ReviewedByPhil

Buy it at Amazon: GoolRC T47 Foldable Drone w/Gravity Remote Control [Affiliate Link]

Takeaway: Compact/portable, easy gravity controls, stable hovering, but short battery life.

You'll receive the drone in a rigid clamshell case. Inside you'll find the drone, a remote controller, a USB charging cable, and two re-chargeable batteries. You'll also receive an instruction manual. The drone is small and lightweight measuring 5.5"L x 2.75"W x 1"H when folded up. The fan blades fold out from the sides and the footprint is 8"W x 7"L. On top is a single power button for turning the drone on and off. On the bottom is the battery bay which simply gets seated in the compartment and slid up until it locks. There's also a 720p camera on the front that is adjustable up to 90 degrees.

The remote control requires 2 AAA batteries which are not included. The controls are interesting because they are gravity sensing and you control the panning of the drone by tilting your hand forward, back, left or right. Starting up the drone was a bit tricky, though once you get the sequence down is quick. Pressing up/down on the joystick will cause the drone to rise/descend and left and right rotates the drone. The bottom button on the remote is the emergency stop which kills the rotors. Be careful when doing this as the drone will drop out of the sky like a stone. The left button toggles on and off the front and back lights. The trigger button in the front changes the speed/power mode level from low to medium to high. The top button enters the drone into headless mode and the remote will beep while the lights on the drone flash to let you know when you're in this mode. Although it took a little getting used to, I actually like it a lot better than the traditional two joystick remote control as it's a bit more intuitive.

The other way you can control the drone is using the GoolRC mobile app. After turning on the drone, go into the phone's WiFi settings and connect to the UAV wireless network. Then launch the app and click connect. The drone's camera feed should show on your phone's screen. The virtual joysticks work just like a regular dual joystick remote. The camera and video buttons in the app activate the camera shutter for taking photos and movies and you can also perform 360 flips in the app, features that are not on the gravity remote. If you want to get all the features out of the drone, you'll have to use the mobile app but even without the camera features and 360 flip, flying with the gravity remote is pretty fun too. I also really like that it folds up compactly, is very stable during flight, and easy to get a hang of.

Buy it at Amazon: GoolRC T47 Foldable Drone w/Gravity Remote Control [Affiliate Link]

Buy it at Amazon: Swagtron T8 Hoverboard [Affiliate Link]

Takeaway: Great for beginners/first-timers, max weight too low for some adults, moderate speed, easy to use.

You'll receive the hoverboard, AC power adapter, and an instruction manual. The manual has a lot of safety do's and don'ts so it's worth a read to familiarize yourself with how this particular unit works: the manual is illustrated and uses proper English grammar, spelling, and punctuation. The hoverboard is a single unit with a pivot joint in the middle so each half articulates independently about 10 degrees. The board measures 25"L x 6"W x 6"H. The body of the hoverboard is metal and since it has a lead-acid battery, the weight is fairly heavy at 26 lbs. The wheels on the hoverboard are solid rubber and compact. They feature brushed aluminum hub caps and are suitable for indoor and outdoor use.

On each rubberized footpad is a raised sensor switch that you have to step on for the hoverboard to detect you. In the middle is the logo printed on the metal housing. On the front edge you have the charging port, status LED, and power button. The charging port is protected by a small rubber door and uses a proprietary 2 prong connector, so if you lose the power adapter you'll have to get a replacement from the manufacturer. This board has a self-balancing feature that is 'on' by default. After you turn the unit on, it will balance itself to remain upright. If using this mode, it's best to stay on relatively flat and stable smooth surfaces during your ride. Self-balancing can be turned off by quickly pressing the power button once during startup. Out of the box, I did need to reset the balance calibration since the board appeared to be stabilizing weirdly. It's easy though and you just have to hold down the power button for a few extra seconds after balancing with a bubble level and turning the unit on.

Getting on the hoverboard for the first time wasn't as hard as I thought it would be. While I did feel a little shaky my first time, I felt reasonably safe and never once fell off the board. To move, you have to lean slightly forward/back, left, or right (for turning). In general it's not so much leaning as it is tiny shifts in your weight in any direction and after a few minutes controlling the board felt natural and straightforward. The minimum weight of the rider is 44 lbs and the max weight limit is 200 lbs, so for some adults this board may not be able to support their weight. There are also other restrictions like using it only in weather between 32°F and 104°F and avoiding overly rough terrain and sticking to relatively flat surfaces.

I've used the board indoors and outdoors and as long as you have smooth, even surfaces to ride on like concrete, cement, hardwood etc. the board performs really well and feels very smooth. On natural terrain like dirt, grass, and gravel the board had more difficulty picking up speed, navigating the uneven surfaces, and made me feel like I had less control. Uneven or wavy asphalt also gave me a bit of trouble. Although the hoverboard can go up to 7 mph, I haven't yet gotten anywhere close to that speed. While a 30 degree incline may sound like it's pretty steep, it's actually a pretty gentle slope so be aware that the hoverboard will struggle to travel up even a slight hill. On a full charge, the hoverboard has a range of about 5.5 miles, and it take 4-5 hours to charge the battery fully. Thankfully, the lead-acid battery, like those found in your car, are less likely to explode or catch fire, but you still don't want to leave the unit charging unattended or overnight.

Overall, the hoverboard is pretty fun and not at all hard to get a hang of. Since I haven't been traveling very fast on it yet, I can't vouch for it as a transportation device. Especially since it might be a little bit of a challenge to find locations where you can use it with perfectly suitable terrain but smooth paved walkways, bike trails, and parking lots seem to be good venues for having a bit of fun on one of these. The one problem with it being used for commuting though is that it's pretty heavy, so you'll need to plan for how you'll be able to park or carry it around when you're not riding it.

Buy it at Amazon: Swagtron T8 Hoverboard [Affiliate Link]

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Buy it at Amazon: Ananbros Kinetic Sand Mold and Tools Kit [Affiliate Link]

Takeaway: Fun shapes, animals, & castles, durable pieces won't shatter/crack, also works w/playdough.

Buy it at Amazon: GoolRC T37 Mini Foldable RC Drone Quadcopter w/Gravity Remote [Affiliate Link]

Takeaway: Very well-balanced, compact, easy to control, nice app, but one battery shorted/died.

You'll receive the drone, a soft fabric carrying bag, a remote controller, 3 rechargeable batteries, a USB charging cable, an extra set of rotors, two sets of rubber feet, and an instruction manual. The drone is compact and light measuring 4.5" x 2.25" x 1" tall when folded up. The fan blades fold out from the sides and the footprint is 6.75" x 5.75". On top is a single power button for turning the drone on and off. On the bottom is the battery slot and the batteries easily slide/click into place. There's a 720p camera on the front that is not adjustable but takes decent photos/video. You'll want to take four of the rubber feet and install them in the holes on the bottom of the drone before you get started.

The remote control requires 2 AAA batteries which are not included. The controls are interesting because they are gravity sensing. Starting up the drone takes a few steps but once you get the hang of it is simple. I really like the gravity sensing remote because I find it to be more intuitive than the traditional toy joystick rudder/throttle controls. The drone is very balanced in flight and can hover fairly still. I also like that the remote has an emergency stop if the drone is flying out of control or being taken by the wind, but keep in mind your drone will simply fall from the sky so make sure the way below is clear before hitting that button.

The other way you can control the drone is using the GoolRC app on a mobile device. The app sometimes connects, sometimes doesn't so it's a bit finicky. When it works though you'll get full control of the drone including camera functions for photo/video and 3D flips. If you want to get all the features out of the drone you have to use the app since you can't control the camera or 3D flips with the remote. However, the remote is still a fun way to fly the drone without those features and it's great that the drone folds up compactly. Because of its size, it works best indoor where you have few obstacles because it's unaffected by wind. Outside, a breeze easily carries it off so you have to be careful to keep it in range of the remote, as it won't return to you automatically if it loses connection. On a full charge you'll get about 10 minutes of flying time max but average around 5-7. The only problem I had was that one of the batteries shorted during charging and started smoking, so I had to toss it because I was afraid it would be a fire hazard. Always be careful with Lipo batteries and use a fireproof bag when charging! Otherwise a pretty fun toy.

Buy it at Amazon: GoolRC T37 Mini Foldable RC Drone Quadcopter w/Gravity Remote [Affiliate Link]

Buy it at Amazon: Yeco Mega Building Blocks for Kids [Affiliate Link]

Takeaway: Bright colors, semi-soft plastic, easy to assemble; comes w/train cars, wheels, and sticker sheet.

Buy it at Amazon: Panda Bath Toy Organizer Hanger [Affiliate Link]

Takeaway: Strong suction cups, quick drying mesh toy hanger with cute/fun design.

Buy it at Amazon: Tenergy Geo Salt Water and Solar Powered Robot Kit [Affiliate Link]

Takeaway: Fun build kit, simple/quick setup, explains the science in manual, nice learning tool.

Buy it at Amazon: FunFloaty Winged Unicorn Pool Float [Affiliate Link]

Takeaway: HUGE float, fun in the pool! A bit dirty out of box and small leak in mane (repaired)

UPDATE: I did locate the leak in the mane and used the repair sticker to seal it, which is holding up for now. We'll see if it lasts the whole summer.

The float is made from a heavy-duty vinyl and the float weighs 8 lbs (un-inflated). It comes with a small patch of vinyl repair sticker that can be cut to size and seal leaks in the float. Out of the box mine had a few dirty black smudges on it, but those wiped clean with soap and warm water.

The float has five inflation valves: one for the main body near the tail, one on each wing, one on the neck, and one on the mane. You need some kind of pump or air compressor to fill this float. The fill valves are sizeable, and I was able to use a 1/2" rubber hose with an electric balloon pump to fill it up quickly (~8 mins for all 5 sections). The valves each have a leak stop seal that prevents air from escaping, so you can fill in intervals through the black plastic piece. To let the air out, you just pull out the stop valve and the air escapes quickly as you press to deflate the float.The unicorn is really big when fully inflated and measures 9 feet from nose to tail and has a 10 foot wing span. It's about 4.5 feet tall and the raft portion is 5' x 4'. The raft can fit more than one person but you have to be careful to not damage the wings as they are only attached by a few strips of heated sealed vinyl. The white part of the float tends to pick up stains easily if you set it on grass of dirt, however, if you clean it quickly, it'll wipe off with a little bit of soap and not too much scrubbing. The one part that leaked on mine was the mane on the back of the neck, which thankfully doesn't impact its ability to float.

Deflating the float took about 5 minutes which is really fast compared to deflating a raft through those tiny beach ball valves. Overall, the float worked fine; it was quick to inflate and deflate and was really fun in the pool, although it takes up a lot of space. The leak in the mane was from a tiny manufacturing defect (a nick along the cut seam), but it was repaired quickly with the included fix tape. So far the rest of it seems to be leak-free. Even though it seems to get dirty easily, it wipes clean with some soap and warm water.

Buy it at Amazon: FunFloaty Winged Unicorn Pool Float [Affiliate Link]

Buy it at Amazon: TwoPages 3D Printing Pen [Affiliate Link]

Takeaway: Good starter kit, fun and easy to use, short power cord, slow load but fast eject when changing colors.