Jai has long been a fan of RC planes – when he was in high school, he would spend a lot of time building and flying his own planes. It’s a hobby that can be expensive and time consuming, so he hasn’t gotten a chance to do much of it as an adult. Man, growing up can be so boring! So when I was offered a complimentary Sky Duel twin pack of RC helicopters to review, I knew this would be absolutely perfect for Jai!
The Sky Duel set has a unique concept: The set of helicopters include infrared beams which you can shoot at your opponent to knock them out of the sky! I thought the idea of being able to fire lazers at the other helicopter in an air battle was a really fun and clever idea. I was looking forward to an airborne showdown!
These RC helicopters charge via your USB port, with the remote controllers taking 6 AA batteries each. The instructions warned that your helicopter should charge for 60 minutes and no longer than 90 – the leaflet made it clear that if you leave the helicopter on the charge longer than this, it could cause the helicopter to stop working. Jai made a note of this, but unfortunately he forgot that the helicopter was on the charge and it ended up staying there for longer than recommended. He tried repeatedly to get it turned on, but to no avail – leaving it on the charge too long had fried it. That was totally our fault for losing track of time, but I think this is a good thing for parents to keep in mind, as it would be very easy for your teen (Or you..ahem) to forget about this and break the helicopter before they even use it.
Fortunately, since there were two helicopters in this pack, we still had one we could try out! This time, we watched the clock very, very closely. 😉 Obviously, we weren’t able to try the “Duel” feature of this, but Jai had a great time flying the individual helicopter. He said that it had pretty impressive automatic controls that did a good job of keeping the helicopter smooth and stable. He had a lot of fun flying it all over the house and was struck by what a nice RC toy it was. The only downside at all was that after about a week, the helicopter stopped charging and wouldn’t turn on anymore. We were careful not to “Overcharge” it like the other one, so I’m not sure if we did something else wrong or if it just broke.
The Sky Duel RC Helicopter Twin Pack by Swann is designed for indoor use by ages 14 and up – learn more by visiting Swann.com.
That looks like it would be a lot of fun! My son would totally love that!
We have a friend that used to be OBSESSED with these things! I think they are so cool!
My son would love these. He’s fascinating by helicopters right now!
This would be something my hubby and son would have fun with.
I’m hoping that was just a fluke because a week isn’t acceptable. Love that Jai is just a big kid!
My husband so wants these! They are on his wish list for Father’s Day. 🙂
my nephew would love this!
My hubby loves r/c helicopters!
I’m afraid I would lose my three sons and husband with that heli!
My daughter would even like this!