Jaymi Heimbuch, 10 March 2010, USA: TreeHugger - Cars & Transportation (bikes)

When it comes to innovation in the greener electronics sector, there are ideas that are smart, but haven't quite found their mojo when it comes to the finished design or prototype. And then there are just flat out bad ideas. This bike falls into that second category - unfortunate because an electric assist bike that requires no help from the grid is an attractive idea. But this one falls flat. In fact, the makers don't even like it. But there is one benefit to this terrible bike. Starting out by listing what's wrong, we can uncover more about what electric assist bikes should be.

First off, it looks dorky. We aren't sure who would chose to ride around on this unless it were something they hacked themselves in their garage. But it's not...it's a bike that you'd spend money on, and there are simply far more attractive options out there.

Photo via Tech On

Secondly, the electric assist part seems attractive, for a quarter of a second. According to Tech On, the fuel-cell assisted bike works by having a hydrogen cartridge supply power to a lithium-ion battery through a polymer electrolyte fuell cell system (PEFC). The output is about 60 watts and if riding conditions are good, the bike can travel about 45 km. IF driving conditions are good - the makers admit that in some driving conditions, the output just isn't enough and the bike can't get enough electricity to work.

Read more . . .