Bladez: i-Bladez Flight Salvation Helicopter R/C

Having been sorely disappointed by the previous micro RC 'copter I bought (a close copy of a Pico-Z), my expectations weren't too high for this one. However, it turned out to be pretty good.

The description is a bit misleading - it suggests full control, but actually you can only go left, right (plus L/R trim) and adjust the throttle - no back / forward adjustment. Despite that, you have very precise control, a nice slow forward speed, and within about 15 minutes of practising I could do a lap of the living room and land it back where it started.

Battery life is pretty impressive too (about 7 mins from a 45-min charge), considering the power it needs and the tiny battery. Hopefully this one will allow a decent number of recharges - battery durability is often a problem on this sort of thing. Just make sure you follow the instructions and don't store it with a discharged battery.

On the down side, the 'joystick' controller is a bit of a gimmick - it's fine for use… more »

Having been sorely disappointed by the previous micro RC 'copter I bought (a close copy of a Pico-Z), my expectations weren't too high for this one. However, it turned out to be pretty good.

The description is a bit misleading - it suggests full control, but actually you can only go left, right (plus L/R trim) and adjust the throttle - no back / forward adjustment. Despite that, you have very precise control, a nice slow forward speed, and within about 15 minutes of practising I could do a lap of the living room and land it back where it started.

Battery life is pretty impressive too (about 7 mins from a 45-min charge), considering the power it needs and the tiny battery. Hopefully this one will allow a decent number of recharges - battery durability is often a problem on this sort of thing. Just make sure you follow the instructions and don't store it with a discharged battery.

On the down side, the 'joystick' controller is a bit of a gimmick - it's fine for use while sitting down, but if you want to walk around the house while flying, it's a bit tricky - a traditional type controller would be more practical, and a throttle you can operate with your other hand (as opposed to the thumb throttle on this one) would allow more precise control.

The controller can be powered by USB, but I *really* can't see the point of that, unless you want to fly it in a train carriage from your laptop power or something equally stupid. It also vibrates - again, utterly pointless.

Finally durability - I've crashed it a *lot* of times, and it's still *mostly* in one piece - just the tail rotor seems a little flimsy (I broke one within 10 minutes of getting it out of the box). You do get 2 spares with it though, and it's only for show - the two counter-rotating main rotors provide all the lift and turning capabilities.

Overall a good, fun toy, for those with a big lounge and that aren't too ham-fisted on the throttle (it will embed itself in the ceiling faster than you can blink if you just blat it open). Try and get a decent discount though - it's a bit pricey at RRP, and plenty of stores are knocking a decent amount off.