Category: Personal Transportation

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Personal Transportation

Reincarnate reimagines the skateboard as an asphalt snowboard

Born in the empty pools under the baking Californian sun, skateboards have taken up residence as one of the foremost symbols of American pop culture and can be seen everywhere. Things like this gain a hallowed status, and because of that, nothing about their design changes much, limiting other possibilities that involve a board and four wheels.

patent-claimedUnless, of course, you add two more wheels, which is exactly what the Reincarnate does. Two caster wheels underneath the board rotate 360º, allowing the board to act more like a snowboard on asphalt. Maneuvers like making full spins and laterally carving the streets give the act of skateboarding a completely new dimension. It achieves this by including a split truck design that lets riders lean both left and right while still having all six wheels on the ground, something a similar product, the Freebord, can’t do.

Reincarnate is a neat take on the timeless skateboard design, and one that should catch the attention skaters looking for a different experience. Those looking for something a bit more futuristic can look toward Marbel or OneWheel.

The $120,000 campaign is offering the split trucks for installation on an existing skateboard for $220, while a full Reincarnate board is available for $430. Backers can expect either in February of this year.

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Cycling Personal Transportation

Affordable Storm roars onto the electric bike scene

Electric bikes come in many flavors, offering a wide variety of options for anyone looking to shorten their commute, save some energy, or simply enjoy the thrill. Unfortunately, their one commonality is their pumped up price, something no one can get excited about.

Touted as the world’s most affordable electric bicycle, the Storm E-Bike‘s $1,299 price point does undercut many similarly performing e-bikes, and does so while outperforming them, too. The Storm boasts a 350W geared drive motor capable of reaching a top speed of 20MPH, and a lithium-ion battery capable of being recharged in just 90 minutes and offering anywhere from 25-50 miles on a single charge. This combination is a powerful one, offering riders a zippy ride augmented with all-terrain tires and a water resistant frame so that nowhere is off-limits. The $75,000 campaign is offering the Storm for just $599, which is 53% off the retail price. It’s expected to ship in May of this year.

Glaring negatives include its hefty weight (anywhere from 45-55lbs) and lack of regenerative braking, a small addition that would have made a world of difference. All in all, the Storm E-Bike is looking to truly storm the scene. At its price point, it should appeal to everyone from commuters to outdoor enthusiasts who love a motor-assisted ride.

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Personal Transportation

Pack your bags and get moving with the Coolpeds Solar Electric Scooter

Everyone knows how brutal those mile long treks can be to and from work. A comparable experience is trudging through the vast innards of most airports to the gate which is inevitably on the other side of the entrance. No one likes it, but still it must be done. No one says it can’t be made easier, though.

The Coolpeds Solar Electric Scooter is looking to make it easier to think about the long distances required when simply getting to work or traveling. The scooter combines an eco-friendly transportation option with the storage potential of a small piece of carry-on luggage. A compact brushless motor hub does the work in getting users places, while a USB port charges a wide-variety of common devices people use everyday, all while weighing in at a sprite 7kg. It just takes about three hours to fully charge, so users might be waiting around for a bit.

The Impossible Bike does a better job at the scooter part of the equation without any storage to speak of. In any case, the Coolpeds scooter is going for $399, $200 off its eventual retail price. The $59,000 Indiegogo campaign is looking to have the product shipped by April 2015.

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Personal Transportation

Wind Wheels personal skates concept is a bunch of hot air

Every person at one point wishes they could bust out a bike from a handheld box or a pair of skates from within their shoes to make the last 10 minutes of their commute more bearable. Although there are some ideas up in the air, nothing can get higher than the Wind Wheels.

The product idea is essentially a pair of skates attached to a user’s legs that can be accessed whenever needed. It works with a piston-like mechanism that will disengage and lower a pair of wheels and pedals to step on. Currently, however, all that’s available is a video showing a very crude prototype. Imagination is in full-throttle here, so potential backers have to do the heavy lifting themselves.

Although the idea in theory sounds awesome, its doubtful it will actually end up being as slim as something like this needs to realistically be. Plunking down $500 for an idea expected to be due in June of 2016 seems foolhardy at best, so trying to raise $18,000 will be a Herculean feat.

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Personal Transportation

Streamline your daily schlep with Haul-a-Day lightweight cargo bike

Biking has experienced a renaissance over the last decade and really taken hold as the primary mode of transportation in cities across the United States. Unfortunately, the market has skewed towards performance bikes and cruisers that offer effective transportation but without the carrying capacity people would need to be able to use it exclusively. Cargo bikes are available for those who are looking for that utility, but they’re heavy and have strong riders in mind.

Bike Friday’s Haul-a-Day is a reimagined type of cargo bike, one that can carry anywhere from 200 to 300 pounds while still being adjustable to fit riders 4’6″ to 6’4″ tall. The bike weighs in at 32 pounds, a light weight that aids its agility and allows any type of rider to effectively carry around anything they’d need, including other family members! The team at Bike Friday wants to empower anybody to live a bike-focused lifestyle with a variety of attachments that can change its utility based on a user’s needs, and their $45,000 campaign is looking to add other rider-friendly capabilities like electric assist. The standard eight gear Haul-a-Day goes for $999 while the deluxe, 24 gear version goes for $1,699, both of which are expected to be delivered in July 2015.

The Haul-a-Day improves on competing cargo bikes by offering something much lighter and versatile. Its premium price is justified as it’s meant to be used as a daily vehicle, but one problem Bike Friday doesn’t address is inclement weather, one of the last big issues for those who want to do so. In any case, the team address lots of other, more pertinent problems so their Haul-a-Day warrants support.

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Personal Transportation

Impossible folding e-bike perfects the art of origami transportation

For the most part, electric bikes look like something out of Mad Max. In some cases, you’ll come across something that is a bit sleeker than others, but at the end of the day it’ll still weigh a ton. These characteristics don’t really make e-bikes the best solution for last mile transportation, especially because fitting a bike onto a train during rush hour simply can’t happen.

With their Impossible folding electric bike, Impossible Technology is offering an answer to those who truly want a portable solution to their transportation needs. The bike’s extreme minimalism allows it to fold up into its own 17 inch seat, allowing users to easily transport it in a duffel or book bag and making it the first bike to be so extremely portable. Don’t let its flexibility fool you: the bike can carry up to 180 pounds and since it’s electric, it can be charged anywhere there is an outlet. Its ten 2900mAh batteries can be charged in one and a half hours, and supports a top speed of 12.4mph for 45 minutes. Despite its name, it isn’t so hard to get one of your own. An Impossible bike is going for $530 CAD (~$467 USD) with an estimated delivery date of August 2015. The campaign’s funding goal is $55,000 CAD (~$44,060 USD).

The Impossible is a marvel. Its level of portability is unlike anything really done before, and marks a true shift in what is possible with transportation. This advance comes with a caveat in that there are no pedals to manually move around if the battery were to die, so be ready to tack on some more battery anxiety along with our other devices. Indeed, there are obvious trade-offs to an invention like this, but ultimately they’re necessary. If manufacturing goes as smoothly as Impossible Technology hopes, you’ll no doubt see a lot of these in many big cities.

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Personal Transportation

Pigeon folding scooter rests on your shoulder

There’s always a caveat to the type of transportation you choose to reduce the length of your commute. With a car, there’s inevitably traffic. Most people opt for public transport to avoid this, but the problem lies in most stops not being close to home. You could cut down walk time by riding an electric scooter there, but then you’re forced to leave it. Likewise, bicycles make you the target of combined commuter hatred at the height of rush hour. Push scooters offer a great balance between the two, but can weigh a lot. PIGEON is a foldable push scooter designed to improve your commute. Consisting of just three parts made from aluminum and wood, the PIGEON can be folded into a thin profile with a single foot press and slung over the shoulder. Even if the price is bit bloated considering the materials, the portability of this product separates it from others like the ion Smartscooter or the Me-Mover that may offer the same, but still weigh a ton while doing so. Backers can expect their own in May 2015 for £135 (~$216). PIGEON hopes to raise a modest £2,000 (~$3,200) on Kickstarter.

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Personal Transportation

Atlas Throttle lock works like a pen for motorcycle cruise control

Long motorcycle trips are cumbersome mainly because riders have to keep up the throttle so that they can accelerate to their desired speed. Aftermarket solutions, like throttle locks and cruise control systems, are available to deal with this issue but most work with only very specific models of motorcycle, require drilling or other custom fabrication to install, and are ultimately awkward to use. In addition, since the installation is permanent, it’s lost when the bike is sold.

Inspired by his difficulties during a 28 country motorcycle tour, inventor David Winters created the ATLAS Throttle Lock. This product addresses the awkwardness of other throttle locks by being as thin as two bank cards while still being able to be used with a wide range of handle grips. (There’s a 100% money back guarantee included with the product if it doesn’t fit.) With a single, comfortable button press, riders can engage ATLAS and quickly disengage it with another button press or by rotating the accelerator. All these points add promise to the product provided it will hold up over time, an aspect in question with its thin design. An early bird special shaves $64 off the retail price; interested backers can grab one and help this campaign reach its funding goal of $11,200.

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Personal Transportation

Ion Smartscooter looks like non-electric models, gets you on your way

The last miles of any commute are some of the most painful. Who wants to walk twenty minutes at the very beginning of the day or after having worked eight hours every day? Although there are some solutions, bikes and scooters are either too bulky to transport easily or too dirty in terms of fuel.

Probity Cell LLC has created the ion SmartScooter as a low-cost, clean alternative that will get you where you need to go, fast. It’s top speed of 15mph is powered by a lithium-ion battery that charges in three and a half hours and lasts for more than 1,000 cycles, ensuring a long and sustainable life. In addition, its foldable nature makes it so that it can be more easily transported than a bike, especially because it only weighs 26 pounds. The ion SmartScooter joins scads of other personal transportation devices like the Me-Mover and Halfbike.

The company is starting off slow with just two production runs, but they want to minimize any issues through their Kickstarter campaign. They were aiming for a modest $40,000 to do so, a goal that has shown interest by many. If they’re able to back up their claim of squeezing 500 miles out of the scooter for less than a dollar’s worth of electricity, they’ll be able to convince many more to grab one of their own for the introductory price of $399.

 

 

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Food and Beverage Personal Transportation

Kreweser is one cooler that’s a wild ride

KreweserCoolers are heavy and can be a pain to lug around. Kreweser doesn’t only make the cooler more portable, it also lugs you around as well. As a combination cooler and electric trike, Kreweser lets you sit on the cooler and zip around at speeds up to 18mph. When the cooler is removed, the trike folds up for better storage. While a really cool, ha!, idea and great for pavement, Kreweser won’t really work on sand or rough terrain, where coolers are typically needed. One will cost backers a staggering $749 donation. Kreweser hopes to raise $90,000 on Kickstarter.