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Come, let me tell you about the love/hate relationship I have with this helicopter for kids.
It all Started with a Birthday Wish
Once my oldest got to about age 4, he started actually asking for things for Christmas and birthdays. Some times that was EVERYTHING in a toy aisle. But When he started asking for one thing over and over, I would make a mental note. The first one was a blue and green light up yo-yo. That was pretty easy. It was also pretty destructive in the hands of a 4 year old!
For his 5th birthday, he asked for a blue and green helicopter that would actually fly. I guess he knew what he wanted. I told him he might have to settle for a blue OR green helicopter. He was okay with that.
I hopped online and quickly found the Syma S107 helicopter for kids. It had decent ratings, and over 16,000 or them. It was only $20ish and I felt good with that, even if he destroyed it in minutes. So we committed and bought it for his birthday.
Funny side note: we actually had two of these exact helicopters when my son was 2-ish. He was way too young and it was a parental nightmare. I threw those things out so fast. Maybe I should have just put them away for a few years instead. Whoops!
A Learning Experience
My son was beyond thrilled to get his helicopter and would use it daily until the battery died, or until he got it stuck on the roof. Insert parental side eye. His little brother also got one for his birthday, so he would fly them both, or try to teach his brother. He named them both. His brother’s blue one was Blue Bird, and his green one was Harry, named after his favorite front yard tree.
He slowly got better at controlling it. We lost some pieces here and there, and had to use some layers of super glue. But for $20, I wasn’t worried about him being rough with it. It also definitely landed in neighbor’s yards multiple times. So he had to go knock on the doors to ask to retrieve them. Adding to the learning experience.
How Well Does it Fly?
If the boys actually let them charge for any amount of time, or remembered to plug them in, they lasted for a decent amount of flying time. Often longer than the boys attention span. They wouldn’t be great for a long adventure, but for backyard adventures, they are perfect. Also, if you have the skill and patience, they would be great for controlled indoor use. They do not, however, have the best range.
They need direct sight from the remote to the sensor in the helicopter, or it drops like a rock. This can be super frustrating when a kid lets it take off like lightning. The helicopter has some serious speed and height, but then once up there, or more than maybe 30 feet from you, it loses signal and drops. That might not be an issue for older kids that can control it better, as well as MOVE with it, but it definitely was the cause of a LOT of roof and neighbor’s yard landings.
Despite having a 3 and 5 year old using and abusing these things, even breaking off pieces, they were doing pretty well. They still worked, though the alignment sometimes needed to be fixed. As well as figuring out which frequency they were both on. They each have two frequencies to choose from and you have to set them on the helicopter itself AND the remote. This did cause some frustration and arguments when one kid would play with the switch and suddenly remotes were controlling the wrong helicopter. Cue sibling squabbles.
The Death of Harry the Helicopter
One day we were out playing the in yard. One kid playing with random objects, one flying Harry, and me reading a book on the patio. Ah, the joy. Then suddenly I heard a loud exclamation. I looked up at my oldest and saw the direction he was looking. In the neighbor’s yard. Somehow we all got distracted and did not retrieve him immediately. Later that day the neighbor came over with Harry’s shattered boy. He did NOT stand up to a lawn mower. There were tears. So many tears.
We decided that if he helped pay for a new one with his treasure chest money, then we would get a new one. He chose a white one this and named him White Lightening. Then his great grandma found out he liked them and sent him the red one that she already had.
So we now have THREE helicopters and the boys love them.
Final Thoughts
As with many of their beloved toys, they will ignore them for a week or more and then find them randomly and be in love them all over again. I honestly think its a pretty great toy for the price point. I enjoy the outdoor time, the hand-eye coordination, and the patience it requires. I think it also helps them feel pretty accomplished to be able to fly them on their own. My oldest has his sights on a drone, and I told him it would take a lot of treasure chests for that to happen. So until he levels up, these are the perfect tester helicopter for kids.
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