Most of the other reviews have hit the major pros and cons with this, but there are still a few more that I can add. Hope they help in making your purchasing decisions! PRO:
- Thanks to the gyro, very short learning curve. Remote has two joysticks. Left side only moves up/down and controls speed of the rotors, which controls how much lift they generate. Right joystick moves up/down (controlling forward/reverse) and left/right (makes heli spin). You can also moving the right stick diagonally to make various turns while moving forward or backwards (reverse "figure-8's" are always impressive).
- Surprisingly large number of "mods" that can be done to a $30 heli. After experimenting, I have settled on two minor ones. First, I removed the spring from the left joystick in the controller. This lets me put the heli in a hover and let go of the remote ("look ma, no hands!"). I have also moved the landing gear forward in their mounts to push the center of gravity forward a little, which gives a tiny bit more forward speed. (Some people tape a paperclip to the front to achieve the same effect). One of the other big ones that I tried, but didn't keep, was the "flybar mod". Google it for more details.
- Very durable. Before flying the S107, I had a non-gyro 3-CH heli which broke after it's third flight. I'm now 2+ weeks into the S107 and despite crashing into just about everything possible: walls, ceiling, sofa, tables, pull chain for ceiling fan, the Christmas tree(!), but for some minor nicks on the blades that don't affect flight, everything has held up fine. [My "trick" is to cut power to the blades completely as soon as the crash occurs, and just let it fall]. Even if something does break, just about every part on the 107 is replaceable, from the wings to the motors to the body parts.
CONS:
- Because the S107 is so light (>40g), it absolutely cannot be used in any sort of wind. In fact, a decent draft can be enough to cause it to blow off course. Even indoors, you have to avoid open windows and fans of any sort. Not really a big problem as this happens to all small indoor helis.
- Due to IR control, people report having issues flying near/around LCD televisions and light bulbs that are on when flying. I can fly over lit lamps (incandescent and florescent) without issues, but my 46" LCD will occasionally cause the heli to lose contact with the controller, shutting down power to the rotor. Turning off the TV solves the problem completely.
- The power connector inside my controller will not charge my heli - after five seconds, it thinks its fully charged and shuts down. After taking the controller apart to look for issues, I found the the power wires' connection to the controller board were not soldered properly. Since the USB charger works fine, I did not bother returning the heli, but quality control still seems to be an issue.
- The USB charger (and presumably, the controller's built-in charger) are not "smart" chargers. That is, they will continue to charge the heli's battery as long as they are plugged in. As the heli comes with a Li-Po rechargeable, overcharging can cause all sorts of problems, ranging from shorter flight times to shortening the life of the battery, even to physically damaging the battery (can heat up and expand). Be sure to stop charging as soon as the indicator lights tell you to. [You can also significantly preserve the life of a Li-Po battery by not running it down completely after each flight.]
- Although the controller has markings for 3 channels (A, B and C), advertised as being able to have three people fly their S107s in the same room, there are actually only *two* channels available. (Again, I have taken the controller apart to verify this). So if you planned on giving this as a gift to your 3 children, keep in mind only two will be able to play with it simultaneously.
On the bright side is that to change channels, you just have to flip the switch on the controller and the heli will automatically recognize which one you chose.
All in all, the positives far outweigh the negatives and this makes a great toy for kids and adults alike.
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