If you were born in the ‘90s and spent your formative years in the early aughts, you probably zoomed around your neighbourhood on the iconic Razor scooter. A couple of decades later, Razor is reviving its original scooter model so that grown-up ‘90s kids can feel like a kid again as they skip the bus on their way to work.
First launched back in 2000, the Razor A scooter was immediately a must-have and sold millions of units the first year it hit the market. Scooters were far from a new idea when the Razor A was introduced, but at the time skateboarding had been enjoying a boom in popularity (Tony Hawk famously landed his 900 at the X Games in 1999), and as cool as the sport had become, skateboarding still had a steep learning curve. The Razor A was much easier to learn to ride (you didn’t even have to know how to ride a bike), and in addition to durable wheels similar to what you’d find on inline skates, it also featured a clever folding design that made it highly portable. You could ride your Razor to the mall, and then stash it (albeit awkwardly) in a backpack.
Visit any skate park in the country, and you may find more kids on Razor-like scooters than skateboards these days. So, to capitalise on the continued popularity of the toy — as well as retro nostalgia — Razor is resurrecting the original Razor A as the new Razor Icon that’s now supersized to accommodate adult riders hoping to recapture their youth.
The Razor Icon is still made from aircraft-grade aluminium, so it should easily survive sick stunts, but it’s doubtful that 30-year-olds who grew up with the toy are planning to spend a day at the skate park. So in addition to a larger adult-compatible frame, the Razor Icon also includes a 350-watt motor powering the rear wheel that allows the electric scooter to hit speeds up to 29 km per hour with a range of about 29 km on a full charge of its 36-volt lithium-ion battery. (That range may vary depending on the terrain and number of hills you tackle on your ride.)
The solid rubber wheels of the Razor A have been replaced with 8.5-inch airless tires here to help smooth out rides, while safety features include a headlight and red LEDs in the back that illuminate when the brakes are applied. But the biggest difference between the original Razor A and the new Razor Icon is that you can’t stroll into your local Toys “R” Us to buy one. Not only is the once-popular toy chain mostly dead, but Razor is launching the Icon through a Kickstarter campaign first, with delivery set for sometime in August for the earliest backers.
Those who back the Razor Icon first can take advantage of early-bird pricing and get one for $US549 ($762) in one of five different colours, while pricing jumps up to $US599 ($832) when the first 125 are claimed. The eventual MSRP when the Icon hits stores will be a bit higher than that (Razor promises the price tag will still be under $US1,000 ($1,388)) and will hopefully include expanded availability as the Razor Icon’s Kickstarter availability, unfortunately, appears to be limited to the U.S. only.