What Are Hoverboards And Why Do They Explode?

HOVERBOARD


Beware of what you buy this Christmas—it could blow up in your face. Hoverboards, more accurately described as self-balancing scooters, are one of the most popular holiday gifts this year. Ebay reportedly sold more than 5,000 units on Black Friday and claims to have sold one hoverboard every 12 seconds on Cyber Monday.

But there's an increasing concern about the safety of these vehicles. There are already thousands of hoverboard wipeout videos available on sites like YouTube, and in many cases, the personal vehicles have caused serious injury. In more extreme cases, cheaply made hoverboards have exploded and caught fire, forcing Amazon to stop selling specific models and Overstock to discontinue all sales. London and New York City have taken measures to curb the use of hoverboards on city streets and sidewalks. So we thought it was a great time to break down the hoverboard craze. Here's everything you need to know about shopping for hoverboards during the

What is a hoverboard?
Technically, a hoverboard is a levitating platform (that looks like a skateboard without wheels) that can be used for personal transportation. The term was invented for the movie Back to the Future II, where protagonist Marty McFly travels into the future to discover that teenagers are riding on levitating boards without wheels. Although self-balancing scooters don't actually hover, people have adopted the term "hoverboard" as a more colloquial way to refer to the vehicles—mainly because it sounds cooler.

Read More at:
https://www.popsci.com/what-are-hoverboards-and-why-do-they-explode

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