Meet the New Mini Segway You Can Actually Afford

Xiaomi, a major investor in the company that owns Segway, has announced a new product: a knee-high segway-style scooter called the Ninebot Mini. Chinese company Ninebot purchased Segway in April of this year, and this is the first new product released since the acquisition.

A promotional video features several "cool dudes" performing a choreographed routine atop Ninebot Minis, showcasing what the device can do. After seeing how banged up my sister got after falling off a regular-sized Segway, the maneuvers in this video seem even more impressive.

The Mini might be more compact, but it's no weakling. It can go up to ten miles per hour and handle inclines of fifteen degrees. Most incredibly, the price comes out to the equivalent of $315 USD, much cheaper than the full-size Segway, which goes for at least $6,000.

For now, the Mini is only slated for release in China next month, but it seems there are plans for a European release, and hopefully the US will follow. Between this and the recently-everywhere Hoverboards, this new breed of self-balancing scooters is definitely not going away anytime soon.