V2 Cigs UK very kindly sent me this little gem to review, along with a bottle of their high VG eliquid. The Pro 3x is not a bad vape at all. I’ve been using it for a couple of weeks now, and when I’ve been busy pottering in the garden this has been what has sat in my wheelchair side bag, knocking about with trowels and other gardening tools. It has survived well – and it has never leaked on me. This is a good choice as an intermediate level set up. It would suit someone who has got on fine with a starter kit, but wants to move on to something that offers a better experience.
In the box you get the Series 3X vaporizer, the Series 3 Sub-Ohm Ceramic E-Liquid “Cartridge” (what I would call an atomiser or a tank), the Series 3X E-Liquid Cartridge, 3 interchangeable “atomizers” (what I’d call coils) rated 0.9 sub-ohm, 1.2 ohm and 1.5 ohm, and lastly the charging cord. They give you a lot of extras with this that would usually be sold separately. On the negative side this does make it a little tricky to work out which bit does what. Vey unusually, the connection that the tank makes to the battery is magnetic; just drop it into place. Unfortunately that means that these tanks are dedicated; I can’t swap them over to a different battery to really push the performance and test them as thoroughly as I would normally do.
This comes with a little bit of charge in it, but it does need a good charge before use. The charger is a magnetic connection that snaps onto the bottom of the unit, and does allow passthrough vaping while it charges. The snazzy ring of LED lights in a circle around the base of the unit lights up to let you know it’s charging; red for low battery, green for full. It takes about an hour and a quarter to charge from flat. This is also where the charge indicator lights up in use. Give it a little shake and the motion activated LED lights up to tell you how much battery you have left. To switch the unit on and off (lock and unlock) it’s three quick presses of the fire button. Two quick presses puts it in power changing mode. There are three power settings – 1.8v, 2.5v and 3.3v. The LED lights on the base cycle slow, medium, and fast. Hit the fire button once when it’s where you want it, and the unit will switch to the selected power level. Three little LEDs on the side at the top show you which power level you have it set at.
In use with PG based liquids with a higher ohm coil and lower power setting it’s better than any of the standard starter kits I’ve tried. With the sub-ohm coil – and it is only JUST sub-ohm at 0.9 ohm – on the highest setting it does produce a richer, thicker vapour with decent flavour. Running the highest settings on this would equal running this 0.9 ohm coil at about 18 watts. I usually run an 0.4 ohm coil at 40 watts, a conservative setting for most experienced vapers. So this simply does not have enough oomph to become my main vape, but it is enough to make it a solid choice for when I don’t want to produce a fogbank. The airflow is tight enough for a decent mouth draw, and goes open enough for not a bad DTL draw on maximum settings, making this a good intermediate level choice for someone who wants to keep things very simple.
This is much better than a thin battery and disposable atomiser basic starter kit. It is definitely better than the old protanks. For the intermediate user in the house, it’s fine, but doesn’t beat his beloved Nautilus Mini on a true VV/VW box battery – which is a step beyond this unit anyway, being closer to advanced. The advantages of this is that it’s pretty simple, with a shallow learning curve once you figure out which tank and coil is which and for what purpose, and it produces a not-bad vape for a beginner or intermediate user. The disadvantage is that the vapor production simply isn’t thick and rich enough for an experienced vaper, and I’d like to see true sub-ohm with a lower ohm coil and a bit more power. The battery life is fine, but then you’re vaping at 18 watts on this; higher than most fixed power batteries, lower than most variable voltage sub ohm capable batteries on the market today.
The VSAVI gourmet toffee-caramel-choc juice they sent with it is really rather pleasant. This is an 100% VG juice that has been thinned as it flows very easily. In the V2 cig it performs well and produces a medium amount of vapour at max settings. In my standard juice testing set up (0.4ohm cotton wicked coil at 40W) it produces thick, flavoursome vapour. Slightly on the sweet side, but toffee first, caramel second and a hint of sweet dark chocolate on the exhale, which lingers in the mouth.
Overall my impression of this setup is good – and it is a kit I will pass to the next person who asks me if I have anything going spare for them to try vaping. The downside is a lot of dedicated bits that will only work with this unit and a lack of power. The upside is the simplicity and a reasonable vape, with the option of buying a dry-herb unit that fits this model should you want it. At £79.99 it isn’t cheap, but it will probably be worth it for people who don’t want to look like a vape hobbyist, but do want reasonable performance from a simple device.
Thank you to V2 Cigs UK who sent me this kit to review for you free of charge.
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