TOY : WowWee Robotic DragonFly

The world's first radio-controlled flying insect, the WowWee Dragonfly will provide hours of entertainment while enthralling the budding entomologist in your family. The Dragonfly is equipped with an ultra-light, dual-wing design and a highly flexible, crash-resistant structure, helping the insect stand up to bumps against the wall or hard landings on the ground. More significantly, the unit's unique ornithopter design flaps its wings just like a real insect, with accompanying rustling noises as it flies past. Make it fly out the window and into the open air, buzz up to a tall tree branch, and then gently come down and rest on a picnic table or lawn. The Dragonfly is a breeze to control, with a two-channel digital remote for manipulating the speed, direction, and height of the aeronautical marvel. You can even maneuver the Dragonfly into tight spaces or dive-bomb a neighbor--whatever your imagination suggests.

The Dragonfly is built using a durable carbon-fiber frame, with an impact-absorbing flexible body and 16-inch wings that take a ton of punishment. At the same time, the structure's lightweight housing protects your home interiors should you accidentally fly into a wall or two. Completing the insect-orific design is a pair of light-up LED eyes, which alerts you of the Dragonfly's status by blinking, pulsing, or shining clear and bright. It may look slightly lifeless and demonic, but the Dragonfly is none of the above. It's sociable, fun, and creative.

The remote doubles as a charging base for the lithium-

polymer battery. The Dragonfly is so inventive that it's already taken home a ton of honors, including a four-star rating from PC Magazine, an editor's choice award from Popular Mechanics for products displayed at the 2007 Consumer Electronics Association (CES) trade show, and the National Parenting Center's seal of approval. The Dragonfly, which includes a single rechargeable lithium polymer battery with a flight time of up to 10 minutes per charge, offers beginning and advanced skill levels and comes with a tail stabilizer for additional control. The remote control, meanwhile, requires six AA batteries (not included). All items are backed by a 30-day warranty.

What's in the Box

Dragonfly, remote control/charging base, detachable antenna, pair of spare wings, spare propeller, tail ribbon, user's manual.

Product Description

FlyTech Dragonfly is the world's first radio-controlled flying insect. With its' ultra-light, dual-wing design and ?high-flex?, crash-resistant structure, the dragonfly is an easy-to-fly aeronautical marvel. Use the dragonfly indoors or outdoors, controlling its speed, direction and height with the 2 channel digital proportional remote. 2 channel digital proportional remote - Control wing speed and tail rotor speed; remote is also the charging base Two skill levels - Beginner and advanced. Includes a tail stabilizer for additional control Available in 2 frequencies Wingspan - 16 inches (~40 cm) Power - Rechargeable lithium polymer battery Flight time - Up to 10 minutes on a single charge 6 x ?AA? batteries (not included)

Product Features
-Innovative Flying Action
-Stron Ultra-light Design
-Light Up LED Eyes
-Easy Recharge from the Remote
-Choose between beginner and expert mode

Product Details
-Product Dimensions: 16.5 x 3.4 x 12.3 inches ; 2 pounds

-Recommended Age: 8 - 127 years
-Batteries: 6 AA batteries required.

Customer Review

Addictive--with a little practice and the right amount of space, June 12, 2007
By
Jeremiah "zebraman" (zebraman)

I bought this because it's the first RC flying toy I've seen with actual flapping wings. I'm an adult and I bought it for myself because I work in a room that's a converted warehouse and we have really high ceilings and not many walls. It's really enjoyable to fly because you've never seen anything like it. It really does resemble a giant flying bug and it's movements are kind of creepy and it makes a soft buzzing sound. The key is to make sure a) the controller antenna is fully extended, and b) the rotor is still and while you start the wings flapping you hold it and release it into the air. With more practice, you'll get better. Don't be frustrated if it crashes--the fun is seeing how long you can keep it going. Even if you can only get it to fly around the room once, it's worth it. It comes with extra wings (different pattern and color printed on them), and an extra rotor. Be sure to unpack it all from the box carefully because some of the small parts are tucked away inside. It takes 6 AA batteries that go in the controller, which charges the bug via a small cable. The battery life seems pretty good so far. (I've had it for a couple weeks and have yet to change the batteries...but then, I only fly it here for fun and not more than about 10 minutes a day.) I've had it run into walls and poles from the height of 10' or so and it seems pretty durable (because it's so light). Fun. Somewhat educational too because it demonstrates a unique method of flight.

Excellent Value but requires practice, December 13, 2007
By
ghengis doggie "ghengis doggie"

I bought the bee version on a whim. I had no interest in RC planes etc. I now have a CX2 helicopter and a $70 heli based on the fun this toy provided. You will not find a more reliable low maintenace rc flyer then this. The flip side is that it takes a lot of practice to get to where you can fly and gain altitude. If you have kids, then this is something that you can do with them. My two year old loves to watch it fly and fetches when there is a crash. As I mentioned, my two year old fetches for me when I crash, he crushes the tail, abuses the wings, has fallen on it and it still flys great. I have had some spectular crashes and it has always recovered. This is more fun then my more expensive flyers just becuase is always ready to go and is a challange to fly. Also, it does not seem to cause the same degree of damage to objects that my helicopters do. When there is no wind this is a blast to fly outside. Once you have mastered the toy, very slight wind can be used to gain high altitude if you wish but you might find yourself stuck in a tree. Tips: turn with sticato bursts to maintain altitude. Use very gentile turning inputs (takes practice). Practice throwing so that the bug flies straight out of your hand. If you can not seem to hold altitude, you might need to replace the batteries in the charger, but more likely, you need to practice turning gently and maximizing the diameter of your space. If you space is small, practice throwing it and then fly it back to you and catch.

DragonFly is a hit with kids, September 17, 2007
By
David H. Thomasson "Open to New Ideas" (USA)

I purchased the DragonFly for my grandson who is 9 years old. It was an immediate hit and even prompted him to write a thank you letter! (a first). The remote controlled DragonFly is very easy to operate. After only a few tries we were flying high! The aircraft part is sturdy and survived several collisions with furniture and walls before we were all pushed out of the house by an irate Mom. The structure of the DragonFly is based on the early experience of Igor Sikorsky, who saw the insect version as a child and tried to design his first helicopters based on the flapping wing concept. (Eventually the current horizontal 4 bladed rotating wing proved more mechanically durable and and was universally adopted.) This great aviation history lesson can be added to the product, and it really helped open up communication between this Grandpa and a very active 9 year old. Great product and a good value. I bought it through an Amazon affiliate and it was delivered on time and as advertised.