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Tag Archives: Remote Control

Japanese Company To Launch One-Man Electric Helicopter (Updated With Video)

By David Ponce on 11/20/12 • 4 Comments

A Japanese company called Hirobo has announced their plans to launch a one-man helicopter that runs on batteries. The counter-rotating flying vehicle can be remote operated or flown by a pilot, and reaches speeds of 62mph for up to 30 minutes. The reason you’d want to be able to remote control it is in cases of rescue operations where you could just fly it up to the person in need, have them hop on, and bring them back to safety. The silent operation of the electric motor would also help locate a person hypothetically crying out for help.

The HX-1 is an ambitious and costly project. $125 million will have been poured into it by the time its 2021 rollout comes about. The reason for the long development time? Mostly regulatory, according to the president of the RC helicopter manufacturer, Kotaro Matsuzaka. But it’s not a simple concept either as a working prototype is slated for testing in early 2013. Should things go as planned, an unmanned version would cost 10,000,000 yen (US$125,000) while the one-seater would fetch three times as much.

VIA [ NewLaunches ]

This RC Car Can Do 100+mph

By David Ponce on 12/02/11 • Leave a comment!

By David Ponce

The Traxxas X0-1 remote controlled car isn’t a toy. At least, it’s not the kind of toy you’re going to want to give someone very young. This 1/7th scale machine carries two large Lithium-Ion Polymer (LiPo) batteries rated at 5,000 mAh and combined with a capacitor bank and a large, finned, brushless motor, this car is capable of doing 0-60mph in 2.3 seconds. 0-100 in 4.92 seconds. It’s able to do this right out of the box, provided you have an iPhone and download the related application (otherwise you’re limited to 50mph). See, the remote features an iPhone dock, and once paired, you can see live telemetry data right on your device’s screen. You can also tweak a number of settings, from throttle and steering response, to their respective end-points.

The X0-1 is four wheel drive and is 27 inches long, while weighing about 10 lbs with batteries. There’s… just so much going on with this car that it would take too long to list it all here. So check out the link below for more. You should just prepare for sticker shock, as this little baby is $1,100 and will be available on December 30th.

[ Product Page ] VIA [ Engadget ]

Who Needs Cats When You Have The Lazer Stunt Chasers?

By David Ponce on 10/24/11 • Leave a comment!

By David Ponce

Cats chasing a spot of laser light all across your carpet can be a good 5 minutes of fun. Owning a cat when you’re male and single, however, is a sure path to ‘forever alone’ status. Don’t believe us? Ask an eligible bachelorette. Cats’ emasculating abilities aside, it turns out that there’s a cool toy that can give you the same sort of kicks without fear of eternal rejection. Straight out of last summer and brought to your attention today, the Lazer Stunt Chasers are battery powered “RC” cars that follow a beam of light you project on the ground. They work upside down or down side up and are meant to be tossed around in stunts, which you accomplish through ramps and loops. Check out the video below: they’re awesome! And they cost $40.

Of course a ladyfriend might object to a grown man playing around with children’s toys. Should this happen, we suggest you find one who’s a little more geek friendly. Remember kids, geek is good, lone man with a cat… not so much.

[ Lazer Stunt Chasers ] VIA [ Gizmag ]

OhGizmo! Review – Wi-Fli RC Helicopter

By Andrew Liszewski on 10/05/11 • 5 Comments

Wi-Fli RC Helicopter (Image property OhGizmo!)
By Andrew Liszewski

I’ve been watching the evolution of gadgets and gizmos since I was a kid growing up in the ’80s. And as impressed as I am with modern marvels like smartphones, GPS navigation devices, electronic paper, and even laptops as thin as a razor. I’m equally impressed that I can now walk into any toy store and buy an RC helicopter that can be flown around my living room. Particularly since I can remember thumbing through hobby magazines back in the day, gazing in awe at the complicated, large and expensive remote controlled choppers that appeared to be more difficult to fly than the real thing.

That was many moons ago, though. And while you can still buy incredibly expensive RC helicopters that can perform amazing feats of aerial prowess, I’m content to stick with the cheaper, electric variety that have become commonplace in toy stores today. Recently I had the opportunity to check out Interactive Toy Concepts’ (the company behind the flying Duck Hunter game) Wi-Fli RC helicopter, which, as the name implies, is controlled by a smartphone via a wifi connection. I’ve never been a big fan of using virtual controls for gaming on a touchscreen device, so I was skeptical as to how easy it would be to control an actual helicopter in flight. Dying in a game is one thing. Crashing a helicopter into your flat screen TV is another. So check out my full review after the jump to see if using your smartphone as a whirlybird wireless controller is a good idea or not.

… Continue Reading

Orobotix Reveals Sphero’s Final Design

By Andrew Liszewski on 09/14/11 • Leave a comment!

Sphero Finalized Shell (Image courtesy Orbotix)
By Andrew Liszewski

We still think it’s one of the best things we saw at CES earlier this year, and today Orbotix officially unveiled what the final prototype of their Sphero remote control ball will look like. And it’s not that far off from what we got to play with at the show. The polycarbonate shell hasn’t changed much, it’s still stark white and slightly opaque, letting the RGB LEDs inside glow through. Though it now sports the Sphero logo on the side. The company also revealed the ball’s charger, which uses induction so you just have to plop it in to top off the battery.

But if you’re still not convinced that a remote control ball could have lots of replay value, I encourage you to check out this video of Orbotix’s developers playing the Sphero Golf game. Like the original personal computer, the real appeal of Sphero will be the accompanying smartphone applications people create for it. And unlike VisiCalc which made the PC a must-have device, so far the apps for the Sphero look far more entertaining.

The Sphero is still on track for a late 2011 release, and will sell for $129.99, including a collection of free downloadable apps. And they’re still taking reservations if, like us, you think it’s a must-have smartphone accessory.

[ Orbotix Sphero ]

An RC F16 With A First Person Remote View

By Andrew Liszewski on 09/01/11 • Leave a comment!


By Andrew Liszewski

I found a new recipe for awesome today. You take a remote controlled F16 fighter plane with an intricately detailed cockpit. (Complete with a working digital display showing altitude) Add in an action figure with a 360 degree rotating, panning video camera for a head. Mix that in with a wireless broadcast system and then finish the whole thing off with a pair of LCD goggles worn by the pilot on the ground.

Fpv F-16 (Images courtesy VRflyer)

You’re left with an experience that will put any video camera equipped RC car to shame. Seriously. The footage from the cockpit of this RC plane in flight feels surprisingly realistic. (Not that I’ve ever experienced the real thing to compare though.) Or maybe it’s just the Kenny Loggins soundtrack. Either way – awesome!

[ RC Groups - Fpv F-16 ] VIA [ Autoblog ]

Hot Wheels RC Nitro Speeders Have A Scale Speed Of 600mph

By Andrew Liszewski on 08/09/11 • Leave a comment!

Hot Wheels RC Nitro Speeders (Image courtesy Hot Wheels)
By Andrew Liszewski

Now that the Bit Char-G fad has officially faded, and miniature remote control vehicles are commonplace on toy store shelves, Hot Wheels has decided it’s time to see just how far these micro racers can be pushed. Their latest entry into the RC field, shown off at Toy Fair 2011 in New York many moons ago, is their RC Nitro Speeders. The cars are less than 1 3/4-inches long, or 1/87th scale, but have a top speed of 8.3mph. When you crunch the numbers, that’s equal to about 600mph for a full-sized vehicle.

Besides making them nearly impossible to drive flat-out on anything smaller than a basketball court, that speed and power lets them tackle vertical loops with ease. In fact, the cars are small enough to be driven on standard orange Hot Wheels stunt tracks. So in theory, whatever you can do with your die-cast Hot Wheels, you can do with these.

Like any miniature RC toy these days, they charge via their controller which is where you install a plethora of AA batteries (4 in this case) and the whole package is small enough to theoretically squeeze into a kid’s pocket. Besides their size and speed, what I find most impressive is that Hot Wheels was even able to cram proportionate steering and acceleration into the Nitro Speeders, which is pretty much a must if you have any hopes of not ramming it into a wall. Available sometime this Fall in Ford Mustang, Chevrolet Camaro and Ken Block’s Ford Fiesta versions for just under $30.

[ PR - Hot Wheels - 2011 New York Toy Fair - RC Nitro Speeders ] VIA [ CNET ]

*I’ve added an entertaining video review of the RC Nitro Speeders from DadDoes.com after the jump.

… Continue Reading

RcSuperhero Is Probably As Close As You’re Gonna Get To Your Iron Man Fantasies

By Andrew Liszewski on 05/17/11 • 2 Comments

RcSuperhero (Images courtesy RcSuperhero.com)
By Andrew Liszewski

The good news is that you don’t need Tony Stark levels of funding to get your hands on one of these remote control flying ‘superheros’ which, and let’s be honest here, are most likely as close as any of us are going to get to human flight. But it probably wouldn’t hurt to have his level of technical expertise since they’re only available as unassembled kits. True do-it-yourselfers will probably just opt to buy the PDF plans for $19.95 (for both the 75-inch and 57-inch versions) but you can also get the majority of the pre-cut parts in a kit for $295.

The final build weighs in at just 3 pounds and since the motor has ~6 pounds of thrust it can actually do a standing takeoff, like a real superhero would… assuming there are such things as real superheros. And because of its oversized control surfaces it’s apparently very easy to fly, even for novices. Which is a good thing because seeing it careen all over the sky would most likely not strike fear into evildoers.

[ RcSuperhero ] VIA [ Geeky-Gadgets ]

iPhly Turns Your iPhone Into An RC Remote

By Andrew Liszewski on 05/12/11 • 3 Comments

iPhly Remote Control (Images courtesy Ari Krupnik & Associates)
By Andrew Liszewski

Usually when I write about a Kickstarter project I’m excited about the product, but pessimistic about it ever actually coming to fruition. But the iPhly is proof that some projects do successfully raise the funding they need. Designed for RC enthusiasts, the iPhly replaces those incredibly expensive controllers with a considerably cheaper and far more compact housing that attaches to your iPhone and interfaces with it through the headphone/mic port. So instead of flying an RC plane via a couple of sticks, you can take advantage of the iPhone’s built-in gyroscope to pitch, roll and even throttle up by swiping across the display.

The accompanying iPhly app, which of course is available for free from the iTunes App Store, uses a simulated attitude indicator for its interface showing how the plane is oriented to the horizon, or a simple animated steering wheel when used with RC cars and trucks. At $99.99 the iPhly isn’t terribly expensive if you’re already an iPhone user, however, you do need to add a Futaba-style frequency module. But if you’re already an RC enthusiast you can just swap it over from your existing controller since most of the popular brands have already been tested to ensure they work with the iPhly.

[ iPhly iPhone RC Controller ] VIA [ Gizmag ]

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