When I first saw images of the Solar Powered Helicopter I just knew we needed one for TakTik Tech. Initially described to us as Solar Executive Toys, these Solar Powered Helicopters are tiny wooden toys that sit on your desk and spin. Of course when I say tiny, I actually mean it could sit comfortably on my hand and when I say desk, you’re probably wondering where I’m finding the sun. I’m not. The Solar Powered Helicopter also works with very bright, direct desk lamps. I don’t have a lamp bright enough on my desk, so Alex and I had to take a day trip outside into the sun.

The day in question started rather nicely. We took ourselves to a local cafe for lunch and so I could put together the helicopter. I really should have read the instructions, as the panel holding the rotor got damaged by my needing to pull the helicopter apart more than once. My lack of instruction referral aside, the helicopter takes no time at all to put together and requires no glue. It simply snaps together. While building it, we were also attracting quite a bit of attention from the people around us. The waitress thought it was ‘cute’, the little boy on the next table couldn’t stop staring and a few men eyeballed my helicopter as they walked past.

Once we hit the street we headed towards a small park nearby with me still holding the now constructed helicopter in my hand. The day was quite bright so the rotor started spinning as soon as I stepped outside. The closer we got to the park however, the more the light dimmed, so by the time I stepped on grass the rotor stopped spinning altogether. I was gutted.

Heading back to the office the now still helicopter was placed on a windowsill. You can imagine how thrilled I was when I saw it the next morning with sun streaming through the window! The rotor can pick up quite a bit of speed and spun non-stop until the sun moved away in the afternoon.

Who would enjoy this toy? Anyone who is excited by trains, planes, toys which can move by their own accord or solar power in general. If you’re planning on giving it to a child it may be an idea to glue it together as it’s not particularly sturdy. Being a plain wooden toy it could also be a great gift for anyone with an artistic flair! It’s quite a realistic helicopter shape (despite being a bit flat) and would take well to decoration.

My only real issue with the Solar Powered Helicopter is that when I see its motionless shape sitting on my windowsill, it reminds me of the lack of sun outside.

RRP: £18.99 Available online at www.lighting-direct.co.uk and many other retailers.