Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

THIS is the best flying toy in my collection so far ( a bunch of expensive heli's and a couple of quads ) ( This from an AARP carded adult who enjoy hobbies like this and is allowed to fly "real" airplanes for fun, too. ) The ** at the end has some stuff from the FAA that even toy drone flyers should know. But before you buy a "drone" for yourself or especially as a gift - be sure that parts are available. SYMA PARTS fairly easy to get. I bought "something else" and the inevitable happened. Too bad, So sad. Do an Amazon search for the usual replacements ( props, motors, batteries, plastic stuff ) before your potential purchase. With the introduction of fantastic thousand-dollar drones like the DJI drone, GoPro's karma, and the Mavic Pro, why start with the Syma X5C that only flys for seven minutes and takes only moderately good pictures ? For under fifty bucks, this Syma X5C is a wonderful flying toy that takes pictures good enough to show off to your friends or help sell your house. It is easy to fly, incredibly durable, helps develop pilot skills, and won't make you hate your kids if something goes wrong. As a step up: consider a Syma X8C Venture with 2MP Wide Angle Camera for about 70 bucks. Much more 'copter in every way. Might be back-ordered by some sellers for the holidays and twice the price of the X5SC / twice as sad if it flies away and is lost ! Also SYMA RELEASED a quad with headless mode and additional features - check it out: "Syma X5SC Explorers 2 - 2.4G 4 Channel 6-Axis Gyro RC Headless Quadcopter With HD Camera " before you order the X5C ! Different price, different design, might be easier to fly The AMAZON reviews for the X5SC include: " This does not come close to being as good as the Syma X5C-1" IF YOU ARE EXPERIENCED - you will be OK without the blade guards ( which are a nuisance and add weight ). Blade guards might make a flying toy more child-friendly. Otherwise learn with incremental progress - and no regrets. A tip: put a strip of brightly colored tape or paper on the back of the body of the quad so you can see the orientation from a distance. It gets very small very fast when it is high and the wind is taking it away. Knowing how it is pointed may be the last chance to bring it back " ;-( " [ and add a name tag or address / phone in magic marker ] The Camera - came with 2GB Micro-SD with proof-pictures from the factory in China. Way Cool ! The camera is made to still frame / video using the UP-DOWN TRIM control on the LEFT SIDE of the controller. There ! .. .. .. I just saved you the pain of sending back a "broken" camera ! After the controller is linked - look at the light on the bottom of the camera. Green is "ready". Push the trim UP to take one frame ( one RED blink ) Push the trim DOWN to start video ( periodic, continuing RED blinking ) Push a second time to stop video and save file ! ( stop + save the video - don't just kill the power ! otherwise you get a " 0 " byte file size. ) If the time-stamp on your files is not set correctly, you might try this: - here's the secret. You probably won't find this anywhere else - so be generous with your thanks ! Use notepad or other text editor. create a file on the micro-SD card named "time.txt" with the content ( on one line ) and WITHOUT the quotes ! "yyyy/mm/dd hh.mm.ss" example: "2014/10/23 21.10.00" and one carriage return then save the file. This file will set the camera's clock - for as long as the X5C is powered ON. So maybe it's a little under-powered and we'd like more flight time. This little ( TOY ) quad is a fantastic value, fun to fly, takes ( FUN ) pictures that you'll love better than your buddy's GoPro and $ 800 quad. Because it's not the size of the boat, but the motion of the ocean that matters. BUT - Since this little beast LOOKS LIKE A DRONE - and folks can't tell that it's just a little flying toy - you might want to be careful where you fly it. Like not over your neighbor's swimming pool or outside their second - story window. On the plus side - it is small enough to hide under your shirt when the cops come. This is an established release from SYMA and often imitated. AMAZON sellers are the most reliable and least likely to disappoint. Folks who worry a lot should look for a USA shipper ( if possible ) and many well-rated transactions. Ya' know - I almost wish I bought two of these things. I coulda made a friend very happy. ( note added 11/2014 - i did buy a second SYMA X-5C - after I learned the hard way about wind and needing the colored tape ) ( tip - 3-9-2015 Dirt, bits of leaves, spider webs, etc. in the gears can make the props turn hard. If the props don't coast to a stop at about the same rate at power-off, probably there is something in the gears that must be carefully brushed out or blown out with an air jet. Jammed gears will overload a motor, fly badly, make an unpleasant sound, cause a failure. This has happened to me a couple of times with various dirt-landings. The spider web was the worst ! bad for the spider, too ) ** Some issues with the FAA and drones ( UAV's ) ( 10-6-2016 ) FYI re: Hurricane Matthew from the FAA "Unauthorized UAS or drone operations may prevent other aircraft from performing life-saving missions and increase the risk of mid-air collision. Anyone, including hobbyist or recreational fliers, who interferes with disaster response efforts is subject to civil penalties of up to $32,140 per violation and possible criminal prosecution." (6-21-2016) The FAA announced rules for non-hobbyist drone fliers of drones over 250 grams but under 55 pounds. Does not apply to "toy" drones like this SYMA - - BUT establishes a Pilot's LICENSE requirement for some fliers. please see: [search online] BTW, they say it includes training, a test, and a TSA background check. ( 12-14-2015 ) The federal government ( The FAA ) issued a requirement to register drones weighing more than 250 grams ( which the X5C does NOT ). The requirement is backed up by threats of fines and prosecution. On the other hand, the FAA issues one registration to you for use on all your drones - which would help with lost drone recovery. Please read the official FAA info / registration page: [search online] ["Penalties for failing to register could reach $27,500 in civil fines and $250,000 and three years in prison for criminal penalties."] AGAIN * NOT * required of SYMA X5C or X8C series - but what the heck, the don't say you can't ! Plz comment my review if i saved you some grief !