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Why does the Segway qualify as a great invention? I had always thought of it as worse in every way compared to a bicycle or scooter for able-bodied people.



Segways aren’t particularly useful but their balancing system is pretty nifty: http://science.howstuffworks.com/engineering/civil/ginger1.h...


The iBot (the wheelchair using the same technology) was a great invention. The main problem with it was that it was too expensive.


You don't need to worry about parking your segway outside the place your going to if you enter the building with it. So, opposed to using a bicycle or scooter, someone stealing it while you're away is not an issue.

It's upright, so you can be seen crossing the street by motorists, which gives it an advantage over a motorized wheel chair.

It saves energy compared to driving a car and it's use would greatly reduce traffic where cars are normally used.




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