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Vaporesso Luxe PM40 Pod System Review
Supplied by Vaporesso for review purposes.
https://www.vaporesso.com/vape-kits/luxe-pm40
RRP $42.90
I’ve lost track of how many products Vaporesso have launched in 2020 but it’s a lot!
The latest release is the Luxe PM40 Pod System, when Vaporesso let me know that this was on the way there was little information about it so I wasn’t sure what to expect, to be honest I thought it was just going to be another run of the mill pod system but with the ‘Luxe’ level of styling, it turns out Vaporesso had a few tricks up their sleeves with it.
Here’s the features & specs:
The Luxe PM40 comes in a sturdy and contemporary styled box showing the colour option chosen (mine was Jade), under the outer sleeve is a classy black 2 piece box, everything is held in the top layer and held in place well.
In the box:
There’s protective film around the shiny panels and the screen which were easy to peel off.
No real surprises but the spare pod is always welcome, it wasn’t until later on that I realised that the GTX coils were different to the previous ones, there’s an extra o-ring on them which is for the new leak resistant pod style.
First impressions
Examining the Luxe PM40 for the first time was more interesting than I was expecting, the panels are gorgeous and the silky finish gunmetal chassis suits it, there’s a few little details that stood out; the airflow slider in particular, I was curious to how this worked and it turned out to be pretty innovative, more on that later.
The screen appears to be the same as on the GTX One & Xiron, the display only covers 2/3rd of the screen, the rest has been extended to keep things symmetrical which looks great when off but a little odd when on, there are no adjustment buttons which had me confused at first, the only adjustment you can do is wattage which is done via the fire button.
I really love the styling of this pod kit, the Jade version Vaporesso sent looks fantastic with its glossy sheen, the Gun Metal coloured chassis has a similar look and feel to the LUXE II mod, the whole styling is symmetrical which appeals to my OCD, nothing on this pod looks or feels cheap, perhaps the name Luxe has gotten into my head but it does look and feel luxurious.
Colour options:
Pod
A pod is a pod right? Well Vaporesso have been listening and developing their pods & coils, the pod on the Luxe PM40 is pretty damn clever, there’s a few little tweaks making it very functional and better than many other pods I have come across, it has a flip top similar to the XROS reveals the top fill and the main body of it is totally clear which is very welcome, curiously there were no magnets as it was a press fit, this turned out to be effective and sits securely, there’s some little ridges protruding from the side of the pod making it easy to grip the pod to remove.
Fitting coils is done via a push fit and very simple, you don't even need to pay attention to the flats as it will fit however you pop it in, filling it up is very easy and you don't need to remove the pod from the battery to do so, you simply push the mouthpiece over to flip it open and reveal the fill port, there's even a tiny silicone bladder to prevent spillage and an additional hole to prevent air-locks, the fully clear plastic makes seeing your juice level a doddle.
A clever innovation is the leak resistant reservoir at the base of the pod, this is really clever and like nothing I have seen before, basically there an additional sealed off mini tank at the base, the airflow hole of the coil will fully seal within this section so any leaking from the coil will pool up in here instead of in the battery area, most coils will leak when left standing for a length of time and Vaporesso have attempted to address this issue and I intentionally left the second pod standing unused for a few days and I had no leaking at all, in fact there was only a tiny bit of condensation left in the base, time will tell how long it will take to fill but I suggest you blow it through after any length of time it's sat unused.
BUT...
There's always a 'but' and the coils are actually different to the normal GTX coils we are used to, to enable the leak resistant reservoir to work they have added an extra o-ring to the base of the coil (see photo of coils side-by-side) so the machining at the base is totally different, this means that you can end up with older coils not utilising the leak resistance feature, older coils will still fit but they will be prone to leaking BUT (yes another 'but') the airflow is no longer channelled through the pods airflow slots as the base of the coil is now exposed, this loosens the draw a little and makes MTL too loose for my tastes.
You will have to make sure that your coil supplier has the correct GTX coil adding hassle to ordering, I am not sure if ALL the GTX coils will be this new design, if so then there will be a vast amount already in circulation with suppliers so they could take a while to come through
The thing is, I really admire Vaporesso continuing to develop better coils, addressing leak-proofing and making them cross-compatible, so the improvement is a very welcome one and should still work fine with all the older GTX devices, I think they should have differentiated these though, I will ask Vaporesso their opinion on this.
Airflow Control
Vaporesso have been very innovative here, you will see some air intake slots in the base of the pod (the sealed anti-leak section), there's a lever on the mod that you push from left to right to open/close off the airflow, looking closely through the air intake slots you can see the vents closing off on each side, the mechanism is pretty clever and appears to be achieved by a rotary band (crawler tread) system.
This is pretty effective in general, especially for restricted direct lung vapers though I still found the airflow a bit too loose for MTL even when fully closed off, its still tighter than the PM30 but I would have enjoyed it a lot more for MTL use, however, for DL (Direct Lung) vaping I have no complaints, more to the point I really enjoyed the vape from it both fully open and closing it off for a more restricted DL, that said I have mostly been using it for a loose MTL with nic salts and I'm enjoying the high nic throat hit I am getting from the 0.8 Ohm coil.
Operation & Handling
The Luxe PM40 is very basic, in fact all you can adjust is the wattage:
There's no draw activation, just button firing which is common for sub-ohm pods as the draw will always be looser.
That really is it, it’s a bit of a PITA if you are at say 15 watts and want 14 watts as you have to go full circle to do it.
The fire button is placed just right to enable finger or thumb firing without your hand obstructing the air intakes, it has a short travel.
The screen is very basic, displaying; Ohms of your coil, Puff Counter, Wattage, a battery bar and a battery percentage below that (which is good to see), it is pretty bright and I was able to see it outdoors.
The mouthpiece reminded me of the old Smok Nord Pod which is duck bill shaped and quite comfortable, though it feels a bit too large for MTL vaping.
Performance
I first tried the GTX 0.6ohm mesh coil (20-30W) at 25 watts, using some Manabush 60PG/40PG 3mg Egg Nog and set the airflow to a restrictive DL draw, I was VERY happy with this combo, full flavour and surprisingly high vapour production, I wasn't expecting it to be this good or anything new compared to all the other Vaporesso devices I have tested, I can only guess that it's down to the "Turbo Boosting Tech", all I know is that the Luxe PM40 had instantly won me over, I thought I was going to prefer the 0.8ohm more so I was reluctant to swap, fortunately there's a 2nd pod so I could swap between both.
With the GTX 0.8ohm mesh coil (12-20W) I thought I would try it for MTL with 50/50, 20mg Nic Salts (Rachael Rabbit Pear & Raspberry), airflow fully closed off, at the default 18 watts I found it to be spot on and required no fine tuning, the flavour bursts through and I really enjoyed the throat hit, as mentioned earlier I would have preferred a tighter airflow but I soon got used to it, this setup was especially good first thing in the morning as I got a nicotine high from it (something you just don't get from freebase).
The firing is instant and delivers constant power throughout the draw, even from sleep it fires so damn fast throughout the wattage range, whatever "Turbo Boosting Tech" is, it works really well.
The1800mAh battery life is reasonable though it won't last a full day, especially with the 0.6 Ohm coil, it lasted me around 10ml DL and around 6ml MTL, 2 amp fast charging made the recharge time around 40 minutes from low but I tend to top up charge when the opportunity arises and pleased with how fast it charged.
Conclusion
Initially I wonder why Vaporesso were releasing YAFP (Yet Another Fucking Pod) but they have not only refined existing tech, they have also brought some new innovations to the table, the Luxe PM40 has earned its place in my daily rotation and demoted a few others into the bargain.
Though it is somewhat simplistic in its chipset it does what it needs to and should suit new and existing users alike, there's very little to complain about and far more to rave about, MTL fans might not like the looser draw but the airflow control makes the most out of GTX coils and even beats my much loved PM80 for higher ohm coils, restrictive DL is superb and a completely different vape to other Vaporesso Pods/AIO's I have tried.
There's still a couple of months left of the cursed 2020 left but I'm pretty sure the Luxe PM40 will make it into the Best of 2020 roundup I am working on.
Pros
The Luxe PM40 is a fine addition to the Vaporesso range and proves there are still innovations to be found in a saturated Pod market, most of the refinements aren't obvious but they are just there, not only does it look and feel great, it also delivers great flavour and vapour for DL users, MTL users may find it an acquired taste but I am still enjoying it for both.
Score: 8.5/10
Tighter MTL would have made it a solid 9.
Supplied by Vaporesso for review purposes.
https://www.vaporesso.com/vape-kits/luxe-pm40
RRP $42.90
I’ve lost track of how many products Vaporesso have launched in 2020 but it’s a lot!
The latest release is the Luxe PM40 Pod System, when Vaporesso let me know that this was on the way there was little information about it so I wasn’t sure what to expect, to be honest I thought it was just going to be another run of the mill pod system but with the ‘Luxe’ level of styling, it turns out Vaporesso had a few tricks up their sleeves with it.
Here’s the features & specs:
- Dimensions: 96.45 x 30.6 x 21.5mm
- Cartridge Capacity: 4ml (2ml TPD)
- Coil: GTX 0.6ohm mesh coil (20-30W) GTX 0.8ohm mesh coil (12-20W)
- Battery Capacity: 1800mAh
- Output Wattage: 5-40W
- Display: 0.69" OLED Screen
- Charging: Type-C, 5V/2A
- Improved Anti-leakage mechanism
- Visible cartridge with top filling system
- Turbo Boosting Tech & Adjustable Airflow
The Luxe PM40 comes in a sturdy and contemporary styled box showing the colour option chosen (mine was Jade), under the outer sleeve is a classy black 2 piece box, everything is held in the top layer and held in place well.
In the box:
- 1 x LUXE PM40 Battery
- 2 x LUXE PM40 Cartridge 4ml (TPD version is 2ml)
- 1 x GTX 0.6ohm MESH COIL
- 1 x GTX 0.8ohm MESH COIL
- 1 x Type-C USB Cable
- 1 x User Manual
- 1 X Warranty Card
There’s protective film around the shiny panels and the screen which were easy to peel off.
No real surprises but the spare pod is always welcome, it wasn’t until later on that I realised that the GTX coils were different to the previous ones, there’s an extra o-ring on them which is for the new leak resistant pod style.
First impressions
Examining the Luxe PM40 for the first time was more interesting than I was expecting, the panels are gorgeous and the silky finish gunmetal chassis suits it, there’s a few little details that stood out; the airflow slider in particular, I was curious to how this worked and it turned out to be pretty innovative, more on that later.
The screen appears to be the same as on the GTX One & Xiron, the display only covers 2/3rd of the screen, the rest has been extended to keep things symmetrical which looks great when off but a little odd when on, there are no adjustment buttons which had me confused at first, the only adjustment you can do is wattage which is done via the fire button.
I really love the styling of this pod kit, the Jade version Vaporesso sent looks fantastic with its glossy sheen, the Gun Metal coloured chassis has a similar look and feel to the LUXE II mod, the whole styling is symmetrical which appeals to my OCD, nothing on this pod looks or feels cheap, perhaps the name Luxe has gotten into my head but it does look and feel luxurious.
Colour options:
Pod
A pod is a pod right? Well Vaporesso have been listening and developing their pods & coils, the pod on the Luxe PM40 is pretty damn clever, there’s a few little tweaks making it very functional and better than many other pods I have come across, it has a flip top similar to the XROS reveals the top fill and the main body of it is totally clear which is very welcome, curiously there were no magnets as it was a press fit, this turned out to be effective and sits securely, there’s some little ridges protruding from the side of the pod making it easy to grip the pod to remove.
Fitting coils is done via a push fit and very simple, you don't even need to pay attention to the flats as it will fit however you pop it in, filling it up is very easy and you don't need to remove the pod from the battery to do so, you simply push the mouthpiece over to flip it open and reveal the fill port, there's even a tiny silicone bladder to prevent spillage and an additional hole to prevent air-locks, the fully clear plastic makes seeing your juice level a doddle.
A clever innovation is the leak resistant reservoir at the base of the pod, this is really clever and like nothing I have seen before, basically there an additional sealed off mini tank at the base, the airflow hole of the coil will fully seal within this section so any leaking from the coil will pool up in here instead of in the battery area, most coils will leak when left standing for a length of time and Vaporesso have attempted to address this issue and I intentionally left the second pod standing unused for a few days and I had no leaking at all, in fact there was only a tiny bit of condensation left in the base, time will tell how long it will take to fill but I suggest you blow it through after any length of time it's sat unused.
BUT...
There's always a 'but' and the coils are actually different to the normal GTX coils we are used to, to enable the leak resistant reservoir to work they have added an extra o-ring to the base of the coil (see photo of coils side-by-side) so the machining at the base is totally different, this means that you can end up with older coils not utilising the leak resistance feature, older coils will still fit but they will be prone to leaking BUT (yes another 'but') the airflow is no longer channelled through the pods airflow slots as the base of the coil is now exposed, this loosens the draw a little and makes MTL too loose for my tastes.
You will have to make sure that your coil supplier has the correct GTX coil adding hassle to ordering, I am not sure if ALL the GTX coils will be this new design, if so then there will be a vast amount already in circulation with suppliers so they could take a while to come through
The thing is, I really admire Vaporesso continuing to develop better coils, addressing leak-proofing and making them cross-compatible, so the improvement is a very welcome one and should still work fine with all the older GTX devices, I think they should have differentiated these though, I will ask Vaporesso their opinion on this.
Airflow Control
Vaporesso have been very innovative here, you will see some air intake slots in the base of the pod (the sealed anti-leak section), there's a lever on the mod that you push from left to right to open/close off the airflow, looking closely through the air intake slots you can see the vents closing off on each side, the mechanism is pretty clever and appears to be achieved by a rotary band (crawler tread) system.
This is pretty effective in general, especially for restricted direct lung vapers though I still found the airflow a bit too loose for MTL even when fully closed off, its still tighter than the PM30 but I would have enjoyed it a lot more for MTL use, however, for DL (Direct Lung) vaping I have no complaints, more to the point I really enjoyed the vape from it both fully open and closing it off for a more restricted DL, that said I have mostly been using it for a loose MTL with nic salts and I'm enjoying the high nic throat hit I am getting from the 0.8 Ohm coil.
Operation & Handling
The Luxe PM40 is very basic, in fact all you can adjust is the wattage:
- 5 x FIRE = Turns device On/Off
- 3 x FIRE = Adjust Wattage, click or hold to increase the wattage, it round robins after 40watts back to 5watts.
- Press FIRE to vape.
There's no draw activation, just button firing which is common for sub-ohm pods as the draw will always be looser.
That really is it, it’s a bit of a PITA if you are at say 15 watts and want 14 watts as you have to go full circle to do it.
The fire button is placed just right to enable finger or thumb firing without your hand obstructing the air intakes, it has a short travel.
The screen is very basic, displaying; Ohms of your coil, Puff Counter, Wattage, a battery bar and a battery percentage below that (which is good to see), it is pretty bright and I was able to see it outdoors.
The mouthpiece reminded me of the old Smok Nord Pod which is duck bill shaped and quite comfortable, though it feels a bit too large for MTL vaping.
Performance
I first tried the GTX 0.6ohm mesh coil (20-30W) at 25 watts, using some Manabush 60PG/40PG 3mg Egg Nog and set the airflow to a restrictive DL draw, I was VERY happy with this combo, full flavour and surprisingly high vapour production, I wasn't expecting it to be this good or anything new compared to all the other Vaporesso devices I have tested, I can only guess that it's down to the "Turbo Boosting Tech", all I know is that the Luxe PM40 had instantly won me over, I thought I was going to prefer the 0.8ohm more so I was reluctant to swap, fortunately there's a 2nd pod so I could swap between both.
With the GTX 0.8ohm mesh coil (12-20W) I thought I would try it for MTL with 50/50, 20mg Nic Salts (Rachael Rabbit Pear & Raspberry), airflow fully closed off, at the default 18 watts I found it to be spot on and required no fine tuning, the flavour bursts through and I really enjoyed the throat hit, as mentioned earlier I would have preferred a tighter airflow but I soon got used to it, this setup was especially good first thing in the morning as I got a nicotine high from it (something you just don't get from freebase).
The firing is instant and delivers constant power throughout the draw, even from sleep it fires so damn fast throughout the wattage range, whatever "Turbo Boosting Tech" is, it works really well.
The1800mAh battery life is reasonable though it won't last a full day, especially with the 0.6 Ohm coil, it lasted me around 10ml DL and around 6ml MTL, 2 amp fast charging made the recharge time around 40 minutes from low but I tend to top up charge when the opportunity arises and pleased with how fast it charged.
Conclusion
Initially I wonder why Vaporesso were releasing YAFP (Yet Another Fucking Pod) but they have not only refined existing tech, they have also brought some new innovations to the table, the Luxe PM40 has earned its place in my daily rotation and demoted a few others into the bargain.
Though it is somewhat simplistic in its chipset it does what it needs to and should suit new and existing users alike, there's very little to complain about and far more to rave about, MTL fans might not like the looser draw but the airflow control makes the most out of GTX coils and even beats my much loved PM80 for higher ohm coils, restrictive DL is superb and a completely different vape to other Vaporesso Pods/AIO's I have tried.
There's still a couple of months left of the cursed 2020 left but I'm pretty sure the Luxe PM40 will make it into the Best of 2020 roundup I am working on.
Pros
- Innovative adjustable airflow.
- Leak resistant pod design.
- Easy flip top filling.
- User friendly.
- Turbo Boosting is very effective.
- Takes GTX coils (sort of)
- MTL airflow is a little loose for my tastes.
- GTX coils are different to GTX coils (confused? you should be)
The Luxe PM40 is a fine addition to the Vaporesso range and proves there are still innovations to be found in a saturated Pod market, most of the refinements aren't obvious but they are just there, not only does it look and feel great, it also delivers great flavour and vapour for DL users, MTL users may find it an acquired taste but I am still enjoying it for both.
Score: 8.5/10
Tighter MTL would have made it a solid 9.
its been a while since we done this!
