter]

Is that some kind of lawnmower? The mind boggles at these transportation devices - too slow to travel on the roads, and a definite liability on the pavement.

Still - I forsee loads of people buying those (when they are offically availble) to use as Robotwars robot chassis :)

Lean-senstive control

[Logic Bomb]

Perhaps you've forgotten the whole point of the steering system. Thanks to the basic setup of the device and the gyros you don't need accelerate/brake buttons -- you just lean. That can't be accomplished on a device with wheels in front and back, because it would always remain level relative to the ground in that plane.

Re:Lean-senstive control

[Anonymous Coward]

I don't suppose you cound just lean on the hndle, which would have a little give and a sensor at the bottom? It's how everything else works... or that just too simple for rich yuppies?

Men Drool

[Anonymous Coward]

Other Men drool over men on segways.

Re:Why is the/.-crowd so negative about the segway

[Anonymous Coward]

That's great until you wake up to the sounds of your horse humping the neighbor's mare.

wait for release 3.0...

[Ubergrendle]

I'm waiting for the Canadianised version (e.g. operates on beer; snow tires; kilometer gauge instead of mileage; etc).

Re:wait for release 3.0...

[AciDLnx]

This is a legitimate problem.
Not that I would ever own one, but being from Maine, I would require snow tires/chains. Also, what about beach use? Can you get huge sand tires on it? If I put out $$$ for a product, I want it to meet my needs now, and in a few years. Which means that it will have to expand. I need a modular design. For me, it'll have to wait until they are more user moddable.

Re:The south park version

[Anonymous Coward]

So would most of the Slashdot editors.

Re:Why is the/.-crowd so negative about the segway

[Frank of Earth]

"Plus, when your horse dies, you can make it into glue! You can't do that with a model-t"

Women drooling?

[Evil Attraction]

Women drool over a man on a Segway.

Might be, but what good is a lot of drooling women as long as you are standing on top of something that obviously moves by no appearant reason and can fit only ony person?

--
Evil Attraction

If I see one of these on the street

[wrt]

I'm gonna:

1. kick user's ass for using a scooter. Especially one that's $100k. Scooters are intrinsically uncool; no matter what, you look like such a pussy! Leave subject on cold concrete to think about their wrongdoing. Beat downs all around. I hate scooters.

2. steal scooter

And I see you, too can copy other posts...

[Anonymous Coward]

Like the very first non -1, non 0 post... :P

Re:And I see you, too can copy other posts...

[mencik]

Hey, Note the 7 minute time difference. So I type slowly, spell check my message, and verify my links. Honestly, I did not see the other post before I submitted mine. I first saw the megway site a few weeks ago and thought my post would be informative and funny. Obviously the other poster did too. They just beat me to it by a few minutes. Sheesh!

The seller has 0 feedback!

[The Wing Lover]

Well, gee, I was going to bid, but I don't think I'll send $13,100 USD to someone with 0 feedback...

How 'bout a *woman* on a Segway??

[drew_kime]

Ooh, purty.

(Oh god, geek cheesecake photos. This is really embarrasing.)

Re:How 'bout a *woman* on a Segway??

[TBedsaul]

Worst EasyRider Layout. EVER.

Re:How 'bout a *woman* on a Segway??

[Anonymous Coward]

Cheesecake? She's not showing enough leg and her tits aren't big enough. Take a picture of Danni Ashe or Chloe Vevrier on a Segway, then I'll be interested. That's just an average woman trying to make her ass look nice.

Re:Cool Idea but does that guy wear anything else?

[trailerparkcassanova]

Yeah, at least some of those black turtlenecks like that guy who makes cartoons...

Re:Customers who bidded on this segway also bought

[Anonymous Coward]

*clap* *clap* *clap*

bravo! encore!!!

Workers comp

[Linuxthess]

From the Worker's Comp page, circa 2005 - "Well your honor, my client was having dizzy spells that morning when he ran over Miss Damsel in Account Recievables. She claimed she was retrieving spilt paper clips, but no evidence revealed how or why the Segways control-shaft got lodged in her posterior with such brute force.

Re:Workers comp

[Derci]

What? I didn't get it.

And I skimmed your journal and it's really weird (why didn't you enable comments there?).. I guess you wrote that about yourself, but it might give people the wrong ideas about Israel.

Pogo!

[Quixadhal]

Hey, if these things are selling for >= $12k right now, how about a healthy alternative?

For those who want to improve their coordination, excercise, AND still look like a fool, the POGO-STICK is the right tool for you!

No wimpy 10MPH speed limits on these babies, you can go as fast as your muscles (and the pavement) will carry you!

Act now, before anyone else makes their way to their local toy store and gets one first!

Overclocking Segway

[aardwolf64]

I wonder how long after it's released to the general public it will take some Slashdotter to overclock the blasted thing. Imagine facing the titanium justice of a 100Mph segway...

hmm... current high bidders

[lobster_sew]

Highest bidders for each Segway HT as of 2002_02_19__17_30 GMT:

[1] $13,000 - gghsellmore - feedback rating zero
[2] $13,100 - tpenziner - feedback rating zero

and my favourite:

[3] $11,437 - 0xdeadbeef - feedback rating (guess what) zero

Think Amazon might be in for a surprise when these things finally get sold?

Personally, I'd bid a million if only I could get part exchange for my old Sinclair C5...

Where can you ride them?

[Bollux]

In neighboring NH, the governor signed a bill allowing them into use on the streets & sidewalks. Not too surprising, since Dean Kamen/Segway is based in NH.

Here in VT, a Segway hireling has been demonstrating them to lawmakers--they show clips with various elected officials using them. The word is that no drivers license will be required, but you will have to be 16 to operate one.

It seems they will want to do this in a majority of the 50 states before they sell them to the public. The electric/gas scooter sales ran into a problem here in VT when the state started requiring helmets & a motorcycle license. Segway is being very smart about this.

-Bollux

He hold a guinness record for # of days in denim

[Anonymous Coward]

"One of Dean's little known accomplishments is his ranking in the Guinness Book of World Records for most consecutive days wearing a denim outfit. The record is currently 14,616 days (no, not really) and counting... Dean's fashion consultants." lol

Worthless

[Capt_Troy]

What a waste of money. Just walk people, or if it's too far to walk, buy a sweet bike and ride. At least you won't look like a loser riding by on your gay little scooter...

Self balancing technology

[Kojiman]

I've never heard of the Segway before... I wonder if the self balancing technology could be used on a larger scale... For example, giving a paraplegic the option of balancing in a "standing position"... Or perhaps we could extend the technology for building 10 story bipedal mechs!

Re:Self balancing technology

[Anonymous Coward]

The original technology comes from his standing, stair-climbing wheelchair. They nicknamed the Wheelchair "Fred Upstairs", which is why the Segway was codenamed Ginger.

Re:Self balancing technology

[Anonymous Coward]

Ya know, the technology (motors and gyros) behind the Segway comes from Kamen's standing, stair-climbing wheelchair.

The wheelchair was nicknamed "Fred Upstairs", which is why they codenamed the Segway "Ginger".

Close...

[zpengo]

Also, like a common segmentation fault, it leaves an agonizing feeling in your groin area.

What is it?

[t_allardyce]

Ok, so what we have here is a stick with wheels and an array of gyros and computers just to keep it balanced. What does it do? _exactly_ the same thing as a human, it balances and moves from a to b. Why would you need this??? well lets look at the pros and cons:

CONS
-It can't go as fast as a car or bike (even a push bike) (it probably can't even out-run skateboards or roller blades.
-It can't go as far as the average person can walk before needing a re-charge.
-It doesn't offer shelter from the wind an rain. -It doesn't give you a seat to sit on, so you end up standing for 20mins (what is the difference between standing on a segway, and standing on the train in rush-hour? - at least a train does more than 10mph).
-It looks even stupider than those smart-scooters or whatever, its basically just a fashion statement that says "Hey, i've got lots of money and like looking a prat".
-Its expensive, so it will get stolen.
-Its expensive so no-one will buy it.
-No-one will buy it unless they see lots of other people riding it, no-one will ride it because no-one else is, therefore, no-one will buy it.
-Its a novelty.
-No-one will redesign cities around it unless everyone is riding it, no-one will ride it, because the cities are not designed for it.

The only place people will ride it is at a few demos, they will think its pretty kewl, and then 20mins later they will get bored and go look at something else, like that new dancing penguin.

oh yes, i almost forgot.
PROS:
-Um... Maybe students could use it around campus.. oh, no wait they can't afford it, Oh. sorry. Pros anyone??

Maybe they figure that if they can get some rich celebs who are dumb enough to fall for it, other people will buy it. Kinda like the fashion industry.

Re:What is it?

[Aexia]

>>>-It can't go as fast as a car or bike (even a push bike)>>-It can't go as far as the average person can walk before needing a re-charge.>>-It doesn't give you a seat to sit on, so you end up standing for 20mins (what is the difference between standing on a segway, and standing on the train in rush-hour? - at least a train does more than 10mph).>>-Its expensive, so it will get stolen.>>-Its expensive so no-one will buy it.

In the end, it'll probably be as expensive as a good desktop computer.

Re:What is it?

[Aexia]

-It can't go as fast as a car or bike (even a push bike)

It can go as fast as a car stuck in rush hour traffic.

-It can't go as far as the average person can walk before needing a re-charge.

The average person can walk 17 miles but *doesn't*. Most people don't even walk a mile for anything.

-It doesn't give you a seat to sit on, so you end up standing for 20mins (what is the difference between standing on a segway, and standing on the train in rush-hour? - at least a train does more than 10mph).

Oh I forgot. I can just hop on the NON-EXISTANT mass transportation here. Silly me.

If you're lucky enough to live in New York, DC or any of the handful of cities with decent train systems, then it would make less sense to use a Segway.

-Its expensive, so it will get stolen.

Cars are and do.

-Its expensive so no-one will buy it.

In the end, it'll probably be as expensive as a good desktop computer.

Re:What is it?

[Anonymous Coward]

If you're lucky enough to live in New York, DC or any of the handful of cities with decent train systems, then it would make less sense to use a Segway.

FYI, the number of cities with good public transportation facilities is much larger than a mere "handful;" they are not nearly quite as rare outside the United States - where you most certainly reside - as they are in it (for reasons I won't go into length about here).

Re:What is it?

[zargag]

Actually, I think they could be a hit here in Taiwan, where everybody aleady rides a gay little scooter with a stupid looking helmet. If these things can get up to about 30 kmph, then thats the average traffic speed anyway, and they take up less room than the mini-motorcycles they use now.

Admittedly, you cant stack mum dad and the kids on a segway, but I can see a lot of people buying them.

Shades of Clive Sinclair

[DrXym]

The Segway is just another C5 flop waiting to happen. It's not a bad invention but it suffers from a glaring and fatal flaw - only people with no sense of embarrassment will use one.

The vast, vast majority of people would rightfully surmise that they'd look like a complete dork riding a Segway so the thing is pretty much doomed. Derision aside, it's not very practical either, requiring charging on a daily basis and likely to cost silly money. What is wrong with walking or using a bicycle I wonder?

The segway might find a use in warehouses and such like where scooters, carts & other devices don't work but I don't see a big market there either.

Re:Shades of Clive Sinclair

[ahem]

The vast, vast majority of people would rightfully surmise that they'd look like a complete dork riding a Segway

I don't know. I saw Kevin Spacey riding a scooter in a teaser for an entertainment show interview, and he looked really cool swooping up to where the reporter was waiting for him.

Then, again, maybe he just looked cool because he's Kevin Spacey.

cover their ass clause

[rebelcool]

in case some dumbass hurts himself on one doing something stupid (like halfpipe tricks) and tries to sue them.

I wish I had one yesterday

[Anonymous Coward]

I had to go to a company information session on campus. Living only a few blocks from campus means no bus route with a stop nearby. I had to walk half way across campus. I usually ride my bike, but I didn't want to ruin my slacks getting over there and back. I was thinking "you know, a segway would get me there in probably half the time, and I wouldn't be all sweaty from walking in this humid Texas weather."

Getting around without getting your clothes dirty or getting sweaty. Maybe that's the real benefit behind these things.

Obvious use: Golf Carts!

[majestyk2000]

First time I saw one of these, it occurred to me that they ought to be marketed as golf carts. All you'd have to do is provide a place to attach one of those little two-wheel carts for your bag, or else put a place where you could sling it to one side, and you'd be set! They fit in the average large trunk or minivan, and they appear to be easy on the grass. I want the first Segway golf cart vendorship...hey, Dean! Give me a call!

Marcia Brady!

[green pizza]

Ooh, purty [http://www.segway.com/downloads/wallpapers/woman_ on_metro_1280x1024b.jpg].
(Oh god, geek cheesecake photos. This is really embarrasing.)

Maybe Marcia will flatten her nose via a Segway accident (rather than from a football) in the 2003 Brady Bunch remake...

You mean it's illegal to ride this thing?

[Nikan]

Just don't try to ride one of those segways away from Amazon. The Washington State Police may pull you over for riding an illegal vehicle... Washington State Patrol press release

Re:You mean it's illegal to ride this thing?

[aschlemm]

I wonder how the thing handles going downhill on some of the streets in downtown Seattle? Some of the streets are pretty steep from west of I-5 down to the waterfront.

Steel

[Anonymous Coward]

Yes, if only Segway could a piece of the action in that booming American steel industry :)

Downtown wankers.

[Anonymous Coward]

I love how people bitch about how this would fail because you could never use it in a busy downtown area. It's not for something like that. It's for use in a neighborhood like mine where there are maybe ten people using the sidewalk all damn day. Where do I live? Chicago! Most neighborhoods are like this. Maybe you would have to pass two or three people on a trip. BFD. I'd love to use this for the two mile trip to the bank instead of shelling out time and money to the CTA.

Motto

[Baldrson]

Segway: Because perception is transportation.

Dumb, dumb, dumb

[Anonymous Coward]

The Segway is an even dumber idea than using e-books for casual reading of fiction, although it has the same basic problems: Bad economics and techno overkill.

I've heard many people over the years say that e-books will catch on Real Soon Now for all reading, just as soon as the price of the reader comes down a little more, and as soon as people adjust to the notion of reading off a screen instead of paper. Bullfeathers. As long as an e-book reader is more costly, in terms of both dollars and convenience, than a paperback book, they won't catch on for that market segment.

The Segway has similar problems, but instead of competing with disposable, zero-maintenance paperback books, it's competing with walking and biking. Lots of luck.

Only in the U.S.

[prototype]

Unfortunately this rules out us Canadians (or anyone outside the States) to get this. The auction will only ship to residents of the U.S.

I wonder about two things on this. First, it's a beta version basically. The first public release so I'm assuming they're going to hound the people that do eventually buy them with questionaires, follow them with cameras and generally keep track of what they're doing with them and how they find them. From this very limited audience they'll head back to the labs and make some tweaks and perhaps in a year or so they'll be ready for full scale deployment. While I see it as a good publicity stunt, don't you think that 3 is a somewhat limited number to allow out. Something more like 100 would be more useful for statistical analysis. Unless they're just going to put them out and not bother following up with the buyers, which I doubt.

Second what about the liabilities and general use of this device? Governments and cities have yet to adopt any kind of urban renewal laws that the product first claimed would happen. There are no laws about riding it in public so is there any fallout from you knocking down someone (or more than likely, half killing yourself with it). Sure there's only 3 and maybe that is better than 100 out on the streets, but perhaps people are going to stare at this when it comes buzzing down the street like a deer in the headlights and not get out of the way. Should be fun to watch in any case.

liB

Shill bidding?

[sulli]

I think this is a highly suspect auction. At present three units are up on Amazon, very close together in price - $13,000, $13,100, $13,988. And the profits go to Dean Kamen's own foundation, "to inspire an appreciation of science and technology in young people, their schools, and their communities."

What if it is really just there to prove to investors that people are willing to pay the price of a small car for a motorized scooter? And what if someone linked to Kamen, or Kamen himself, were placing some of those bids at strategic prices like $13K?

It worked for Scientology, after all.

Re:Shill bidding?

[Anonymous Coward]

There's nothing remotely unnatural about similar bid prices -- people are going to bid on the cheapest one at the time of the bid, right? Whenever there are duplicate auctions on ebay the same thing happens.

You are on crack

[sulli]

if you think someone will pay $137,000 for this thing. That's the price of a Porsche! For a scooter? Even a really, really, REALLY NICE scooter? I don't think so.

Re:You are on crack

[dimator]

Never underestimate the stupidity of rich people.

Re:You are on crack

[Anonymous Coward]

Or those "Surprised by Wealth"

Re:You are on crack

[Anonymous Coward]

Hell, it's already above 17,000 dollars!! And there is THIRTY SEVEN DAYS to go yet!! I'll bet someone will pony up 100G's for one. I'd rather have the Porche, (or two M3's!) but someone will pony up the dough. Unfortunately.

Re:You are on crack

[nytes]

Considering that, as I write this, the price on one of them has passed $22000 and there are still 37 days to go on the auction, a bid in excess of $100000 seems possible.

Re:You are on crack

[Anonymous Coward]

And we're not talking your Boxster, here, or your entry-level 911. We're talking Twin-Turbo or GT3. I mean, 0-60 in 3.5 seconds. Top speed of 180+. You can outrun a good number of Ferraris and Lamborghinis in this baby. When it comes to transportation, why settle for anything else?

Re:You are on crack

[pfw3_1229]

Yeah, but for the rich guy who already has the Porsche (and the Ferrari), this is a cool little thing to waste some money on. And much cheaper than a private jet :)

Re:You are on crack

[z_gringo]

Besides, if you have that kind of money, it could be a long walk from one side of the house to the other. A segway might be just the ticket.

Re:You are on crack

[cpeterso]

I mean, 0-60 in 3.5 seconds. Top speed of 180+. You can outrun a good number of Ferraris and Lamborghinis in this baby. When it comes to transportation, why settle for anything else?

are you talking about the Segway here?

Re:You are on crack

[Swaffs]

If Segways do change everyday life as we know it, as the inventor predicts, then $100,000 will be worth it to have the first ones. Imagine what they would be worth in 20 years as collectors items. Of course, this once again relies on the stupidity of rich people. I don't see how novelty can be worth that much.

Re:You are on crack

[oasisbob]

Never underestimate the stupidity of rich people.

Huh? Don't the proceeds from these go to a good cause? Come on... If you were rich and had a few hundred thousand dollars you wanted to give to charity, why not get a nifty scooter along with it?

Re:You are on crack

[mandolin]

And much cheaper than a private jet :)

Hey, there's still plenty of time left..

Re:You are on crack

[56ksucks]

you're right, i'll give em 50 bucks for it

Some links to criticisms of segway

[The Slashdolt]

Are here and here. It looks like not everyone is buying into the hype of this thing.

Re:I can think of loads of better ways to spend 89

[dongkiru]

It's at 13000 now. How many copies of Win2k database servers do you have???

Standing Weelchair

[Anonymous Coward]

The only pro I have heard of is that it can be used to fufuil a similar funcion as a weelchair, but with a smaller footprint. Better than a chair with wheels in crowded suituations, but for people who can get around on their own, it is useless.

Or maybe it could be 'fun'
Naah

--HEQQ

Hmm...

[cr0sh]

Interesting way of starting to get them out to the public, but somehow I think this is going to flop. The idea is interesting, the technology is cool - but the price is way too high for the people who would really want one and use it - kids.

I realize this isn't the market they are aiming for, but it is the market that would ride it. How many times a week do you see kids riding those motorized scooters? Here in Phoenix, I see it almost daily. I think I have only managed to see an adult riding one a couple of times. Plus, for kids, it is too quiet - they don't want an electric scooter, otherwise you would see more Zap! scooters around - they want loud motor sounds (always been that way, I guess) - rice boy wannabee attitude, maybe? Who knows...

Then there are the laws - I know that here in Phoenix anything with an under 25-30cc engine is classified as a "moped" - and can't go faster than 25 mph. You need a license, but any license will do - you also need a special insurance rider on your auto insurance, and you have to register the moped with the state (no titling, though) - costs about $5.00. I am sure similar laws exist in other states. However, here is where the problem lies:

Electric or gas, these scooters will be under the moped rule - so they are motorized vehicles. Legally, that means no sidewalk use, plus no bike trail use - road use only. But they have no lights, so they aren't legal for driving on the road - so where do you drive them? It is a legal hole that needs "filling" - but lawmakers don't seem too eager to fill it (but I am sure they buy their kids all sorts of scooters!).

The Segway will be affected by this same issue. The laws were created with small motorized bikes in mind (not motorized bicycles, typically considered a separate category!), like were popular in 70's and early 80's and made by European and Japanese companies (Honda and Peugeot mainly). Strangely enough, scooters weren't made in large quantities or at all, even though the idea was there (I remember seeing many an episode of "That's Incredible" and "Real People" wearing or riding motorized skateboards and electric roller skates)...

I will be facing a similar situation - though I am going to do everything to be as legal as possible. I am currently in the process of building an electric recumbent vehicle. The frame is being built out of a 26" and 20" bikes (bought for $15.00 total at garage sales), and a DC motor I picked up at a local electronics junkyard (Apache Reclamation). Various other parts will be bought to complete the thing, welded together, etc - I plan on adding a full light system (headlight, front and rear turn/brake lights), and registering it as a moped.

I think such a vehicle would be something more likely to gain broader acceptance among adults, rather than a scooter vehicle - the crazy thing is, recumbent bicycles have never been cheap. In fact, a lot of people have found recumbents so expensive that a lot build their own (do some googling on "recumbent", "homebrew" to see what I mean) - the parts aren't expensive, one would think that a cheap recumbent should cost no more than double the price of a cheap Huffy bike - but many times recumbents cost thousands (though even a good multi speed bike can set you back a lot).

So, I am building my recumbent, but it is meant as a vehicle, not a bike - it is only built of bike parts (I plan on building it, getting it working, then stripping it down to the frame, cleaning and repainting it - so it won't be ghetto). So far, I have only spent $45.00 total on it, plus some time. I hope to have it come under $200.00 total, with most of the cost in the batteries...

Craaaaaaaaaack.

[Scoria]

That was the sound of a Segway becoming roadkill.

P.S.

Lameness filter encountered. Post aborted!
Reason: Too much repetition.

Then I press "Submit" and I'm informed that it hasn't yet been twenty seconds. Pfft.

technological approach

[criticalrealist]

We all know the failings of the Segway: lack of security against theft, lack of protection against crashes with cars and brick walls, lack of range (only ~30 kilometers), etc. If it is ever successful, it will create sidewalk traffic jams to match those made by cars.

The real problem is the technological approach. Instead of trying to do what I already can do as a human being, walking and running, it should do what I can't do. Taking the latter approach is why technologies like the light bulb, the airplane, the automobile, the refrigerator, and the computer were successful.

Re:technological approach

[Lodro]

>If it is ever successful, it will create sidewalk traffic jams to match those made by cars.

Strange argument. Like Yogi Beara, "Nobody goes there anymore, its too popular." So you're arguing that a) it will never be successful anyway but b) if it is successful, it cannot be succesful.

At the point where people find them useful enough to cause traffic jams, then we will be able to put in additional infrastructure to support it, because we will have replaced enough of the current transportation infrstrucutre to sucure right-of-way. So this would be a success story.

>The real problem is the technological approach. Instead of trying to do what I already can do as a human being, walking and running, it should do what I can't do. Taking the latter approach is why technologies like the light bulb, the airplane, the automobile, the refrigerator, and the computer were successful.

Another strange argument, IMO. These things didn't do what people couldn't allready do, they just did some of those things marginally better.

Light bulb: bright light without the hasle, smoke and danger of lighting a candle.

Airplanes: "Whats wrong with taking the train?

Automobiles: "They aren't any faster than a horse, who needs 'em?"

Refrigerator; "My ice box works just fine, thank you, and the iceman is a friend of mine."

Computer: Why spend all of the company's money on a big expensive contraption that isn't going to do anything that we can't allready do?

The point is that these all seemed to be relatvily incremental changes when they were first introduced. They were revolutionary in some sense, but in terms of adoption and to the majority of people at the time, they often seemed like solutions in search of a problem. It is only in hindsight that _most_ people realized their obvious utility.

Which brings me to something I thought the last time this issue out. What the hell is wrong with all of you /.'rs? Did your weekly claven come out with a ruling that the HT just wasn't cool enough for you? Sonce when did geeks worry about what was cool? Aren't we supposed to be the one's who are interested in dorky things that no one else understands until much later. Or are you all a bunch of posers? Thats what I'm thinking. There are probably very few real nerds left in this business.

Re:technological approach

[criticalrealist]

So you're arguing that a) it will never be successful anyway but b) if it is successful, it cannot be succesful.

No, I'm arguing that if many units are sold, it will create high externality costs. As for your infrastructure improvement idea, guess who will bear the cost of that? Ordinary taxpayers, mostly those walking on foot.

These things didn't do what people couldn't allready do, they just did some of those things marginally better.

The trouble with the Segue is that it already does "walking" and "running" marginally better than people, but it can never be improved much beyond its present state. That's because one of its features is lightness, and the only way to overcome the security problem is to make it too heavy to lift into a pickup truck. One of its other features is speed, but it can never be made to go 50 mph because it can never be made safe at that speed. If a person gets thrown at that speed, there is no seat belt, air bag, or anything. There is a cross bar right in front of the user's crotch, though. There is no way to overcome the basic problems without changing the fundamental design. The push-lawnmower design, however, is itself the main feature of the Segue.

What do you do with a Segue in a 40 mph gust of wind, BTW? Would you use a Segue in a steady rainstorm, knowing that your entire front side would get wet? How fast can it make 90 degree turns? 270 degree turns? What if I'm on a Segue and need to get out of the way of a bus?

Which brings me to something I thought the last time this issue out. What the hell is wrong with all of you /.'rs?

Go back under your bridge, troll.

They're in OH today.

[rivka]

The guy who works beside me just rode one. They're at the statehouse trying to get the lawmakers to allow them on city streets. Supposedly, if enough states sign legislature allowing them access on sidewalks, they will be sold at $3,000 for a regular model, and $8,000 for an "industrial" model. They say mail carriers would be a targetted audience (as in, the average mail carrier would be able to cover more households, and they would hire less workers). Therefore, the price of postage could be dependent on these Segways!!! You would then be expected to send more greeting cards!! Becomes much more clear now, huh? It's all a ploy of the greeting card industry to get more men buying greeting cards for their significant others! (thereby causing them to drool when they see the mail carrier.) Therefore, if you want to see more drooling women, I suggest that you write your lawmaker.

Segway to replace cars - not walking, riding bikes

[Anonymous Coward]

I can't believe the stupidity that crops up here everytime Slashdot runs a story about this device. The vast majority of you are missing the point. This is not an alternative to walking or riding your bike. It is a cleaner, cheaper alternative to a car. It is meant for urban environments. When I was living right in the middle of downtown Chicago this device would have been great. Instead of paying $150 for parking every month, $2000 for car insurance per year, plus gas and maintenance for a car I used every other week to go to the grocery, plus various other trips where I needed to carry a bunch of stuff. Even at $7,000 the supposed price they're planning on selling them to the USPS and Park Service, this would be a steal compared to the price of a car. If you could get one fitted out with the saddle bags like they're doing for the USPS, it would be great for picking up a couple of bags of groceries. The target of this device is not walking or running, it's expensive, dirty, inefficient cars. When you're bitching about how is this better than walking or riding your bike, you're missing the point. It's not. But, it is MUCH better than driving by yourself in a gas guzzling SUV just to go pick up a couple of bags of groceries.

Re:Customers who bidded on this segway also bought

[sphealey]

A trip to outer space in a russian rocket

Going rate for a ride on a Russian space vehicle is $20 million (hard currency only please). I think that's a little above this price range!

sPh

This is really pissing me off

[devilbat]

This is a SCOOTER. For all of it's technical advancment it is actually worse in almost every aspect from the traditional wheels in a line scooter. It's also bested in almost every respect by another advanced technology, the bicycle.

it needs accessories

[Anonymous Coward]

I'll buy one if I can get it with a buggy top and a fake Asian dummy out front that makes it look like he's pulling me.

Segway GT 2+ for all my homies!

[Anonymous Coward]

Yep, and coming soon to really make those drooling women slobber all over you... the Segway GT 2+

Image a Segway for 2, with autobalancing for any motion the segway or it's passengers may make. Image a supercharged Grand Touring segway with leather appointments, AM/FM/CD stereo with subwoofer, chrome 6 inch dubs, and a keychain activated anti-theft alarm.

GT? Yes, you heard right, GT. With a 24 volt system and new supercharged 40amp motor, the Segway GT 2+ can do 16mph with two passengers or a whopping 31mph with just you. Blow right by all that slow moving HT traffic in the new GT!

And all for the low, low price of 48,000. Heck, a new Mercedes SUV is more expensive, and not nearly as cool.

And don't forget, you can order an aerodynamic kit with spoiler and rear wing, tassles for the handles, neon underbody lights, and gold badge lettering! Be the ultimate Segway macdaddy g in your hood!

I was wondering

[Anonymous Coward]

If this could be used for people who are paraplegics. I mean if you could simply create brace a support system for their legs and body weight, could they control the platform by throwing their body weight around? How important is the handle in this device? Could this device be made to work without hands at all? Imagine a person with no ability to move their legs at all who can stand at a normal height and have essentially the footprint of a walking person. That would be a cool invention.

Delivery use

[Animats]

Segway also has five units on trial with the USPS,for letter carrier use. That might, possibly, make sense, carrying around the mailbag. The USPS is always struggling with the problems of building vehicles for a trip length of 50 feet.

Re:Segway to replace cars - not walking, riding bi

[Anonymous Coward]

Oh yeah, much better than a car...

Just don't plan on the following:

1) Any trip in excess of 10 miles or so oneway.
2) Picking up more than 1 bag of groceries.
3) Doing any furniture shopping or purchases of anything larger than a bag of groceries.
4) Having a girlfriend, wife, or children
5) Getting laid in the 21st century.

You are wrong... the segway is meant to rid people of buses, cabs, and long distance walking in the innercity (and cars in the inner city, but don't count on it). Anyone with a life, money, or someplace to go further than around the corner will NEVER replace their car with this toy.

WTF?!

[Myuu]

How can FIRST need more money? It cost our team $5,000 to enter in that competition and to get our kit. It seems that in that kit was about 1 grand of DONATED software, 2 grand worth electronics, and maybe a grand worth of motors. They don't even pay for the trip to the competition!

My hope for you hoomans dwindles again...

[soupforare]

Sweet Mother.
It's called a moped, they're real nice.
They're alot cheaper

If you're not a four-wheeler, at least be an *intelligent* two-wheeler.

Swarm and destroy
Segway drivers: beware the screaming 50cc, they'll know you're big on money and short on brains

Wait for the new, improved Segway II

[ch-chuck]

You know, I was thinking about the gyro-stabilizer system when it occured to me, instead of a two wheel, forward-backward oriented system with differential wheel speeds for steering, how about just a SINGLE BALL?? The segway could be built upon a single, large tire-rubber ball, with an enclosure around the top 75% with rollers to keep the ball in place, and driven in TWO axis at once, sort of like an upside-down, motorized track ball? That way, instead of leaning fwd or bkwrds, you could lean in any direction you want to go toward that direction. Ok, you'd need a rotor to be able to POINT the driver platform in any of 360 degrees, but something like that should be the next evolution in these things.

Bad publicity waiting to happen...

[nzgeek]

I can't wait till the millionaires that pays $100k plus for one of these bills Kamen for the dental work after he faceplants!!

self-powered Segway

[kpfleger]

What if we install onto a Segway the foot-powered step-recharger, featured earlier today (to recharge laptops)?

Now it'll have unlimited range. I wonder how far 5min of brisk pumping gets you?

-Karl

Re:self-powered Segway

[The_dev0]

I wonder how far 5min of brisk pumping gets you?

as far as you like, gorgeous...

Re:Customers who bidded on this segway also bought

[Frank of Earth]

Russian rocket ride 20 millions dollars
plane ticket to get to russia, 500 bucks
puking in zero-G. priceless

Re:My daughter prefers the "Gregway"

[ashitaka]

Stands on my hands whilst holding onto my shoulders semi piggy-back tyle.

Much more manouverable then the Megway. I can do those funky spinaround-on-the-spot moves you see in the Segway videos.

Considered making a similar parody video but this whoel thing is now *way* too old.

Re:Why is the/.-crowd so negative about the segway

[Anonymous Coward]

Reminds me of Homer Simpson--

"If that horse doesn't make it we're gonna make a trip to the GLUE factory...and he won't get to come!"

Almost had me

[aengblom]

I was just entering my CC# when I realized I could just pay somone to carry me around for a year. Yeah Yeah, they won't go 17 MPH, but come on...which looks better

I'll wait for the next version

[SPaReK]

You know, the one with a seat, so I don't have to stand all day. And the one with 4 wheels for better traction. And, hopefully it will have some type of cargo storage unit.

Oh wait... they already make those... its called a car.

i never want to walk again

[Anonymous Coward]

having just had an opportunity to ride one of these at a media demo last week, i can honestly say after getting on one, walking feels like a real drag. everyone's skeptical of the hype "it'll redefine cities!" and all that nonsense, but you don't begin to see the real possibilities of the device until you try it. it's not a toy, it's transportation, and it's easy.
answering a question before about what happens when you go full speed and bump into someone, this was also demoed when the rep let me ride at full speed into him. it counter balances itself with minimal shock to the rider. (he even demoed pushing me back with one finger.)
my only concern is locking this thing up. i don't know of any bike locks that /really/ work. the only reason your car stays where it is is because of its size. sure the segway has some kind of electronic key, but even motorcycles are taken on a regualr basis.
all and all, great ride, good times, and i predict segway theft to become the national pastime.

that'll never happen

[Anonymous Coward]

open source people are too cheapo to pay that much for anything

Diary of the first segway owner

[gad_zuki!]

http://www.everythingisnt.com/features/segway.html

8:30am

I checked the voltmeter and it looks like it charged up nicely overnight. I haven't worn kneepads or a helmet in ages, they make me feel kind of awkward. After waving goodbye to my wife I'm off to work which is about six miles from here. I can't wait, this thing is so cool. I feel ten years younger.

8:45am

Holy shit, where did all these kids come from? I thought the district bussed them to school. I can't ride on the street because everyone keeps yelling for me to go faster and I can barely maneuver the sidewalk with all these kids. Someone just called me "Spaceman." I thought kids loved technology. Sorry to the girl I knocked over, but in all fairness I did yell, "heads up!"

9:08am

Okay I'm officially late for work now, but I did find a bike lane. What's with this town? I thought all the granola-loving bikers forced the city to put bike lanes on every street. There's maybe a mile's worth from my place to downtown. The bikers were pretty nice. One man said to the rest, "Let the dude on the rascal get through." I don't know what a rascal is, but they did let me get through.

9:19am

Holy fuck is downtown packed and no one is letting me through. The way I tip cabs around here you'd think they would let ride on the side of the lane. The doorman at my building yelled at the crowd to let the "handicapped guy" through. I was going to correct him, but they were already letting me past. I did get to ride up the handicap ramp and park in the building. Now I need an AC outlet. This trip nearly drained the battery.

9:22am

I'm not the fittest guy in the world but they need to make these things a little lighter. You drag a 70lbs Segway up the stairs and tell me how your back feels.

12:04pm

I'm taking my Ginger, I mean my Segway, to lunch. I tried to get a co-worker to ride with me, but we fell and nearly broke our necks. I hope no one tells my wife that my hand got caught up in Jane's skirt as we were trying to get up. She didn't say anything and I think she really didn't noticed. A guy on one of those old time italian scooters yelled, "yuppie" at me and disappeared into traffic. Real mature.

12:12pm

I had to ride all the way to that bike store in the Village to pick up an extra-long Kryptonite lock. Looks like the "no bikes" sign applies to the Segway as well in restaurants. I barely have enough time to stop and get a sandwich before getting back to work. I have to call my lunchmates and tell them I didn't get into an accident. If I keep yelling, "Beep, beep coming through" every block I can actually make some time. This thing really needs a horn.

5:15pm

A cop called me over from the bike lane and told me unless I have a handicap permit I'm going to have to get motorcycle plates and a city sticker for this. He let me go this time, but he said if he sees me again mucking up traffic on my "razor scooter" I'm going to get arrested. I ran over a really big guy's toes pulling into the bike lane. He was really pissed. Four more people called me "Spaceman" on the way home. At least the doorman didn't call me handicapped again.

5:55pm

I'm home and I came this close to hosing off the dog crap on the wheels before I saw the electric shock warning sticker. The first thing my wife told me as I pulled into the garage is that I look and smell like shit.

6:15pm

I just called and the Shaper Image won't take returns. Great. I gotta get some good pictures of this thing for ebay. My 14-year old is gonna use it to get to her Lacrosse practices until I can sell it. I overheard her call it an "electric ass-mover." Her friend responded by saying, "Oh, that geekmobile thingy your dad dropped three grand on?"

my favorite high bidder...

[Anonymous Coward]

was donkiemaster, whose rating was also zero. Does this idiot think anyone is actually going to take him seriously? Someone needs to start a pool on whether at least one of these is gonna get 'bought' by someone just fooling around, like Kay Hammond, who auctioned her hand in marriage at qxl.com (she was auctioning on e-bay, but they pulled the auction, maybe it fits under their ban on used underwear...)--her top two offers turned out to be fakes.

3-wheeled bicycle

[Entropy_ah]

hmm... i figured they would use a tricycle instead?

Skateboard?

[Anonymous Coward]

Why not use this tech to make a powered skateboard? Wouldn't that be SO much more interesting than a goofy looking scooter?

umm $40K?

[Anonymous Coward]

Anyone who would pay $40K for this has to have an extremely small penis.

You guys don't live in enough traffic

[Anonymous Coward]

Let's see. In high traffic times (always!) it takes me:
o 40 mins to walk downtown - too long
o 25 mins to jog downtown - too much effort/sweat
o 25 mins to drive - and then 10 mins to park, pay stupid $ for parking, get some moron whacking their door into mine, etc.
o 15 mins to bike - nice, but not in summer

Safety - when hitting a curb at fullsteam:
o running I will jump over, yay
o cycling, I will have a painful but funny walk afterwards
o driving, I will have car less a front axle/gearbox
o segwaying, I will bite dirt, and therafter have a funny look but a normal walk

But, why would I hit a curb in the first place?

This thing would work well for me. Effortless, cheap to run, fast enough for the most part.

But first I would paint it glossy black, put some wide wheels on it, and make it go faster.

Laws required for operating this beast?

[brad3378]

Stupid question:
If I'm operated my Segway while under the influence, would I have to obey the same alcohol laws that motorists must obey? The main argument for having drinking & driving laws is to protect innocent people from being hit by large & fast (deadly) vehicles. I doubt that hitting a grown adult with a segway at full speed would do much more damage than a person riding a bicycle.

Should there be special laws for these things? Would I need to purchase insurance? Pay road taxes? Get licence plates?

Re:Segway to replace cars - not walking, riding bi

[Anonymous Coward]

Yes it is much better than a car. Do you have any idea how far 10 miles is? 10 miles is nearly half way from the center of Chicago to Evanston. Along the way you would have passed hundreds of grocery stores. I think we had 3 major chain groceries within two miles of where I lived. With the Segway and the optional side bags, I could probably carry 4 bags of groceries not one. That's why the US Post Office is going to use it. Because it can carry MANY bags of letters. Additionally, there's no problem having a girlfriend, wife, or children that's what a taxicab is for. Many people who live downtown don't even have a car because they're so impractical(you can never find parking, or it's outrageously expensive) and expensive. If they want to go to the grocery store they either walk, in which case they can only carry one maybe two bags, and not likely for far, a bus (try waiting as your milk goes bad) or a cab, which is actually not terrible, but still inconvenient. A small vehicle like this would be ideal. Low cost, easy to use, capacity around 4 bags, and it's ready to go when you want rather than waiting for the bus. From your comments, it's clear you have no idea what it's like living smack dab in the middle of an urban environment. So it's not surprising you can't appreciate the elegance of this solution. Also, you seem a bit hung up on what someone else might think about you if you were riding one of these. Why do you care, if it works?

Future Segway hacks???

[brad3378]

Make it Radio Controlled.

Tunes!!! Who wants to travel without some noise?

Integrated GPS

OnStar...better yet prOnStar

Beer can Holder (perhaps even a beer tap ;-)

Big Fuzzy Dice.

Stinger Missles.

Geek on board bumpersticker.

Snow Blower attachment

apache webserver

big crome wheels

Trailer Hitch

Nitrous Oxide - for when you're really in a hurry.

Hydraulics (low rider)

Lift Kit (2 wheeled monster truck ? )

Beowulf clu..... Nevermind.

Comment removed

[account_deleted]

Comment removed based on user account deletion

big fucking deal

[Deflatamouse!]

I don't see what the big deal is in a segway... after all that hype, it ended up being just a motorized scooter... albeit it's a little smarter than that, but its nothing revolutionary... This thing ain't useful to me anyway, since I'm in Texas where everything is faaaaaaaarrr apart.

Alternative place to buy

[Scorchio]

To my delight, I've found an alternative place to buy these gizmos, avoiding the super-inflated auction prices.

See here.

$50,000.00 apiece today...

[da5idnetlimit.com]

I'm out of Luck. I won't get mine.
8|

It's only the price of a nice Mercedes 8)

Imagine

[da5idnetlimit.com]

Your Segway having a full 100 meters range...

Or do you plan to add in-house Power facility ?
The day Power Cell are efficient and small enough, the day it gives Segway a 50 miles range, then I'll take one.

Collector's Item

[Anonymous Coward]

Segway thingies will be collectors items in the near future. Imagine some asshole "segwaying" down a crowded pedestrian sidewalk...I'll clothesline that fucker right off! Sidewalks are for walking, not roller blading or bike riding or Segwaying! Mr. Dean has blundered. The design should go faster, allow sitting and be street legal. Transportation for the masses my ass!

So THAT'S how you get exercise!

[TechnoLust]

So, once you've ridden it 3 blocks to your office building, you can carry an 80 bulky thing up a few flights of stairs or over to the elevator.

Considering that it can be leaned on something...
I thought it was supposed to stand up straight by itself! :-)
Sorry, I just think (like several other posters have said) these are a solution looking for a problem.

36days left??

[mcdade]

I guess this is why it's not on Ebay.. they limit the number of days for the auction..

Everyone will get bored and forget about the thing in 36 days. Imagine dropping over 100grand and not getting delivery for a month! People that have that kind of money to spend want it now! .. they should have had the auction for 3 days or something.. gives people less time to come to their senses when bidding.

Fuck

[sulli]

$150K for one of these. Fuck! Must be someone who wants serial#1 for the collector's value.