For many X-Wings in the Star Wars universe, the end came as a spectacular explosion on the field of battle. Not so much for this RCX-4 helicopter. For it, the end will no doubt arrive as a boring ol' lawsuit.

First spied at CES, hovering in the air and openly thumbing its nose at George Lucas and Lucasfilm, the RCX-4 is a four screw beast of an RC helicopter that bears more than just a passing resemblance to the workhorse of the Rebellion. And like Dak, Luke's enthusiastic but doomed gunner in The Empire Strikes Back, it too feels as though it could take on the whole Empire by itself, if not for that pesky IP issue that will surely bring it down very, very soon.

So its days are numberd, but even so this knockoff sounds decidedly un-knockoff in the quality department. Developer Digitronics promises easy flight thanks to an on board gyro and simple controls. The aluminum case is beefy. The asking price is steep. The chopper even has the ability to hover safely in place all by its lonesome, should you have to put the controller down to take receipt of a subpoena or something. [ars technica]