Customer Reviews

Star Wars Force FX Lightsaber Darth Vader

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is an awesome light saber! I have wanted one of these for almost 10 years. This was a birthday gift for me. My short background is I'm a 44 year old male, an engineer, I work for NASA, and a rock guitar musician, a fitness nut, and of course, a lover of science fiction. I have always enjoyed the whole Star Wars lore, the Force, Jedi Knights, and of course, light sabers! Darth Vader is by far my favorite character. My 5 year old daughter is also a big fan of Star Wars (she tends to like Padme and Leia and Yoda), and she has her own toy version of a light saber. My wife also thinks this is a pretty cool gadget. We have lots of good clean family fun with this light saber (if you call going head to head in a light saber battle clean fun!). I also bought this for very practical reasons, like slicing bagels (actually toasts the cut side of the bagel at the same time!), heating up a cup of coffee (just stick it in), home soldering projects, yard work (trimming hedges), making Smores for the kids (they love it), and cauterizing a deep cut (doctors are using these things in emergency rooms nowadays), and it doubles as a light and heat source if the power goes out.

This FX light saber is extremely well made, and it is certainly not a toy, per se, as this is something you will want to take care of. I like the power-up and clashing sounds and the motion sound, but my favorite is the sucking sound it makes when it powers-down - very, very cool. The hilt is very detailed and funny thing, being an engineer, is that you can tell it was made for motion pictures by piecing together some junk and spare parts - details that you would never see in the movie. It would be cool if it came with an explanation of the various buttons like controlling blade length, power alignment, etc. (only functional button is the power on-off slider). It is fairly durable for light to moderate clashes, but don't strike it too hard as I am quite sure it would break if you beat on it too hard. Consider this a "Jedi in training" light saber, as it is not as powerful as a full-blown light saber, so good thing is it won't cut a limb off if you accidentally hit somebody with it! If you don't know how to operate a light saber safely, you should definitely take the light saber safety training course, as you can seriously injure yourself or others with it. If you drink, put your light saber away, as there are strict laws against drinking and using a light saber.

I have spent many more dollars on art work that just hangs on the wall and nobody notices it. Not the case with this light saber. This is a great and functional art work, a piece of Hollywood history, and a glimpse of the future, all for $100 - a great deal, and based on the used market, seems to hold about 65% of its value over the long haul. I have it on display in my home theater and it is a great conversation piece and has a very high "gee, this is really cool" factor by anyone that picks it up. I took it to work (a bunch of engineers) and everyone loved it! OK, so you can't melt through thick titanium blast doors with it (we tried) or cut through spacecraft hulls (just dulls the blade) with it, nor can you deflect enemy laser blasts with it (this requires mastery of the Force- duh) or cut up enemy battle droids. BUT, you can have a lot of fun with it! In a darkened room, this light saber really stands out and you feel like you are in the movie.

There is also perhaps an educational component to this light saber as well, as my inquisitive daughter wants to know how a light saber works (so we talk about lasers and crystals and power sources, and how this is the ultimate weapon of a Jedi and even good vs. evil). Remember, the unique thing about a light saber is that it requires mastery of the Force to align the crystals internally - that is why each light saber is unique to each Jedi. Or, if you are a weekend Jedi, like me, then you could just spend $100 on Amazon Prime and get one right away, albeit with reduced capability, and without having to master all that Force stuff. Plus, good luck finding a Jedi Master these days if you want to be a Padawan in training before you can build your own. Besides, Jedi training is very competitive these days and also very expensive with financial aid getting harder to qualify for, given the economic situation in our country right now. I hear Yoda makes like a bazillion dollars an hour teaching private Jedi classes! Everybody is in it for the money these days...

It is ever important in life to have fun and to not take yourself too seriously. If you are into Star Wars, then purchasing this light saber fits that advice perfectly. This is frivolous fun, fun, fun at its very best. Buy it, display it, use it, and enjoy it. I'm very happy with mine. Mmmm, now where did I put my Darth Vader helmet (my next purchase for Halloween perhaps?)? Enjoy. :)

I also own a 2007 Obi Wan saber and a 2003 Vader, so I will compare this saber to those two in this review:

Generally this is a fine product. The metal parts are quality made, the blade lights up nicely and looks durable, and the sound effects are generally pretty good (although you really have to whack something hard to get the clash sound ... not a recipie for success if your kids are playing with this).

I do notice a decline in quality from my 2003 Vader though. There are more plastic parts on this version than on the older one. Some parts also have less detail (for instance, the ring at the front of the saber where the blade attaches is just plain black plastic on this 2007 version, whereas it was true to the movie textured metal on the 2003).

On the positive side, the battery compartment on this saber is much better than on the 2007 Obi Wan (see my review of that piece as well). Here you simply insert 3 AA batteries into their respective slots and slide the whole assembly in ... nice ... on the Obi Wan you have to unscrew an annoying Philips screw and fiddle with a flimsy plastic cap to insert 3 AAA batteries.

I remember paying something like $149 for my 2003 Vader ... whereas this Hasbro version has been on sale for as little as $50 at Walmart lately ... at this price, it's definitely a steal and well worth it. At $100+ ... it's probably still worth it if you're a hard core Star Wars fan ... but just barely ... if I had the choice I'd rather pay $149 for the original Master Replicas version than say ... $109 for this one.

Great Lightsaber! It arrived just 3 days after ordering it and it was in perfect condition. Its very bright and a great look-a-like. If it could cut things, it would be real!

I ordered this lightsaber a month ago to go along with my blue Anakin lightsaber. They are amazing to look at and even play with. However, mine came defective. I turned on the lighstaber after putting batteries inside and it worked fine...until I tapped it against the other lightsaber. It completely turned off! I tried tapping it again and it turned back on. So this leads me to two conclusions:

1. The force is much stronger with the light side

2. My lightsaber is defective.

I am leaning to the ladder since the light side can't be stronger. Siths are far better at using the force, and red looks much better than blue when the lights are off. Anyways, the product itself is awesome and I won't dock it more than 1 star, but I was disappointed to get a defective saber, escpecially with the time it takes to repackage it and drop it off at the UPS store. We Siths are impatient and sometimes lazy.

I and my kids own many a light saber including the very cool Star Wars Clone Wars Ultimate Light Saber. But after buying these I can never go back. I picked up a "luke" at a convention for a reasonable price and knew I had to get another. I chose the "Vader" Ep. IV version. Let me tell you a little bit about this "collectable" "toy".

Hilt - Well this isn't your $6, $20 or even $30 light saber. This is an all metal, high quality rubber and authentic details hilt. There is something extremely satisfying about grabbing it and feeling that weight and collectable quality that makes it feel not like a toy. It's as close to the movie version as you can get and it is not fat clunky plastic. On a side note this one is almost twice as heavy as the "Luke" version which makes it feel even more "real"

Blade - Oh, the blade... filled with sequentially lit, high intensity LED lights; it is a glorious sight to behold. Flick on the saber and the red blade lights from hilt to top as if extending from the hilt, not all at once like a flashlight like a toy version - same with turning it off. And you know how the toys really only look good in a dark room? Not so here. Even in a well lit room these shine up to a beautiful intensity. That's the difference in the light not being just in the handle but actually all throughout the blade.

Sounds - The sound effects are just awesome. I have seen folks who think they are a bit loud but to me the louder the better. And they are LOUD. Turn it on - Vrooom! Turn it off - Sqreeeech! Not only are there great on and off sounds and the low and steady Sith hum but whacking your buddy will yield several different clashing and screeching sounds. And best of all, a feature that no toy version has, swing it around and via motion sensitive controls it will sound off several swishing and swinging light saber sounds.

Durability - Well it is marketed as a collectable but anyone who has one will tell you that it's of no use to have one if you can't swing it around and bang it a bit. And me, I love to play. So it is a toy in the fact that I have had extended light saber battles with both my kids, taking some care, but generally letting loose (and yes, letting them play with these high-end sabers too) and no damage yet. It works fine and only has the scratches on the outer light tube that you'd expect. The blade has not broken and the electronics still work fine (I've had the Luke for over a year and this Vader for 2 months as of this writing). It still looks and works great. You can always choose to buy one and not whack it around if you want. The sounds and lights make for very movie quality play.

Power - 3 AA batteries and they last a really long time considering all this thing does.

The only downside is price I suppose. But hey save up, or if you're not interested then don't buy. If you like light sabers at all though this is a must (everyone that touches one says they have to get one) and now I may have to get a third one. :-)

I have never purchase any toy quite like this. I was reluctant at first, but after seeing one in real life (from my friend) I just had to buy one. The fit and finish on this thing is extremely detailed, very high quality. Solid metal handle has got lot of heft to it (feels like a real, heavy, lightsaber instead of a cheap imitation). The best part is that the red light part actually goes UP and DOWN as you turn it on and off.

I have no idea how that is done, but it is of great design and entertainment. Anyone looking for a high quality toy OR collectible should consider this item.

I love this item. Only letdown was all the stickers on the handle. They do not peel off easily and leave a residue. DO NOT USE GOO GONE. Its difficult to use goo gone without coming into contact with plastic on the handle. Go gone basically will melt plastic and rubber. I learned this the hard way, and while the damage is subtle, it does bother me a little bit. Live and learn.

The think loosk cool and makes cool noises.
3 aa battery isn't bad at all.
Tonz of funz!

The FX Lightsabers are awesome. Hasbro has made an identical model to the Master Replica's model. Hasbro has the new contract from Lucas & is doing a wonderful job. The seller I bought this from was very quick & efficient.

A++++

This was a gift from Santa. This lightsaber is beyond amazing. From the illumination it provides in a room at 5:30a to the sounds it makes when swished five feet in front of you. It has provided hours of imagination, which has encouraged stories in Writer's workshop in our son's classroom. If you are a collector, of any age, this is a MUST. I, myself, enjoy the heaviness of the handle and the precision look. Sturdy beyond belief.