You can imagine how exciting it was to find that box on the front step. Inside, courtesy of WowWee and Capable Networks, a production version of the eagerly awaited Flytech Bladestar! This post will give you a quick tour of the package and contents, and some first impressions in flight. Coming soon, we promise videos and more in-depth reviews!

The Package

The Bladestar is packaged in a sturdy, reusable plastic case, tastefully dressed in a 4-color printed cardboard sleeve. Rejoice in the complete lack of twisty wires and yards of packing tape!

On the back, an overview of the controller and features.

A glimpse of some upcoming Flytech goodies!

Inside the box, the good stuff: Two sets of blades, the remote controller, the dogfight accessory, and spare props. Oh yes, and the main body of the Bladestar! Insertion of the blades was very simple, and removing them for storage requires only pressing down a single locking tab. The case also has a battery storage compartment for the required 6x AA cells.

The charger cable is hidden beneath the right hand black cap- the cap itself is clamped to the cable, so you can't lose it.

Charging is straightforward- plug the Bladestar in and slide the controller switch to Charge. The LEDs on the charger cycle sequentially until done- when only the top LED flashes. Ours reached maximum charge in about 10-15 minutes.

Flight

At last, the part I'm sure everyone is waiting for - does it fly? Indeed it does! We had no trouble getting the Bladestar off the ground (or off a stool, which made a great launch platform). We had no trouble getting it to hover, tho a few times it shot up to ceiling rather quickly. We're still learning the best methods for controlling its movements. As I learned by not setting a good example, you really need to read the manual before trying to fly the first time: you have to press some buttons in sequence in order to enter Remote Control ('RC') mode; otherwise, the default startup flight mode is Autopilot which only gives you throttle control. Both of my children (age 6 and 13) give it a big 'two thumbs up', and we hope to get some decent video footage uploaded soon!

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