Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger!
A couple of years ago my kid got a remote-controlled truck from a family member for a birthday. It was fun to play with for 10 minutes (which was apparently its battery life), but left us both underwhelmed. It was smaller than we had expected and lacked the get-up-and-go that one would find adequately satisfying. It ended up in a closet never to be charged again. On a recent whim fueled by nostalgia, my kid wanted to play with it to give it another chance. That's when we discovered the remote was lost to the annals of time. I decided to purchase another RC vehicle. This time getting to choose it myself. I came across this listing. The price was right and seemed fair. Not too egregious if our new purchase failed to hold our attention like the other, yet priced to indicate that perhaps the product wouldn't be straight-up landfill either. I was also enamored by how its appearance is reminiscent of the monster trucks I coveted in my childhood. Other features noted on the listing that drove (pun intended) my purchasing decision were the size ("Large," 1:12 scale) as I wanted something bigger than our previous model, it had 4WD (the other only had 2WD), and seemed more rugged with beefy looking shock absorbers and chunky tires. I ordered a blue one and eagerly awaited its arrival. Once delivered, it was indeed larger than our last one, nearly twice the size, and was good-to-go right out of the box. We tested it the same day. I told my kiddo to test it hard, and the truck stood up to the challenge. Things to note: this thing is fast and extremely responsive to the slightest manipulation of controls. We had to really crank the wheel for the last car to turn, but this one only requires small hand movements. The range is excellent. I live at the top of a steep hill on a culdesac, and we had no problem driving the truck 400 ft to the bottom of the hill and back. We even, irresponsibly, drove the truck without visibility down a side street and back. It made it despite obstructions. We slammed it into curbs until it rolled over and then kept slamming until it righted itself due to its oversized tires. Even with all the slamming, the vehicle showed no signs of damage. What I expected to be a 10 minute bonding session with my kid turned into an hour as a result of the incredible battery life. If you've been disappointed by RC cars in the past, I suggest giving this one a try. I believe you will be pleasantly surprised. For future drives, I think I might strap a camera (my phone in a rugged case) to it to record video. I bet that would be neat. Definitely a fun product! Recommended! Read more
