I love toys, especially the remote control types, specifically RC helicopters. I’ve always wanted one of the tiny RC helicopters that fit in your hand, I just never got around to getting one for whatever reason, but HobbyTron has fulfilled my want (or need) to get a mini-helicopter by sending me their Hornet 3 Mini RC Helicopter for review. This thing is just amazing, it flies great, it’s very easy to control and the thing is virtually indestructible, so continue on to learn more and see all the videos I have as well of it flying around…
Hornet 3 Mini RC Helicopter from HobbyTron
Reviewed by: Kristofer Brozio AkA Dracos
Sponsor: HobbyTron
Tech Specs,Features or the Basic Info:
Hornet 3 Mini RC Helicopter from HobbyTron
Hornet 3 Mini RC Helicopter Digital Proportional 2 Channel (Storm III)
Product Link: http://www.hobbytron.com/Hornet3MiniElectricHelicopterHT007.html
Product Information:
The new Hornet 3 series mini rc helicopter is finally here! The world’s first, hobby grade mini helicopter with a true 15 step digital proportional control and trim nob instead of the dated click style that resets every time you power down your heli. The Hornet 3 charges directly from the controller which is made of durable ABS plastic. The Hornet itself is made of EPP foam which makes it highly crash-resistant. It also has a next-gen Li-Poly battery that gives you 7-9 minute fly times instead of the normal 5 minute ones you’ll get with other mini helicopters. The Hornet also has crash protection landing gear to prevent damage from falling. Get one now before they all fly away
Features:
-15 Step Digital Proportional Controls
-Tail Rotor Trim Dial (persists through power down)
-EPP Foam CP2 ‘Crash Proof’ Design
-Hi-Capacity Li-Poly Battery (7-9 min fly times)
-Charges From the Controller
-3 Sets of Customizable Decals
-3 Flight Modes (hover, pilot, attack)
Includes:
-Hornet 3 Mini RC Helicopter
-Controller
-Advanced Tuning Guide
-Tool Set
Requires:
-6 x "AA" Batteries
Price: $39.96
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A Better Look at Things
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The Hornet 3 comes in your standard colorful ‘toy’ box packaging, it’s meant to attract your attention while it sits on a shelf in some store. This isn’t a bad thing mind you, colorful and informative packaging is always very welcome to me. Through the front of the package you can see the Hornet 3 itself and get a glimpse of the remote for it.
The back features a picture of the Hornet 3 and its remote along with requirements and features listed briefly.
Opening the box we find an ‘advanced flying guide’ that tells you how to do a few tricks with your new RC helicopter. Also included is the user manual, warranty card and a sheet of three sets of stickers so you can change the look of your helicopter. The helicopter itself is inside a plastic ‘bubble’ taped to the back of the interior box, while the remote is attached with familiar wire ties, the accessory set, which included screwdriver, weights, extra tail rotor and tape is stuck to the bottom of the box.
Here’s a couple shots of the parts out of the box for viewing:
The remote for the Hornet 3 looks similar to other remote controls, it has a joystick on the left and right, on/off switch in the middle, along with two LEDs as well, one for power and the other for charging.
The joystick on the left is for the throttle, while the stick on the right is for controlling the left/right direction of the helicopter. Beneath and slightly left of the right joystick is the ‘trim dial’ this is used to ‘trim’ the tail rotor, what this does is add or subtract power going to the tail rotor to stop the helicopter from spinning left or right. Adjusting it is fairly easy, you just need to get it where the helicopter flies straight. The red dome looking thing on the top of the remote is actually three infrared LEDs that send the signal to the helicopter.
The back of the remote is where the batteries would go and you’ll notice a large letter ‘A’ this signifies the channel or frequency that the Hornet 3 flies on. There are two other frequencies available, so you can fly three helicopters at the same time.
A Better Look at Things
Continued:
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Ok, time for some pictures of the Hornet 3, here’s a bunch of them in an effort to give a nice 360 degree angle of the Hornet 3. The main body of the Hornet 3 is basically styrofoam, or EPP foam as it’s called, and I have to say it is very tough and almost indestructible.
The main rotor is actually two rotors connected together for better stability.
The tail rotor even features its own tiny engine to easily control the Hornet 3.
On the underside of the helicopter is where you’ll find the on/off switch and charging port. There are three little dash marks there as well, these marks are for placement of the weight, depending on what mode you want the helicopter in, essentially the farther forward you put the weight the faster the helicopter will move forward, it basically brings the nose down a bit.
Installation, Testing and Comparison
In this section I’ve got a few more pictures for you and then a bunch of movies following that.
The included screwdriver is used to remove the back of the remote so you can install the batteries.
On the front of the remote control is a sort of hidden panel that slides downward to reveal the charging cable, just hook it to the helicopter for charging. There is a green LED on the remote that lights up while charging and turns on when complete, charging takes about 15-20 minutes.
Here’s a quick picture to show you the scale of the Hornet 3, I’m holding it in the palm of my hand, it really is very tiny.
I was taking some pictures and I figured I’d throw this one in the review also, it’s a pic of all three of my RC Helicopters. The Apache in the middle is also from HobbyTron and that review will be up shortly as well. The yellow heli on the end is my 6 channel E-Flite Blade CP, and it’s actually considered a mini-helicopter!
Before we get into the movies I have for you I guess I should cover the best part, the actual playing with the Hornet 3. Honestly I couldn’t wait to get it out of the box, I’ve always wanted one of these and I have to say I love it!!
It’s a whole lot of fun to fly, but you have to make sure there is no wind at all, and I mean none. One day while I was flying it my friend actually blew it across the room with just his breath, it was actually kinda funny. I also found that just having the windows open in my house made the helicopter a bit harder to control, even the tiniest breeze moved it about. It is to be expected though, it is extremely lightweight, it is made mostly of stryofoam as we already know.
My kids just love it, and the other ones I have as well. My youngest son is 1 years old and literally every morning since I got it, he comes down and makes me fly it around the living room until the batteries run out, he yells ‘helcop, helcop’ and laughs and giggles. He likes the bigger ones but he’s still not to sure of them yet, he wants me to fly them but he makes sure he’s far away. The Hornet 3 I guess is just the perfect size for him, he likes to run and get it when/if I crash and he sits it back upright so I can take off again.
I also let my five and six year old sons give it a try as well, they aren’t quite coordinated enough to fly well, but they were doing really good actually, so if they can do it anyone can… and I’m sure with more practice they’ll figure it out as well.
Speaking of crashing, WOW, I’ve crashed this thing so many times I can’t even begin to count, and it’s really none the worse for wear, sure it’s a little scuffed but it still flies great.
In the following movies you’ll see two other people, friends of mine, one of the guys actually went and ordered two more of the Hornet 3s with different channels so we all would have a separate channel to fly with.
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Movies Page 1
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First movie is generally just flying around and showing how the throttle works very well, you can raise and lower the altitude easily, and the tail rotor works very well, you can make it spin all different way if you wish to.
Second movie is taking off, it does spin a second as you take off, but that is partially due to the spin of the rotors and the actual ‘wash’ of the rotors as well. You can hear the pitch change as you lower and raise the throttle as well.
The third movie is trying to get a close up and to show the blinking red LED on the bottom of the Hornet 3, and of course more flying around a bit…
Crash… here’s some more flying and a crash against the wall.. the blades are very tough also.
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Movies Page 2
and another crash with a bit more flying around, the range is decent but you have to remember it is infrared so it has to be in line of sight for it to work correctly…
Here’s some more flying around a bit and almost a good landing…
Here I tried to get some more close up shots while flying, it’s a bit hard to do while it’s moving so fast. Another thing about the infrared control is that there is about a one second delay between the time you move the stick to the time the helicopter reacts, you’ll quickly realize that you sort of have to think ahead of the helicopter and ‘predict’ it’s movement almost.
Summary:
What more can I really say? I love it, my kids love it, and my friends love it, so much so they want and ordered a couple of them! The Hornet 3 is a great ‘toy’ for kids of any age, and the price is just right, especially considering all the fun you will have with it and the fact that it’s virtually indestructible…
DragonSteelMods gives the Hornet 3 a 5 out of 5 score and our Recommended Award as well.
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Pros:
-Small
-Virtually indestructible
-Very easy to use
-Flies well
-Quick charge time
-Long fly time
-Great for all ages
Cons:
-Any amount of wind will change the helis course
-Weight system is kinda weird
I would like to thank HobbyTron for the chance to review the Hornet 3 Mini RC Helicopter and for their support of DSM.