I would agree that's it's not an ideal plane for a beginner to RC flight, but it's a great build for a beginner to RC scratch building! I'm not sure if that's what they meant, but it's so easy to put together... I think it might even be easier than the FT22 I built as my first FliteTest build. It's at least easier to cut all the bits out of DTFB sheets. Yeah, in terms of flying, the versa is harder because it requires more space to fly (more than the FT-22 in my experience) due to it's long glide slope and lack of yaw control. It's more sensitive to the wind, as you said, due to this great glide ability and lack of yaw control. I would also agree that launches can be trickier, especially with a frisbee/flying disc type launch where you need to make sure not to over-rotate, but I actually found both my pusher configured old Versa Wing and Blunt Nose Versa Wing to launch pretty easily with an overhead launch.
It's a great next step for those going from 3-Ch (Rudder, Elevator) to 4-Ch (Aileron) flight. I might say the FT-22 is better, but it's a great yank-n-bank platform, and I can't be happier with it as my FPV platform. It can carry a ton of payload, has a super long flight time -- if I bring the two charged batteries I have for the Versa (2200mAh and 3600mAh 3C's) with me, I have to plan to fly for about an hour or more... That's a lot of time. Last week, I flew my 3600mAh pack down to storage voltage by flying 3-4 flights of about 6-7 minutes. The flight pack was powering the flight and FPV electronics (5.8GHz ImmersonRC 600mW VTX & board camera). I only broke it up in chunks like that because people were walking up to talk and ask questions. So, I would let them look at the ground station monitor, and land to show them the plane and its setup. Then, re-launch when they walked away. I haven't flown a full pack without getting interrupted yet... but I suspect I'd have about a 30-45 minute flight at half throttle with each pack... that that would leave me just slightly below storage voltage.
It's a great next step for those going from 3-Ch (Rudder, Elevator) to 4-Ch (Aileron) flight. I might say the FT-22 is better, but it's a great yank-n-bank platform, and I can't be happier with it as my FPV platform. It can carry a ton of payload, has a super long flight time -- if I bring the two charged batteries I have for the Versa (2200mAh and 3600mAh 3C's) with me, I have to plan to fly for about an hour or more... That's a lot of time. Last week, I flew my 3600mAh pack down to storage voltage by flying 3-4 flights of about 6-7 minutes. The flight pack was powering the flight and FPV electronics (5.8GHz ImmersonRC 600mW VTX & board camera). I only broke it up in chunks like that because people were walking up to talk and ask questions. So, I would let them look at the ground station monitor, and land to show them the plane and its setup. Then, re-launch when they walked away. I haven't flown a full pack without getting interrupted yet... but I suspect I'd have about a 30-45 minute flight at half throttle with each pack... that that would leave me just slightly below storage voltage.