Ever dreamed of gliding around effortlessly on a hoverboard like Marty Mcfly in Back to the Future? Your day may soon be here.
A Kickstarter campaign to raise funding for a working board-shaped hovercraft has finally come to fruition after more than a quarter of a million in donations. Videos of the Hendo Hoverboard have been circulating the internet for the past few weeks and the footage is impressive, showing a skateboarder glide around on a ramp on a futuristic floating skateboard. The Hendo, however, has its critics.
A Kickstarter campaign to raise funding for a working board-shaped hovercraft has finally come to fruition after more than a quarter of a million in donations. Videos of the Hendo Hoverboard have been circulating the internet for the past few weeks and the footage is impressive, showing a skateboarder glide around on a ramp on a futuristic floating skateboard. The Hendo, however, has its critics.
Unlike the prank release of the celebrity-endorsed “real” hoverboard last year, this hoverboard actually works. According to the Kickstarter page, the Hendo Hoverboard uses four spinning motors to lift the board about one inch off the ground. Not high enough to actually fly, but certainly enough to defeat the force of friction.
While this hoverboard resembles Marty Mcfly’s ultra-cool hovering skateboard, this design can only float above a specific type of metal, so the similarity is aesthetic at best. Until someone invents a way to float using an electromagnetic field over any surface like in Back to the Future: Part II, this is the best we are going to get. The board does, however, look like a lot of fun, and trial runs have gone exceptionally well.
While this hoverboard resembles Marty Mcfly’s ultra-cool hovering skateboard, this design can only float above a specific type of metal, so the similarity is aesthetic at best. Until someone invents a way to float using an electromagnetic field over any surface like in Back to the Future: Part II, this is the best we are going to get. The board does, however, look like a lot of fun, and trial runs have gone exceptionally well.
How much will a Hendo hoverboard set you back? While the device is still a prototype, you can order a developer
kit containing an unassembled but working hoverboard for around $300. Not too shabby if you have the skills to assemble it. Upgrading your purchase to $700 dollars will get you an app the can control the direction and speed of the board. While the board is still early in its existence, I personally cannot wait to see some sick hoverboard shredding in future X-Games events.
-Nick Farrell, Editor-in-Chief