Man, fuck Cowboy and fuck VanMoof. Both want to push the cycling industry into being as proprietary as possible, whereas traditional bikes are pretty much completely made from industry standard components. We don’t need an Apple or John Deere in the cycling industry.
I prefer proprietary. Lucky for you there are a thousand e-bike options for you to consider.
Why would you prefer proprietary lol? Or are you joking?
As for me, I actually prefer non-electric bikes, which are sadly getting harder to come by as the margins on e-bikes are larger.
I sometimes prefer proprietary, depends on the company and product. In the case of repairs, I’d prefer everything done in house, especially if they are aiming for a circular economy/supply chain. If I’m repairing my own devices, I don’t wanna have to hunt down a third party that I can rely upon to dispose of e waste properly.
…you’re aware that bikes are mostly repaired in bike shops, right? Because most bikes aren’t proprietary, a skilled repairman is a skilled repairman for all brands.
The entire idea of in house repair already implies there is something special about the product that means it needs special knowledge, which just isn’t the case for most bicycles. Or, if you want to think about it another way, a repair in a bike shop is indistinguishable from what you would want to get when you want an in house repair.
Yes I know how bike repairs work. A skilled repairman isn’t going to be able to fix every component on an ebike tho. They have computer chips and electric motors that would need to be fixed in a special factory
Yes, the individual components need specialists. However, a specialised bike shop is also aware of their limitations and is in contact with the actual brands. This is also the case for traditional bicycles. You’re inventing problems that have long been solved.
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