Boosted Boards
 

Okay, I admit that even I am getting a little bored with all these "Here's another weird thing that's vaguely similar to a Segway (but not really)" threads. But nonetheless, I have one more: the "Boosted Board:"

http://www.boostedboards.com

I guess I feel like this is still worth posting, mostly because I feel like spnKix were kind of a letdown. The stated incline and weight limits of spnKix are so low that, if they are true, they seem pretty worthless to me (although they may still be of value to other people).

So here's something that looks like it might be a bit better. What do you think?

I'm waiting for the hover board...should be out any time now...

"Pre-order now on Kickstarter"?

I have a bridge in Brooklyn that you might like to buy...

Kickstarter
 

Actually, Kickstarter is proving to be a very effective method of raising the necessary capital to get projects off the ground, and I know a few people who have contributed and had their 'reward' for their pledges.

I'm sure there must have been some scams on there, so of course it should always be 'buyer beware', but I think the community is pretty good at outing those that are shady. Added to that, Kickstarter has quite a good system in place for safeguarding people's funds (they act as a kind of escrow).

See http://www.kickstarter.com/start?ref=home_start for details of how it works.

Boosted Boards
 

Being an ex-skater, I must confess to being slightly excited about this project and it does look like they're doing everything right at the right sort of pace.

Technology has finally caught up with the 'dream' of an electric skateboard and it seems to be actually viable, if the videos are to be believed.

It's not the same as a Segway of course, and I can't really see a middle-aged portly gent in a business suit cruising down the street on a Boosted Board in the same way that I can picture him on a Segway - it somehow seems 'age inappropriate', as my kids would say :D

Using Kickstarter as a means of judging the project's viability (and product's saleability) is a good idea as it means that if the orders are not forthcoming and they don't meet their target, then the project doesn't go ahead and people get their money back.

That said, I've just checked, and they have already gotten 405% of the funding they asked for, so I guess this one is a 'go' :thumbsup:
Not bad seeing as the project only went live less than 3 weeks ago!

Not sure I would rely on a Boosted Board for a regular commute if the weather is not guaranteed though, as the rain will ruin the bearings and skating in the wet is not a very good idea anyway. But if I lived somewhere like Florida or California, then I think this would be fantastic.

Looks to me like they'll get funded in another week despite Civicsman's skepticism.

I think it's a good idea and might be quite a viable product for a powered skateboard form factor.

I remember trying a skateboard when I was 12 in California (1962). It had the old metal skate wheels and was very crude. Happily, the trial was brief enough for me to avoid injury. But ever since, I've been rather intrigued by the skateboard-like stance of other sports such as snowboarding and just sliding on ice patches. . .

But with the Boosted Board you've got both smoothly controllable electric power and braking, which together I think will enable a lot of people to use these for transportation, where otherwise they wouldn't ever consider a conventional skateboard.

I also like their idea of producing swappable battery packs to make those "last mile" scenarios even more feasible for more people.

I wish them success.

My issue isn't that things don't get funded. Kickstarter makes a big pitch about making sure that projects are fully funded before they transfer the funds to the project. However, "getting funded" is not a measure of success....unless you're the one making the pitch.

I'm reminded of the Orbital company that offered a unique variant of the rotary engine. They had a booth at every major automotive engineering conference for at least 10 years, promoting investment in the company. There was a lot of interest from big automotive companies, and a lot of investment. The company is still in business today.

There's two parts to my skepticism:

1. The model for people funding stuff in Kickstarter. All you really need as a startup is a good marketing pitch. Are investors doing due diligence? Highly unlikely. Individuals would probably probably kick in funding for a perpetual motion machines, if it were offered. Actually, people probably WILL kick in funding for a perpetual motion machine. I'm not saying there aren't successes, but I'd wager that most internet investors get clobbered.

2. Pre-ordering something that doesn't exist. This is a really bad idea, everywhere.

Two very old sayings come to mind:

A sucker is born every minute, and a fool and his money are soon parted.

Again.... I have a bridge in Brooklyn that I would like to sell. I own it. Really.

They actually made their funding in less than 24 hours...

If you read the site, they decided to go for extended funding to $500K so they could afford to develop swappable batteries.