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Lime's new platform lets you rent other companies' e-scooters
Lime has launched a micromobility platform that lets you rent vehicles from other companies, starting with Wheels.
Bird releases more affordable, foldable Air electric scooter for $599
Bird has released the Air, a custom foldable e-scooter you can buy outright for a more affordable $599.
Bird offers teachers free rides for the start of the school year
Are you a teacher? Would you like to use an e-scooter for the month of September? Get in touch with Bird.
Shareable electric scooters will be trialed in the UK from July 4th
It's taken a while, but the UK is ready to embrace shareable electric scooter schemes. Until now, electric scooters have been classed as ‘motor vehicles’ by law. The UK, meanwhile, has barely dabbled with the technology.
The UK finally welcomes e-scooters
The UK government is finally embracing e-scooters.
Bird wants you to make purchases through its mobile app
E-scooter startup Bird has started testing a new in-app payments feature called Bird Pay. If you live in Santa Monica or Los Angeles, you can try it out at select businesses across the two cities. If you see a tablet like the one pictured above, you can pay for a purchase by opening the Bird app, scanning a QR code, entering the amount you owe and then swiping up to confirm the payment. It's not as straightforward of a solution as say Apple Pay, but it does bypass the need for an NFC terminal -- which businesses in the US have been slow to adopt.
Lime knows when you're riding its scooters on the sidewalk
Scooter sharing services have created headaches for pedestrians almost from the outset, including the tendency for renters to ride on the sidewalk. Lime may have a way to nudge riders back to the street, though. It just launched a pilot in downtown San José that uses accelerometer and speed data to detect when you're riding on the sidewalk. If AI determines that half or more of a ride took place on sidewalks, you'll get a push notification encouraging you to ride on the street the next time.
After Math: All the stuff that happened while we were at CES
Oh man, what a week it's been. Over the course of seven days (and nearly 80,000 steps by this reporter alone), the Engadget staff descended upon CES 2020 to bring you the biggest, best, weirdest and wildest trends in consumer electronics. But the rest of the world doesn't revolve around CES and plenty of news happened while we were scouring the show floor. Here are some of the top stories of the week from everywhere that isn't Las Vegas.
Lime exits 12 cities and lays off 100 employees in search of profit
In its ongoing quest to become profitable, Lime says it will exit 12 markets across the globe. In the US, the company will shutter operations in four cities: Atlanta, Phoenix, San Diego and San Antonio. It will also leave Linz, Austria, as well as Bogotá, Buenos Aires, Montevideo, Lima, Puerto Vallarta, Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo in Latin America.
E-scooter injuries quadrupled in four years
It probably won't shock you to hear that the rise of e-scooters and their matching services has led to more injuries, but researchers now have some more tangible proof. A UCSF study indicates that electric scooter-related injuries in the US jumped 222 percent between 2014 and 2018, with over 39,000 people hurting themselves. There were 'only' about 3,300 hospital admissions, but that's an increase of a staggering 365 percent. Most first-time injuries came to the 18-to-34 crowd. And yes, the lack of helmets was a problem -- almost a third of injuries involved some kind of head trauma.
Yamaha's latest EV concepts include two city scooters
Yamaha clearly wants to make a name for itself in electric two-wheelers. It's coming to the Tokyo Motorshow on October 24th with four brand new EV concepts, three of which are built for intercity jaunts. The centerpieces are the E01 (pictured at left) and E02 (right) urban scooters. The E01 is equivalent to a 125cc gas-powered machine and is meant to be larger and comfier than your typical scooter to help with longer trips. It accordingly touts "plenty of range," although Yamaha hasn't said what that would be. The E02, meanwhile, is a 50cc-equivalent scooter with a compact body and a removable battery. It's more for weaving through dense downtown areas than cross-town journeys.
Hyundai's electric scooter prototype is built for 'last mile' rides
Hyundai teased prospects of its own electric scooter back at CES 2017, but it's now showing that it's much more committed to the concept in 2019. The automaker has unveiled a foldable e-scooter prototype intended for "last mile" rides when a car is impractical. It would perform about as well as Audi's E-Tron Scooter with a 12.4-mile range and a 12.4MPH top speed, but it's explicitly designed to integrate with Hyundai and Kia cars. You could even mount it in an EV and recharge through electricity produced while driving.
Google Maps gives you more ways to find Lime scooters
Google Maps is making it easier to find a Lime bike or scooter on your own terms. As of today, the Android version of Google's app (iOS is due in the "coming weeks") can help you find Lime rides in the cycling and walking tabs, not just transit -- helpful if your leisurely stroll to work suddenly becomes much more urgent. You'll get detailed info like the time to walk to a scooter, the estimated ride cost, battery range and the all-important ETA. On-foot travelers will receive suggestions for Lime rides as an alternative when it's viable.
Audi's E-Tron Scooter is a skateboard with a handle
If Audi's E-Tron SUV is too big or pricey for you, don't worry... the company has something decidedly more accessible (and possibly fun) in store. It just unveiled an E-Tron Scooter meant to serve "multi-modal" travelers who only rarely hop into cars, if at all. You won't confuse this with any other electric commuting machine, though. While the e-tron has the profile of a scooter, you ride it like a skateboard by shifting your weight. Yes, it's a scooter you can carve. And when it only needs one hand, your other hand is free to signal or hold on to a shopping bag.
Bird's latest rideshare scooter is designed to thwart vandals
Rideshare scooters are designed to be a quick and convenient way to get around town, but because we're not allowed to have nice things, many are falling foul of damage and vandalism -- there's even an entire Instagram account dedicated to trashing them. But Bird is taking a stand, and has unveiled its next generation e-scooter that boasts an arsenal of anti-vandalism features.
Spin's revamped e-scooters are coming to eight US cities
Spin, the e-scooter startup acquired by Ford, is rolling out its redesigned electric scooters and bringing them to more cities across the US. The new scooters have a larger frame with a wider and longer platform. They come with bigger, tubeless tires for better shock absorption, more intuitive bike-handle braking, a boosted rear drive for improved acceleration and security screws meant to cut down on tampering and vandalism. And with an extended battery life, they should travel up to 37.5 miles on a full charge.
Lime expands scooter reservations to the US
Scooter services have their share of issues, but Lime will at least make sure there's a scooter to use in the first place. In the wake of a limited release in three countries, Lime has made scooter reservations available in the US ahead of an international rollout later in the week. If you know you'll need a two-wheeler in the next 15 minutes, you can book one through the app instead of hoping that it'll still be around when you're ready to ride. You can still grab another scooter if it's more convenient, of course -- it'll just release the scooter you'd reserved.
New York set to legalize e-scooters and e-bikes
New York lawmakers look set to legalize electric scooter and bike sharing services throughout the state. A vote on a Senate bill is likely to take place Wednesday, just before the end of the legislative session. Since Governor Andrew Cuomo seems to support the legalization of electric scooters and bikes, the bill looks likely to come into effect.
Lyft built a scooter for sharing that's tougher and more comfortable
Lyft is the next big scooter sharing service to unveil a two-wheeler that's better at enduring real-world abuse. Its new model touts a "more durable build" that stands a greater chance of surviving the outdoors. Your ride should be less jarring, for that matter, with a 20 percent wider base, thicker air-filled wheels (which are 'finally' Lyft pink), a base-integrated battery that should refine the balance, and a kickstand at the front.
Bird's purchase of Scoot lets it back into San Francisco
You knew it was just a matter of time before there was further consolidation in the e-scooter world. Bird is acquiring Scoot in a move that both describe as a matter of "scale" -- that is, it'll help them take on heavyweight rivals like Lime. Scoot will continue to operate under its own name as a subsidiary of Bird. It's not certain how much Bird paid for the deal, but TechCrunch noted that Scoot was valued at $71 million.
