If you've ever tried to learn to skate, you know that it's not as easy as it seems. Most people never master the art of skating, and for good reason: it's really hard! At least I gave up after a couple of disastrous "potato sack" style falls. I prefer brisk walking, that's it. No, not even the scooter. Yes, I fell from that too. There micro-mobility it's beautiful, but I wouldn't live in it. Not without four wheels underneath, I say: I'm my age.
E the new Duo? Not even, it doesn't convince me. “Of course you're really insatiable,” you'll tell me. Eh. But this gadget intrigued me. Listen here.
What if I told you that there was a way to take a brisk walk in Michael Jackson's "Moon walking" style, as if you had a treadmill under your feet? You know the question is rhetorical. If I say it it's because it exists.
Moonwalker, walk three times as fast. Auh.
How to call them? Shoes with wheels? Skates 2.0? I don't know: but these contraptions allow you to walk and run at almost three times the speed. + 250%, to be precise. And they don't have any learning curve, they're just as easy to use as walking on one of those conveyor belts you find at airports.
A team of engineers from Carnegie Mellon University has transformed a research into a startup, the Shift Robotics. Each unit to put on the feet is equipped with a 300 watt electric motor that moves a set of 8 wheels arranged over the entire surface of the sole (therefore not aligned as in the skates).
Guess what? Yes, even here there are some middle algorithms: they collect the data of the motion sensors these shoes are equipped with, and automatically regulate the power of the electric motors. This means that brisk walking will follow our usual pace, but producing a truly remarkable result.
Stable, portable, decisive
Moonwalkers are not mini scooters: they don't want to overdo it. They are calibrated for a maximum speed of 11 kilometers per hour, and even in that case they "brake" in less than two metres. You can even climb the stairs, with a gesture of your foot you stop the electric motors and off you go.
Their autonomy is also minimal: 10 kilometers of assisted fast walking also allow you to cover an interesting radius, leaving the car at home and solving last mile problems. If you want to continue "naturally", then they are light and take up little space: they can be placed in a backpack when not in use.
A big bang with crowdfunding
I've said everything, but the essential thing is missing: Moonwalkers, it must be said, are a unique means of transport, but they are not cheap. Shift Robotics is raising money on Kickstarter with the goal of reaching $90.000 to cover production costs. The campaign has currently raised $51.000, so I'd say we're in a good place.
Kudos to those who are investing: those who pre-order now can get a pair of Moonwalkers for the “Early Bird” price of $999. The retail cost will be around $1.400. On the other hand, they should be considered the middle ground between a pair of shoes and a vehicle: while you think about it, however, my brisk walk is to get away :)
Michael would have liked them anyway.
