Hi Ecigssa members, In this review i take a look at the RPM80 Pro Pod Mod Kit from Smok. The SMOK RPM80 Pro Pod Mod Kit was supplied for the purpose of this review by Ella from Sourcemore.
https://www.sourcemore.com/smok-rpm80-pr...d-kit.html
Introduction
Smok like it's competition follow up a 40W Pod mod with an 80W version, well in Smok's case 2 80W versions giving the choice of a 3000mAh in-built battery or external 18650. Smok has plenty of critics but i don't review products based on reputation but what i experience with the product in question so that's that out the way!
The RPM80 as mentioned has an in-built 3000mAh battery but the device i received is the RPM80 Pro which is taller and accommodates a single 18650, other than that both devices are identical so this review can be used for RPM80 reference also.
The RPM80 Pro comes with both an RPM Pod and RGC Pod which houses Nexmesh powered coils and has added adjustable airflow. The Pods are fully visible and only slightly tinted and also has a top-fill method of adding your juice. Other than that the RPM80 is just the RPM40 with twice the available power but does boast a new user interface (screen layout), let's give it a look!
___________________________________________________________________
In The Box
Contents:
Standard/US/EU Standard Edition
1 x RPM80 Pro Device
1 x RPM80 RPM Pod ( RPM Mesh 0.4ohm Coil Pre-installed) (5ml)
1 x RPM80 RGC Pod (RGC Conical Mesh 0.17ohm coil powered by nexmesh Preinstalled) (5ml)
1 x USB Cable
1 x User Manual
EU 2ml Edition
1 x RPM80 Pro Device
1 x RPM80 RPM Pod ( RPM Mesh 0.4ohm Coil Pre-installed) (2ml)
1 x RPM80 RGC Pod (RGC Conical Mesh 0.17ohm coil powered by nexmesh Preinstalled) (2ml)
1 x cable
1 x User Manual
___________________________________________________________________
Aesthetics and Ergonomics
The RPM80 Pro comes in typical Smok cardboard box packaging with outer sleeve and on opening i came across my first issue, it's just too tall in my opinion for an 18650 device, the size justifies a 2*700 option. I received the Red Stabilised Wood version which brings me to my next gripe, i obviously knew at the price point we would just be dealing with stickers here and although the designs look very nice, the trend of trying to mislead vapers into thinking they are getting Resin or Stabilised wood finishes when what you really get is cheap stickers covered with a clear plastic has got to stop! The colour/design options are Fluid Gold, Black Stabilised Wood, Red Stabilised Wood, Black Carbon Fiber, Black and White Resin, Fluid Blue, 7-Colour Resin, not a hint of Resin or wood in sight!
Despite this the device does seem very well made so not got an issue with what you get but more what some might believe they are getting! Despite it's height like all these pod mods with similar forms it's both ergonomic and a nice portable size and weight! Rather than aesthetically having the same form factor as the RPM40, Vinci series or Herakles the RPM80 Pro is very similar in appearance to the Vaporesso Target PM80. As i tend to do more often these days rather than trying to describe the look of the device i will let the pictures do the talking!
___________________________________________________________________
RPM80 Pro Specs and Features:
Size: 118 x 31.5 x 26 mm
Battery: single 18650 battery(not included)
Output wattage: 1-80W
Output voltage: 0.5-4.0V
Input voltages: 3.3V-4.2V
Resistance range: 0.1-2.5ohm
Charging output: 5V/2A
Charging Rate RPM80 1.2A Max, RPM80 Pro 1.3A Max
Standby current: <200uA
Capacity: 5ml/2ml
Resistance: RPM 0.4ohm mesh coil(25W)
RGC Conical 0.17ohm mesh coil(40-80W)
New intelligent IQ-80 chip with functional protections
Adopts two pods with two coils
SMOK's first pod with adjustable bottom airflow
New RGC conical mesh coil powered by nexMesh
Top filling design with transparent pod for visible e-juice
Colours/Designs: Fluid Gold, Black Stabilised Wood, Red Stabilised Wood, Black Carbon Fiber, Black and White Resin, Fluid Blue, 7-Colour Resin
___________________________________________________________________
The Pods/Cartridges
You receive two different pods which on first glance look the same but their is the smallest of difference in size to keep the same 5ml capacity (2ml TPD version) whichever one you use as the RPM and RGC coils are different in size. One pod holds RPM coils and has RPM on the fill bung while the other houses RGC coils and has both RGC on the fill bung but also an attached metal adjustable airflow ring on the base.
More about that adjustable airflow later, also on the base of both pods we have 2 large magnets. Moving to the top of the pod it's one piece of Delrin which incorporates the drip-tip so you are stuck with what you get. The pods also have a fill bung on this top section which is great to see so the pod can be filled without moving it from the device. The pods are also lightly tinted but absolutely no issues with visibility of your liquid and filling was both quick and mess free.
___________________________________________________________________
Fitting The Coils
You receive both a 0.4ohm RPM mesh coil head which gets push fitted into the RPM Pod and a RGC Kanthal Nexmesh Conical mesh 0.17ohm coil head which also just gets push fitted into place, this time into the RGC pod with airflow adjustment ring.
___________________________________________________________________
Coil Availability
All the RPM coil heads are compatible with the RPM pod giving loads of options including the RPM RBA coil head. To date for the RGC pod we have the included 0.17ohm mesh coil head and also an RGC RBA coil head giving a rebuildable option with both pods!
___________________________________________________________________
The Airflow
On the device towards the top both front and back we have a slot which allows air to the bottom of the pod. The RPM coils have fixed airflow so can only be controlled by the bore of the coil while on the RGC pod we have a control ring that can close down the amount of air getting to the coil (in theory) and it works in a fashion but more about that in the final section!
___________________________________________________________________
Fitting The Pod
Looking into the pods bay we can see the central Gold plated, spring loaded contacts which are on a raised platform which looks well sealed. To each side we have even higher platforms which house magnets to line up with the magnets on the base of the pod/cartridge. We can also see on both the front and back walls there are slots to allow air to the underside of the pod.
The pod/cartridge gets secured by both the magnets and also pressure fitted and is going nowhere, absolutely no movement and very secure. I find the best way of releasing the pod is to get my finger behind the drip-tip and pull forward which lifts the pod free, really good job!
___________________________________________________________________
Fitting The Battery
A single 18650 battery get's fitted via the hatch door on the base of the device. Just slide the door forward and lift up, positive is clearly labelled at the bottom of the tube but negative is marked Black on Black on the underside of the door so not easy to see at all, please White in future Smok!
When the door is shut we have no movement or battery rattle whatsoever, a really nice solid door!
___________________________________________________________________
The Display
The colour display is very bright and impressively sharp with all the information needed on show. Top left we have "SMOK" then top right we have the battery status bar. Underneath we have the wattage and below this the display is quartered into 4 sections. The sections display top left resistance, top right voltage, bottom left puffs and bottom right time vaped.
At the very bottom of the display we have a painting pallet icon followed by 6 different coloured squares in an horizontal row. The main information is in white but some information can be customised to be one of the 6 colours. They are promoting it as a new user interface but as you will find out in the "Operating The RPM80/RPM80 Pro" section it operates exactly the same so really it's just a slight difference in how the information is displayed on the screen.
___________________________________________________________________
Navigating The RPM80/RPM80 Pro
The RPM80 and RPM80 Pro devices may have a pod/cartridge that fits to the device but the device operates just like any other variable wattage regulated device. The device is the usual 5 clicks to turn on and 5 clicks to turn off and once on the wattage can be adjusted in 1W increments from 1W to 80W, it does round robin.
We do have a number of combination key press features which include pressing fire and left together resets the puff counter and fire and right together moves to the next colour option if you want to change the colour of certain items on the screen, the colours to choose from are Red, Orange, Blue, Magenta, Green and White.
Pressing the fire button 3 times locks the whole device so it will not fire, alternatively you can lock just the navigational buttons by pressing them both at the same time. Finally as expected the device has the usual safety protections and if one kicks in a message is displayed on the screen.
___________________________________________________________________
Protections
Intelligent Atomiser Recognition
Puff Monitoring System
8 Seconds Cut-off
Short Circuit Protection
Over-heating Protection
Low Battery Protection
___________________________________________________________________
Charging
Personally i wouldn't recommend charging in the device but the specs give both a Charging Voltage and Rate that differs so curiosity got the better of me. While charging a battery status bar is displayed and the charge is also shown as a percentage, i also just checked and pass-through is supported. The battery took 2 hours 40 minutes to charge in the device so really the charge rate is 1A.
___________________________________________________________________
My Experience Using The RPM80 Pro
The RPM40 was my favourite out of the initial 40W pod mods so i had high expectations but feel things have not been executed as well as they might, their is a lot to like but just feel it could of been so much better.
I love how well the battery door is executed and how well the pod/cartridge secures, also top-fill is great and 5ml capacity (standard version) is excellent. You are stuck with the non removable drip-tip but it is very comfortable.
Up to now the RPM 0.4ohm mesh coil has been my favourite out of all the different coils available for the various pod mods we have seen although i find it's recommended wattage of 25W gives a slightly cool vape so i use it at 30W which is much better delivering more warmth and bags of flavour. I used the RPM pod just to check everything was in order and the RPM coils performance is what i have experienced in the past and all is well.
Next to the RGC 0.17 coil head with nexmesh and what a mixed bag i found this to be in conjunction with the adjustable airflow. The first thing i noticed was what a warm vape it gave and i personally only used it at 45W after some experimenting despite it's 40-80W rating. When it came to flavour i have a new pod mod favourite (nexmesh really delivers) but is it worth the baggage? First although we have adjustable airflow plenty of air gets underneath and there is a gap between the airflow control ring and coil head so even when closing the airflow right down i could tell very little difference so i ended up just not even checking it as i got pretty much the same draw whatever it's position. A word of warning if you do want to alter it during vaping leave it a good few minutes after a vape before touching the control ring, it gets red hot as i found out ouch! The other issue is leaking (see picture),
i didn't have an issue when checking the RPM coil and didn't have leaking issues with the RPM40 but this RGC pod leaks bad and if having the device in your pocket in anything other than an upright position e-liquid will escape out the airflow slots on the device which can be quite messy. Another issue is even at 45W the pod and drip-tip got uncomfortably hot when chain vaping and at above 50W (remember it's recommended up to 80W) it burnt my lips. The other issue is how long a battery lasted as even though i only used the RGC coil at 45W it ploughed through battery life. Another thing to point out is these pod mods don't have voltage boost which was fine for the 40W renditions but if the RGC coil head was used nearer it's upper wattage recommendation then you can forget what wattage is displayed on the screen as when it comes to performance the device would perform like a direct output device losing power as the voltage of the battery dropped!
So the RGC gives great flavour (but too much trade off) so i still much prefer the RPM Pod and included coil. With so many RPM coil options and how well the device performs at modest wattage i still feel many will like this device and it will fly out the door of many vape shops!
___________________________________________________________________
Likes
Despite misleading marketing some very nice designs
Seems well made and durable
2 different pods included (RPM pod and RGC pod)
RGC Pod has adjustable airflow (very limited in it's performance)
RGC 0.17 coil (using nexmesh) gives excellent flavour
RGC coil gave very warm vape
RPM 0.4ohm mesh coil still my favourite pod mod coil (very good flavour)
Top-fill, fills quick and mess free
5ml Capacity (standard edition)
Can clearly see juice level
Accommodates 18650 battery
Fair battery life with RPM 0.4ohm coil
Really good job with battery hatch door
Pods fit very securely
Comfortable drip-tip
Device performed excellently with RPM coil and RGC coil at lower recommended wattage
Sharp, bright, well laid out colour display
Display colour can be customised
Puff counter
Cons
RGC Pod leaks quite bad
Airflow control makes little difference to the draw
RGC coil wattage limited (no voltage boost) only 80W with fresh battery then will drop
Using above 50W the pod and drip-tip got far too hot
Ploughed through battery life with RGC coil in use
Very tall for 18650 device (21700 would give even better performance)
Some people will be misled into believing they are going to get Resin or Stabwood finish!
Black on Black battery orientation on hatch door (hard to see)
I would once again like to thank Ella from Sourcemore for supplying the SMOK RPM80 Pro Pod Mod Kit for the purpose of this review.
https://www.sourcemore.com/smok-rpm80-pr...d-kit.html
___________________________________________________________________
https://www.sourcemore.com/smok-rpm80-pr...d-kit.html
Introduction
Smok like it's competition follow up a 40W Pod mod with an 80W version, well in Smok's case 2 80W versions giving the choice of a 3000mAh in-built battery or external 18650. Smok has plenty of critics but i don't review products based on reputation but what i experience with the product in question so that's that out the way!
The RPM80 as mentioned has an in-built 3000mAh battery but the device i received is the RPM80 Pro which is taller and accommodates a single 18650, other than that both devices are identical so this review can be used for RPM80 reference also.
The RPM80 Pro comes with both an RPM Pod and RGC Pod which houses Nexmesh powered coils and has added adjustable airflow. The Pods are fully visible and only slightly tinted and also has a top-fill method of adding your juice. Other than that the RPM80 is just the RPM40 with twice the available power but does boast a new user interface (screen layout), let's give it a look!
___________________________________________________________________
In The Box
Contents:
Standard/US/EU Standard Edition
1 x RPM80 Pro Device
1 x RPM80 RPM Pod ( RPM Mesh 0.4ohm Coil Pre-installed) (5ml)
1 x RPM80 RGC Pod (RGC Conical Mesh 0.17ohm coil powered by nexmesh Preinstalled) (5ml)
1 x USB Cable
1 x User Manual
EU 2ml Edition
1 x RPM80 Pro Device
1 x RPM80 RPM Pod ( RPM Mesh 0.4ohm Coil Pre-installed) (2ml)
1 x RPM80 RGC Pod (RGC Conical Mesh 0.17ohm coil powered by nexmesh Preinstalled) (2ml)
1 x cable
1 x User Manual
___________________________________________________________________
Aesthetics and Ergonomics
The RPM80 Pro comes in typical Smok cardboard box packaging with outer sleeve and on opening i came across my first issue, it's just too tall in my opinion for an 18650 device, the size justifies a 2*700 option. I received the Red Stabilised Wood version which brings me to my next gripe, i obviously knew at the price point we would just be dealing with stickers here and although the designs look very nice, the trend of trying to mislead vapers into thinking they are getting Resin or Stabilised wood finishes when what you really get is cheap stickers covered with a clear plastic has got to stop! The colour/design options are Fluid Gold, Black Stabilised Wood, Red Stabilised Wood, Black Carbon Fiber, Black and White Resin, Fluid Blue, 7-Colour Resin, not a hint of Resin or wood in sight!
Despite this the device does seem very well made so not got an issue with what you get but more what some might believe they are getting! Despite it's height like all these pod mods with similar forms it's both ergonomic and a nice portable size and weight! Rather than aesthetically having the same form factor as the RPM40, Vinci series or Herakles the RPM80 Pro is very similar in appearance to the Vaporesso Target PM80. As i tend to do more often these days rather than trying to describe the look of the device i will let the pictures do the talking!
___________________________________________________________________
RPM80 Pro Specs and Features:
Size: 118 x 31.5 x 26 mm
Battery: single 18650 battery(not included)
Output wattage: 1-80W
Output voltage: 0.5-4.0V
Input voltages: 3.3V-4.2V
Resistance range: 0.1-2.5ohm
Charging output: 5V/2A
Charging Rate RPM80 1.2A Max, RPM80 Pro 1.3A Max
Standby current: <200uA
Capacity: 5ml/2ml
Resistance: RPM 0.4ohm mesh coil(25W)
RGC Conical 0.17ohm mesh coil(40-80W)
New intelligent IQ-80 chip with functional protections
Adopts two pods with two coils
SMOK's first pod with adjustable bottom airflow
New RGC conical mesh coil powered by nexMesh
Top filling design with transparent pod for visible e-juice
Colours/Designs: Fluid Gold, Black Stabilised Wood, Red Stabilised Wood, Black Carbon Fiber, Black and White Resin, Fluid Blue, 7-Colour Resin
___________________________________________________________________
The Pods/Cartridges
You receive two different pods which on first glance look the same but their is the smallest of difference in size to keep the same 5ml capacity (2ml TPD version) whichever one you use as the RPM and RGC coils are different in size. One pod holds RPM coils and has RPM on the fill bung while the other houses RGC coils and has both RGC on the fill bung but also an attached metal adjustable airflow ring on the base.
More about that adjustable airflow later, also on the base of both pods we have 2 large magnets. Moving to the top of the pod it's one piece of Delrin which incorporates the drip-tip so you are stuck with what you get. The pods also have a fill bung on this top section which is great to see so the pod can be filled without moving it from the device. The pods are also lightly tinted but absolutely no issues with visibility of your liquid and filling was both quick and mess free.
___________________________________________________________________
Fitting The Coils
You receive both a 0.4ohm RPM mesh coil head which gets push fitted into the RPM Pod and a RGC Kanthal Nexmesh Conical mesh 0.17ohm coil head which also just gets push fitted into place, this time into the RGC pod with airflow adjustment ring.
___________________________________________________________________
Coil Availability
All the RPM coil heads are compatible with the RPM pod giving loads of options including the RPM RBA coil head. To date for the RGC pod we have the included 0.17ohm mesh coil head and also an RGC RBA coil head giving a rebuildable option with both pods!
___________________________________________________________________
The Airflow
On the device towards the top both front and back we have a slot which allows air to the bottom of the pod. The RPM coils have fixed airflow so can only be controlled by the bore of the coil while on the RGC pod we have a control ring that can close down the amount of air getting to the coil (in theory) and it works in a fashion but more about that in the final section!
___________________________________________________________________
Fitting The Pod
Looking into the pods bay we can see the central Gold plated, spring loaded contacts which are on a raised platform which looks well sealed. To each side we have even higher platforms which house magnets to line up with the magnets on the base of the pod/cartridge. We can also see on both the front and back walls there are slots to allow air to the underside of the pod.
The pod/cartridge gets secured by both the magnets and also pressure fitted and is going nowhere, absolutely no movement and very secure. I find the best way of releasing the pod is to get my finger behind the drip-tip and pull forward which lifts the pod free, really good job!
___________________________________________________________________
Fitting The Battery
A single 18650 battery get's fitted via the hatch door on the base of the device. Just slide the door forward and lift up, positive is clearly labelled at the bottom of the tube but negative is marked Black on Black on the underside of the door so not easy to see at all, please White in future Smok!
When the door is shut we have no movement or battery rattle whatsoever, a really nice solid door!
___________________________________________________________________
The Display
The colour display is very bright and impressively sharp with all the information needed on show. Top left we have "SMOK" then top right we have the battery status bar. Underneath we have the wattage and below this the display is quartered into 4 sections. The sections display top left resistance, top right voltage, bottom left puffs and bottom right time vaped.
At the very bottom of the display we have a painting pallet icon followed by 6 different coloured squares in an horizontal row. The main information is in white but some information can be customised to be one of the 6 colours. They are promoting it as a new user interface but as you will find out in the "Operating The RPM80/RPM80 Pro" section it operates exactly the same so really it's just a slight difference in how the information is displayed on the screen.
___________________________________________________________________
Navigating The RPM80/RPM80 Pro
The RPM80 and RPM80 Pro devices may have a pod/cartridge that fits to the device but the device operates just like any other variable wattage regulated device. The device is the usual 5 clicks to turn on and 5 clicks to turn off and once on the wattage can be adjusted in 1W increments from 1W to 80W, it does round robin.
We do have a number of combination key press features which include pressing fire and left together resets the puff counter and fire and right together moves to the next colour option if you want to change the colour of certain items on the screen, the colours to choose from are Red, Orange, Blue, Magenta, Green and White.
Pressing the fire button 3 times locks the whole device so it will not fire, alternatively you can lock just the navigational buttons by pressing them both at the same time. Finally as expected the device has the usual safety protections and if one kicks in a message is displayed on the screen.
___________________________________________________________________
Protections
Intelligent Atomiser Recognition
Puff Monitoring System
8 Seconds Cut-off
Short Circuit Protection
Over-heating Protection
Low Battery Protection
___________________________________________________________________
Charging
Personally i wouldn't recommend charging in the device but the specs give both a Charging Voltage and Rate that differs so curiosity got the better of me. While charging a battery status bar is displayed and the charge is also shown as a percentage, i also just checked and pass-through is supported. The battery took 2 hours 40 minutes to charge in the device so really the charge rate is 1A.
___________________________________________________________________
My Experience Using The RPM80 Pro
The RPM40 was my favourite out of the initial 40W pod mods so i had high expectations but feel things have not been executed as well as they might, their is a lot to like but just feel it could of been so much better.
I love how well the battery door is executed and how well the pod/cartridge secures, also top-fill is great and 5ml capacity (standard version) is excellent. You are stuck with the non removable drip-tip but it is very comfortable.
Up to now the RPM 0.4ohm mesh coil has been my favourite out of all the different coils available for the various pod mods we have seen although i find it's recommended wattage of 25W gives a slightly cool vape so i use it at 30W which is much better delivering more warmth and bags of flavour. I used the RPM pod just to check everything was in order and the RPM coils performance is what i have experienced in the past and all is well.
Next to the RGC 0.17 coil head with nexmesh and what a mixed bag i found this to be in conjunction with the adjustable airflow. The first thing i noticed was what a warm vape it gave and i personally only used it at 45W after some experimenting despite it's 40-80W rating. When it came to flavour i have a new pod mod favourite (nexmesh really delivers) but is it worth the baggage? First although we have adjustable airflow plenty of air gets underneath and there is a gap between the airflow control ring and coil head so even when closing the airflow right down i could tell very little difference so i ended up just not even checking it as i got pretty much the same draw whatever it's position. A word of warning if you do want to alter it during vaping leave it a good few minutes after a vape before touching the control ring, it gets red hot as i found out ouch! The other issue is leaking (see picture),
i didn't have an issue when checking the RPM coil and didn't have leaking issues with the RPM40 but this RGC pod leaks bad and if having the device in your pocket in anything other than an upright position e-liquid will escape out the airflow slots on the device which can be quite messy. Another issue is even at 45W the pod and drip-tip got uncomfortably hot when chain vaping and at above 50W (remember it's recommended up to 80W) it burnt my lips. The other issue is how long a battery lasted as even though i only used the RGC coil at 45W it ploughed through battery life. Another thing to point out is these pod mods don't have voltage boost which was fine for the 40W renditions but if the RGC coil head was used nearer it's upper wattage recommendation then you can forget what wattage is displayed on the screen as when it comes to performance the device would perform like a direct output device losing power as the voltage of the battery dropped!
So the RGC gives great flavour (but too much trade off) so i still much prefer the RPM Pod and included coil. With so many RPM coil options and how well the device performs at modest wattage i still feel many will like this device and it will fly out the door of many vape shops!
___________________________________________________________________
Likes
Despite misleading marketing some very nice designs
Seems well made and durable
2 different pods included (RPM pod and RGC pod)
RGC Pod has adjustable airflow (very limited in it's performance)
RGC 0.17 coil (using nexmesh) gives excellent flavour
RGC coil gave very warm vape
RPM 0.4ohm mesh coil still my favourite pod mod coil (very good flavour)
Top-fill, fills quick and mess free
5ml Capacity (standard edition)
Can clearly see juice level
Accommodates 18650 battery
Fair battery life with RPM 0.4ohm coil
Really good job with battery hatch door
Pods fit very securely
Comfortable drip-tip
Device performed excellently with RPM coil and RGC coil at lower recommended wattage
Sharp, bright, well laid out colour display
Display colour can be customised
Puff counter
Cons
RGC Pod leaks quite bad
Airflow control makes little difference to the draw
RGC coil wattage limited (no voltage boost) only 80W with fresh battery then will drop
Using above 50W the pod and drip-tip got far too hot
Ploughed through battery life with RGC coil in use
Very tall for 18650 device (21700 would give even better performance)
Some people will be misled into believing they are going to get Resin or Stabwood finish!
Black on Black battery orientation on hatch door (hard to see)
I would once again like to thank Ella from Sourcemore for supplying the SMOK RPM80 Pro Pod Mod Kit for the purpose of this review.
https://www.sourcemore.com/smok-rpm80-pr...d-kit.html
___________________________________________________________________
