RE: What's the best $50-70 micro helicopter
it depends on what you want, really. the picco is super durable, has a more conventional design with its single main rotor and tail prop, 7-10+ minute flight times, lots of modding possibilities. you can get them for 30 dollars still at TRU and some Radio Shacks as well. the picco can be set to move forward at a pretty reasonable pace, though controlling it at higher speeds becomes more tricky. some are a pain to trim in though, constant wobbles, vibrations, and uncontrolled spinning. but, they're also incredibly stable, i've smacked mine with my hands while it was in mid flight, just for the fun of it, and it just kinda flew away and then corrected itself. there no US vendors that sell parts, but its certainly worth 30 bucks, thats for sure.
the BladeRunner type helis are completely differant. first thing just about everyone says is that they're too slow. the BRs definetely have a speed limit - too fast and the upper and lower rotors hit eachother and the heli falls. the BRs can be made to move forward relatively fast (a slow walking pace), overall controll is more precise - i can get my BRs and MM into very tight places and still have complete control, i can land them anywhere at anytime as well. there are parts for these in the US, which is good because the motors can and will wear out. i got an almost 15 minute flight time with my mini BR on its first charge, the motors were barely warm (the larger BRs motors get pretty hot if you fly continiously, which shortens their life span considerably). the BRs are also pretty stable, but it takes a lot less to get it out of controll and have it crash - they take a much softer thumb on the stick to keep it in check during flight, but its worth it. they sell the mini BR at RadioShack for 50 bucks, but at wallmart they sell a larger version for the same price.
the MicroMosquito is basically a tiny version of the BRs, it can be even more tricky to handle as the control is very sensitive. my MM flys faster than the other BRs though, but again, speed causes problems with this type of heli. there have been a number of little issues with the MM unfortunately, but nothing a person with a few skills cant fix. i wish they'd drop the price though.
the helix is a beast, it can be very fast (scary fast if you're flying inside). a lot of folks have had lipo issues with them, mine included, and there's no spares anywhere for them. it was a fun heli while it lasted though, if they were selling for 40 dollars, i'd probalby buy a 2nd one. some peoples didnt have much controll, but mine, and a lot others, were very controllable, it just took some practice.
the helix and the MM are the only 3 channel helis, the mini BR, the larger BR thats sold at Wal Mart, and the picco are only 2 channel. having that 3rd channel can be quite handy, but the picco can scoot forward just fine without it, and the BRs dont seem to need it either. they're all pretty fun helis, each has a completely differant personality and flying characteristics, and each one has its own set of problems. for the price and fun factor though, the Picco still wins. if they dropped the price on any of the other helis out there, the picco might not win out.
nick