Hoverboards are real*

Hoverboards are real, or at least more real now. We’ve seen hoaxes, models, and experiments, but this latest incarnation of the dream of the future is the closest thing to a Back to the Future reality. Before you get too excited, it costs $10,000 (!) and it requires a special surface to ride on in order for the magnetic field to keep the board floating 1 inch off the ground. That, and lots of extra batteries, because where the technology stands today, the ride only lasts a few minutes. That 10K price tag is ridiculous, but they aren’t really marketing it as a consumer product. They just want to generate money and interest to further develop the technology, and not just specifically for hoverboarding. Hovering stuff? That’s cool, but everybody recognizes the hoverboard as the modern equivalent of the Jetsons flying car, in terms of where is my ____ of the future? It was an inspired decision to build a miniramp, however slight the transition.

[Source: Sploid – New York Times]

– Thanks to Jack H. for the tip.

UPDATE: Looks like the original video disappeared, here’s a different one showing a 2.0 version.

The riding action, especially the turning, is more like snowboarding without an edge.

A nice tip of the hat to Back to the Future.

Product shots.

If you think Skatelite is expensive, you’re probably not going to like the cost of surfacing this miniramp. [Photo: New York Times]