Safety instructions …
According to the German Road Traffic Licensing Regulations (StVZO), this vehicle is not (yet?) approved for use on the road in Germany! There is therefore no general operating permit, which is not granted without a bell or lighting in the front and rear. From 6 km/h upwards, you should not drive a motorised vehicle without a license on public roads in Germany (check your local country regulations). In the meantime, a MobHV (Mobility Aid Ordinance) has been issued for two-track Segway PT vehicles with handlebar-like holding rods and an individual operating permit has been granted after individual tests. The hoverboard is two-lane, but without handlebar. Hopefully there will be a MobHV soon like the Segway, which will make it possible to participate in road traffic.
In our opinion, it is therefore likely to be at least one administrative offence in accordance with § 4 Abs. 1 48 FZV 24 StVG and could therefore mean 70 Euro and one point in Flensburg at the time of the test, but this is only our personal assessment. Of course, there is also no insurance cover, which would certainly be even more serious in the event of an accident. So before driving, it is essential to read the instructions completely and not drive on public roads, neither with or without alcohol 😉
Field test …
Of course, we have tested the hover board extensively and created a short hoverboard test video. We went to a private area in Carolinensiel near the North Sea, only the strong wind forced us to record the voice again afterwards. But otherwise we might not have composed the music at all.
Here is the Alienboard Batwings Hoverboard Video from our OCinside YouTube Channel.
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Learning Hoverboard easily …
As already mentioned in the video, one learns to ride hoverboards relatively quickly depending on the sense of balance. For learning to drive the hover board, we recommend to leave the hoverboard switched off first. Then step onto the switched off hoverboard a few times like on a staircase. However, the foot should be placed as horizontally as possible. First one foot, then quickly put on the other foot. Now just try balancing on the switched off hoverboard to get a little bit feeling for it. Now switch on the hover board and step on it exactly as you rehearsed before.
A bit problematic is that the hoverboard starts rolling immediately as soon as you tilt your foot forward or backwards a little bit, even when you step on it. In our opinion, the hover board logic should be able to recognize that you are only on one side and that you don’t want to drive yet. But in practice, however, you get the hang of it!
Now you can use weight shift to determine whether the hover board moves forward with a shift, moves backwards, or if one foot is tilted in the respective direction, or if it is tilted in the opposite direction, or if it is tilted in the opposite direction, a rotation is performed on the spot. So many pirouettes can be easily rotated until the doctor arrives 😉
Hoverboard tricks …
Speaking of doctors, standing on one leg you can also drive and even sitting or with a handstand you could (!) drive. But before you do that, you should watch some YouTube videos and learn from the mistakes of others. You wouldn’t be the first one to drive against a Christmas tree with a handstand on the hoverboard or crash into a pool 😉 Rather set up a course with pylons and compete with friends in a few races – here as well, of course, suitable protective clothing is recommended.
Charging the hoverboard battery …
After a distance of approx. 10-20 km or approx. 1 hour of fun, the 36V, 4.3Ah Lithium-ion high-performance battery is discharged. There is no orange status LED as described in the manual. The status LED lights green continuously when the battery is still full, flashes green at approx. 30-50% and red at approx. 20% and there is an alternating signal tone throughout.
At the latest when the LED lights up red, it is better to stop and recharge the hoverboard.
The charging time is about 2-3 hours. During charging, the LED on the charger lights red. The completed charge is indicated by a green LED on the power supply unit. According to the manufacturer, the battery should not remain on the charger for longer.
Alienboard Batwings Hoverboard Result and general impression …