As someone who lives life on two-wheels, testing bike gear isn’t just a fun hobby – it’s part of my daily life. E-bikes are how I get around and the gear I use with them helps me avoid needing to use a car. And so when I find something new that I incorporate into my everyday kit, that means that it has proven itself as both effective and worth it in the long haul. The latest lock that I trust to use on my own electric bikes is the Foldylock Forever from Seatylock.
Locks for e-bikes can be a touchy subject. We’re talking about expensive transportation machines, and everyone seems to think they know the best lock that is better than anyone else’s. Then, someone inevitably will tell you why that one pales in comparison. Someone will eventually mention Lockpicking Lawyer and say you’re all wasting your time. Basically, there’s little consensus.
But as someone who both rides e-bikes as a daily form of transportation and also has a mechanical engineering degree tucked away in his back pocket for occasional use, hopefully I can shed a little more light on the subject.
I’ve been testing the FoldyLock Forever for several months now, and compared to the literally dozens of e-bike locks I’ve tested, this has become my new favorite model. It’s not cheap – I’ll tell you that immediately. At $125 on Amazon, this sucker is expensive. But good quality isn’t cheap, and if I could go back and spend that $125 before my $3,000 e-bike was stolen last year, I’d do it in a heartbeat.
The holster is tight-fitting, noise-free, convenient, and has no extra straps or velcro to hold the lock
There are a few reasons I’ve fallen in love with the Foldylock Forever. First of all, folding locks are much more convenient than chains because they provide high-security in a much more manageable package. I still recommend using more than one lock of different styles at the same time, but now the Foldylock Forever is definitely the first lock I grab.
The lock folds up to fit in your hand or and can be securely mounted in a smaller area of your bike with the included holster, yet it still gives you the adaptability of a chain to lock around or through weird-shaped objects like trees, quirky bike racks, etc. Compared to high-security chain locks that can weigh 11-15 lb (4.9-6.8 kg), the Foldylock Forever weighs just 3.9 lb (1.8 kg). There are simply fewer links that need to be beefed up to reach that level of security compared to a chain lock.
The holster is ultra-convenient to use because there are no additional straps or fasteners – the molded shape securely holds the lock without rattling and you simply slide it out when you’re ready to use it.
Folding locks are also largely impervious to leverage attacks (like when thieves put a car jack in a U-lock). Cheaper folding locks can still be vulnerable to bolt cutters or nut splitters, but the Foldylock is hardened against both attacks. The hardened steel links defeat bolt cutters and use high-security rivets with such high precision that you can’t get a nut splitter in there.
When Foldylock claims that this is the most secure folding lock in the world, that isn’t marketing speak or hyperbole. It’s been tested and certified as such. It not only gets their own highest security rating, but it is Gold-Certified by Sold Secure, an independent, UK-based non-profit organization that tests and certifies locks based on how hard it is for them to be defeated by various attacks.
It’s not the only folding lock to reach this high level of certification from Sold Secure, but the lock is currently undergoing testing from other international lock-certification agencies that have never been achieved by folding locks.
Compared to other folding locks on the market, many of which I’ve tested, the Foldylock Forever is also much quieter and easier to use. Others have more play in their joints and a jingle-jangle sound similar to chains. Many have a limited 90-degree swing at the locking point, meaning it can’t really open all the way like a straight link. But the Foldylock Forever’s extremely high tolerances mean there’s no noise and the locking point can spin all the way around, effectively making it into a full circle (or rather, hexagon) that doesn’t limit your ability to lock around weird-shaped objects.
You don’t have to take my word for it – just look at the reviews. On Amazon, it has a 4.6 out of 5 rating, which is basically unheard of in the lock category. Part of that is because locks just aren’t a sexy product. When they work well, people don’t think about it. But when they don’t work well, people run to Amazon to complain about it in a bad review. That means keeping review numbers high on products like these is a feat in and of itself.
I won’t spend too long on this last issue, but just to address the “what about thieves that pick the lock?” argument that inevitably comes up from pedants, that’s basically a red herring. Most bike thieves, even the professionals, come prepared to break a lock, not pick it. And if someone truly is skilled enough to pick these types of cylinders (think “Lockingpick Lawyer” level professional), then the bike is already theirs. A good lockpicker is the same thing as having the key. There’s nothing you can do about it. Sure, the cylinder on the Foldylock Forever has higher security than a cheap bike lock. But nothing stops a truly professional lock picker because they effectively have a key to everything.
I’ve tested a lot of locks, but I’ve never found one that is as secure, lightweight, and convenient all at the same time. It’s not cheap at $125, but for an electric bike that is also not cheap to replace, investing in a solid lock is critical, in my opinion. I’ve been using the Foldylock Forever on my own bike and my wife’s bike, meaning I trust my family’s gear to it.
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Anker SOLIX Halloween Sale takes up to 63% off camping-ready units, like the new C1000 Gen 2 station at $398
Anker SOLIX has officially launched its Halloween Sale through the upcoming holiday, giving you ample time to take advantage of the up to 63% discounts on a collection of power stations and accessories, especially if you missed the Prime Day event. Among the lineup, we spotted the brand’s new C1000 Gen 2 Portable Power Station dropping down to $397.99 shipped this time, which also happens to match its pricing at Amazon. While it has been carrying a $799 MSRP since hitting the market at the top of September, we’ve been seeing it regularly keep down near $449, with Prime Day delivering the biggest discount to $379, while today’s $401 markdown from its MSRP gives you the second-best price we have tracked. Learn more about it by heading below or checking out our hands-on tested review here, and be sure to also checking out the early-bird savings on the new SOLIX C2000 Gen 2 power station here.
The first of Anker’s new gen 2 backup power solutions, the SOLIX C1000 Gen 2 power station comes as a lighter and more compact unit over the original C1000 model (which is sitting at the same price). Trading in its modular expandability for this decrease in size, it sports a 1,024Wh LiFePO4 battery that delivers up to 2,000W of steady power to devices and appliances, surging up to 3,000W as needed. There are 10 port options you’ll have to choose from: five AC, two 140W USB-C, one 15W USB-C, one 12W USB-A, and one 120W car output.
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Charging times on this new model have been sped up, with its AC input allowing for a faster 49-minute charge time to get the battery back to full. There’s also options to connect to a gas generator (providing passthrough charging), utilizing up to a maximum 600W solar input, using both AC and solar simultaneously, or by plugging into your car’s auxiliary port. You can get a rundown on what mine has been keeping powered in our hands-on tested review.
Lectric Spooky Sale offers largest $661 bundle of FREE gear with the new long-range XP Trike2 750 at $1,799
The Lectric Spooky Sale is in full swing with up to $762 in savings being taken off its e-bike bundles with bonus FREE mystery gifts on select models, making it a great time to upgrade your commute. Among the lineup that includes some of the biggest bundles on the XP4 750 e-bikes, we also spotted the biggest packages on the brand’s new Long-Range XP Trike2 750 getting $558 in FREE gear + $103 in FREE mystery gifts at $1,799 shipped, while the standard XP Trike2 is getting $257 in FREE gear at $1,299 shipped. The newer model just hit the scene back in August and has seen bundles of $493 and $455 accompany purchases so far. This sale is now increasing the savings with the largest bundles of free gear – $661 in total – which includes the two mystery gifts, front and rear cargo baskets, an upgraded saddle with a backrest, an Elite headlight upgrade, and a suspension seat post.
EcoFlow 48-hour flash sale drops expanded DELTA 2 bundle with 2x 110W solar panels to $919 low, more from $129
As part of EcoFlow’s ongoing Halloween Sale, you can find the next of the event’s 48-hour flash sales live, with up to 68% discounts on four different offers. Among them, we spotted the DELTA 2 Portable Power Station getting an extra battery and two 110W solar panels at $919 shipped, which is not available as a bundle on Amazon. Carrying a $2,646 MSRP, we’ve seen the costs previously taken lowest to $939 during the brand’s Prime Day Sale event that ended last week. Through October 21, however, you can pick up this solar-capable bundle with even more savings – $1,727 off the MSRP – while this flash offer lasts, giving you the best price we have tracked to date.
Keep weeds tamed and lines clean with Worx’s GT3.0 20V 12-inch cordless string trimmer/edger at $75
Amazon is offering the Worx GT3.0 20V 12-inch Cordless PowerShare String Trimmer/Edger with 2.0Ah battery at $74.99 shipped. While it carries a $130 MSRP, we’ve been seeing it keep down at $119 over the year, with it recently holding lower at $79 since late August, and some occasional drops as low as $70. We saw that low price back at the top of September, with today’s deal landing just $5 higher, giving you the second-best price we have tracked, which even beats out its Prime Day pricing from two weeks ago. You’ll also find this tool coming with two 2.0Ah batteries for $110, if you want extended runtimes.
The savings this week are also continuing to a collection of other markdowns. To the same tune as the offers above, these all help you take a more energy-conscious approach to your routine. Winter means you can lock in even better off-season price cuts on electric tools for the lawn while saving on EVs and tons of other gear.
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The two largest independent advisory firms, Institutional Shareholder Services and Glass Lewis, have both recommended a “no” vote on the proposed pay package for Tesla CEO Elon Musk, citing many concerns about shareholder dilution and other terms of the plan.
In September, Tesla’s board proposed a stock award worth up to $1 trillion for CEO Elon Musk. It includes several milestones regarding Tesla stock and product performance, each of which unlocks tens of billions of dollars for Musk.
It’s the largest award proposed for any CEO of any company by multiple orders of magnitude – with previous proposed Musk awards holding the second and third place positions as well.
In addition to that much-reported proposal, another proposal is up for a vote which would create a special share reserve of 208 million shares (current value $92 billion) which the Tesla board can give to Elon Musk with no string attached.
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Both proposals will be voted on by TSLA shareholders at Tesla’s shareholder meeting on November 6.
But now, both of the largest independent advisory companies have chimed in to point out concerns about the proposals in front of shareholders.
ISS and Glass Lewis state concerns with Musk pay packages
Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) and Glass Lewis are “proxy advisory” companies, both of which who do research and analysis of company proposals and then make recommendations to shareholders about how to vote for them.
Company boards often have their own recommendation on an issue, which may or may not be the best for shareholders – especially if those boards are lacking in independence, and may make recommendations that favor management personally over shareholders as a whole. So, it’s important for independent outside advisors to have a look at proposals and give their take.
Proxy advisory firms are generally less interested in the specifics of what industry a company is in, and just want to ensure good corporate governance – independent and diverse boards, appropriate executive compensation, and so on.
These recommendations are often followed by institutional investors – banks and other large companies that hold large chunks of shares in many companies, many of which they won’t track deeply. So they hire advisory firms to help them make decisions on votes.
ISS and Glass Lewis combined make up the vast majority of the proxy advisory market, so when they make recommendations, it can sway a lot of votes.
And, in looking at the proposals in front of Tesla investors for this year’s shareholder meeting, both of them have stated significant concerns.
On Friday, ISS stated that while it recognizes Musk’s “track record and vision” and the board’s intent to retain him for those reasons, the pay package “locks in extraordinarily high pay opportunities over the next ten years” and “reduces the board’s ability to meaningfully adjust future pay levels.”
It also pointed out that the proposal is designed in such a way as to allow extremely high pay for Musk even if most milestones aren’t achieved, and stated that its “astronomical” size would dilute shareholder value and voting rights.
Glass Lewis’ recommendation counters Tesla board on most proposals
Electrek obtained a full copy of Glass Lewis’ report, but not of ISS’.
Today, Glass Lewis echoed ISS’ statement, saying that dilution to shareholders “warrants significant concern.” It recommended shareholders to vote against all three pay-related proposals (2, 3 and 4), and to vote against re-election of board members Ira Ehrenpreis and Kathleen Wilson-Thompson, though it did recommend voting for the re-election of Joseph Gebbia.
Glass Lewis calls proposal 3 “particularly concerning,” as it ties a 208 million share award for Musk to the creation of a pool of 60 million shares for all other Tesla employees combined, and notes that the employee pool is only necessitated by the board’s previous action draining the pool of shares for employees and giving them all to Musk. It suggests that shareholders vote down this proposal, and that the company put up a separate, clean proposal to refill the employee pool.
And proposal 4, the $1 trillion award, is noted as being excessively dilutive for current shareholders and allowing too much concentration of ownership into Musk’s hands, along with producing more “key man risk” for Tesla. Glass Lewis states that attaching Tesla’s future so inextricably with Musk’s is risky, given his “vast and varied interests,” and suggests it would be reasonable to “sets parameters that limit the key man risk to which shareholders are exposed,” which the company has chosen not to do.
It also notes concern over promising billions of dollars of awards to Musk for doing some of the most basic things that a CEO is meant to do, such as developing a succession plan. Shareholders should “reasonably be concerned that the committee feels the need to compel Mr. Musk to perform such duties, particularly at such cost to shareholders.”
The milestones involved in the award are noted as potentially being easy to achieve, particularly given that the board can decide on a whim to grant a tranche of stock even if a product milestone isn’t reached, if market realities have changed between now and then (a “covered event”) resulting in those product milestones becoming unrealistic. The board is given significant discretion in this matter.
Finally, Glass Lewis points out the danger of allowing Musk to vote his entire ownership stake in favor of his own pay, which was not the case in the last shareholder vote over Musk’s pay. This means essentially a free 15% head-start on the vote, due purely to Musk’s own shares. Glass Lewis cites surveys of its clients and others, stating that a majority of both shareholders and non-investors think that executives should not be able to vote on their own pay packages in stating that Musk’s ability to vote on this proposal does not align with market expectations.
Glass Lewis also stated its concerns with a proposal for Tesla to invest in xAI. xAI is a private company which Musk started started to compete with Tesla (and is currently subject to a lawsuit for that reason). Glass Lewis said that this matter should be decided by the board, not shareholders.
In sum, Glass Lewis’ recommendations ran counter to the Tesla’s board recommendation in almost every case. The only proposals they agreed on are the election of Gebbia, ratification of Tesla’s auditor, and proposals 8 and 9, two shareholder proposals recommending Tesla adopt standards on sustainability and child labor.
Tesla responds by lashing out with attacks
Tesla has, expectedly, responded with attacks against both firms.
Both ISS and Glass Lewis have recommended “no” votes on Musk’s pay packages in the past, citing similar concerns over their size and the amount of dilution which they would cause to shareholders. And Tesla has spoken out against the two firms in those instances.
In this instance, Tesla attacked ISS, suggesting that its status as a disinterested advisor (which does not hold shares in the company) somehow makes it less capable of seeing the reality of the situation. It also notes past shareholder votes on other proposals, which were different from the proposals on the table today.
And after Glass Lewis’ recommendation today, Tesla levied another attack, making similar points about votes on past proposals, rather than the proposals in front of shareholders today.
Separately, Tesla also attacked a group of pension funds which are invested in TSLA, mocking them for having returns of 7-13% (which, collectively, is above average for large stable funds). Tesla even hired an outside PR company to publicize this attack.
Electrek’s Take
We’ve been clear here, over and over, about how ridiculous this stock plan is.
However, despite it seeming ridiculous at first glance, it only gets more ridiculous the deeper you look into it.
In short, the analyses presented by these outside firms looking at Tesla’s shareholder proposals, and the environment around them, are clear-headed and made in the interest of Tesla shareholders. If shareholders actually read the letters or analyses involved with their own interests in mind, they will likely be persuaded.
Meanwhile, Tesla’s responses have been filled with the sort of language that someone would expect out of an entity that is trying to deceive – the sort of language we’ve gotten used to in our politics. They read as campaign messages or advertising efforts, not as the result of deep analysis. And Musk also threatened his own company just yesterday, once again, in the hope that shareholders will feel trapped enough that they vote to retain him.
If the only place people read about this is on twitter, which Elon Musk bought for the purpose of spreading his own propaganda and shutting down dissent, they might get one sense of what the proposals mean. In that upside-down world, TSLA investors can only benefit as the stock goes up, and Musk only benefits if the stock goes up.
But looking into the actual details of the proposals, it becomes apparent that Musk can get awarded with a larger payday than any CEO ever for doing nothing at all, that that award comes at the cost of every other Tesla employee and the voting rights of every Tesla shareholder, and that better options are available which would maintain the rights of Tesla investors while also compensating its CEO (whose performance has been exceptionally bad recently).
But those options have not been provided to shareholders to vote on, as Tesla’s board is working more in the benefit of their friend Elon, rather than the benefit of TSLA shareholders as a whole.
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U.S. President Donald Trump meets Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in the Cabinet Room at the White House, in Washington, D.C., U.S., October 20, 2025.
Kevin Lamarque | Reuters
President Donald Trump and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Monday signed an agreement on critical minerals that includes plans for projects worth a total of up to $8.5 billion.
“There will be $1 billion contributed from Australia and the United States over the next six months with projects that are immediately available,” Albanese told reporters at the White House during a meeting with Trump.
Albanese said there will be three groups of joint projects between the two countries, which will include companies such as Alcoa. The U.S. will invest in rare earths processing in Australia, the prime minister said. One project is a joint venture between Australia, the U.S. and Japan, he said.
“What we’re trying to do here is to take the opportunities which are there,” Albanese told reporters.
China dominates the global rare earths supply chain, particularly refining and processing. The U.S. is dependent on Beijing for rare earths imports. Australia, a close U.S. ally, is one of the few countries in the world other than China that processes rare earths.
“In about a year from now, we’ll have so much critical mineral and rare earths that you won’t know what to do with them,” Trump told reporters. The U.S. is also working with other nations to build a supply chain that isn’t dependent on China, the president said.
China-U.S. tensions
China announced strict export controls on rare earths earlier this month, pushing Beijing and Washington to the brink of a renewed trade war. Trump has threatened 100% tariffs on Chinese goods starting Nov. 1 or sooner if Beijing does not back down.
“They threatened us with rare earths, and I threatened them with tariffs, but I could also threaten them with many other things, like airplanes,” Trump said.
Trump confirmed he will meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea later this month. The U.S. president said he will visit China early next year.
“We had presidents that allowed China and other countries get away with murder,” Trump said. “We’re not going to allow that, but we’re going to have a fair deal. I want to be good to China. I love my relationship with President Xi. We have a great relationship.”