You may ask why am I reviewing Twisp when I've gone on to rebuildables and lots of other equipment. Well the reasons are quite simple. First, Twisp got me off stinkies so I will always have a "soft spot" for them. My Twisp devices remind me of that feeling of amazement when I stopped smoking. Second, there are so many people that ask questions on the forum about this device and their liquids that I think this review may help.
Upfront, let us not forget that Twisp is doing a great job getting more people into vaping. Their kiosks are in most of the malls around the country and many people get their first introduction to vaping through Twisp.
I am reviewing the Twisp Clearo (purchased Oct-Dec 2013). Although this is not the juice review section, I am going to talk about the Twisp juices too, since I have found the Twisp juices work best with the Twisp Clearo device.
I will start with my conclusion - I think Twisp is quite a good entry level device for those new to vaping. It's simple and works well. However I found it leaks slightly, making it difficult to use as a carry-around device. Their liquids are good but very expensive.
Cost
It's not bad value at all from a hardware perspective. I'd say pretty much in line with the alternatives. The Twisp Clearo double set costs R999. For that you get two Clearos, two batteries, a charger, two spare coils and 5ml of juice. This is what you need to stop smoking. Two of everything. I bought a third battery too.
Packaging and the device
Packaging is very good. The double set comes in a "Apple" looking white box. There is a decent instruction manual. The quality of the device itself is good. Threading is of good quality and the device feels and looks quite premium. Twisp have rebranded the Janty device. For those interested, visit janty.com. The Twisp liquids are manufactured locally though.
How does it vape?
When I first tried it I thought it was amazing! Way way better than the old cig-alikes from a few years ago. Smooth, tasty flavour and a lovely vape allround. Since I have gotten into higher powered gear, I realise the throat hit on the Clearos in general was way lower than I liked, but I would say that for what it is, the Twisp gives a very decent vape. It is a top coil device so the wicks are near the top. As a result the vape is a bit warmer and I find it produces good flavour. You have to tilt it occasionally to keep the wicks wet, especially when the tank is low.
Life of the coils?
The coils are quite pricey at R40 each. But I found they did last with good flavour for quite long. Vaping two devices exclusively, I was getting at least about 3 weeks before noticing a drop-off in flavour. But they can be vaped for much longer. I found the coils quite consistent.
Let's talk about the Twisp e-liquid
An important thing is that I found the Twisp juices tasted best on the Twisp Clearo. Likewise, non-Twisp juices didn't always taste good on the Twisp Clearo. So my suggestion is to stick with Twisp juices if you go for the Twisp device. I think the Twisp juices have been nicely matched with the Twisp device.
I found the Twisp juices to be of a good quality. They taste very natural. No chemical or synthetic tastes. The juices vape smoothly. Not a big throat hit but good rich flavours.
I have spoken to a Twisp director and he has confirmed their juices are 50/50 PG/VG and their regular strength juices are 18mg/ml. It says 0.9mg per drop on the bottle. There are 20 drops per ml, so 18mg/ml. They also sell the zero nic homeopathic range in some of the flavours, so you can mix up a lower strength juice if you like. For my taste though, I needed more throat hit and found myself wanting a more intense vape anyway, so I stuck to the regular strength (18mg/ml) liquids.
Their tobaccoes are not bad, but not the best I've had. Their Polar Mint and Rebel (Red Bull taste) are my favourites. Peach and Apple are nice for mindless vaping. Their Caffe Late is has good flavour, but a bit milky for my taste. A point to make is that their juices mix well together. So a bit of this and a bit of that makes for lots of experimentation and some interesting concoctions. Enough to keep you busy for many weeks. I've tried many combinations. My favourites are Cherry/Tobacco #1 and Polar Mint/Rebel.
Positive aspects
- I like the shape of the flat mouthpiece and the tighter draw. I find it enhances the flavour. The Twisp mouthpiece is quite unique - I haven't seen others like it.
- The device looks good and has a premium feel. Mostly silver. The dark tank goes well with the dark mouthpiece. It's sleek and stylish.
- The automatic battery is really nice for mindless vaping, while working at the computer or doing something else. No fiddling around for the button. Just grab and vape. However, Twisp has discontinued the auto battery owing to some of them failing. Mine are still going since October/November - 5 months on. Just keep the little airhole in the battery contact clean. If juice goes in there it can lead to a battery failure.
- You can tell "where you are" with the manual battery. The button glows white when fresh, blue when in the middle and red when going flat.
- Their kiosks are great for trying out the juices before you buy. They have demo units set up with most of their flavours so you can see for yourself which ones you like. The kiosks are also great for popping in to get spare coils or more juice. If you have one close to you this can be a big plus, instead of waiting for online orders to arrive.
- The product is packaged well
Negative aspects
- the biggest negative aspect for me by a long way is the leaky mouthpiece. What happens is that e-juice that condenses in the mouthpiece from regular vaping leaks out of the mouthpiece when the unit is lying down horizontally or in your bag for a while. It's not a lot of juice, but just a few drops. Enough to make things quite sticky. So you can't just walk around with the Twisp in your pocket. To combat this, you have to take off the mouthpiece regularly and wipe the collector cap. It helps but doesn't solve the problem. The main reason for this it seems is that the mouthpiece does not have a rubber seal like the Justfog 1453 (pictured below). The JustFog 1453 is almost identical to the Twisp, without the leaky mouthpiece issue. I can't understand why Twisp don't have a seal on the mouthpiece unit. It's just plastic against the metal.
Condensed e-liquid in the top cap (Twisp on the left, JustFog 1453 on the right)
This is what happens after a while of vaping. You have to open it up and wipe it regularly.
Notice the JustFog 1453 on the right has a rubber seal built into the mouthpiece - that condensed e-liquid doesn't leak out. Twisp (left) has no rubber seal.
- another big negative is that their juices are expensive. At R200 per 20ml bottle or R320 for two that equates to R10 per ml or R8 per ml. That is pricey. Too pricey in my view for what it is. Their juices are good but R10/ml is nearly what we pay for Five Pawns here in SA (from VapeKing) - which is a high-end premium juice. By comparison, Vapour Mountain's locally manufactured premium range is R120 for 30ml so R4/ml.
- the batteries are only 650 mah. Twisp don't offer a higher capacity battery. So they get flat fairly quickly. Make sure you have two devices or a spare battery.
The following are also disadvantages but are more minor:
- the tank is not see-through - its quite dark and has been smoked or tinted. Perhaps this is to keep the light out or to improve the overall look - but the downside is that its sometimes not easy to see how much liquid is in there. I often have to hold it against a bright light or computer screen to see the liquid level clearly.
- you can't change the coil without emptying the juice currently in the tank. This is not unique to Twisp though. Many other top coil tanks are like this.
Summing up
The Twisp Clearo is a decent device with a good vape. The liquids are good but are expensive. It would be a really solid entry level device if it weren't for the leaky mouthpiece. Perhaps they will correct this over time.
But leaky mouthpiece aside, I commend Twisp for what they've done. They've taken the risks and invested heavily in their infrastructure, kiosks, staff and juice manufacturing. As a result, I think they have grown the SA vaping community tremendously.
And I will always be grateful to my Twisps since they got me off smoking...
Upfront, let us not forget that Twisp is doing a great job getting more people into vaping. Their kiosks are in most of the malls around the country and many people get their first introduction to vaping through Twisp.
I am reviewing the Twisp Clearo (purchased Oct-Dec 2013). Although this is not the juice review section, I am going to talk about the Twisp juices too, since I have found the Twisp juices work best with the Twisp Clearo device.
I will start with my conclusion - I think Twisp is quite a good entry level device for those new to vaping. It's simple and works well. However I found it leaks slightly, making it difficult to use as a carry-around device. Their liquids are good but very expensive.
Cost
It's not bad value at all from a hardware perspective. I'd say pretty much in line with the alternatives. The Twisp Clearo double set costs R999. For that you get two Clearos, two batteries, a charger, two spare coils and 5ml of juice. This is what you need to stop smoking. Two of everything. I bought a third battery too.
Packaging and the device
Packaging is very good. The double set comes in a "Apple" looking white box. There is a decent instruction manual. The quality of the device itself is good. Threading is of good quality and the device feels and looks quite premium. Twisp have rebranded the Janty device. For those interested, visit janty.com. The Twisp liquids are manufactured locally though.
How does it vape?
When I first tried it I thought it was amazing! Way way better than the old cig-alikes from a few years ago. Smooth, tasty flavour and a lovely vape allround. Since I have gotten into higher powered gear, I realise the throat hit on the Clearos in general was way lower than I liked, but I would say that for what it is, the Twisp gives a very decent vape. It is a top coil device so the wicks are near the top. As a result the vape is a bit warmer and I find it produces good flavour. You have to tilt it occasionally to keep the wicks wet, especially when the tank is low.
Life of the coils?
The coils are quite pricey at R40 each. But I found they did last with good flavour for quite long. Vaping two devices exclusively, I was getting at least about 3 weeks before noticing a drop-off in flavour. But they can be vaped for much longer. I found the coils quite consistent.
Let's talk about the Twisp e-liquid
An important thing is that I found the Twisp juices tasted best on the Twisp Clearo. Likewise, non-Twisp juices didn't always taste good on the Twisp Clearo. So my suggestion is to stick with Twisp juices if you go for the Twisp device. I think the Twisp juices have been nicely matched with the Twisp device.
I found the Twisp juices to be of a good quality. They taste very natural. No chemical or synthetic tastes. The juices vape smoothly. Not a big throat hit but good rich flavours.
I have spoken to a Twisp director and he has confirmed their juices are 50/50 PG/VG and their regular strength juices are 18mg/ml. It says 0.9mg per drop on the bottle. There are 20 drops per ml, so 18mg/ml. They also sell the zero nic homeopathic range in some of the flavours, so you can mix up a lower strength juice if you like. For my taste though, I needed more throat hit and found myself wanting a more intense vape anyway, so I stuck to the regular strength (18mg/ml) liquids.
Their tobaccoes are not bad, but not the best I've had. Their Polar Mint and Rebel (Red Bull taste) are my favourites. Peach and Apple are nice for mindless vaping. Their Caffe Late is has good flavour, but a bit milky for my taste. A point to make is that their juices mix well together. So a bit of this and a bit of that makes for lots of experimentation and some interesting concoctions. Enough to keep you busy for many weeks. I've tried many combinations. My favourites are Cherry/Tobacco #1 and Polar Mint/Rebel.
Positive aspects
- I like the shape of the flat mouthpiece and the tighter draw. I find it enhances the flavour. The Twisp mouthpiece is quite unique - I haven't seen others like it.
- The device looks good and has a premium feel. Mostly silver. The dark tank goes well with the dark mouthpiece. It's sleek and stylish.
- The automatic battery is really nice for mindless vaping, while working at the computer or doing something else. No fiddling around for the button. Just grab and vape. However, Twisp has discontinued the auto battery owing to some of them failing. Mine are still going since October/November - 5 months on. Just keep the little airhole in the battery contact clean. If juice goes in there it can lead to a battery failure.
- You can tell "where you are" with the manual battery. The button glows white when fresh, blue when in the middle and red when going flat.
- Their kiosks are great for trying out the juices before you buy. They have demo units set up with most of their flavours so you can see for yourself which ones you like. The kiosks are also great for popping in to get spare coils or more juice. If you have one close to you this can be a big plus, instead of waiting for online orders to arrive.
- The product is packaged well
Negative aspects
- the biggest negative aspect for me by a long way is the leaky mouthpiece. What happens is that e-juice that condenses in the mouthpiece from regular vaping leaks out of the mouthpiece when the unit is lying down horizontally or in your bag for a while. It's not a lot of juice, but just a few drops. Enough to make things quite sticky. So you can't just walk around with the Twisp in your pocket. To combat this, you have to take off the mouthpiece regularly and wipe the collector cap. It helps but doesn't solve the problem. The main reason for this it seems is that the mouthpiece does not have a rubber seal like the Justfog 1453 (pictured below). The JustFog 1453 is almost identical to the Twisp, without the leaky mouthpiece issue. I can't understand why Twisp don't have a seal on the mouthpiece unit. It's just plastic against the metal.
Condensed e-liquid in the top cap (Twisp on the left, JustFog 1453 on the right)
This is what happens after a while of vaping. You have to open it up and wipe it regularly.
Notice the JustFog 1453 on the right has a rubber seal built into the mouthpiece - that condensed e-liquid doesn't leak out. Twisp (left) has no rubber seal.
- another big negative is that their juices are expensive. At R200 per 20ml bottle or R320 for two that equates to R10 per ml or R8 per ml. That is pricey. Too pricey in my view for what it is. Their juices are good but R10/ml is nearly what we pay for Five Pawns here in SA (from VapeKing) - which is a high-end premium juice. By comparison, Vapour Mountain's locally manufactured premium range is R120 for 30ml so R4/ml.
- the batteries are only 650 mah. Twisp don't offer a higher capacity battery. So they get flat fairly quickly. Make sure you have two devices or a spare battery.
The following are also disadvantages but are more minor:
- the tank is not see-through - its quite dark and has been smoked or tinted. Perhaps this is to keep the light out or to improve the overall look - but the downside is that its sometimes not easy to see how much liquid is in there. I often have to hold it against a bright light or computer screen to see the liquid level clearly.
- you can't change the coil without emptying the juice currently in the tank. This is not unique to Twisp though. Many other top coil tanks are like this.
Summing up
The Twisp Clearo is a decent device with a good vape. The liquids are good but are expensive. It would be a really solid entry level device if it weren't for the leaky mouthpiece. Perhaps they will correct this over time.
But leaky mouthpiece aside, I commend Twisp for what they've done. They've taken the risks and invested heavily in their infrastructure, kiosks, staff and juice manufacturing. As a result, I think they have grown the SA vaping community tremendously.
And I will always be grateful to my Twisps since they got me off smoking...
