Tomy's QFO UFO

The QFO, made by Tomy, is a surprisingly fun R/C toy. You control the Cute Flying Object (which, I guess, shortens to QFO) via an infra-red remote. On it, you have only one control which adjusts the speed of the QFO's propeller. It's one of those things that you just have to try before you realize its appeal. Everyone that I've shown it to has had a good time playing with it, and I keep it close at hand so that I can have some quick fun whenever I notice it.

I took a few videos of it in action with different people flying the QFO. Funny enough, it's great for at the office. Everyone wants to see what's going on and try it out for themselves. It's a quick distraction for when you need to take a 5-min break. Check the full post for more pictures and videos.

The QFO comes boxed with its controller and a nice little UFO-shaped carrying/storage case. At first, I thought that the case (the silver thing pictured) was part of the QFO, but I realized that since the QFO is made out of a fair bit of styrofoam, it needs protection when transporting it. Of course, it also comes with some manuals that I was unable to read (do to my limited language education). Oh, and that's a US quarter sitting next to the QFO in case you want some size/scale comparison.


One thing that you need to know (so that you aren't too surprised/frustrated) is that the QFO is meant for indoor use. The first thing that I did when I got it was to take it outside and try to fly it. It's not going to work (unless maybe it's dark out). It seems that, because the remote uses IR, the sunlight will mess with it and the controls won't work well. I took it into my garage (as seen in the above video), and it worked great there.


I would really recommend that you start your flight training on a soft surface (like a carpet). The QFO won't launch from a shag carpet, but you can always make a launch pad out of a book or the QFO's box. Since it is made out of styrofoam, it is breakable. It's funny how you can be so bad at flying something that only has one control, but it takes some getting used to (which is fun, so don't worry about it). It's also curious how you can get good at flying it even though there doesn't seem to be all that much to control. After a while, I got to the point where I could launch it from my hand, it would do a loop around the room, and I could catch it again. I don't recommend that little kids launch it from their hands, though! That propeller spins quickly.

This really is a fun diversion, and it's cheap, too. If you want something to impress your co-workers, kids, cats, parents, etc. (yes, I honestly impressed all of those people), this is a great way to do it. I'll leave you with a video from YouTube that was taken during the Tokyo Toy Show 2008. From the video's notes, "Takara TOMY unveiled a mysterious unidentified flying object it calls the 'QFO', a new item in the popular 'Q-series' of toys that includes the Choro Q (Penny Racer) and Heli Q."