"I think of the Segway like a 'Jeopardy' question. What is the question to which Segway is the answer?"-- Herman B. Leonard (John F. Kennedy School)
The Segway project was fertilized with the optimism and capital that fueled the tech boom, but when the dust settled after 2002 and ePets was gone, Segway was still around. Part of the company's 'failure' (despite survival) may be due to the same unrealistic projections that every internet or technology venture was touting at the time; however, this is not the only excuse. This article from the San Francisco Chronicle explores some of the other reasons why the Segway has been slow to 'take off'.
I remember when "IT" came out, thinking that the product itself wasnt in any way revolutionary, but that the technology itself would spawn some sort of other revolutionary idea. Guess we're still waiting on that one.
ReplyDeleteI am actually really surprised that despite all of the technological innovations, the Segway is still very impractical. It can be used to travel to or from work, but it would be pretty useless on the way to the grocery store or on an outing with the kids, so it can't really replace the car. The Segway model made for golfers can accomodate a golf bag but not a second person, which means that it is not really a viable replacement for the golf cart. The model made for outdoor recreation is supposed to replace hiking, but you would need a car to transport the Segway to any decent hiking trail. Besides, who really wants to replace hiking? Especially if the replacement requires wearing a helmet and riding through the forest on a very silly looking machine in full view of all the other hikers who are actually getting exercise....
ReplyDeleteI agree with maria, and wonder if the Segway is just simply too weird, impractical, and expensive for people to really adopt. The majority of people don't see it as a tool, but a very expensive toy.
ReplyDeleteIt's a real shame that Segway didn't take off like the market thought. The Segway product, although a little "goofy" in design, is quite incredible. I just got back from a trip to Italy where we took a Segway tour around Rome. Though it took us about 20 minutes to become comfortable navigating the technology, it was completely worth the time. We were able to see a significantly larger portion of the city because we could move faster and cover more ground without tiring. I think there is a real market for Segways in tourism. I only hope they can hang on long enough.
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