Product Description

Hot Wheels introduces its latest innovation in radio control. Featuring a "biomechanical" design, the N.S.E.C.T. robot scurries with amazing speed and then transforms from "bio-bug" to "bio-missle" blaster in seconds! Two shooting modes allow the N.S.E.C.T. single or rapid fire, up to an alarming distance of 25 feet. It also has working claws for capturing things, and laser-like eyes that change color when it's in attack or explore mode.

The N.S.E.C.T. Robot requires one 7.2V battery and charger, plus one 9V battery for the transmitter, all included. 49 MHz. Measures 15" long.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #95042 in Toys & Games
• Brand: Mattel
• Dimensions: 17.00" h x 15.00" w x 10.00" l, 8.46 pounds

Features

• This creepy crawler morphs into a mighty missile blaster in seconds
• Make it scurry across the floor and move its claws with the remote control
• 2 shooting modes allow single or rapid fire a distance of up to 25'
• Laser-like eyes that change color for attack or explore mode

Amazon.com Review
This remote control robot looks like a weird cross between a tank and a tick. It has six legs, glowing eyes, and snapping jaws in front. The best part, though, is its Gatling gun-style missile launcher. At the flip of a glowing red switch on the remote, the launcher pops up from under its hard, wing-like cover. You can use the right trigger to shoot the missiles off one at a time or fire all six automatically in under five seconds. You can even shoot while the N.S.E.C.T. is moving. The missiles travel up to 20 feet because they are made of light foam with soft, suction cup tips and weigh .07 ounces each. This makes collateral damage to heirloom china unlikely. The pincher-like "power claw" in front can grab and hold some objects. We were able to drag an empty coffee mug around the floor by its handle, but the N.S.E.C.T. didn't have a deep enough grip to go around the mug itself. Controlling the N.S.E.C.T. is pretty easy; it can move forward, reverse, and can do both moving turns and stationary pivots. N.S.E.C.T. is loads of fun, but be prepared for the fact that its battery needs a good five hour charge before any fun begins. N.S.E.C.T. comes with the remote control, a NiCd battery pack and charger, a 9 volt battery for the transmitter, and basic instructions. --Porter B. Hall

Customer Reviews

Buyer Beware
OK, I usually don't do this whole review thing, but I couldn't pass on this one. It's a big price tag heading under many Christmas trees this year. My son pooled all of his recent birthday money and toy savings to buy an N.S.E.C.T. I will start with a positive. The walking feature and tank like controls are very cool. The N.S.E.C.T.'s legs can be controlled independently giving it the ability to turn around in place and is quite fun to drive. That said, the is a lot that can go wrong with a toy like this and we are returning our second today and calling it quits on the whole idea.

Our first N.S.E.C.T. would not fire at all despite the loud clacking noise it made when trying. Our second will actually launch darts in the 3 to 5 foot range (just shy of the 25 feet listed) with a similar loud clacking. Both have had difficulties with raising and lowering the missile launcher. The ridges on the wings seem to catch the edge of the launcher every once and awhile.

This is a complicated piece of machinery with loads of moving parts to give out. Unfortunately, ours won't be staying around long enough to comment on the durability. Beware that it is also loud and cannot walk on hard floors.

If this toy is destine to find its way under your Christmas tree, I would recommend pre-charging the battery (it needs a 5.5 hour charge to start). It is very easy to remove without disturbing much of the packaging. Just open the back of the package and slide the inside structure out. The battery and charger are on the underside.

So much fun! This is a GREAT toy!
After reading the "bad review" above I had to share my experience witht he NSECT. I bought one a few weeks ago for my son and we have been playing with it ever since. Right out of the box we had enough of a charge in the battery to drive it around and fire the missles at the cat and whatever else we came across. After the initial fun of learning how to control it we charged it up overnight (I think you only need about 4-5 hours, but it was the end of the day). Both my son and I have enjoyed playing with it (I have taken it for a spin when he is at school - don't tell him) and it's really fun. The darts shoot at least 20 feet and you can rapid fire them by holding down the trigger or you can shoot them one-by-one at your target. My son loved the commercial and I must say that in my opinion this toy lives up to the hype. I hope you find this helpful as I really don't have anything negative to say about this product.

Negative press not deserved, thing works fine if you bother to read instructions
After reading the negative reviews on this post, I have to admit I was intrepid about getting one, but my 8 year old son really wanted one, so I went ahead and purchased it and then spent quite a bit of time testing it out before deciding to present it as a Christmas present. I charged it up and off it went. It runs reasonable smoothly and I did not have any issues getting it to crawl around and go where I pointed it. It is a bit loud, but most RC toys are, I have 2 Tyco Terrain Twisters (absolutely brilliant RC toys which are great on dirt, snow, sand, and water and have held up well for 2 years) and the NSECT isn't any louder than these. I think the issues about the firing cannon should be explained a bit more in detail. If you read the instructions it clearly states that if the cannon's movement is obstructed in any way, then it goes to a "neutral" inoperative state (to protect its mechanism) and won't fire. This can sometimes occur if the cannon is raised when the toggle switch is pressed up for too long (and it is not at it's highest point when firing). The cannon sometimes fires one or two darts and then stops. I have found that if I simply press the toggle switch up once quickly (not holding the button in the up position) then the cannon goes to the proper height and fires fine. Also if you want to fire all darts at once with no interruption, after the cannon is raised, keep a good bit of pressure on the right top firing button without releasing it, and things usually work just fine. If the cannon stops working due to an obstruction, simply cycling the NSECT's power (not the remote) recovers cannon operation. The darts always traveled well over 20 feet and I can stick them to windows inside the house, which is impressive! The darts are the same as used in many Nerf toys and replacements are easy to find. The front claw mechanism was good for dragging a 9 inch action figure or Lego Bionicle around, which makes for great "imaginative play." Remember, this is a toy for ages 8 and up, not for younger kids who don't have the patience to master the control of it. I should point out that I asked service desks at Target and Toy's R US if a lot of these had been returned since its introduction in November and they indicated that this was not the case. Oh, and I don't have stock in Tyco!