Fun, fun, fun till a trailer towed my baby away.
“Wow, what an entrance!” said a well-coiffed woman as other patrons seated at the sidewalk cafe, now standing, began to applaud my exit from the electric bubble car like I was stepping out of a limousine.
That really happened in one of Amsterdam’s wealthiest neighborhoods, on a street dotted with Range Rovers and a G-Class Merc costing nearly ten times as much as the little BMW Isetta throwback I was driving. What followed was a bevy of questions I had already answered dozens of times in my one week with the car: What is it? How much does it cost? Can I drive it on the highway?
It’s an Italian-made Microlino from a Swiss-company called Micro with prices starting at around €18,000 (about $19,500). Yes, it’s highway legal.
While cars in general are embiggening, in some cities a new breed of electric microcars are trending. They’re cheaper to own, easier to park, consume less public space and energy, and maneuver around obstacles that would otherwise block big SUVs and snarl traffic.
And you know what? Some, like the Microlino, are so much fun that maybe, just maybe, they’ll help reverse the trend of people buying increasingly larger and heavier cars. Assuming they’ve fixed a software issue that bricked my test car at the end of the review (more on that later).
Let me start by saying that I don’t own a car, but I do regularly drive one. I’ve long subscribed to a car sharing service with a dedicated fleet parked in dedicated spots around town, that lets me select the right car for my current need: compact, wagon, or panel van; gas or EV. But not everyone lives in a city that spent the last 50-odd years trying to break away from car dependency to perfect multimodal transport, so the desire to own a large car that can do all the car things is understandable.
Yet even here in Amsterdam — a city dominated by bicycles with easy access to good public transportation — there are still lots of privately owned cars suffering from autobesity, just sitting there on the street unused 96 percent of the time, by some accounts. That’s space that could be used for public walkways, cycleways, benches, cafes, greenery... or about three microcars parked side by side.
The midtier Microlino Dolce I reviewed starts at €20,000 (about $21,700) and is an absolute joy for quick trips to the market or dropping a kid at school while staying warm and dry in bad weather. It has a top speed of 90km/h (55mph) and range of up to 228km (142 miles) for destinations well beyond the city center.
Last weekend, I drove my wife and dog to the sea and back and then returned to the dunes for a trail run the following day before needing to recharge the Microlino, for a real-world range of about 110km. I plugged it in at one of the 12 public 11kW AC chargers in the parking lot with about 20 percent remaining, and returned from my run 90 minutes later to find a 50 percent charge — more than enough for the 30-minute drive home.
The Microlino’s no speed demon, but it’s still an EV and so lightweight that I’d beat unsuspecting taxis off the starting line and “win” the merged lane. The small and responsive steering wheel and super stiff suspension contribute to a go-kart feel when whipping around corners and through traffic circles at I-should-know-better speeds. “It feels like a real car,” is how one owner of a €15,000 (about $16,300) Biro — one of the first and most popular electric microcars to seduce Amsterdammers — described driving the Microlino.
It’s not without its faults, however. To start with, there’s a lot of plastic inside the Microlino (but the windows are all glass unlike some microcars). One plastic clip helping to keep a plastic service panel in place snapped off in my brief time with the car, which I received with just 10km on the odometer. The motor has a distinct whine, the phone holder rattles when empty, the wiper motor is noisy, and the fan has two settings: loud or louder. The only thing that isn’t loud is the included portable Bluetooth speaker.
I also watched the main display reboot once while driving but without any impact on the motor or controls (thankfully!). And while the front door has a nice soft-close mechanism, the trunk requires a solid slam to catch. The sloped-back roof also exposes the interior to rain when the door is open, and I experienced some drips while driving around curves due to water that must have collected in the door closure.
The “vegan” (fake) leather on the seats and steering wheel were nice touches on my Dolce Edition, as was the intuitive mechanical sunroof, but overall I’d describe the fit and finish of the Microlino Dolce as basic. At least until I drove a top-end Biro and realized just how superior the Microlino was by comparison. A Microlino is a tiny expensive car, whereas a Biro is a tiny expensive golf cart.
The Microlino did, however, suffer a total failure after sitting on a 11kWh public charger for about four hours. When I returned to what should have been a fully charged car, it wouldn’t power on. After hauling it away on a trailer, Micro identified the issue and assures me it won’t affect future cars. They blamed the problem on a system that protects the car against peak voltage from the charging station, which “was not adjusted correctly after a software update.”
Micro tells me that my poor little guy is fine after the update. Good, but such a failure would have been a huge hassle if I was the vehicle’s owner, and without the priority attention afforded to journalists.
Still, despite the mishap and all my nitpicking, none of the aforementioned issues are enough to dissuade my enthusiasm for the Microlino — it’s that much fun.
As much as I enjoyed my week with the Microlino, I’m not yet a convert — there’s simply no faster, more convenient, or healthier way of going door to door than on a bicycle in cities with good cycling infrastructure, despite the rain and cold for which I can dress. And less capable but very appealing microcars like the Opel Rocks (sold as the Citroen Ami in some markets) can be had for half the price at €8,700 (about $9,470).
The Microlino isn’t for everyone. Hell, microcars aren’t even for most people. But they are for anyone who wants a vehicle that’s more nimble, efficient, inexpensive, and fun to drive than a full-sized car.
Fun... there’s that word again. I can’t help but return to it even if it’s impossible to quantify. But anecdotally, my time with the Microlino delivered more smiles per city kilometer — both inside and outside the car — than any car I’ve ever been in, and I’d wager more than any new car available today, no matter the size or price.
Photography by Thomas Ricker / The Verge
Above, actor Benedict Cumberbatch reads the final letter written by Alexei Navalny, the Russian opposition leader who died in a Siberian prison on February 16th. The letter gets at a question many have asked, even from afar. Why, after being poisoned with Novichok in 2020, did Navalny return to Russia, knowing he would face immediate and harsh imprisonment?
The letter, dated January 17, 2024, begins:
Exactly 3 years ago, I returned to Russia after undergoing treatment for poisoning at the airport. I was arrested and here I am three years in. For three years, I’ve been answering the same question. Inmates ask it plainly and directly. Prison administration staff [ask it] cautiously, with the recorders off. Why did you come back?
For a country now used to cynicism and corruption, the answer is dismaying:
It’s actually very simple. I have my country and my convictions and I don’t want to renounce either my country or my convictions.… If your convictions are worth anything, you should be ready to stand up for them and, if necessary, make some sacrifices. And if you’re not ready, then you have no convictions at all. You just think you do. But those are not convictions and
principles, just thoughts in your head.
Navalny ends the letter with a prediction: “Putin’s state is unviable. One day we’ll look at its place and it will be gone. Victory is inevitable but, for now, we must not give up…” Rest in peace Alexei Navalny.
Rep. Michael Houser, a Columbus Republican, introduced a bill that would block state agencies from working with federal agencies to enforce federal gun laws. (Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector)
TOPEKA — Though Kansans and Missourians are still reeling from a February mass shooting that left dozens injured and one dead, a Kansas lawmaker is pushing to change gun regulations in the state so that the “feds” can’t interfere with gun owners like himself.
Rep. Michael Houser, a Columbus Republican, introduced the Kansas Gun Rights Preservation Act to ban state and local law enforcement from working with the federal government to enforce any federal gun law that “restricts the rights of law-abiding citizens to own or use firearms, accessories, or ammunition.” The bill also allows Kansans who believe their guns were wrongfully taken away to file a civil lawsuit.
House Bill 2803, heard Thursday by a House committee, could fine state and local agencies $50,000 for every violation of the act.
Houser used himself as an example of a law-abiding citizen that the legislation would protect. Houser said he owns a pistol brace.
“You’re gonna come help the feds take me to jail?” House questioned one of the law enforcement officers who testified against the bill. “… Me, a law-abiding citizen.”
Across the state, an average of 450 residents are killed by firearms each year, according to Everytown statistics. The state’s gun regulations allow anyone 18 or older and legally entitled to possess a firearm to openly carry a firearm in public without a license or permit. Anyone 21 or older can carry a concealed weapon without training or licensing.
In early February, 23 people were injured by gunfire and one woman was killed during the Kansas City Chiefs’ Super Bowl victory parade in Kansas City, Missouri.
“Almost every mass shooting in this country in the last 20 years has been committed by a person who was a law-abiding citizen until they started shooting other law-abiding citizens,” said Rep. Boog Highberger, D-Lawrence. “Personally, I’m more interested in protecting the rights of law-abiding citizens who are being shot than the law-abiding citizens who are doing the shooting.”
Houser said his guns were not harming people.
“My guns don’t hurt anybody. They’re locked up in a safe,” Houser said.
Officials from the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, Kansas Highway Patrol, Kansas Sheriffs’ Association and Kansas police officers, among other state law enforcement officers, spoke against the measure.
KHP reported seizure of 130 guns in 2023. If these seizures were in violation of the act, the organization could have faced up to $6.5 million in civil penalties under the legislation.
Law enforcement officials said the bill also could have a chilling effect on stopping crime because of the financial penalty. KBI officials pointed out that if one of their agents seized a gun during a criminal investigation and the person was either not charged or acquitted, the person could sue under the act. The bill also would nullify KBI agents from participating in federal task forces.
“The effect of frivolous lawsuits would be significant upon a state agency like the KBI and draconian in its effect on small departments and municipalities,” said Bob Stuart, executive officer with the KBI.
Bel Aire Police Chief Darrell Atteberry, legislative committee chairman for the Kansas Association of Chiefs of Police, said his organization’s opposition was about the bill itself, rather than partisan gun debate.
“This isn’t to us a red issue or a blue issue,” Atteberry said. “It’s just there are parts of this that we find objectionable, and we have concerns because some of it is vague. Some of it is unclear.”
The bill is one of several pieces of gun rights legislation being considered by legislators this year. More than 60 lawmakers have sponsored House Concurrent Resolution 5020, a proposed constitutional amendment that would protect possession and use of ammunition, firearm accessories, and firearm components.
In response to the Kansas City shooting and gun rights legislation, Kansas Senate Democrats have packaged and promoted four gun safety bills to address state gun violence.
Their legislation includes safe storage regulations, mandating background checks for all firearm purchases, prohibiting individuals younger than 21 from purchasing semi-automatic rifles, and requiring licenses for people who want to carry a concealed handgun.
“Kansas children deserve to learn and go about their lives free from the threat of gun violence,” said Senate Minority Leader Dinah Sykes, D-Lenexa. “Unfortunately, we have a do-nothing Republican Senate that has delivered no meaningful progress on gun safety legislation after the Chiefs parade shooting. With this legislative package, we’re answering Kansans’ call for common sense gun safety reform by putting safeguards in place to help keep dangerous weapons from falling into the wrong hands.”
The post In wake of mass shooting, Kansas lawmakers spar over ‘gun rights preservation’ bill appeared first on Kansas Reflector.
Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach, show emerging from a Shawnee County District Court room in Topeka, filed a lawsuit alleging TikTok knowingly violated the state's consumer protection law by trafficking pornography and other disturbing content through its app. (Tim Carpenter/Kansas Reflector)
TOPEKA — Attorney General Kris Kobach filed a consumer protection lawsuit against TikTok for allegedly failing to inform minors of addictive qualities of the social media application and for deceiving adults about effectiveness of parental controls touted as capable of blocking content damaging to mental health.
The petition filed in Shawnee County District Court on Wednesday indicated Kobach sought an order permanently enjoining TikTok, and its parent company ByteDance, from engaging in deceptive acts against Kansas consumers. The suit requested the court award civil penalties of $10,000 per violation, or $20,000 per instance in special circumstances, and require TikTok to pay the state’s investigative and attorney costs.
The lawsuit filed with assistance of the Cooper & Kirk law firm in Washington, D.C., asserted TikTok knew its app wasn’t safe for minors when it came into use in 2017. TikTok’s app and services have been downloaded, installed or engaged with by devices in Kansas at least hundreds of thousands of times, the lawsuit said.
“The app has promoted filth, profanity, sexual content and alcohol and drugs to Kansas kids,” Kobach said. “Even worse, it has used coercive algorithms that spike dopamine, keep kids on the app as long as possible and facilitate downward mental health spirals.”
The state of Indiana, New York City and Seattle public schools, among others, previously filed lawsuits raising consumer protection claims against TikTok, which is a popular platform for delivering short-form videos to people using the app. TikTok’s corporate ownership can be traced to China.
The Kansas suit alleged TikTok misled parents by marketing the company in app stores as appropriate for youth as young as 12. The court petition asserted TikTok offered “restricted mode” and “family pairing” tools to keep children safe that the attorney general’s office viewed as ineffective in shielding youth from “significant amounts of profanity and crude humor, sexual content and nudity, alcohol, tobacco and drug usage, and mature and suggestive themes.”
“In reality, this company created an app intentionally to hook Kansas children onto their salacious, dangerous and damaging content at the price of those children’s mental health,” said Fran Oleen, a deputy attorney general in Kansas.
The state’s investigation made use of a TikTok account that was registered as if the consumer was a 13-year-old person.
Sara Dietz, a Kansas assistant attorney general, said youth could expect to frequently be drawn into an “infinite hole of TikTok videos that tell them they are not good enough or attractive enough.”
The lawsuit alleged the defendants manipulated data collected from Kansas consumers, including location-based data, to deliver user-generated and TikTok-sponsored content. For example, the petition said, if a user’s location revealed he or she was in Kansas, “it may suggest content about Kansas Jayhawks basketball based upon the user’s location.”
Kobach’s case suggested TikTok’s business model was to sell advertising that maximized app engagement. He claimed TikTok designed its product to pander to “minor and adult users’ dopamine reward systems, tethering them to the app, where they will be shown more advertisements, which increases TikTok’s revenues and profits.”
In 2022, Pew Research Center reported 67% of teens were using TikTok and 16% used it “almost constantly.” The parental control app Qustodio said time spent by children on TikTok averaged 120 minutes daily in the United States during 2023.
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