First, it started with LA Gears and both children and adults showing off their hip, new light-up sneakers with every step they took. Then came Heelys, combining the functionality of your everyday shoe with the ability to skate toward your destination by manually retracting wheels from your heels. Now, we have finally outdone our predecessors: SpnKiX, the motorized shoe-skates, are now available for purchase. The SpnKiX team spent years researching and developing prototype models, but until the recent miniaturization of the necessary shoe-fitting technologies, were unable to perfect them. The project, which began to take off through a Kickstarter campaign that banked in on $120,000 USD, has finally successfully released their next-generation personal mobility product. The SpnKiX Pro models contain one 85 W wheel motor and one rechargeable lithium-ion battery per skate. The removable onboard batteries take about 4-5 hours to charge and have a rather miniscule 500-cycle charge life. The skates’ frame, though made of strong fiber reinforced nylon, will only be able to take a max weight capacity of 200lbs out for a spin. Topping out at a speed of 10MPH, the 6 mile per charge range should be enough to quickly glide you over to your neighborhood grocery store and back in style. Though the Pro model is priced in at a hefty $699 price, the folks over at SpnKiX have just announced an “economical” model, the SpnKix EZ, set at $499. The only differences between these and the Pro model: you only get one power-driven skate (the other skate rolls passively), and the range-per-charge comes down from 6 to 4 miles. If you feel like picking up a pair but you are too unsure of your skating abilities, no worries - both models come with removable training wheels to help you get started! The skates are available in standard Men shoe sizes 6-14 and Women sizes 7-15.5. Overall, the SpnKiX motorized skates may not be for everyone, but they are an innovative product that may change the way we think about personal mobility.
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