Yikebike: the Sitting Man’S Segway
October 28th, 2009
The YikeBike is a new electric transport vehicle coming from New Zealand. The compact personal transporter features an innovative design that can speed you along through city streets and country roads without ever requiring you to stand up.
The sit-down electric YikeBike tops out at 20km/hr (appx. 12 MPH). An electric chainless drive powers the bike up to 10 kilometers (appx. 6 miles) on a quick 30 minute charge. While that’s not a ton of range, it’s certainly enough for most urban commuters to get to and from work. It’s also great for short haul travel from public transportation sites like trains and buses.
And thanks to an innovative lightweight folding carbon composite frame, you can carry the YikeBike up to your office during the day for a recharge (and to protect it from theft on the street). The whole thing weighs just 9.8 kg (appx. 21 lbs.) which means it won’t break your back carrying it around either.
If you can get past the annoying song in this commercial, the YikeBike actually looks pretty cool…
Here’s a better (and far less irritating) video that shows off the YikeBike being put through its paces on a variety of challenging terrains. It’s surprisingly agile, given its unassuming looks.
Expect the YikeBike to start shipping sometime in 2010. Final pricing hasn’t been set yet, but it’s likely to run between €3500 and €3900 (appx. $5180 to $5772 USD). You can reserve one now with a €100 (appx. $148 USD) deposit here.
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Categories: Cool Toys Future Tech Strange + Wonderful Technology
Tags: eco-conscious electric energy efficient new zealand seat segway transportation vehicle wheel yikebike
I don’t know about the price, and I think you’d still get pretty wet going through puddles (otherwise looks pretty good).
It makes only 20 km/h. so it is slow…
The cost is to high in order to compete with the Segway, it needs to sale for $1500 American.
But the Segway is around $5000 to $7000 USD, so this isn’t that much different in price.