Article on The Segway published in PC Live! in May 2010
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The idea of using a small, energy efficient vehicle in cities as an alternative to cars and buses was an attractive one. The Segway was created as an answer to this and, at the start of the decade, it was seen as the next big thing for transportation. Now, its prominence has waned, serving as a symbol for inventions of the new millennium that did not live up to the hype.
Initially given the code names ‘IT’ and ‘Ginger’, few details were revealed about renowned inventor Dean Kamen’s newest creation. He founded its production company in 1999 to develop a user-friendly, zero-emission mode of transport. Kamen’s previous successes, such as the auto-syringe and the IBOT, stimulated hype around this new project, which he claimed would change the way cities would be planned forever. The product was revealed in late 2001 on ABC’s ‘Good Morning America’. It was known as the Segway - a compact, two wheeled, electric vehicle, not unlike a scooter.
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A big feature of the vehicle was the ‘dynamic stabilisation’ technology. This allowed the Segway’s self balancing emulation to work with the user’s body movements. It used computer linked gyroscopes to monitor the rider’s centre of gravity about 100 times a second. As a result, the Segway was simple to use – the speed and direction was controlled by the user shifting their weight. It could travel up to 12 miles an hour, which, as Kamen stated, was faster than “the average speed of a taxicab in the 20 largest cities on the planet.” The vehicle could operate smoothly over gravel, grass, small obstacles and could even roll over toes without causing harm.
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With such hype built up, the Segway attracted a lot of attention. Popular Science Magazine awarded it with a 2002 Best of What’s New Award and the vehicle was lauded by technology industry giants, such as Amazon founder Jeff Bozos and Apple co-founder Steve Jobs. There have been numerous celebrity Segway sightings, featuring Jackie Chan, Helen Mirren and George W. Bush, who infamously fell off his. It received airtime in TV shows, including The Simpsons, Arrested Development and Frasier. With so many endorsements, it seemed like the Segway would be a runaway success.
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Not so, as it was mired by numerous obstacles. Many cities in America were initially reluctant to legalise Segway use, fearing it would cause obstructions on narrow paths and would be a danger to vulnerable pedestrians. The company had to work hard to challenge these bans and today, most of the US allow its use. Different vehicle classifications in other countries made the Segway a difficult device to legislate, such as Japan, which saw it as a motorcycle, making it unusable on paths.
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The media coverage it received, while certainly raised its profile, also hindered it’s image. Many shows portrayed it as something lazy people used because they didn’t feel like walking. The biggest drawback was its price, with it’s most basic unit costing over $5,000. By September 2006, only 23,500 had been sold, far from its target to sell 100,000 units in the first 13 months. This all lead up to early 2010, where the company was quietly sold to British millionaire Jimi Heselden.
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With claims that the Segway would revolutionise travel as we know it, it’s hard to disassociate it with failure, thanks to the small impact it made in the market. Perhaps the dream of this machine changing cities was an unrealistic goal that lead to its downfall. It still exists in niche markets, with many cities and theme parks offering tours using the vehicle.
