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15,000 Hoverboards Seized As Unsafe In United Kingdom (nationaltradingstandards.uk)
puddingebola writes: National Trading Standards and trading standards services in Scotland have released figures that 15,000 of 17,000 hoverboards have been seized at ports of entry in the UK because of safety concerns. The boards were seized "due to a range of concerns, such as safety issues with the plug, cabling, charger, battery or the cut-off switch within the board, which often fails." Are we pushing hoverboard technology too far too quickly, or are there just a group of criminal sociopaths manufacturing unsafe devices at Christmastime and pumping them into the market? Mashable has a story summary with links to video of a man in Alabama with his hoverboard on fire. The government of New York City isn't so hot on hoverboards, either.
Hoverboards? What year is this?
These are those silly two-wheeled "segway with no handle" contraptions that are all the fad this year. Bought in by the container load from the Pearl River Delta for half nothing and sold in shops for £499 a pop.
I still don't get why they are called "hoverboards" when they are in constant contact with the ground?!
Here I was thinking 2015 had actually arrived and then I read TFA and found out its only those stupid handleless segways.
Let me guess. Made in China?
The BBC article on this subject makes clear that these are cheap, unbranded Chinese and East Asian knock-offs with a documented history demonstrating that they (and specifically their chargers) are a fire risk. That BBC piece really should have been TFA.
There are some oddities around these "hoverboards", in the UK, though. Specifically, it's illegal to operate one on either a public road or a pavement, meaning that they are legal only for use on private land. Technically, I think, the same is true of Segways.
Why not grab a shipment of Ford cars being brought into the country too. And how about them iPhones with pesky rare earth minerals extracted from war torn nations? And lets not forget DeBeer's stash of diamonds illegally exported from South Africa. We should take them as they have the potential to release CO2 into the atmosphere if they were super cooled and dropped into a vat of liquid oxygen!
Radio control enthusiasts have known those batteries are very sensitive for years. Don't over heat them and don't shock them. Between the lowest bidder manufacturing these things and the number of crashes that occur in use of the hoverboards, this was probably bound to happen.
Would governments ban hoverboards (or other fun yet somewhat less safe devices, like bicycles) if it was determined there were savings to be made to universal health plans? Does the public good of tax savings/resources outweigh individual choice of risks?
One of them caught fire while being recharged, ergo to save us from the danger these dangerous things are being confiscated at the border! And yet when an iPhone bursts into flames, nothing is done:
https://uk.news.yahoo.com/iphone-4-catches-fire-on-plane.html
Isn't it funny, that someone elected to be a leader is now the worst super nanny of all time?
"Specifically, it's illegal to operate one on either a public road or a pavement"
There is no law letting them ban import of these, they are perfectly legal for private roads and surfaces. What they're trying to do is find a way to ban them claiming unsafe chargers or non certified plugs.
But yet lots of devices are imported with a charger for a different market that is later adjusted for sale. The ban is on the sale not the import.
Uhh, because you didn't read TFA, it's like impounding a shipment of Ford knockoffs that don't have airbags and have steering gears that are likely to fail.
they clearly DONT hover.
Are we pushing hoverboard technology too far too quickly, or are there just a group of criminal sociopaths manufacturing unsafe devices at Christmastime and pumping them into the market?
It's the latter, obviously.
Unsafe charging has nothing to do with the, ahem, "hovering" technology.
systemd is Roko's Basilisk.
Hoverboard users running into me on the sidewalk will be balanced by watching them accidentally run into small bumps and fall flat on their stupid faces.
"Are we pushing hoverboard technology too far too quickly, or are there just a group of criminal sociopaths manufacturing unsafe devices at Christmastime and pumping them into the market?"
No, the answer is the third option: The nanny state is in full swing and needs to justify their existence.
You racist!
We also like Rugby, Cricket, tea and hobnobs.
I mean they paid for that product. If it retails for £499, then it's likely that each board cost them £400 or so to buy/make.
That makes for a £6,000,000 seizure of devices which really have no business being illegal. (I mean the Wright Flyer was not exactly safe either - Imagine if we had the government seizing those sorts of things...)
There are 'manufacturers' (using the term very loosely here) in China and other Asian countries, who produce whatever cheap shitty garbage they can, and sell it to the West. There's little to no quality control of any kind, and they really don't give a damn about the consequences, they only care about profit.
Are YOU using the TOOL, or is the TOOL using YOU? Think about it!
Seriously? The author is literally frothing at the mouth in that one.
Couldn't you find something more objective? This is supposed to be journalism.
They're not knockoffs, there is no complaint of IP rights infringement against these hoverboards there is no "branded" device you speak of that they are knock offs for.
What they're doing is trying to find excuses to seize them, but its pure nanny state, the law doesn't let them seize stuff that MIGHT be used illegally on a road.
"They don't meet UK electrical safety rules, so they are seized and destroyed"
No, *some* of the charging cable doesn't meet the standards, and the charging cable can be seized and destroyed only if they can show it is shipped with the unit. Its very common to see goods imported and then modified for UK market compliance.
This is a full on nanny state ism.
My hoverboard is full of eels.
"The MonoRover's power adapter is legitimately scary."
Best Slashdot Co
There was actually a very timely Planet Money podcast on how the hoverboards were developed. Apparently the concept was created by a Chinese inventor who quickly lost control of the idea to the Shenzhen wild west where dozens of firms began creating variants of the hoverboard. Given the nature of how the product was introduced, through numerous companies with no clear originating firm, it's no surprise why you have so many quality control issues without a single manufacturer that has a "brand" on these hoverboards they're trying to maintain.
"Are we pushing hoverboard technology too far too quickly,"
It's going to be Jarts again for Christmas.
Have gnu, will travel.
BBC One's Watchdog episode on later today has a segment on so called "hover boards".
Why can't we just call these rollerboards? And while you're at it stop calling quad-copters drones.
Please stop. PLEASE
.
These are silly two-wheeled "segway with no handle" contraptions, not hoverboards. Not even close.
PPN
I am still waiting for my self drying jacket and self lacing shoes.
Jesus was a compassionate social conservative who called individuals to sin no more.
They are for idiots, be thankful you no longer have to guess who is the douche, you can tell right away by the wheels under their feet and the Apple watch on their wrist.
You thought multirotors ("drones") were the threat? Think again; as you are far more likely to be injured by an idiot on one of these than by a multirotor.
"If any question why we died, Tell them because our fathers lied."
NYC is infamous for things like cops running out into the street and attacking cyclists, or parking their cruisers in bike lanes and then ticketing cyclists for not riding in the bike lane.
Despite the public outcry and idiocy of that, were up to the same thing the next year.
And then the year after that...
Please help metamoderate.
I got a Pitbull, now!
If you want something n00b-friendly then you need a control stalk like the Segway has. These "hoverboard" devices on the other hand require skill and practice. The simple fact is, you would be better off with an electric skateboard which can be the same size but has a more reliable steering mechanism and the whole mechanics are way simpler, more efficient (much longer range), and more reliable.
I honestly don't understand why there isn't a "mini" segway clone that is the size of these "hoverboards" except with a segway-like control stalk that could be folded up. No need for the complicated dual foot steering/balancing mechanism. It would be a much simpler design both in control and mechanically. The fact that I have to point this out proves that most of these clone makers have no innovation skill whatsoever. There is actually some good innovative work being done in China, but these "hoverboards" are not it... Not at all.
It came in the mail yesterday, direct from China. I tested it last night, seems to work fine. Haven't charged it yet, it was already charged up when I unboxed it.
Mine is the larger 8-inch second generation unit with the Bluetooth connection. This type: http://g02.s.alicdn.com/kf/HTB...
According to the info I just gleaned from this thread, the device itself is fine and it's a defective charger that could cause a fire, specifically the power cut-off that detects a fully charged battery and automatically stops delivering juice to the battery.... this feature could be non-functional. So my plan for tonight is:
-Test charge the unit for the first time, keeping it and the charger in a relatively safe area in case of a fire, and keeping a fire extinguisher on hand.
-According to the (very poorly written, in broken English) manual, a normal charging cycle takes about 2-3 hours. So make sure to always manually disconnect the charger after 2 hours and not rely on the auto power cutoff.
Lucky I didn't have time to play around with the thing more yesterday, if I did then I would've probably left it charging overnight. Also lucky I came across this information literally hours after I took delivery of the device.
And buttfucking kids. England only exports two things: shit and lineys. But I'm repeating myself.
Didn't stop people described as "aviation hobbyists" from building and using them.
Lots of people did lots of unsafe things in those.
And now they're safer than cars.
-- Tigger warning: This post may contain tiggers! --
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The old 3-prong standard where the neutral doubled as safety ground, and the newer 4-prong standard that separates out safety ground from the neutral conductor.
In Canada new appliances generally come with the 4-prong plug attached, and if you have an old house you replace the cord with the older version.
a group of criminal sociopaths manufacturing unsafe devices at Christmastime
I believe they're called Chinese.
Twitter supports and protects racists - by smearing their critics with the "Hate Speech" label.
Your an idiot. No one cares, english is a living language..
For the last time, they're NOT GODDAMNED FUCKING HOVERBOARDS IF THEY DON'T ACTUALLY FUCKING HOVER!
They're sideways skateboards. Whoopidy fucking doo! Who gives a fuck? Riding one of there things doesn't make you a goddamned fucking douchefag-fucktard, they just make you LOOK like one. On the other hand, maybe I'm wrong. Maybe riding one DOES make you a goddamned fucking douchefag-fucktard. They go well with Google Glass and Bain masks.
Go buy a real skateboard, and actually skate, you bunch of shitheads. Or don't. It makes no difference, because being the kind of person who would ride one of these things is its own punishment.