Thrown on a slight hyzer you can expect a very reliable, tight s-flight.  If not thrown with adequate speed, you can expect a straight flight with hard fade.  Great disc, my personal go-to for drives on holes <325'.

The Discraft Heat!

If there was a beginner friendly disc this is it. All new to disc golf friends/people I interact with I introduce this disc to them. If you generate a little bit faster arm speed this disc will turn over and hold. Even for the slower arm speeds this disc goes straight and has a TON of glide! Would be a good candidate for a max distance disc for newer players.

This review is for a 168g ESP Heat. I have been searching for awhile for the perfect fairway/midrange turnover disc. I typically throw a forehand when needed, but sometimes the situation calls for a long turnover. And this disc fits that slot for me. I have tried the Orbit, Seer, Archer, Evidence and Virus. But the Heat was the most controllable with the right amount of fade. I do like the Archer too for certain shots. It has a comfortable rim with great release. Lower speed arms might get this disc just to fly straight for them. 

I love this disc. The moment I picked it up and held it for the first time I knew I had to get it. If you have bigger hands and don't mind domey discs you will LOVE this because it just feels so incredibly solid in your hands. Out of the box it is definitely not nearly as understable as the flight numbers would make it seem but it does hold a line very well and flips up when you need it to.

If you are looking for a slightly understable disc that feels meaty and solid when you throw it and you don't really care about using it for forehands, this is the disc for you! Plus you can get it in some very nice colors with ESP plastic!

Not a huge fan. This disc is pretty domey for my liking. Out of the box it definitely doesn't have a turn of -3. Going to take some beating in to fly like you want it to and this is coming form someone who can throw 350ft consistently. 

RHBH thrower, averaging 350' and intermediate/advanced player. 

I use this disc for long narrow tree shots, long turnovers, and recently starting to use it as a roller disc. Lay it on a hyzer and it will flip flat and glide for days, throw it high and flight and it will turnover and power out and glide for days, throw it low and on anhyzer - get the roller going. This is a very nice utility understable utility disc.

Do not use it in the wind.

This would be my recommend first "distance" driver for a beginner. It is understable enough you will not have to overpower it, and has enough fade to be reliable. Great first disc to maximize distance. 

Love my heats! I've had them in the Z-line plastics and ESP plastics, and I much prefer the feel of the ESP plastics. That said, the Z isn't far off and it's durability is phenomenal, they will likely outlive me!

The heat fits a lot of needs for me in disc golf. Tailwind? Throw the heat, still get a little flip and distance. Need to flip with distance? Throw a heat. Got a beginner friend who is picking up some arm speed finally? Give em a heat!

I definitely prefer these in the lighter weights, 167-169 being my jam. If you're turning this disc over, but not excessively so, check out the Thrasher for a good next disc to look at. Will flip lightly but mostly hold a line for you and definitely cover more distance. The Avenger SS is supposedly the next disc up from this but... I didn't find that to be the case.

TLDR: Great offering from Discraft that will end up in many bags from beginners to advanced players. Easy distance. Stability can be surprisingly stable in certain premium plastics.

Feel: At a 9 speed rating, the rim is about what you'd expect from a 9 speed. Even a bit smaller when compared to more overstable 9 speeds. The rim is also uniquely rounded, making it feel really smooth and comfortable in the hand. The -3 turn and 6 glide ratings mean this disc is pretty domey. I've never heard anyone complain about it, but it's definitely not a flat top. In the esp plastic, I found that my thumb is able to easily bend the flight plate a bit, making it feel less domey. It's not flimsy or too soft, but just enough to make it feel great.

Flight: My ESP heat is a little more stable than the numbers suggest. More like a -2 turn instead of -3. So I'd say more like 9 6 -2 1. The less premium plastics are more accurate to the 9 6 -3 1 rating. With all that glide, beginners will see some of their farthest throws with the heat. More experienced players will love this for hyzer flips and turnovers. Power throwers will get predictable turn for rollers.

I don't currently bag this, but I play with a bunch of people who do. I can't imagine it being a problem for anyone unless you absolutely can't stand domeyness. If you like discraft plastic then this is an easy scoop for you.

This disc has been incredibly useful for me since I got my first one in a player pack. I use it for max distance hyzer flips and turnover shots that drift to the left and glide for miles. I don't have a ton of arm speed, so the heat helps me utilize what little I have to get as much distance as possible while maintaining control. I've also used the heat as a tool to help me develop my forehand form and learn forehand flip-ups. I used to rely on overstable discs to cover up my bad forehand, but I started taking the heat to the field to work on controlling my release and not rolling my wrist. 

I would highly recommend the heat as a first driver for any beginner looking to increase their distance as well as any person looking for a hyzer flip disc for both forehand and backhand. 

?The heat is a fantastic disc! Not only is it the perfect roller disc, but it's a great disc to shape lines when throwing in the woods. I find the heat to be under stable but definitely not too under stable. Based on how you release it you can shape a lot of different shots and still rely on it to have a consistent right to left face at the end. If you're looking for a new disc to add to the bag, definitely give the heat a try. A truly underrated disc!

My first understable disc, and I think I picked a pretty good one in ESP plastic. It's quite domey for me but due to the ESP plastic it's very comfortable in your hand to grip. If you are a beginner I would highly consider this one for your bag it has just enough speed for starters without it getting uncontrollable. 

*Throwing this around 330 feet right now*

Very comfortable rim. Very understable but very glidy. Downwind bomber. Not in my bag anymore, but a very good place to start with fairways/distance drivers.

The (max weight) Z line Heat is an amazing hyzerflip and turnover disc! When thrown flat out to 400 feet it will turn over gently and land straight. When thrown on a bit of hyzer it will flip up to flat, go dead straight, then fade softly at the end. This disc feels great in the hand and has amazing glide! I don't think its quite as understable as the numbers suggest in Z plastic when max weight.

Disc - 168g Discraft ESP

I received this disc in a Discraft ESP mystery pack.

The Heat was my second driver, the first being a beat Innova Pro Leopard. If I had one word to describe this disc, it would be "finicky." When I was first throwing this thing, I could get some decent distance out of it. For beginners with low arm speed, this thing will fly and glide for a while, giving players some extra distance. However, as I've improved, this disc has become more finicky and less useful for me. Thrown hard and flat, the Heat will turn over and never come back. If there's wind, don't even look at this disc or it will already be gone. I try to utilize it for turnovers, but again, it's a temperamental disc. On a hyzer-flip, sometimes it goes straight forever. Sometimes it turns immediately.

Overall - The flippiest disc I own. Useful for turnovers and rollers for intermediate/advanced players. Good for beginners with low arm speed. Beginners with higher arm speeds and low control will want something slightly more stable for straight drives.

So I bought the yoda star wars version of this disc and as I was using it on a backhand, the disc would guide itself closer to the basket. There are times where I would make a horrible throw and think myself that I threw it dead at a tree or in the water but it would guide itself around that just to get closer to the basket. This disc has that yoda force.

On a real note, I would not recommend any forehands but I would on a backhand for learning with a driver along with angle control and wind speed awareness. The disc tends to be a bit risky due to the size of the disc sides I think. I do love this disc and highly recommend it in an esp or a z plastic.

I've been playing regularly for a little over a year now.  I struggled early on with everything ending quickly on a heavy hyzer.  This disc is great for beginners who are struggling with the same.  It is a great hyzer flip disc with a lot of glide!

Ratings are spot on.

True to the numbers. Replaced my Sidewinder in the bag. The plastic is swirly & grippy with decent rigidity. Glides a ton like the number suggests. Very comfy in your hand. Easy distance with control 

Okay, so I wasn't planning on getting this disc but I lost my roadrunner and needed a flippy driver in a tournament. This was available from our club stock and I really really like it! You can get this to do a great hyzer flip and thrown flat it will hold a turnover line for a long time! At my local course there is a huge anhyzer shot and this shot does it just as good if not better than my champ roadrunner. Overall, a great disc. 

This is the disc I hand to all of my friends that have never played before.  If you have a slower arm this disc will be consistently straight.  If you can torque a disc well this disc is great for huge turnovers or hyzerflips to dead straight.  I prefer the Heat for backhand rollers that go ~400 feet.

This is my go to turn over disc, I love how easy it is to hyzer flip this disc, you can also force the anny shot easier with a flat throw. Watching this disc fly through the air is like watching a masterpiece when thrown correctly.