Why did the Segway never become ubiquitous like bikes and motorcycles?

I loved the documentary with Dean Kaman and his inventors lab. He’s an extraordinarily talented guy and he made his first fortune building medical IV technology in his basement. The biggest problem with the Segway is that it was built so well that customers rarely had a need to replace it:

“Judy Cai, president of Segway, suggests that Segway’s engineering is partly to blame. The PT is engineered with several redundant systems to keep it operational even if some components fail—which is good for users, but not the bottom line of a company that needs to sell new units year after year.”

“‘We tried analyzing, how come sales cannot go up quickly? One reason, I hate to say, is the quality of it, how durable it is,’ Cai says. ‘I talk to customers riding [an old] unit. It doesn’t look good because it’s been on the road 12 years. It has 100,000 miles on it. But the machine itself runs very well. And so when you try to sell new units [to those customers] . . . unfortunately, it does hurt us.’”

Good for the environment, bad for business. What’s the ethical position for planned obsolescence? Cheaper production costs and pricing equals more accessible to the general public?

Further reading

Exclusive: Segway, the most hyped invention since the Macintosh, ends productionThe Segway brand will no longer make its two-wheeled, self-balancing namesake.www.fastcompany.com

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SlingShot (2014) - IMDbDirected by Paul Lazarus. With Dean Kamen. SlingShot focuses on noted Segway inventor Dean Kamen and his work to solve the world's water crisis. An eccentric genius with a provocative world view, Kamen is an inspiration for future scientists. His inventions help people in need and ease suffering.m.imdb.com

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They didn't fail because their product was too good. They have failed because they lacked vision or a way to sell a vision and their product is too complicated/expensive. What if they had chosen to be like Lime or Bird with their scooters? Or another anology would be how we can forsee Tesla having a fleet of cars they own, and a fleet that is privately owned but loaned out for rides. Segway could have done something similar. I also think that Segway is a very expensive and complicated piece of machinery. A scooter is cheap, anyone can ride it and the company doesn't go bankrupt when people steal them or throw them in the river. It's certainly a problem when your product is vandilized and/or stolen but keeping the cost relatively low ensures it won't put you out of business. Segeways were too expensive. I guess I could add that it's not a glowing recommendation when the creater of the product backs it over a cliff and dies as a result. Can't see that happening with a scooter.

They have failed because they lacked vision or a way to sell a vision and their product is too complicated/expensive.

Indeed. I liked Segway, but could not figure how/where to use it. Big city like New York? Too unsafe. City like San Francisco? Too hilly. Suburbs? Too boring and slow. Riding 25 miles to work? No way, and there are no dedicated lanes. The future city has not been built yet. If anything, we were closer to it a hundred years ago.

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I find the ads for the Onewheel intriguing because it can go many places: on grass, up steep inclines, on the street. It’s comparable to an electric skateboard, I think, and I don’t imagine you’d want to go faster than the 20 mph top speed. Plus, unlike a Segway, you could carry it when you got to work and then toss it in a corner of your office/cubicle.

Further reading

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Who is buying a 1-wheel electric motorcycle?!I saw someone climb on one of these and zip away, and I thought oh man. Want! I checked on eBay and there are a few brands for sale like this one for around $1,700. That's actually what I paid for ...www.cake.co

I think to be truly used on a large scale you need something that can be used by older people whose balance and reflexes aren’t as sharp as they one even were. I agree with your comments but can’t see it being used on a large scale.