All you NEED to know

Hoverboards have become the new craze both in Nigeria and all around the world. From teenagers to adults, everyone - even people that can't afford it - seem to be taken by the two-wheeled gizmo.

History.

An American businessman named Shane Chen, who founded a company named Inventist, has made early claim of inventing the device. In an interview with the LA Times, Chen claimed that his two-wheeled self-balancing unicycle, called the SoloWheel, was copied by other manufacturers after it was used on a Chinese television show, thanks to China's not-very-useful patent laws.

According to Wired'sDavid Pierce, the 'hoverboard' was likely invented as the 'Smart S1' by a Chinese company known as Chic Robotics, which released the device in August 2014. Again, China's wack patent laws meant several other manufacturers copied the product.

So how did this thing become such a worldwide hit?

After the Smart S1 gained popularity in China and several other manufacturers had begun copying the product, the founders of an American company PhunkeeTree, across the board at the Hong Kong Electronics Show and became involved in its distribution.

The company then gave a board to Kendall Jenner (who else if not a Kardashian clan member?), who posted a video of her riding it, on Instagram. The video became a viral sensation on social media and the rest, like they say, is history.

Does it really hover?

If you didn't know, the hoverboard as we know it, is not actually an hoverboard in the literal sense of the word. If there is anything it is more akin to, it's the Segway PT, a two-wheeled, self-balancing, battery-powered vehicle invented by Dean Kamen in 2001.

The modern hoverboard is very similar to the Segway because it functions with the same basic technology. The PT uses gyroscopic sensors and accelerometer-based leveling sensors to detect the resulting changes in its pitch angle and, to maintain balance, it drives its wheels forward or backward as needed to return its pitch to upright - just like the hoverboard of today as we know them.

Long story short, what we call hoverboards are not really hoverboards, they are just two-wheeled, self-balancing electric vehicles without an official universally accepted name.

The Lexushoverboard, demoed last year, is what you will call a proper hoverboard a la Back To The Future. Anything that doesn't hover over the ground is not an actual hoverboard. Other hoverboards are the Hendo, and the Arx Pax (Of the three real hoverboards mentioned, only the Hendo has a production model - that is, the Hendo is the only one you can purchase).

Problems, problems, problems.

The 'hoverboards' are powered with lithium-ion batteries (same kind of batteries in your phone, but way bigger) and there have been reported cases of defective batteries, short circuiting, and overheating which have caused the devices to catch fire and in some cases, explode.

Several injuries from incidents related to the boards have been reported since September 2015, some have even led to lawsuits. In some countries, there has also been varying degrees of legislation against the boards - it's been banned on public roads in the UK, while it is still allowed in some parts of the US.

However, governments and agencies in most countries advice people not to buy the devices. They have also been banned by several airlines and airport authorities.

So should you buy one?

Only you can answer that, to be honest. The truth is the boards are fun devices, and people have done some creative, fun stuff with them (Go on and search 'What Do You Mean Segway Dance Cover').

However, they are also expensive (they can cost anywhere between 90-250k) and quite unpredictable, what with the fires and explosions and what not.

So in essence, if you have some money you are not using, want to have fun with some risk and potential death (one 15-year old boy was killed by a bus while riding one of those things in the US), then by all means flourish!