This is a "toy class" RC helicopter. It is a "true" helicopter, unlike a gyro-copter with dual counter-rotating blades, or a drone. The only functional difference between this and a "hobby class" helicopter is that it's fixed pitch (there's no collective, the blade pitch is fixed, so it won't do 3D aerobatics). The Chinese have done an admirable job with these "toy" helicopters -- re-engineered and simplified everything, at a price-point far lower than a "hobby" helicopter.

The Good News:
This helicopter seems well-engineered. Though it seems flimsy at first, actually it's pretty durable. Initially, I had some hard landings which didn't seem to bother it. Then it crashed from about 200 feet, bending the flybar and breaking the tail rotor. I was able to straighten the flybar, replace the tail rotor, and get it flying again. Parts are inexpensive and readily available. Right now, I'm waiting for another tail rotor from China, which may take a while.

The Bad News:
It's more difficult to fly than you might think. Response to controls (except the rudder) is often sluggish, kind of like driving a boat. One source lists range as 100 meters, but I think it's less, maybe 100 - 200 feet. It has a tendency to climb on its own, and its gotten away from me twice. Flying time is listed as 8 minutes, that is correct. Charging time shown as one hour, I saw one hour or a little more. Maybe I don't have it fully "trimmed out" yet, and it does seem to take practice. I've flown it 4 times so far.

Overall, I'm pretty happy with it. Remote is well-designed, a simplified version of 'hobby class" remote controls. It has 4 channels, but only 2 servos. Throttle and rudder are controlled electronically.

Unit comes fully-assembled. You have only to install 4 AA batteries in the remote and charge the heli battery to be ready to fly. Contrary to the user manual, the heli must be switched on first, then the remote, for the model to "bind" to the radio properly.

I got this to see if I am serious about RC helicopters and want to move up to a "hobby" helicopter, for a minimal investment.If that is your goal, or just to try RC helicopters without spending too much, maybe with a child, this is a good choice.

UPDATE 06/06

As I said before, this helicopter is very large compare to other helicopters and it has a lot of potential. So I decided to keep it instead and do some upgrades. I highly recommend for buyer to checkout out rcgroups to see a list of upgrade items specifically for the v913 not found any where else on google searches. Feel free to message me and will send you the list.

PROS:
-Heli is large
-aesthetically pleasing nice to look
- Has power and ascend fast and pretty high

CONS:
-Very low quality. The first V913 I ordered was defective. It kept leaning left despite following all troubleshooting steps provided in the manual. The second V913 I ordered, had the same issue - leaning to the sides.
- Loss connection several times despite the fact that the Heli was within acceptable operational distance. As a result, the heli it crashed damaging many components.

I will probably be returning this one again unless the seller makes this right.

In conclusion, a good heli with lots of potential has been ruined because of lack of quality control. I really like the heli but tired of wasting time on it. Instead, I recommend spending more money and buying a more stable heli like the Walkera V450D03

This thing is a riot! It's BIG, and big fun. If you haven't flown a helo before, you'll want to get a V911 or equivalent to learn on. I've bounced my V911 off of everything in the house (sorry, dear!) and it's still running, more or less. If you pile the V913 up you'll quite possibly break something; either on the helo or on whatever it whacked the devil out of with those big heavy plastic rotor blades.

It won't do stunts, it just flies like a helicopter. Sounds like a helicopter, too, not like the little ones. Frightens the grandchildren. Neighborhood cats stare in wonder until I start it their way, then they run like mad. He-he-he-he...

You will loose main rotor motors. I got a 4-pack at way less that 10 bones per motor, but then I upgraded to the brushless motor, and that changes the game. With the bigger battery flight times doubled, and the brushless motor is just barely warm after 10 minutes of hovering. Great stuff, but the brushless kit cost almost as much as the helo did originally.

The tail motor tends to burn up after a while as well. The last time I replaced mine I put thermal paste (like for a CPU heat sink) on the metal cooling strap and knock on wood, it's still working. I have two spares waiting for it to go. But I've been eyeing that brushless tail rotor upgrade...

I recently replaced the rotor head with an all aluminum one, around 40 bones. It started out as an inexpensive BIG toy to learn helo flying with, when I graduated from the V911. Now it's a full on hobby helo, I hope to finish up the running lights next week or so...

It probably helps if you are a little bit mechanically inclined. The stock brushed motors WILL burn up after a while. By the time they fail, you'll know if Big RC Helicopter flying is for you or not, and you can decide to walk away or start the repairs... or spend 4 to 10 times as much on a real Hobby class Helicopter. In my opinion this is a great starting point.

This thing is a blast! Unbelievable fun for the money, I purchased from a USA vendor to avoid any delays or return hassles. I haven't had any unexpected issues with anything, don't expect any, and have absolutely NO regrets buying this. It's damn durable but I'd suggest one buys at least one spare tail gear, the plastic gears of the tail rotor (brushed version only) eventually lost a few teeth after I'd run the tail rotor into things at least a few dozen times... needless to say i'm waiting for a new tail gear unit, not that big a deal and a minimal expense considering the abuse I've subjected it to. The only other maintenance item would be the main drive gear, it's plastic and gets driven by a brass drive gear, it'll be a while yet , but I can see that it will be a normal wear/tear maintenance item in the future unless one plans to upgrade to the brushless tail motor/rotor that isn't geared. Other consideration is that it needs space, i been flying a coax a while can keep it confined within a 10'x10' area of the playroom but at the same time I stay down low and happen to have many squares of industrial floor cushioning to protect what's down low from the blades, which in turn has saved the blades and drive gear from damage. So... if you have room and already know how to fly, buy one!

Says Red and Black, but mine came in Orange and Yellow with "some" black on it. No big deal though I did want the Red and Black. Check all the wires soldered before first flight. I pulled the tail rotor off right out of the box and had to re-solder the white wire as it was a crappy solder job. Doesn't handle wind over 8 mph very well, you can hover around a bit with stronger wind, but general rule of thumb, if the wind is kicking around leaves on the ground, its not going to fly aggressively without issues.This helo is well suited for someone that wants to step up from a V911 or similar class. I wouldn't fly this inside because if the blades hit something....like a lamp, you can pretty much call it toast and I would hate to think what could happen if it hit somebody. Now that I got the "realistic" expectations out of the way. Its a pretty cool helicopter and fun. Really does well when there is no wind outside, or at least a light breeze. Parts are readily available and there is a brushless motor upgrade that will let you fly in winds up to 20 mph...which is a pretty swift wind. Excellent choice for somebody new to the RC World, but NOT for a first time pilot. Fly's pretty good straight out of the box, but as the battery starts to wear down, you will need to trim it out. Best suggestion on doing this is to land it, make small adjustments on the Transmitter and fly away again repeating the process for the last 3-4 minutes of flight. I like that because it will let you know you are getting close to depleting the battery when it starts to get sluggish in control. Not comparable to an Align T-Rex or a Flybarless Helicopter. If you expect that kind of control and flight, move along from this model and have fun spending big dollars. As stated before in my review, this is for people who want to step up from the small indoor helicopters and get outside. On the subject, these are a LOT harder to fly than Drones. This would not be considered a step up from a drone, rather a first time flyer if that's all you have ever flown. In that case, I recommend you start with the V911 for awhile.

Suggestions and Tips: Upgrade to the brushless kit after about a month or two of flying this model. If you don't want to go that path and remain a purist of the helicopter, bare minimum get some heat sinks and keep around some extra motors, specifically for the tail rotor. That motor seems to get the hottest. There are companies online if you send them the parts from the main gear up to the lockdown plate, they will forge aluminum parts for you. Working toward all aluminium on mine with brushless upgrades and running at least a 2000 mAh battery. Researching now Carbon Fiber Tailfins and looking at getting a replica body cover mod made out of Carbon Fibre. This can be done with a 3D Printer. Brushless and a bigger battery with aluminum swashplate is where I'm at and removing the flybar. Under 300 bucks though, which the goal is to beat that 300 dollar mark.Will probably take me better part of a year to get this completed, but will head back here with links and pictures once I'm done.