This is my third DeeRC plane, and it's by far my favorite. As an adult rookie RC pilot, I still crash into things periodically, and I find the foam planes to be incredibly durable. This plane has a very soft silicone nose especially to absorb unexpected frontal impacts. I have landed this in trees, in the water, smoothly, and roughly - it just keeps coming back for more, and never shows sign of damage.This plane is slightly larger than my prior planes, and the larger body has a bigger battery compartment, which makes it easier to get the battery in and out. It's a subtle thing, but tighter battery compartments can sometimes be annoying to load up. The wing lights look very cool at dusk, and actually help you to better see the plane's orientation. I noticed on this one that DeeRC has refined their design a bit with both the wires and the lights slightly recessed in the wing. It's a very clean look.I find the hand launch to be my preference over using the landing gear, and since (excepting crashes!) I always touch down in soft grass. I chose not to install the landing gear. That has made for less things to stick when I end up in a tree, and the gear doesn't snag on the grass.The gyro is good and bad; It sometimes creates some unexpected motions or overcompensates. This isn't bad when you have plenty of clearance, but if you time a maneuver with specific expectations and the gyro kicks in and does something different it may cause a momentary stress on the pilot. The good side is that does a great job of stabilizing the plane. You definitely want to fly this only when there's no wind because the gyro isn't enough to compensate if the breeze kicks up; It's a very light plane.This plane has excellent working elevators on the tail. The gyro will stop you from doing a roll unless you press the stunt button, but I love how much more control it gives on landings. I can drop the throttle way back, raise the elevators, and the plane drops smoothly until its close enough to just cut the throttle and set down. I think it's also a great trainer for more advanced planes without a gyro, as you can accelerate your turns with it.Battery life is excellent. I get around 20 minutes per battery, which is plenty of concentration time for me. They charge fully in 45-60 minutes using the included USB charger.This is a great looking, durable, and incredibly fun to fly plane that I believe provides an experience far beyond its price. If you're interested in RC planes, and as a beginner want something to learn on without worrying about damage, don't hesitate.