Is it an electric self-balancing scooter or is it a two-wheel standing skateboard or hover-board? Who cares, they are super fun even though nobody has officially given them a name that will stick. Scary stuff!

To be honest, there isn’t actually a word for these things yet – maybe because electric self-balancing scooter or two-wheel standing skateboard or “hover-board” (it’s not, don’t get excited) is the worst description ever, but if you’ve been on the Internet or out and about at malls in the past few months, you know these self-balancing “hover-board” hyped skateboards are the new thing.

The basic description is that it’s two wheels and you balance on top, and it helps you by self balancing like a Segway. It accelerates in the direction the deck is leaning.

There are some subtle differences between these battery-powered “cyber boards”, what you’ve seen as a hoverboard and a Segway, notably that each wheel is on an independent platform, allowing you to do an in-place 360 by tilting one side toe-side and one side heel-side.

Seeing how many celebrities are hopping on these electric super boards means they have to be cool, right?

Even little children are using them – how cool is that! Walking the dog without actually exercising, who would have thought. We wonder if they have texting cruise control built in yet?

We have a feeling these will be cooler than tight jeans…

Okay, maybe not!

But surely there have to be bad things about them, right?

Cracks and bumps are no joke on these things, as are slopes and hills. These are perfect for skaters though, as they already know all the best lines through town. Unfortunately, your non-skater friends may need a guide and slow you down from your electric skateboard shred sessions.

The big question in SA is: Are they street legal?

According to RTI’s Dave Steele, the simple answer is “No!” While pavement riding will get you stern looks from traffic police, once they hit the road surface, you are breaking the law.

Some material sourced from HERE

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