Elf Bar Mate 500 Battery Kit
What looks like a disposable vape, tastes like a disposable vape, and feels like a disposable vape but isn't actually one? The new Elf Bar Mate 500 kit! Si takes a look at this new alternative to the latest vaping trend
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by Si Davies
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Though pre-filled pods are nothing new, Elf Bar have returned to this formula as a better alternative to those dreaded ‘disposables’. The Elf Bar Mate is much less wasteful and is a less expensive option to disposable vapes.
Supplied by TECC for review
https://www.theelectroniccigarette.co.uk/elf-bar-mate-500
https://www.theelectroniccigarette.co.uk/elf-bar-mate-p1-pods-x-2
£7.99 for the battery and £4.99 for 2 pods
You now get a separate battery section which is reusable and rechargeable which should last you many months making it a good investment, and better still it doesn’t get lobbed into landfill after a single use.
The Mate 500 battery is a simple kit which includes the 500mAh battery, a little USB-C cable, and instructions, not that you need them as it is a simple auto-draw device with no control buttons.
It comes with a partial charge and can be used straight away should you need to, but it’s best to give it a full charge when you can. It’s simple to charge and one of those mobile chargers works a charm for out and about, and any standard USB port such as a phone charger will work.
The prefilled pods come in packs of two and are hygienically sealed individually, and are ready to use within a few seconds. They contain 2ml of flavoured nic salts which give you a near instant nicotine hit similar to cigarettes. Nic salts generally deliver more flavour and are less harsh on the throat.
There are currently eight flavours to choose from:
- Blueberry - Sweet and tart blueberries.
- Blue Razz Lemonade - Bittersweet raspberries and blueberries drowned in zesty lemonade.
- Energy - A recreation of the popular energy drink with a cool icy finish.
- Grape - An American style grape soda flavour.
- Kiwi Passionfruit Guava - An exotic blend of juicy kiwi, passionfruit and refreshing guava.
- Mango - Ripe and juicy mango deliver a tropical taste.
- Pink Lemonade - A deliciously zesty taste of citrus combines with tangy raspberries.
- Watermelon - Freshly sliced watermelon with an exotic blast of flavour.
The packaging is a bit of a faff to get into, firstly the box is soft cellophane wrapped with no tear-tab but it is easy enough to hack open with a key or something similar. It’s the foil seal that’s a pain in the arse as it’s too thick and very hard to push open, again hacking at it with a key does the job.
Once you have hacked and slashed your way past the ‘packaging boss’, it get easier from here. Each pod comes with further freshness silicone seals and a clever little ‘push to prime’ base, you simply press the red base in which allows to juice to enter the coil. The instructions say wait for three seconds before vaping to allow the juice to saturate the coil properly, this sounded a bit too soon for me but I did test it and I was able to vape within a few seconds of fitting.
(TIP – the silicone seals come in handy for pocket/bag storage to avoid lint)
It sounds more of a faff in writing than it really is; it takes around thirty seconds from opening to vaping in reality. Once I knew the packaging required a hack and slash approach, I soon had the little sods open.
So with the pod primed and fitted, you can vape away instantly. Anyone familiar with those dreaded ‘disposables’ will feel right at home as you simply draw to vape (similar to how you draw on a cigarette), and is what they call a MTL (Mouth To Lung) vape: Draw into your mouth for a couple of seconds, inhale and hold in your lungs for a couple of seconds, exhale.
Performance
The ELF MATE 500 vapes really well, the draw is just right giving a proper ciggie-like tight draw, warm but not hot, and the flavour is superb. The vapour production is similar to cigarette smoke, I have only tested a few other brand prefilled pods before and the Elf P1 pods are the best I have tried.
The device itself is compact and very comfortable to hold. The ducks-bill mouthpiece has a slight taper and is very comfortable to use. Juice visibility is just right, and you can see when your pod is close to running out.
Battery life lasts at least as long as a pod when fully charged which will please anyone coming from disposables as on those, the battery usually runs out before the juice and can be a bit random.
Be aware that when the pod runs out of the 2ml juice that you will notice a burnt taste, DO NOT vape once you begin to get a burnt taste as the juice has fully run out (known as a ‘dry hit’) and it’s time to change the pod. Visually you can see when the pod is close to this.
Unfortunately the pods are disposable once used and cannot be recycled due to the mixed materials and the ‘containing chemicals’ rule, so sadly these will have to be lobbed into general waste. This is quite a wasteful way to vape as you are only getting around 10% of a pods' lifespan due to you not being able to refill it. These are certainly better than those fully disposable vapes where you throw the battery and body away, but there are better and more responsible ways to vape (and MUCH cheaper) so check out TECC’s starter kits for more options, Something like the recent VooPoo Drag Nano 2 kit is a great alternative, or pop along onto the forum for more advice and answers to ANY questions you have.
The flavour range of the ELF P1 pods is pretty good and is likely to grow over time. I’m a picky sod but I enjoyed all eight which is pretty rare, in general you can trust the flavour description as they are clearly accurate but with a hint of ‘ice/Koolada’ but it is not overdone and gives a slight refreshing kick to the flavour.
Blueberry
Sweet and tart blueberries
I’m going to struggle being creative when describing all the flavours, this simply has a sweet taste of blueberries with a slight cool kick and leaves a really flavourful aftertaste. If you like blueberries, you will like these.
Blue Razz Lemonade
Bittersweet raspberries and blueberries drowned in zesty lemonade
There’s a bit more going on with this one, the raspberry flavour added to the blueberry works really well and makes it a more balanced flavour overall. As the ‘lemonade’ addition suggests, it has a slight fizzy drink tone to it, and the result is one of my favourites in the range.
Energy
A recreation of the popular energy drink with a cool icy finish
Elf were clearly going for the red bull/monster flavour on this one and you can clearly taste it, but it is a little sweeter than the drink which gives a nicer aftertaste in my opinion.
Grape
An American style grape soda flavour
American Grape Soda? I’ve no clue what that is, sorry! All I can say is this flavour is lush and punchy, pretty sweet and more flavourful than the actual fruit. This is one I would vape every day as I love it.
Kiwi Passionfruit Guava
An exotic blend of juicy kiwi, passionfruit and refreshing guava
Another interesting recipe for this one, I can’t recall what the real fruit passionfruit and guava tastes, like but the kiwi is dominant and the balance of the other flavours just works. It is very sweet though and it would be more of an alternative treat flavour for me, but I would buy it again.
Mango
Ripe and juicy mango deliver a tropical taste
Yep, this is simply mango! I often buy mango nic salts and some can be overpowering, but this one is just right and the ‘ice’ effect tones it done enough to be pleasant enough for a daily vape. This is one that will always be on my repeat buys.
Pink Lemonade
A deliciously zesty taste of citrus combines with tangy raspberries
Another accurate flavour, simply a raspberry tang to a lemonade with a slight ice kick. It’s a drink I don’t buy usually, but I love this one in e-liquid form as it just works and is quite moreish, one of my favourites.
Watermelon
Freshly sliced watermelon with an exotic blast of flavour
I love the real watermelon fruit so it was only natural I would like this one but it is a lot sweeter than the actual fruit. I still enjoyed it, and the ‘ice’ toned down the sweetness enough to make it enjoyable and not overpowering.
Overall Conclusion
Elf have done a good job with this kit, the battery device does the job well. It’s really compact and shirt pocket friendly and a welcome alternative for ardent disposable users to try and tempt them away from lobbing whole devices away. There are better ways to vape, but they make a good bridge into vaping for smokers looking to quit.
I really enjoyed the current flavour range but I would like to see a few more less sweetened ones and possibly a couple of tobacco flavours for smokers looking for a familiar taste while quitting, but I would still advise smokers to try fruity flavours as it is part of the enjoyment of vaping that you can never get with smoking cancer-sticks.
Si Davies
Reviewer at POTVMy background is Engineering and Professional Photography. Mostly from POTV users knowledge I learned so much about pretty much all styles of vaping and equipment, Cloud Chasing, Squonking, Mouth To Lung, Direct To Lung, Pods, Mechs, Rebuild-able tanks and atomisers etc, and have experience with many many devices and atomisers, it's become a hobby and enjoy trying out the latest gear. I like to think my reviews are plain speaking and informative without getting too technical, if I have to resort to reading the manual then I don't consider it user friendly!
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