Segway sales hit all time high, thanks OPEC!
By Darren Murph 
posted June 16th 2008 8:54AM
posted June 16th 2008 8:54AM
posted June 16th 2008 8:54AM
A look back on popular stories from today in a specific year.
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Damn, I want a pizza now.
I think the real problem with segways is that it covers a market that can be covered by trainers, trainers costing a thirtieth of the price however.
Not to mention that trainers are better for you due to the exercise, plus you draw less attention to yourself and avoid criticism. Lastly, you don't have to find a place to put your trainers and you don't have to worry them being stolen.
If you could give me either an affordable segway, a segway thats more appealing to the young crowd (such as myself), or a segway that gives me some sort of exercise somehow (yes, bicycles do exist, though some migration of the two might be an idea), you may have yourself another customer. The way I see it though, there are just too many reasons not to buy one at the moment.
What happened to walking> It is faster
Karen Fabbrini
LOL! Yes, walking 17 miles to work @ average 3MPH on 90+ degree weather. "Yes sir, I know I stink and am late, but I deserve that raise, right?"
Bottom line - these devices DO have a place - congested cities. Living in DC is nearly unbearable if all you have is a car (30min to go 2miles just isn't worth it). And this is the only device that is LEGAL on sidewalks/path systems - a scooter is regulated for the congested aggressive-driver-laden streets only
I have personally put over 15k miles on my Segway in the last 2years. The point that people such as yourself are missing is that this ISN'T a substitute for WALKING. As clearly seen by sales figures, it is a replacement for DRIVING. And quite honestly which is lazier - sitting in a car eating one's McGriddle and Hashbrown or standing up for several miles maneuvering though the city?
"(30min to go 2miles just isn't worth it)"
Why would you take the car to only go two miles anyway?
Unless, obviously, you're disabled or some similar thing.
Who are all these magical FitnessPeople (TM) who have infinite time and don't bat an eye at walking two miles to the grocery store?
You obviously have no idea what you're talking about!
I bought a scooter, 80MPG and while it is a scooter it looks better than a Segway.
I thought it was practically illegal to ride anywhere in public. I've seen law enforcement agencies and campus security riding them, but the Segway doesn't seem to fit anywhere for general transportation. It seems as though there was a conspiracy to prevent it's use by the general public. Segways do appear to rather vulnerable to other vehicles, including bikes. Very little protection offerered front and rear on standard models. No crumple zones.
BAM! 3RD WHEEL!
http://maddox.xmission.com/c.cgi?u=segway_more_complicated_than_it_needs_to_be
There's a reason there are no successful three-wheel segway clones on the market. Without the auto-balancing systems, you'd need a really long footprint like a scooter to prevent you from flipping over when you came to a sudden stop after going 12 mph.
mmm....alternatives and the glory of the price system.
Well, for those who commutes 17 miles to work or those who are unable to walk, ignore my comment
Humans were born with legs and it is free, low maintenance, easy to use, convenient, doesn't take up much space, and free from style-related drawbacks and generalisations. What's more, it'll even stop the world from becoming fatter if more people cared to move by themselves a little more
I don't see any laughable design on that, plus I don't think that riding it makes you look like an idiot. In my opinion a guy riding and 'sitting' on those cult motorbikes with unuseful long high handles, those look very idiot to me. I'm quiet happy to see always more 'green' and silent segways here in Italy and maybe one day I can afford buying one.
I'm liking the "Thanks OPEC!" title, as if OPEC is responsible for our rising gas prices. The majority of people believed that nonsense about a year ago when Bill O'Reilly and the rest of the media were going on their OPEC-is-gouging-us rampage, but that crowd has dwindled to around 24% (as of the latest polls) since people started figuring out that there are other countries outside of the US who use oil too.
Apparently Engadget is about a year behind the times, still remaining a market-forces-are-at-work denier.
A more appropriate title would be "Segway sales hit all time high, thanks Congress!"
For your viewing pleasure...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hc_YsXuYIlc
When I was in school, campus security used as SUV in the winter and golf cards in the spring/fall. When it rained, you could put a cover over it and still drive it without getting wet unless you were in a storm. Worked out quite well with the golf cart...it's really quiet for use at night, easy to get in and out of, and has no learning curve if you can already drive a car.
Golf carts work well on a campus (although the "dork" factor is probably as high or higher than a Segway). They can shield you from the rain, they're easy to drive (as you say), and they carry a LOT more stuff than a Segway, including extra people. For this application they work great. The smaller editions even work well inside large malls.
You can't take 'em out of the area, though, since they don't work on public streets and sidewalks, but for many places this is a non-issue. I can't take one to work, though.
When the main article says "we" that would be an editorial "we." There's one (1) guy at Engadget who doesn't like Segways. 50% increase per year in a period of soaring gas prices sort of tells its own story.
Engadget can't be on the money on all things tech. Looks like maybe they're out of it here.
Yes, but what does this have to do with the iPhone 3G??
*(Just kidding, it just needed to be said)*
Laughable design? Really? Huh.
It's only a "laughable design" because the pretentious snob who wrote it can't afford it.
And all these people whining how "it would make me look like an idiot if I rode one" I got news for you brother, you already look like an idiot. A Segway isn't the factor. If you were ripped and dressed nice like me it wouldn't matter what you rode.
I'm thinking about getting one of these for commuting. Right now I spend about 3800 bucks a year in gas. I think I can cut that down to about 1200 bucks if I use this device and use the car during the days where the weather doesn't permit. Of course I could ride or walk to work but that's 6 miles. Riding a bike might be fast but we don't have shower facilities at the office. Richmond VA heat and humidity might just make this impossible. Walking would take longer and have the same sweaty ending. Using a moped/scooter is probably half the cost but I will still need to fill it up, get insurance, get license plates, tags, find a place to park it where it won't get stolen. Segway, 17mph, would get me to work in around 30 minutes. Wouldn't have to fill it up, just plug it in and it will fit in my cubicle. Now it may look silly, but no much more than riding a scooter.
For the people who say "Why don't you just walk". You have either never walked more than 5 miles or your don't get the concept of commuting to work in a timely manner. Now we all know that walking helps you excersice, this isn't a discussion in exercise it's a discussion in a daily commute to and from a place of business further than one can walk within 30 minutes. When the headline reads, people using segways in place of excercise then you can have your little rants about how they should ride a bike, row a boat, or walk.
i still like the idea of a skateboard or longboard its quite nice it just doesn't like railroad tracks and rocks. i use it to get to school everyday it doesn't rain, and i just carry it with me. works out great and takes me 5 minutes to get to campus where walking would take me 10.
All of the detractors of the Segway have no clue! Your opinion of how I look riding a Segway doesn't matter to me. The fact that every year, I'm NOT buying 100 gallons of fuel that would otherwise be wasted on local trips does matter to me.
Ten cents gets me twenty miles! How far will ten cents take you in your car?
You see the Segway isn't exercise, that's why I walk, ride a bike or go to the gym. I use my Segway instead of, or in addition to my car.
Here's some real information for you:
http://www.ted.com/talks/view/id/9
Open your mind, not your mouth!
The Segway is an ALTERNATIVE form of transportation, and a choice I'm glad I have. Besides, it's fun as hell to ride!
I owned a Segway and put 1200 miles commuting to work absolutely great fun. Once I changed jobs, it was no longer being used and thus no longer practical. Segway customer service absolutely sucks with two+ month delays waiting for repairs "normal". The current I2 bug is wheel wobble - normal use can introduce wheel wobbles and wheel bounces which at 12mph feel like you are riding on a pogo stick. Battery issues are a less common problem but can be expensive to resolve. I'm waiting for i3 to resolve the wheel wobble issue and hopefully more reliable battery technology and even then, I would need to be able to ride it during the week before I spent my $5K again.
The ting I dislike most about Segway is that they pretty much locked up the patents on this type of device when a good dose of competition would help improve the technology and lower the price.
Awesome...just like Gob from Arrested Development!
While I don't own one of these, and probably never will, it's remarkable how people label Segways as "expensive". They cost as much as (if not less than) a Vespa or comparable scooter, yet do not require licensing or registration and cannot be given parking tickets or moving violations. If someone is considering a scooter, I can see why they'd opt for a Segway instead!
Seriously people, just start to think about alternative ways of energy. Like water for example. Many people already converted their cars to run on water. Check out http://convertcartorunonwater.info for more info.
I live in a rural crossroad community in VA. My wife has MS. Before the diagnosis (12 years ago) she was passionate about hiking and being outdoors. She hated having to get in the car to go to the Post Office or the local store. An off-road model allows her to get to those places as well as on trails in Shenandoah National Park and through fields and woods nearby. The Segway has been transformative and has reopened a part of the world she thought she lost. We are blue-collar and this purchase was not whimsical, We love Segway. So dis me, you arrogant db's.
The Segway was the subject of so much hype at release. Whether this came from Segway itself or other sources (or both) I suppose is debatable, but the fact is it was hyped to the sky.
Nobody here is doubting it has its uses (at least I think nobody is). But IMO (and I speak for nobody else), when something is overhyped some of that will come back and bite the company in the butt...and you will see articles like this written like this.
For entirely practical reasons (one of which is a lack of a seat, relatively short range of batteries, no option for human power, laws limiting where it can be ridden, etc) I think the Segway is a colossal failure, especially when compared to the hype it attracted. Now what you may call failure or success is debatable, but I call it "not living up to the hype" and (IMO, again) never being the transport for the masses it (presumably) was aiming to be.
Now if you were to ask me if I think it had its uses where it's perfect, I would say YES, but please god don't hype it as the transport revolution tree-hugging bong-smoking environmental revolution. Not directing this at you, but at people in general that think they are saving the world with this thing and that anyone that brings up failings is an automatic hater of the technology.
what I find odd is the unsusual amount of pro-Segway first-posters who defend the Segway and don't seem to have much of an interest in commenting on anything else. I won't mention names, but I seriously doubt some of these guys don't have vested interests. I'll leave it up to the reader to find them.
As far as looking odd or dorky, you could say the same about nearly any other form of transportation if you were seeing it for the first time and before it went mainstream, which the Segway will eventually. How about sliding down a hill with a couple of boards attached to your feet, or wearing brightly-colored, tight-fitting clothes, sitting on a post hunched over while wildly spinning your legs, or standing on a board with one foot while continually pushing off with the other, or walking funny with four small wheels on each shoe? All pretty dorky if you think about it.
On a Segway you're standing as though walking, but you're moving much more efficiently. Sure, the Segway is more sophisticated than any of the above examples, but that sophistication is what gives it the simplest user interface of any vehicle. Lean the direction you want to go. What could be easier or more elegant than that? Those of you that don't like the implementation must have something better in mind. I'd like to hear it.
I think that most of the people who make negative remarks about Segways don't want to admit that they want one themselves because they're either unable to afford one, afraid they'd be unable to handle the comments from others like themselves, or both.
I've been commuting for over five years on a Segway - well over 10,000 miles, and most people don't even notice me anymore. The few comments I get are of the 'cool' variety. Same thing when I ride my recumbent bike, which I use for long weekend trips.
If you feel less dorky sitting in a box, exposed to traffic jams, road rage, parking problems and high gas prices, while polluting the planet, that's your choice. Just don't call me names as I pass you by on my own little highway called the sidewalk, enjoying the fresh air and freedom, and saving a few bucks a day.