I bought a new i180 in March 2006 when I refinanced my home. I had been intrigued by the technology since December 2001 when I saw a story at the time.com website. I knew back then that I would someday own one of these amazing vehicles.

I use my Segway for a portion of my daily commute. I keep it in the trunk of my Camry Hybrid, and in the morning when I arrive at my kids' school to drop them off, I just unload it and go. The distance from there to my workplace is about 3.6 miles one way, and I repeat in the afternoon.

Riding it is safe and easy, and intuitive. Most people at first think you need to "balance yourself" and ask me if it's "hard to ride." But the Segway's electronics do all the balancing for you - all you need to do is stand there. Lean forward to go forward, lean back to stop or go in reverse. Use the twist knob on the handlebar to turn. My 7-yr-old daughter and 10-yr-old son, as well as my 60-yr-old mother all took to it immediately and can handle it beautifully.

I now have 872 miles on my Segway in just about 6 months, so I'm trying to make 1,700 miles for the first year, which is 1,700 miles of NOT DRIVING my car. It costs about 10 cents for a full charge, and the range is about 21 miles for me on that charge. Converts to about "620 miles per gallon" when gas is around $3 a gallon, and about "450 miles per gallon" when gas is around $2 a gallon. Very economical.

In my case, the Segway is a replacement for DRIVING A CAR. Anyone who can make this substitution and can afford the $3,000 to $5,000 cost should immediately investigate the Segway as an option.

Recommended: Yes