Actually, it's a Segway re-imagined by designer Michael DiTullo, who created it in response to the Project PUMA concept from earlier this year.

The thing's a two-seater too, so bring a friend! [Design Blog]

Regardless, this Zoltar costume/car employs a Segway to mysteriously float through the streets, making the old young and the young old with no discrimination whatsoever, all while Zoltar's voice is modulated for the full Zoltar effect (though wasn't he a quasi-mute who printed answers on cards in the movie?).

Protip: only wish to be younger. Because if you're suffering arthritis only to find Zoltar broken down, well, Blue Cross won't exactly cry you a river.
[segnyc via MAKE via OhGizmo!]

The eniCycle's electric-powered 1000 watt motor kicks into gear as you lean forward—similar to riding a Segway. The gyroscopes help you stay upright while measuring your vertical angle 100 times a second.

So far Polutnik has built two prototypes, and is looking for big business to help him sell the thing. I hope he does. [Enicycle via Core77 via DVICE]

I mean come on. Facts are facts. Smaller footprint. Easier maneuverability in the tight spots. Folds down for easy storage in the closet when that hot date comes over for a digestif. Brisk 13 mph top speed. Completely portable. Battery powered. This is assuming, of course, you give two shits about the Segway to begin with.

Negatives? Blatantly obvious balance issues abound, sure, but the designers can work those our with Woz's money help, right? Otherwise what's stopping you from falling like a tree when you come to a standstill?

Too bad it's just a concept at the moment; a mere whiff of a hipster's passing dream. This will change though. Segway culture demands it be so. [James Dyson Award via Design Blog]

I'm not sure how it's going to do either, but I like the muscles we're exercising.

They're heroically flexing their metaphorical creative retail muscles, so you don't have to flex your real ones. Anyway, the trial is happening in Washington, Oregon and California for now, so stop by to snag a test ride around the appliances section. [WSJ]

OK...meaningful...here goes...

For that definition, it was probably an electronics learning kit I got for Christmas at about age 8 or 9. As I recall, it didn't teach electronics formulas or resistor codes, but was full of projects to hook up input devices like switches and output devices like buzzers and lights. It was like learning how to connect all the devices to your hi-fi, or connecting all your peripherals to a computer. It also gave me a good start toward understanding logic rules, like both switches have to be on for the light to shine, or if switch A is on, then switch B selects which light is on.

I call this one the most meaningful, because, pretty clearly to me, it preceded my other important gadgets and inspired me to like gadgets and to understand how to build some. It's like how the transistor led to the chip, which led to microprocessors, which led to personal computers. Everything goes back to the first invention, in that sense. This electronics kit gave me the understanding that made it easy to progress to large logic devices with multi-pole switches, and some relays, which then progressed to a large tic-tac-toe computer with transistors which progressed to a large adding/subtracting machine with transistors, etc.

The word 'meaningful' has the root 'meaning' which implies some emotion. In that sense, my first transistor radio, at about age 10, would fit the bill. It gave me portable music that I could listen to all night long as I slept, every night. 20 years later came the walkman, and 20 more years later came the iPod, but the real change in life, the one having the most 'meaning', was with the transistor radio.

I always wanted my own computer. With the Apple I, I now had a machine that I could program. I would never run out of things to do in my entire life. So it's a close runner up to the other two.

The gadget that has been the most attractive of attention ever is not my Segway. It's my nixie tube watch from CathodeCorner. It looks very large to other people and looks very strange. It's handmade in America too. The nixie tubes run on 140 volts on your wrist. Airport security guards who have seen every kind of watch ever made have a thrilling time with this watch.

I used to fly to Japan regularly to scour new gadgets, and always bought tons of things which were always surprising at the time, but looking back, few have special meaning. The first consumer digital camera, I think the Mavica technology, was meaningful. The first one for computers, not TV's, was the QuickTake from Apple. But in many ways, no digital camera to this day has been as good as the first Ricoh one.

The HP-35 calculator was also very meaningful in my life, as it led me to an incredible job designing for the follow-on models.

Much thanks to Woz for helping to kick off our series. Coming up soon: Phil Torrone, gadget maker and modder extraordinare.

Image credit: Sony Mav, HP Calculator

I must say the results are kind of unimpressive. Nothing like heading to North Korea. But hey, it's May Fourth. [VBS TV via Gothamist]

Plus, it's actually kind of dangerous. Sure, people have been known to fall off a Segway from time to time, but the Legway is even more challenging to ride because it doesn't turn very well and it requires a keen sense of balance. But hey, if you are a nerdy treehugger with a taste for adventure, it doesn't get better than this. Hit the following link for instructions on how to build one yourself. [Instructables]

Because of it's compact size, users can move about in tight spaces easier than they could in a wheelchair or scooter—and it can travel at speeds of up to 12 mph making it a efficient method of transport. Essentially it's a Segway that you can wear. Yeah, it sort of makes people look like a vacuum, or like they are wearing some sort of robotic skirt—but there is no doubt that this concept is certifiably badass.

Production versions of the Chariot should be available sometime in the near future, and there are plans to integrate a feature that would allow users to switch from a standing to a seated position as needed. [Business Wire via Gizmowatch via Botopolis]

It goes up to 35MPH and gets somewhere around 200MPG. Those numbers fluctuate depending on the lardassity of the passengers.

What's interesting isn't the way it rolls around only only two wheels—even though it has four other wheels in front and behind just in case the balancing mechanism doesn't work—it's that weird adjustment mechanism that's shown at about a minute deep in the above clip.

We could really see people riding this in cities. But that's exactly what we said eight years ago with the Segway. [Jalopnik]

It's just your standard issue Segway, but with the Chanel logo on the front, wheel and handlebar as well as a Chanel bag on the front. There's no word on pricing for this horrible object, but you can bet it won't be cheap. Luckily, you can also bet that there will be very, very few people with the combo of lots of money and lack of taste to buy one. I hope. [Yatzer via BornRich]

Hello Brian,

Let me start by saying that I love Gizmodo. I read it almost every
day and frequently post in the comments section. The reason I'm
writing to you is not to whine, but to make you aware (if you're not
already) that a great number of disabled people use Segways instead
of wheelchairs or mobility scooters. It may not always be apparent
that a person has a disability, as is the case with me (severe ankle
injury that didn't heal properly). I know that a lot of the anti-
Segway sentiment assumes that everyone who owns or uses one is a
lazy douchebag. While this may be true in some cases, I would bet
that a higher percentage of non-commercial use (Police, security,
etc) Segways are used by disabled or handicapped persons. In fact
the only reason that Segways are not marketed as FDA certified
mobility assist devices is that Dean Kamen sold the rights for the
medical applications of the balancing technology to Johnson and
Johnson before the Segway was ever released (the iBot wheelchair).

Again, I'm not whining, but all of the Giz posts seem to
automatically assume that all Segway operators are fat, lazy, turds.
This is a bit misleading and lacks insight. Check out www.segs4vets.com
to see some of the good that Segways do for our disabled returning
veterans. I don't care about apologies or anything like that, I just
wanted you to know that these things do a lot of good for a lot of
people.

Thanks!

Allen Ash

OK I FEEL REALLY BAD NOW!

These next gods will, like their predecessors, be people whose professional and private lives, and even personal appearance, are of equal importance to hordes of obsessed nerds. They're people whose creativity and willpower are presumed to steer the course of personal technology, with legions of engineers and programmers and designers and manufacturing experts carrying out their vision. The key is putting themselves out for all the public to behold, with the hopes of becoming revered by apostles who buy anything they unveil. Seeing as we're running low on golden calves, let's check out the current options:

APPLE
Tim Cook
People say Cook is the man who makes the beautiful products turn into a beautiful pile of money, and he actually took over Apple when Jobs was recovering from his first surgery. A southern gentleman, avid cyclist, iron-fisted boss, mysterious loner, emotionless decider—man, Cook is so easy to reduce to two-word stereotypical descriptors, he's bound for godhood. Even his name comes packaged in a suave but unforgettable two syllables. The catch of course is that he can't ascend the mighty throne of Apple until the big cheese retires or bows out due to health. Cook's trod the boards at Stevenotes before, but now he's holding back—or being held back—perhaps because if he becomes big boss, he'll need a fresh start. All eyes not on Steve are on this guy. Can he fill the shoes left open and be the forceful visionary that Jobs is?
Chance of Godhood? 75% with a few variables we'd rather not think about

Phil Schiller
Schiller has helped sell Apple products since forever, but the general impression is that he's best used as a right-hand man, a Boy Wonder to the real Batman. The mullet/beer gut combo probably doesn't do wonders for his public image, either, though "death diving" from 30 feet up like he did back in '99 isn't a bad way to entertain the fanboys. It's easy to forget that Phil used to be involved in product development, including notebooks, and some even credit him for the addition of the iPod's clickwheel. We also hear that the man can kick some ass behind the scenes. He might have what it takes to be the next product don of Apple, but the current hierarchy won't make it easy for him.
Chance of Godhood? 35% assuming the Apple board is thinking like we're thinking

MICROSOFT
Steve Ballmer
The Monkey Man act may work to get attention, to rally your troops and put fear in your enemies, but it's too easy to make fun of in Photoshop. This kind of attention has taken Ballmer pretty far along the road to godhood, but the public doesn't often see the quieter, shrewder Ballmer that we know exists. The key is this: He is not a code nerd, but a Harvard-educated marketing-and-sales guy. Being able to climb inside the mind of the Average Joe, typically oriented around useful features instead of sheer software power, is what Microsoft needs to limit bloat in product design. If Windows 7 is a success, we'll see the Bruce Banner in this Hulk, but if it's not, it'll be "BALLMER SMASH!!!!" and the end of Microsoft.
Chance of Godhood? 85% assuming Windows 7 erases the terrible memory of Vista

Robbie Bach
Microsoft's Entertainment and Devices boss has Xbox, Zune, Media Center and a lot of other potentially tasty toys in his workshop, and he's rumored to be the man who would replace Ballmer. What's most important here? His group accounts for most of the Microsoft products that don't suck. Word is, though, that the limited profitability of his group, today, limits the amount of respect he gets internally. We say the rest of the company should stop and see what he's doing right. He certainly understands the art of the keynote, strutting around and working the crowd with the shoulders-forward energy of a college football coach. He may be too good at sticking to the script, though. His cautious replies may be good for stockholders, but you can't inspire the masses without a little bit o' crazy.
Chance of Godhood? 70%, higher if he is heard matter-of-factly admitting that Windows Mobile sucks

SONY
Sir Howard Stringer
Usually you get the "sir" appended to your name after you live a wild and crazy life in the public eye, but this guy is only more and more in the spotlight each year. When he talks he brings delightful controversy and charisma, but he doesn't do enough with big crowds. How come no gloaty Blu-ray victory dance party? Chilling with Charlie Rose isn't a direct path to divinity, but showing up with Tom Hanks at CES is a start. Still, Sony needs to regain gadget clout, not remind the world that it's a piracy-fearing movie maker. One thing he has done is give the Japanese firm a leader who isn't afraid to lay off when the company is bloated with employees not pulling their weight, unlike traditional Japanese CEOs. And he encourages Japanese employees to work abroad to increase their understanding of the customers of the world. But he's also been working hard to unify the company's software and hardware development not only in each division, but across product groups. Only Apple and Microsoft have done this successfully, but Sony is actually making progress here, behind the scenes.
Chance of Godhood? 45% because it might just be too late for the guy—or for Sony

GOOGLE
Larry Page/Sergey Brin
Never mind that Google keeps more products in beta than it launches or that these two are tech titans already on the web. Their first foray into hardware was received lukewarmly. But Google is here to stay, and no matter what CEO Eric Schmidt does, these two dudes' faces will be the ones people think of. The last 60 years of tech are full of dynamic duos—Woz and Jobs, Hewlett and Packard, etc.—but unless you've got the timing of Martin and Lewis, it's hard to pull off a tandem keynote. It definitely doesn't help when you show up late wearing rollerblades. We just hope that the company can give their Android division the support it needs to compete with the companies full time in the gadget game, because Android is not only disruptive, but it's the ammo that the phone makers need to compete with the all-in-one giants from Redmond and Cupertino.
Chance of Godhood? 60%, could go up if they release more products, or undergo the operation Damon and Kinnear had in Stuck On You

ASUS
Jonney Shih
Netbook-revolutionary Asus is probably the company (companEee?) doing the most with Apple's old mantra, "think different." Their stuff coming out of Taiwan is radical and fun, and Jonney Shih, little known in these parts, is the sole capitano up top. He's not afraid to rock the microphone, but he keeps doing it at other people's events. Asus also makes a lot of notebooks for competitors, and has hardware expertise to spare. But in terms of software, they're still limited by a strong dependence on Windows for their notebooks. As for their weak brand presence in the mainstream: Dude, you got some cash, time to throw bigger parties of your own, and not just ones timed with CES. And take another page from Apple: Learn how to keep products secret until they're finished and shipping.
Chance of Godhood? 40%, more if he finds a good barber and a dealer of fine turtlenecks and presentation sweaters

HTC
Cher Wang
The phone maker who first teamed with Google and launched the T-Mobile G1 is chaired by, yep, a lady! Named Cher! Cher actually got her start selling computer parts for a computer company, and helped found HTC to realize the vision of the true handheld computer. Even if the HTC brand is only a few years old to consumers, HTC has been making phones for other companies for a while: One in every six phones sold in the US this year were from her factories. They'll grow stronger now that Android is here and Windows Mobile is (hopefully) in a period of major improvement, but their branding and design is still a bit on the chunky side. From the looks of her official corporate portrait, she could probably use a queer eye or two—I know I sound like a dick here, but sadly society does judge women more harshly than men on personal appearance. My guess is that as someone who emphasizes being a "devout Christian" in her bio, she'd probably frown on the whole "tech god" thing anyway.
Chance of Godhood? 30% since Cher's probably too busy to take our advice anyway—she also runs the chipmaker VIA

PALM
Ed Colligan
Colligan's generally stormy course at Palm's helm finally reached some smooth waters: He just unveiled Pre, a fresh, attractive take on the smartphone, bolstered by healthy chunks of DNA from Apple and other new smartphone platforms via the talent they aggressively poached. He's proven he has what it takes to make big aggressive changes with this handset, and get the right talent in place, just like Steve Jobs would. And Colligan isn't afraid to make bold brash statements, a requirement of godhood. But can he go all the way? Currently, his problem is with presenting—he's not all that memorable, which might actually be good if you're the guy who introduced the world to the Palm Foleo.
Chance of Godhood? 15% cuz did I mention he believed, not long ago, that Foleo would "redefine how people work"?

Jon Rubinstein
The "executive chairman" to Colligan's "president and CEO," it's hard to tell if Rubinstein is sitting on the throne or next to it. He has our vote. The man in charge of bringing about Palm's would-be salvation, the Pre, previously at Apple led development of the frickin' iPod (maybe you've heard of it), and has actually out Apple'd Apple with the UI in this new handset. And Rubinstein's team is one of the only in the world that is capable of revolutionizing cellphone operating systems. He keeps it cool on stage, reminding us a little of Nintendo's amiable US boss, Reggie Fils-Aime. And his more than passing resemblance to Jeff Goldblum is a plus, too. One limitation in Palm that both Rubinstein and Colligan have to face: Palm will never build an end to end personal tech environment the way Apple and Microsoft can, even if they are on par in terms of making interfaces from the future.
Chance of Godhood? 55%, but sky's the limit if he can shoo Colligan away

AMAZON
Jeff Bezos
Bezos already was a god—a dotcom god. Many of those other former household names are now mercifully forgotten, but Bezos still shows up on magazine covers. He recently heralded in the eradication of DRM from online music retailers to the applause of paying music customers. But what really surprised us, and earned him a place on this list was that he had such a grand vision of what the ebook should be—the replacement of the book—and the funding and drive to make it happen. But he should do more live appearances to drum up more mainstream excitement over software initiatives like the DRM-free MP3 store and video on demand. And he needs to keep Kindles in stock long enough for people to buy them. Most importantly, he's finally learning that tech gods are only as good as their next products. Just because Bezos understands books on a deep level doesn't mean he'll ever be able to do any other type of gadget besides E-Ink tablets. That's ultimately limiting when it comes to building next-generation personal tech ecosystems. In the meantime, where's my Kindle 2?
Chance of Godhood? 30% if he does more bragging in person, though that braying laugh of his could be a liability

DEKA/SEGWAY
Dean Kamen
Back in 2001, the rumor mill leading up to the launch of the Segway rivaled any Apple buzz. Before the product was even seen, people wrote about it being civilization-changing, and as important as the internet. Kamen's been on a roll (get it?) since then, not just developing the police Segway, the golf Segway and some kind of Segway footstool, but also perfecting a water purifying technology and a truly robotic prosthetic arm, all while greening up his own private island. He's did it all with few mainstream public appearances: Showing up at All Things D with a video of the robot arm—not the real thing—was a misstep in our minds, but appearing on Colbert with a working water purifier was definitely a sign of publicity (and worship) to come. If he can invent something for the gadget lovers of the world that is as bright and thoughtful and life changing as his humanitarian tech, he'd become the Jobs that Jobs wishes he was.
Chance of Godhood? A tragic 45%, seriously, this guy is Q, MacGyver and Hank Scorpio rolled into one—why isn't he a god already?

FACEBOOK
Mark Zuckerberg
The sad fact is that our whole world is shifting over from hardware to software. Sure, Kamens are still needed to make sure there's progress in mechanical devices, but our toys are less and less mechanical. Facebook is probably the best example of an internet platform that has stolen thunder from the gadget world. Trouble with Facebook is that it's big and amorphous, and the charming Zuckerberg needs a second act to propel him into the heavens. Still, he's like 13, with his whole life and a lot of money ahead. He'll think of something. But to be a Gadget God, he'll have to always depend on the hardware of others. At least until we have browsers in our brains with which we can access our social networks with.
Chance of Godhood? 95% even if it doesn't happen in my lifetime

These are all strong candidates, but the assumption is that there will, in fact, be new gadget gods. Maybe, like the ancient gods themselves, our new era doesn't have as much use for them. Maybe it's not just the transition to software, but the shift from bright ideas to massive team efforts. Or maybe Jobs and Gates are the kinds of guys that only come along once a century, and we're gonna have to wait a little longer for something that divine.

"You end up lying there saying, 'I'm not stopping. It would be an act of shallow cowardice. Or you decide to quit and you say, 'This is one of those ideas that just isn't going to work,' "

Obviously, Dean Kamen's hope for a transportation revolution never came to fruition for two main reasons: price and the overwhelming dork factor. I mean this sort of thing is just bad publicity.[CNN via Jalopnik]

From the man himself:

not photoshopped...it was years ago...some wild eyed guy was blurting out questions at a Shoreline Amphitheater concert and he asked if I went to the urinal on my Segway. What would you say? I answered "yes." Always say "yes" when someone is excited with a weird or impossible question. Then this guy asked how I did it. I was stalling to think of some funny reply when he asked if I stood on it backwards and held the handlebar so I said "yes" again.

Then I went into the urinal and set up the photo with friends. I posted it myself on urinal.net.

Later that night I showed the photo to a friend and told him how I turned the Seway backwards because of splash from the Segway stick. I then rubbed the stick and commented that it was still a bit sticky and asked him to rub it too but he would have nothing to do with that.

It was a fun evening!

Apparently it's quite tricky to get a bike to balance, since steering and such requires a degree of off-balance maneuvering...but the team at Keio University in Yokohama has managed it and their prototype easily manages 2.5 meters per second.

They're working on making it able to deal with uneven road surfaces, and ultimately they want a zero-speed stable bike, since "Many bicycle falling accidents happen when elderly people stop a bicycle in a crosswalk, and so on." Great. Though, I'm going to suggest a lower-tech and greener approach: A third wheel. [Physorg]

The idea behind the Segway is a good one, but between the Presidential accidents, Polo games and supreme laziness, the Segway has developed a serious image problem. When people think "Segway" they think bike helmet-wearing super-nerds having an asthma attack while whizzing down the sidewalk at 12 mph. Not so with the following gadgets. Unlike traditional Segways, these personal transport vehicles only make you look tool-ish.

It seems that the officer spotted the woman driving erratically down the road at around 40 mph but, instead of simply waiting for backup like any other wuss cop on a Segway, this brave soul decided to chase after her at a breakneck 12 mph. When she stopped her car, the officer caught up and made the arrest. So when they say "stopped" do they really mean "passed out" or "slammed into a telephone pole?" [Yahoo]

How he plans on doing this is unclear, but the idea that the Wii Fit peripheral could help people be even lazier is fantastic. According to the man himself:

There are a lot of interesting things that can be done. But first it is important to perform some testing... The next stage will be the controlling of faster-and-wireless robots.

We have called this idea "Robosurfing". Instead of using the Wii-board to "surf" in virtual environments or controlling virtual vehicles in the games, Why not use it to "surf" real mobile robots in a real scenario? It would be very, very funny.

It's doubtful that anything like this could be very usable as a mode of transportation, but I have to agree with the "very, very funny" part. See you in the skate park, Señor G. [Balance Board Blog]

[MAKE]

There's also an equipment checklist, and a requirement that all players, regardless of previous orientation, play right handed. "Like Jousters." Woz also admits that the refs look the other way when players cut each other off, just to keep the game moving, despite it being illegal in the OSPH (Official Segway Polo Handbook). Seeing this, I have to say I'd consider playing. Really. [Neulio via Cult of Mac]

We followed and saw all the robotics companies eagerly waiting in line for photos while Kamen was just trying to make his way across the floor. He was pleasant and polite, making time for all the fanboys.

Though, we're sure Woz won. I mean, the guy is Woz, after all. Here's a clip we did manage to catch in which Woz pitches you Segway polo with enough fervor to light your heart on fire...he offers to train you and everything.

The $50,000 PAM is powered by two 105-hp engines that can propel it up to 60 mph. Compare that to the Vertipod's 440cc lawnmower engine, 40 mph top speed and sticker price of $10,000. That having been said, it is probably not surprising when I say that I would have to recommend the Vertipod as my flying nerd-killer of choice. [Product Page via Gizmag via DVICE]

The VertiPod looks a bit like a one-passenger helicopter turned upside-down. Its propeller is on the bottom and the pilot stands on a platform built around it with back support and controls at waist level.

It is powered by a 440-cubic-centimeter engine that runs on gasoline or ethanol and can be activated with a pull-start, like a lawnmower. The VertiPod is intended to travel five to 15 feet above ground at a top speed of 40 mph. Bitar said it will be sold for $10,000 in a kit that can be assembled in a weekend.

"It actually flies, unlike a hovercraft, which is just a ground effect," Bitar said. "It could have applications for law enforcement, especially border patrol, but it will also be available to the consumer market."

Click To Play

The students' four aims were to make their transporter for less than $1,000 and 50 pounds, to give it lean steering and to be able to ride it through doorways. It's even got two cupholders! [The DIY Segway]