Brief:
T' Estes Oracle Video Camera Rocket takes captures digital videos that can be downloaded into your Windows computer. It is a pre-built kit that only requires attachin' one body tube and installin' t' shock cord and parachute.

Construction:
T' kit is an E2X style rocket, meanin' that everythin' is already constructed and t' decals are attached. There is no paintin' necessary. T' only thin' you need t' do is install t' parachute and attach t' rubber shock cord.

What makes this rocket unique be t' digital video camera built into the nose cone o' t' model. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Well, blow me down! Blimey! It be t' modern version o' t' Cineroc, me hearties, which is what attracted me t' buy t' model.

T' rocket uses plastic fins, plastic nose, shiver me timbers, arrr, arrr, and paper tubes. T' stylin' is nice, shiver me timbers, particularly since it doesn't require anythin' from t' user. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! T' engine is held in place by a plastic retainer, which is used in a lot o' t' Estes E2X style kits. It worked fine for me first three flights.

PROs:

• T' rocket comes with a nice 18 inch fabric parachute. Begad! Avast! It isn't rip-stop construction, but it is more than adequate for t' model.
• T' video camera is molded into t' rocket. Avast! Aye aye! This be t' coolest feature of the rocket. Like t' Cineroc, t' camera portion looks out through a mirror, so it looks down as t' rocket takes off. Ya scallywag! If you build accordin' t' the instructions, matey, t' rocket will take great pictures o' t' sky while it is coming down. I modified mine t' look down by attachin' a separate parachute t' the eyelet built into t' tip o' t' nose.
• T' decor on t' rocket and t' graphics o' t' vehicle are top notch. Cool colors.
• T' instructions were straightforward. Since thar isn't much buildin' to do, matey, ya bilge rat, t' bulk o' t' instructions cover t' installation o' t' software on your Windows computer.
• You get over 30 seconds o' video from each flight. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! If you do it right, arrr, that is an entire flight from liftoff t' landing.
• T' rocket worked as advertised. Arrr! You push t' button on t' camera t' start the process, and after a built-in delay o' about 15 seconds so you can get back away for launch, arrr, t' rocket starts recordin' t' video images.
• There is a eyelet on t' top o' t' nose cone for attachin' t' parachute. But t' instructions don't say how t' use it. However, arrr, if you attach t' chute to t' top o' t' nose cone, me bucko, you get great look down video as t' rocket descends via t' parachute. Blimey! Blimey! T' designers at Estes had some forethought in creatin' this rocket, otherwise they would have left off t' eyelet. Aye aye! Blimey! Great work guys!

CONs:

• T' software for t' video camera only works on Windows computers. Well, blow me down! Mac users are goin' t' be disappointed. Ya scallywag! T' software seems a bit rustic and could use some tweaking. Begad! Avast! T' Windows plug-and-play (or plug-and-pray) seems t' work, but downloadin' t' video off t' unit was a bit quirky and slow.
• T' image size o' t' video is only 320x240 pixels. So t' quality o' the image isn't t' greatest. Arrr! Ya scallywag! You can't make out much detail in t' video.
• You have t' leave t' unit turned on until you download t' video. Otherwise it gets wiped off t' memory. So you either must take a computer with to t' launch range or you have t' leave it on while you make t' trip home. Well, blow me down! Ahoy!
• T' frame rate o' t' camera is 9 frames per second. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! Compared t' the Cineroc which has a frame rate o' 30 frames per second, me hearties, t' digital video looks a little jumpy when you play it back on your computer.
• T' file size o' t' video (.AVI format) is huge! My videos all were about 58MB. Begad! Aye aye! I used Apple Computers QuickTime t' change them t' MPEG-4 format and the file sized was reduced t' about 4MB without any noticeable loss o' quality. Well, blow me down! Begad!
• T' image is reversed. It looks out t' side o' t' rocket via a mirror. Well, matey, blow me down!
• There is an attachment point inside t' tube for a shock cord. Well, blow me down! It is molded into t' plastic coupler where t' tubes are attached, ya bilge rat, however, the instructions call for a regular paper shock cord mount on t' inside o' the tube. Avast, me proud beauty! T' extra attachment point on t' inside o' t' tube did cause a problem on me first flight. Ya scallywag! Well, shiver me timbers, blow me down! Since it takes up room, t' parachute got snagged on it, and didn't deploy properly. Begad! When preppin' this rocket, you have t' make sure that nothin' is inserted below t' plastic coupler or you can expect t' have similar problems.

Finishing:
Nothin' is required for finishin' t' rocket.

Construction Rating: 3 out o' 5

Flight:
I flew it three times on t' recommended D12-5 motor. Ya scallywag! Well, blow me down! T' wind was very light, so t' flights were straight. Ahoy! Deployment was near apogee every time.

I didn't attach t' parachute that came with t' kit. I wanted a look down video, so I attached me chutes t' t' top eyelet with some 100 lb Keelhaul®©™® cord. Begad! T' bottom section came down by itself with a 18 inch diameter plastic parachute. So t' rocket came down in two pieces. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy! I switched t' plastic chutes to assure myself that they would come out easily since they take up less space inside t' rocket.

On t' first launch, shiver me timbers, t' parachute for t' tube section got snagged inside. Fortunately, t' rocket came down sideways and didn't land too hard. Aye aye! Avast! One o' the plastic fins popped cleanly out o' t' plastic fin unit. Blimey! It was hard t' find on the ground. Aye aye! I wished they molded t' fins in red instead o' black color. Avast, me proud beauty! After findin' it, shiver me timbers, I simply glued it back on with some thin CyA glue. Avast, ya bilge rat, me proud beauty! You couldn't even tell it had come apart.

On t' next two launches, me bucko, matey, I was more careful in preppin' t' bottom portion so t' chutes didn't get snagged inside. Well, blow me down! T' result was worth it.

I flew it three times and got good video back on all three attempts. Three for three!

Recovery:
PROs:

• Easy t' prep and fly.
• Video camera portion worked as advertised.
• Plastic fin unit means t' rocket flies nice and straight.

CONs:

• Plastic fins unit can break if t' rocket lands on hard objects. But this can be expected o' any rocket. Ahoy! Blimey! Plastic just makes it slightly more difficult to fix or replace if t' damage is too great.
• T' rocket did spin a bit goin' up. This normally wouldn't be a problem, as it would mean a straighter flight. But it makes t' video appear jumpy. Ya scallywag! The fins didn't look warped, so I'm thinkin' it is some weird airflow comin' off the camera mirror hood that causes it t' spin.
• T' rocket is heavy at liftoff. Aye aye! Begad! T' Estes E9 can't be used for this model unless you want it t' go horizontal rather than vertical. Blimey! But t' Aerotech E15 and t' E30 should be ideal replacements.

Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5

Summary:
T' video camera is worth getting. Well, blow me down! Begad! T' cons with t' camera aren't all that bad and hopefully Estes will upgrade t' electronics as technology advances over time. Ya scallywag! With just a little better video camera and more memory, me hearties, me bucko, this will be an awesome product.

T' nose cone fits into a BT-60 size tube. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! It isn't a perfect fit but close enough. That means if t' bottom part o' t' rocket is ever damaged, you can replace it with a home-brew design. Begad! Blimey! A two-stage version is me definitely on my "to do" list.

This rocket is well engineered and I would heartily recommend this rocket to me friends. Arrr! It is way cool.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5