VanMoof’s failure epitomizes the problem with the e-bike market

rglullis@communick.news to Technology@beehaw.org – 15 points –
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It's really not that difficult to buy an e-bike that doesn't need an app to run, only the fancy ones really have that

I was about to say, aren't most e-Bikes still "dumb"? At least that's my experience here in Germany.

The problem is less about e-Bikes specifically and more about companies locking product features to their cloud, which is frustratingly happening more and more with just about everything that's electrical.

My US-made e-Bike is also "dumb". A regular key to unlock it, a simple onboard trip computer, no apps, no bluetooth, a user replaceable battery... I can see the appeal of a "Tesla-like" e-Bike with a fancy app but reading about these companies going bankrupt makes me glad I got a simple bike.