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Cool toy but seems gimmicky. The research just keeps piling up about how sitting at our desks all day is terrible for our health... That we need to get up and w
by abledon 11y ago
Cool toy but seems gimmicky. The research just keeps piling up about how sitting at our desks all day is terrible for our health... That we need to get up and walk and move, the exact thing this product seems to be trying to outsource. Too bad we evolved to move about our environments using our legs, instead of stay immobile in a dark swampy cave with bio-luminescent algae interfaces.
- resu_nimda 11y agoBetween this, electric skateboards and scooters, and the half dozen other devices I've seen popping up - every day we're inching farther along a trajectory to Wall-E status. These devices are inherently anti-walking and anti-exercise (contrasted to, say, a car, which can be used as such, but also provides utility far beyond what walking can accomplish).
- Dylan16807 11y agoAnti-walking, yes, but a lot of them are still exercise.
- nkoren 11y agoCars are infinitely more anti-walking, inasmuch as they require the creation of non-walkable environments (and, correspondingly, the elimination of walkable environments). These, in contrast, can easily coexist with walking.
- mattlutze 11y agoAnd electrifying things like bicycles and long boards still means people are going to be active, balancing and whathaveyou.
- EC1 11y agoNothing is stopping you from being active with purpose. Go to the gym, run, bike, etc. I currently own a solowheel and it's been a lifesaver. I'd just be taking transit otherwise, I'd say doing this over transit is better for you.
- resu_nimda 11y agoThat's true, but humans are generally creatures of convenience and follow the path of least resistance. Today people are forced to walk in many situations where they have no feasible alternative (can't afford it, transit doesn't go there, etc). It seems pretty evident that, on the whole, the proliferation of these devices will contribute to less exercise and more obesity.
- jkaunisv1 11y agoIt was gimmicky for me until it showed him walking with his mom. My grandmother used to love going for walks but now gets too tired too fast. I'm not saying I'd buy one of these just for that use case, but that's the moment that made me see realistic applications. Could work well with a "granny grocery cart", extending the time a person can stay independent as they age without being as cumbersome as a wheelchair.
- iak8god 11y agoMy grandmother is also experiencing declining mobility. She'd probably break her hip getting on this thing, or hopping off to stop it.
- sitkack 11y agoThe lack of movement causes bone degeneration. In the majority of broken hip cases, the hip breaks AND THEN the person falls. What your grandmother needs is to do squats and have mild but abrupt force applied to her bones.
- jmadsen 11y agoMy thought, exactly. This model obviously isn't suitable, but with a rapidly aging population here in Japan (and elsewhere), I'm glad to see new(-ish) innovation being made. Once the tech is there, the need will drive the eventual designs.
- Peeda 11y agoA few of us at my work bought some similar type devices, but with two wheel, like a mini-segway. They are definately more of a toy -- they're a lot of fun to ride around on but not that appropriate for day to day transport. They're actually very stable and intuitive and very easy to get on and off. The learning curve is < 60 seconds. The big issue is that with the small hard wheels small bumps cause it to lurch and can throw you off face first. Had someone with a minor wrist sprain and a fractured elbow basically hitting small bumps and falling off. Would surely not want my grandma using one.
- brianobush 11y agoI would argue that the typical Japanese consumer walks much more than in the US. Thus, I imagine users would augment their current walking routines. Getting around in a large metropolitan area is the problem, but how you do it can vary. walk+bike, walk+train, cooltoy+walk+train, etc.
- toephu2 11y agothe future of first world countries: https://youtu.be/s-kdRdzxdZQ https://youtu.be/s-kdRdzxdZQ
- kolinko 11y agoI, for example, love walking - on average 15k steps a day. But some days I simply don't have the time. Or I have so many errands to do that I can spend over 4 hours to get everywhere unless I use a cab or public transport. That's why I just got myself onewheel (still on the way to me). I expect it to be faster than any other mean of a transportation.