2015-2016 Self-Balancing Electric Hoverboards Review
Everything You Should Know About Hands Free Scooters
The best seller for Christmas 2016 is probably going to become the new electric self-balancing hands free scooter (also incorrectly named a hands-free segway, hoverboard or razor scooter). Nowadays such hands free scooters are being sold like Heelys in 2000s, and in general it takes two weeks or even a month to transport them from China. It has been a bang at work and home and it usually takes around five minutes to learn how to ride it in case you have mildly coordination. And kids are going to learn it much more quickly than your coworkers.
Here is what fascinates us. Such handle-bar free segways are currently receiving a great number of news coverage as lots of guys on You Tube and famous celebrities are getting around on their hoverboards. But bloggers and journalists do miss an important piece of this story… all of these scooters are made by one and the same Chinese manufacturer though they have different brands and labels and have a price range from around $300 to $1000. (Please, note that we are not associated with any hoverboard sellers or manufacturers).
We are writing this article because it is really difficult to find thorough and comprehensive review or information on where to purchase the best hands free scooter for a reasonable price. So in the given article you are going to find out:
which hoverboard you should purchase, and where you can get a great deal;
useful information about guarantees and protection plan;
features (size, weight, electronics);
time of charging and top speed;
how you can ride it easily (and be careful).
What model of self balancing hands free scooter do you have to purchase? Not taking into account the brand name, all hoverboards are pretty much the same. So obviously, it is better to make purchases through trusted seller (for instance, Amazon), and pick up the model based on the cost and time of transportation (as well as its ratings on Amazon).
And now, our dear readers, we present you top nine Frequently Asked Questions we would like to answer before you purchase your own hands free scooter:
1. The electric self balancing scooter of which brand should I purchase?
So here is the good news for you. It does not actually matter! All hoverboards come from the pretty much the same manufacturer located in China (in bulk prices range by the lot, but we have also seen them for about $200). Just have a look at the images of different models and you will see that they are practically the same except with a slight difference in the names such as IO Hawk, eRover, Oxboard, PhunkeeDuck, Cyboard, Future Foot, Scoot, Monorover, Overoad, etc.
We do not think that Razor is not Segway brand although people might think they are too separate models. So make a purchase basing on the price, transportation speed and it should be a seller whom you trust. Lots of them are on underdelivery and could take a month before you receive it. We know that some people are purchasing from Alibaba or express or whatever else, but we are rather nervous about it.
2. Where could I purchase the hands free scooter for the most affordable price?
Unfortunately for you and all people intending to buy a hoverboard, major or toy retailers (Target, Walmart, Kmart or ToysRus) do not seem to acquire them yet. And even in case they have them, they will likely mark it up much. For example, if they bought scooters in bulk at $200, they would probably retail them for $400. You would be getting pretty the same thing but for a different price (however, you could return it to the store, and that is quite convenient). Once again - you could try Ali Express but we do not know much about them.
3. Five tips if you make a decision to purchase from Amazon:
The scooter brand REALLY does not matter;
Do not be tempted with the low cost and prime transportation. Sometimes the sellers provide a great starting cost and a range, where just one color of the scooter will be prime and low priced;
We would not recommend purchasing a hoverboard which still does not have good ratings. In case you are really discreet, then you will find one which has nice transportation and cost, and separate comments by four-star ratings (quite often when someone is faking good reviews, they in general rate 5, and 4-stars are usually more objective);
An important thing – you should ignore any specific comments about the product unless there are many problems with this product since all scooters are quite the same products. Look for notes about transportation, refunds or service instead;
Consider the additional protection guarantee from a separate seller (for instance, we have the SquareTrade 2-year protection plan but actually we have never used it…. We just liked the idea of not having any troubles on replacements.
4. What if it will break? Will I get my money back on guarantee?
The major part of hoverboard online reviews are quite positive, but we have seen a great number of reports which claim that the Chinese control of quality leaves much to be desired. Some of the comments assure that they can really break, scooter battery can just die, and sometimes it can even burn. Here is a simple solution: for even less than $25 you can buy a Square Trade protection plan which covers up to $349.99. You can sale this protection plan not from the manufacturer but separately and in order to activate it you should send the receipt to them through the email. We do not recommend you trusting the seller and take an honor or return any manufacturer guarantee.
5. How can I learn how to use it? Is it really safe?
Here are some basic tips for you:
You should step on it with one foot at a time, but very quickly (you can use a wall for additional support);
After that you have to lean a bit forward as if you are planning to fall over and you have to trust it;
In case you start returning your balance (and instinctively you certainly will), you are going to get unstable as it will be doing the same thing;
Do not incline your feet forward as if you are pressing a pedal. Just lean forward as if you want to make a pushup. The oftener you do it, the faster you will go;
Turning is absolutely intuitive, so you could spin around practically with no efforts.
But be careful! It is deceptively unsafe, so you should take some precaution and first use a helmet.
6. How long will it take to charge a scooter and how long is it going to last?
Many of the online reports claim that a hands free scooter charges in a couple of hours, and it could go for around 10-15 miles on one charge.
7. How fast can a hoverboard go?
The scooter could go up to 4-6 miles per hour and it will start beeping when the speed is increased to the maximum. That is about the speed of a traditional hoverboard… it moves very quickly, so you should ride carefully and be especially attentive when stopping suddenly, hitting bumps or turning.
8. How large and heavy is the hands free scooter?
The hoverboard weighs about 25 pounds, so it is way heavier than it may look. The length of a scooter is 23 inches and its width will be about 8 inches. The scooter stability means that the device could carry up to 220 pounds.
9. On what kind of surfaces may I use it?
The segway works perfectly indoors or on the carpet, but it may also deal greatly with the sidewalks, streets and well paved driveways. Watch out for curbs and bumps!
