The holy grail of lightweight and electric personal transportation is still a long way off. Fortunately, crowdfunding websites like Kickstarter and Indiegogo are incubators of tomorrow’s designs, with many having been fully supported and brought to market — which means all these products should be overrunning the street, right? Well, not entirely. For a lot of people, price and size are still huge barriers making a truly affordable, lightweight electric vehicle something to be integrated into daily lifestyles.
Claiming to have developed the most lightweight and affordable option on the market, the Sondors THIN Electric Bike is now on Indiegogo. Coming in at just 38 pounds, the Sondors THIN features a Panasonic Single-Cell Battery — the same technology used in Tesla’s Model S — to power a 350W motor for a top speed of 20mph and max distance of 50 miles.
The lack of weight comes from the Sondors THIN’s 100% alumnium frame, a frame still strong enough to support up to 250 pounds. Each Sondors THIN comes in black or white and can be had for $499, to be shipped in May 2016. The $100,000 campaign is looking for enough funding by March 26th, 2016.
When compared to the Sondor’s original Storm, the Sondors THIN’s claim of most lightweight and affordable option on the market holds merit: the former weighs in anywhere between 45-55 pounds, while the later is just 38. Both lack regenerative braking, though, something that would have gone a long way to extending the ride. Overall, the Sondor THIN iterates on the idea of a light, cheap vehicle with far more utility then a product like the Me-Mover.