Bought mine from Bestbuy.com at $119.
The Good
- Mostly metal construction has a very sturdy feel. Nothing is better than the feel of cold steel(well actually aluminium) in yer hands
- Looks real
- Good feel and balance. Very Minimal creeking at the hilt; cant hear any creeking unless you have your ear next to it with the saber turned off.
- Bright enough to play in the dark with
- Changing batteries is a piece of cake; quick with no tools needed.
- The novelty is great
- Looks great in my room on the nice stand that comes with it
The Bad
- Not quite as bright as id hope, but still very bright. Do not be misled by photos showing the blade as near-white in the middle with a blue glow around it. Cameras tend to exagerrate the brightness since they naturually multiply the light on the blade. With the human eye in a dark environment, the blade is a very solid bright cobalt blue (no gradient effect), with very little glow around it.
- Hilt is not entirely metal. Here are parts that are plastic: The round copper colored bits are plastic, as well as the ring around it. The 2 goldcolored prongs that stick out a bit on each side are plastic. The front area of the hilt that actually hugs/touches the blade. The back butt of the blade that acts as the speaker grille (the ring around it is metal). The entire rectanglar activator switch module including switch.
- The gold areas of the switch module are painted plastics and also the copper circle areas. Over time, it could potentially wear off, especially the switch which will have the most wear and tear.
- Slight dark spot in the middle of the blade. Im still not sure as to why there is a dark spot there. Someone had said it is where the LEDs are tied together in the middle, while someone else has said it is because of a foam piece inside the blade.
- Requires too much force/impact to make the clashing sounds; more than most people are comfortable with.
- No way to turn off the sound or volume control. Volume is good but too loud for night playing when there are people sleeping in the next room or even across the hall! Hopefully, volume control or on/off switch can be impleted in the near future. Would be good for battery conservation also.
Nitpicking:
- Slight rattling sound, but is apparently normal the motion sensors. not annoying really, but was a concern at first.
- Yellow sticker is hard to take off without leaving sticky residue. yuck.
- The hilt is made of a chromed aluminum, completely smooth with no brushing. This makes it prone to oils and fingerprints compared to some other hilts that have a brushed aluminium effect. You constantly have to polish the hilt to keep it clean and not feeling all grimy.
Ok, so it may seem ive complained alot about all the plastic parts on the hilt. I just wanted those who havent played with one to know exactly what they are getting before they buy it since I've never had the oppurtunity to hold or see one with my own eyes before i bought it.
The outside of the hilt is still 90% alumininium which is more than i can say for many other toys/collectibles! I dont really mind as long as it keeps prices low. I am just concerned that the gold coloring of the switch may wear down over time.
Been using the Rayovac 15-minute NiMH batteries for these. 15 min recharge times are sweet for toys like these!