Very underrated disc. The limited availability of it and the numbers making people thing it will be too flippy to throw make it get overlooked. I've had the same Stratus in the bag since 2016. I use this for long soft turnovers that I don't want to fade out of it and shots in the woods where I have limited space. You can hyzer flip this disc through a 10ft window pretty easily. It's a flippy disc but it's not roller flippy unless you throw it pretty hard. The rim is thin, this is a 4 speed in my opinion. The glide is good not great, it glides well but it's not one of those discs that just keep going and going forever. Once it's done turning or fading it pretty much settles right there instead of just gliding on that path. For newer players this is a great straight flyer and as you keep learning it's a good disc to teach you about touch. This is the first disc I ever realized I needed to adjust the angle to make it go straight. I haven't thrown the Z plastic but from what I hear it's more stable but not overstable. 

Love this disc. I've had the same X line stratus since I built my first bag in 2017. It's such a versatile disc. Easy hyzer flip distance, easy to throw when you get into tighter spots without a full run up/arm swing. Great for high long turnover shots, will start to flatten out but never fade out. Great for hitting low ceiling gaps and still getting some distance out of it. Would also be a good tool for teaching newer players how to control the angle of a disc. Even for more experienced players who have trouble throwing softer, this will help to teach that as you can easily overpower it and turn into a roller. 

This a great disc for beginners, ladies, and those with slower arm speeds. My wife throws this disc all the time when she plays. 

This review is for the Stratus in X-Line Plastic.

Received this disc in my 4 disc starter set when I first started playing. Overall, it is a good beginner discs, but I would actually recommend a different understable midrange in place of the Stratus (see below). Printed on my disc is "distance driver." The Stratus is nowhere near a distance driver. It truly is a midrange, and its listing on Infinite Discs is consistent with that. 

Starting with the feel of the disc, the Stratus will fit nicely in all players' hands. The rim is narrow and shallow, so smaller hands can comfortably fit around it. While listed as beadless, there is a slight raised edge on the bottom of the disc, which is hardly noticeable.

Originally, this disc did everything I expected out of an understable disc. As a lefty, it went left before finishing right. For a righty this would be starting right and finishing left. It has good distance potential for a beginner based on its glide. Disc was fairly easy to get up to flying straight before finishing. The Stratus also worked well for rollers and turnover shots, depending on the amount of anhyzer used.  Starting off only throwing putters and midranges it was my furthest flying disc. Currently, I only use the Stratus as a "get out of trouble" discs when I need to throw a thumber or am fighting out of the dense rough.

As far as flight numbers go, this thing had glide, but not nearly the posted rating of a 5. For me it was more of a 4. Similarly, I didn't find it to reach a -3 in turn, -2.5 is more accurate. Speed of 5 is a good benchmark, but could almost be considered a 4.5 speed since it takes less velocity than a Buzzz to get going.

So why not 5 stars? It really comes down to the plastic that this disc is made in. The two options are X Line and D Line. D is the most basic of all plastics and breaks in way too quickly. While X is slightly more durable, it still has major issues with longevity. Disc developed major signs of wear in less than a month of use and its flight had noticeably changed. Before long, the Stratus lost most if not all of its fade and would just turn and keep on going. While useful in some situations, the disc was no longer predictable for me. If you are just starting out and looking for a more reliable and more durable Stratus with bigger distance potential and more control, do yourself a favor and pick up an Archer. 

TL;DR - The Stratus is a decent disc for those who are just starting out, but suffers from major durability issues because of the baseline plastics it is made in. If you are searching for your first understable midrange that can do it all and will hold up over time, go for the Archer instead.

Amazing disc for all skill levels. Will start as a trustworthy disc for beginners to keep straight. As an intermediate player I use this or my heat for all holes that fall right because I have no forehand. I also love using it as a get out of jail disc if I need a crazy anhizer or roller. 

I think the most important thing is how the disc feels in the hand....and for that, I love this disc.  Has a very nice glide to the flight.  This is definitely beginner friendly but I would recommend this disc for anyone.  

Great for beginners, and can be pure magic for veterans.  Im RHBH, and I have been using this to compensate for lack of forehand.  But the magic is using it for hyzer flip to straight through impossible gaps and up tight wooded fairways.  And when used like that, zero, zilch, nada fall off at the end.  Its a completely different mental approach, but free your mind and become one with the Stratus

The Stratus is the first disc I really connected with as a beginner. A friend on the course said, "Here, try this one", and I noticed from the first throw it went much straighter than anything else I had tried. The Stratus was the first disc I could get to glide and throw with some accuracy. That got me hooked.

I'm at my 6th month of playing 1-2 rounds a week. I have 4 X Strats in my bag, with two having a good bit of wear. I throw RHBH. The most worn in one is the flippiest, and I can get it to go straight with very little or no fade, I can turn it over to the right and keep a big anhyzer on it until it lands, or I can throw it a bit slower and have it fade left. Extremely versatile.

I'm using the Stratus for most tee shots and many upshots, especially when I have a straight line to the basket. I have gotten it through some REALLY tight gaps between trees.

I have to give this 5 stars because it is my most used disc for sure.

The Stratus, from Discraft, is an outstanding choice for beginners who are looking to get into the game. It gives players with low power some pretty easy distance with minimal effort. I really liked this disc for huge anhyzers, as it gets on the line and just glides forever. I did find the disc to be a bit touchy. Not a disc that I will bag, but a good disc none the less.

It breaks my heart to give my former favorite disc 3 stars, but I have to cut ties.

The Stratus is magic. But it's also a rollercoaster. You'll hit greasy unimaginable tunnel shots and then you'll smack a tree on the next hole using the same throwing mechanics. 

This thing is often billed as an understable turnover mid, but printed on the thing is "Long Distance Driver." So for beginners or noodle arms, you're going to be throwing BH hyzers with a lot of glide or turnover shots when you power up. But for bigger arms, you can get a longer-distance shot by releasing hyzer, watching it flatten and turn, glide and ride fade at the end of flight.

But let's talk plastic, which is the main reason I can't justify using the Stratus anymore. The only available plastics are Pro D (worst) and Elite X. I literally broke a Pro D in half when I wacked a tree one day. So I upgraded to Elite X and the thing beats in really fast. I researched it online and found that this mold just can't handle the other plastics. That's why they invented the Archer in Z plastic. Well that disc is nothing but a turnover disc and not even close to as magical as a Stratus.

Look. I love this disc. It is fun to throw. But it is unreliable. And it'll betray you. So if you fall in love with it, just be careful. I really think it broke my brain as far as understanding how discs fly and now that I've improved my driving form, forehands and picked up a new turnover mid, it's just time for me and the Stratus to part ways.

I will always love this disc though. Always.

If only the recommendation for "would you recommend for beginners" scale went to "The golden standard of total beginner discs". This disc is the BEST disc for 9/10 beginners. It's pretty rare people step up to the plate and hit a home run first try, and the same goes for disc golf. Most beginners have a crazy poor release angle and slow arm speed. This disc will flip to flat for most beginners, and for a lucky few turn right and give them a nice gliding S turn. As their speed and skill increases, they can keep this for a turnover disc and move onwards to the comet.

I have only been playing for a few months but i bought several "beginner friendly" understable mids off the bat so that i could test them, have several discs to throw in a field for practice, and figure out which one worked for me and my multitude of form flaws. I purchased a comet, fuse, meteor, stingray, and stratus. Of those, the stratus became my primary go to disc. I still play most rounds with only the stratus and a pure putter but i occasionally pull out a diamond if i need some extra distance at the risk of being much less consistent. The stratus is straight, consistent, incredibly glidey, and will help a begining player maximize their distance in a reliably straight path. Get this disc! 

If you don't have a Discraft Stratus Elite X in your bag, you are missing out!  Everyone should have this disc in their bag!

If you are a beginner or a very slow speed thrower, you will love the distance glide you can get out of this disc.  If you are an intermediate or advanced player, you will love the predictable anhyzer turn (and distance) you can get out of this disc.  If you are a serious player of any level, you will love how you can throttle down (say 60-70%) and throw this disc down the narrowest of tunnels with confidence and ease.  Finally, if you find yourself in trouble spots off the tee from time to time like me, then you will love how you can get a tremendous amount of distance from this disc even from a restricted stance, a limited throwing motion, or a blocked follow-through.

Bottom-line:  You are doing your game a disservice if you don't put this disc in your bag right now!

P.S. - If you are curious, I do not know how much my particular Stratus Elite X weighs, as the sticker has rubbed off my disc, but I would guess it has to weigh somewhere in the 170g range...

The Stratus is a great disc. It glides for ever! I use it more as a driver than a mid range and it holds what ever line I put on it. My stratus feels understable, and I throw it when the time comes. It is not my primary control driver, but when the right circumstance comes, I know it will perform well. 

Defenantly built for beginnera to get killer distance off the tee pad. With that said i have two of these and can hyzer flip them all day long! They stay in my trunk till the right course comes.

Been throwing plastic to my dogs for years, but only recently have I gotten decent at throwing to them, which of course followed up with getting totally addicted to disc golf. At this point, I'm still VERY much a beginner, but after throwing a LOT of different discs, the Stratus responded so much like the dog friendly discs I'm used to throwing. I play a lot of very wooded courses, so holding a line is pretty important with my weak throws. Can't wait to master throwing a DG disc, but this one is absolutely very beginner friendly.

I bought a Stratus from Infinite Discs.  It is the first non-Innova disc I've bought and tried out.  The disc says "long range driver", but it clearly is a mid-range and approach disc, and fills that capacity well.

The first thing I noticed was the very thin rim, and it took some getting used to.  I must say that I'm not a fan of the very thin rim, but it's okay.

Having said that, I've given the Stratus a good workout on the range and on two courses.  One course is a mixture of open and technical/wooded holes, the other is very wooded with very tight shots requiring accuracy, stopping power when the disc hits the ground, and many left-right shots that my RHBH throwing style abhors.

(Edited 5/20/16):  The Stratus is my go-to disc on technical/wooded courses when I need the disc to finish to the right (RHBH) after getting some distance going straight, and also for long anhyzer shots in the woods.  The Stratus glides a bit too far for me on approach shots to the basket in open terrain, so I'm usually just using it off the tee on the wooded courses.  But it would be a good disc for newcomers.

this is my go to disc it is great for tigh lanes but also gets decent distance 

I like this disc. I can't throw it hard or it turns and burns, but it doesn't fade at all. When you have to follow the straight line, this is a good disc to pull out. It will also follow an anny line, or flip up straight on a high hard shot. These abilities give it some advantage, but it is a select shot disc to me, and hasn't found room in my bag.

Discraft Stratus X ~ As a novice player (RHBH) this was one of the first discs that I was able to throw on a dogleg to the right. I would throw hard and flat and the disc would take a nice turn to the right ~ as a RHBH newbee most throws were going left so it was a great help to my game to be able to make that righthand turn. So until you learn the proper Anhyzer throw try an eliteX Stratus by Discraft.