Voopoo Argus Pod System Kit

Provided by Health Cabin for review purposes.
https://www.healthcabin.net/voopoo-argus-pod-system-kit-with-pnp-pod-tank-p/25687.html
RRP $39.99 – Log in for latest price.

VooPoo have really ramped up their releases over the past 6 months, being totally honest I wasn’t quite sure that the Argus 40 watt Pod/Mod was much different to the Drag X, it was only when I got my hands on one that I realised how compact this kit was, I can see why it has the ‘Argus’ label now as it really follows in its big brothers footsteps, not only in styling but in the small size.

Pod Parameters:

• Capacity: 4.5ml / 2ml
• Material: PCTG
• Resistance: 0.3Ohm(PnP-VM1)1.0Ohm(PnP-R2)

Mod Parameters:

• Material: Alloy+Leather
• Output Power: 5-40W
• Output Voltage: 3.2-4.2V
• Resistance: 0.3-3.0Ohm
• Battery Capacity: 1500mAh Built-in Battery
• Dimensions - 108mm x 33mm x 30mm
• Type-C USB Port (1A Charging)
• OLED Display Screen

There’s little to discuss in the specs, but I did spot that the 1.0Ω R2 mesh coil was a new one to me as I had tried the previous MTL 1.2Ω which was round wire and I had mixed results with this.

Unboxing

The box is quite compact and sturdy, not too much waste with a one piece inner box and outer sleeve, one of those shake the shit out of it to get inside, nothing too bad but notches on the side would have been nice.

It was nice to see a correct version of the nicotine warning for a change instead of the annoying TPD ‘This product contains nicotine’ bullshit, a small thing but always used to miff me somewhat.

The top layer has a thin white box which contains the bits-n-bobs, underneath that was the pods-n-mod. I’m not quite sure what I was expecting with the Argus Pod kit but my reaction to seeing it for the first time was an instant like, it was smaller than I expected and looked much better as a result.

By now I was really looking forward to trying it out so I cracked on in quick time to get the photos done. I try to get most of the photos done before handling it too much but I couldn’t resist popping one of my existing PnP MTL pods onto it for a sneak preview and that’s where I found my next surprise AUTO-DRAW! Clearly I hadn’t done my homework on the Argus Pod and auto-draw isn’t anything new, but it was very welcome on this little kit. I could tell by now that I was going to enjoy this review.

I almost forgot to photograph the contents, but here they are, two very different pods, one for MTL and the other for DL, and two coils which again are catered to suit each pod which makes this a proper dual use pod system.

• 1 x Voopoo Argus Pod Device
• 1 x 4.5ml PnP DL Pod Tank
• 1 x 2ml PnP MTL Pod Tank
• 1 x 0.3Ohm PnP-VM1 Coil
• 1 x 1.2Ohm PnP-TR1 Coil
• 1 x Type-C Cable
• 1 x User Manual

Looks and ergonomics

I love the styling of the Argus range though the whole leather padding trend is already starting to look old. However VooPoo have just the right balance and the quality is superb, the red to black gradient looks really nice and the satin black chassis contrasts really well. The screen and controls face is well designed and feels intuitive, the usb-C rubber cover reveals a nice detail, it has the charging info 5V–1A marked underneath the port, I couldn’t photograph it as the bung wouldn’t stay open, small details like this all start to add up on the Argus Pod.

It’s hard to portray in the photos, the small form of this kit makes all the detailing look so much better. I can’t stress this enough as my own pre-conceptions were blown away once I actually saw it in my hand, I tend not to do ‘in the hand’ photos as that’s really deceptive as hands obviously come in different sizes.

In the VooPoo promo photo (see above), the hand model has quite a small hand, mine are a little bigger and it fits snugly into my grip with the pod sticking out.

The base has another nice extra detail, there’s a knurled base plate which doesn’t actually unscrew but they added a rubber disc right at the bottom which means you won’t scratch the mod or surface when you put it down, I really appreciate this nice finishing touch. My only complaint is there’s no battery ventilation that I can see.

The pod housing features adjustable airflow which is achieved with a sliding ring lever, this feels pretty firm so it should stay in place making accidental adjustments difficult. There’s a little strap mounting for you to clip it onto something like a rucksack or a lanyard, I’m not really sure how handy this would be for me but I could see it might be handy for some users.

In the hand the Argus Pod feels really good, it generally lends itself to index finger firing or you can wrap your hand around it for auto-draw. It’s not as light as I expected but not too heavy, I like it’s weight but it is one of those that you wouldn’t put in a shirt pocket or on a lanyard.

The PnP pods I have already covered in previous reviews but I like them a lot and a huge pro to VooPoo for supporting them in so many different devices. Better still, they have a large range of supporting PnP coils which makes these pods very versatile for most vaping styles.

The inclusion of both MTL and DL pods is a big pro for the appeal of this kit. The pods are versatile enough to suit most vapers draw, you can equally get a restrictive DL draw from both pods, and you should find a coil in the range to suit you also.

I did intend to do some more comparison photos to show its size but I got too impatient to get stuck into vaping on it, but here it is next to the Geekvape Boost (original) as for obvious reasons they are similar, and to Geekvape’s credit you can see the origins of the latest trend in pod/mods.

It is remarkable how ahead of its time the Boost was, but it suffered a fatal flaw of being a bed-wetter so I ended up only using the RBA on mine as a result. The Argus feels much smaller and more substantial. Without jumping too far ahead, it just performs much better.

Menu and operation

The chipset and menu is very basic but more than adequate for the PnP pods. The monochrome screen is nice and bright. Though it’s small, it’s easy to read and holds just enough information. This is a simple kit to operate and I doubt you will need to change much.

• 5 x FIRE – Turns device On/Off
• 3 x FIRE – Turns Auto-draw On/Off (P or A displays)
• +(Up) or –(Down) to increase/decrease wattage
• Press & hold FIRE and – (Down) key – rests puff counter
• Press & hold FIRE and + (Up) key – Locks all buttons (Auto-draw still works NICE!)
• Press & hold + and - keys = feck all

Smart wattage is automatic and switches the power to match your chosen coil which works a charm when you have two different pods on the go, so handy if you are out and about and enjoy MTL and DL vaping.

Performance

I’ve previously reviewed the PnP pods but I will briefly cover the included coils. First off the DL pod with the 0.3Ohm PnP-VM1 Coil, this is one of my favourites in the PnP range but I usually use this in a higher wattage device. My normal sweet spot on this coil was around 35 watts on a dual battery mod, on the Argus Pod it is at the upper end of the kits wattage limit and it felt a little lower. I ended up at the max 40 watts. I can’t fault its flavour, and the airflow was surprisingly good though a little restrictive even fully open. The auto-draw was very hit and miss so I switched it off and used the fire button, to be fair I wasn’t expecting much as auto-draw performs better with a tighter MTL draw.

As much as I love the PnP pod and coil, I didn’t feel the VM1 suited itself well in this kit, perhaps a higher Ohm coil (= lower watts) would be better suited. Don’t get me wrong, the vape and flavour was superb, but the battery life wasn’t great, around three hours of moderate use.

Things got much better with the new 1.2Ohm PnP-TR1 Coil. This coil is a vast improvement on the previous 1.2Ohm coil I previously tried in the PnP range, I forget the coils number but the wicking ports were too restricted and it didn’t last very long. These had much larger ports which is due to it being mesh. The bore is also a little larger so the airflow is increased compared to the plain wire version.

Flavour was lush, it kept up with chain vaping nicely and I found the smart wattage of 12 watts was spot on. I’ve been hammering this coil and I haven’t had a hint of a dry hit or the coil dropping off in flavour. I really like this coil and it will definitely be my coil of choice for the MTL pod. The auto-draw works a treat with this setup too, and I only needed to hit the fire button to wake the mod up now and then. Nothing is perfect, and the worst part of this setup was the airflow, it’s on the loose side of MTL. You have to close the airflow fully to get the auto-draw to work, the moment you open it slightly the draw activation hasn’t got enough air pressure to activate it unless you try a mega RDL draw which nobody would typically vape this way.

I understand that VooPoo had to compromise when going for the mesh option as it had to have a larger bore and airway, but it highlights the lack of a seal in the pod housing as the air is simply being sucked in from the sides.

MTL ARFLOW HACK

I come from an engineering background so I always like to tinker and fix things, so I took this problem as a challenge. After messing around aplenty, I found a good solution. If you have an old 25mm tank around, you should have a pack of spare seals. I found a nice thin 25mm silicone O-ring which I stretched around the rim of the pod. Now when I pop the pod back in, there is a proper seal around the rim and it tightens up the airflow nicely as a result, not quite perfect as it comes at the cost of the magnetic connection becoming slightly weaker, but I didn’t have any problems in general use.
(only a thin O-ring will work, too thick won’t connect or magnetise)

With my little hack in place, the MTL experience got a whole lot better, great flavour and a decent tight airflow. The auto-draw performed flawlessly, I even preferred the look of the matching black seal – over to you VooPoo (You’re welcome).

Battery life using the 1.2Ohm coil was superb, it lasted me the best part of two days at 12 watts. As much as I like colour screens and functions, I think VooPoo chose wisely with a basic yet functional chipset which gives you a superior battery life.

Charging the battery is achieved by usb-C but at only 1 Amp so it took a little longer than I would like. This didn’t bother me too much for general MTL use as I didn’t need to charge it often, for the high wattage 0.3Ohm coil, I found it to be a bit annoying for the charge time vs vape time ratio. Charging percentage displays during charging which is very welcome.

The choice of 1 Amp can’t have been an accident and must have been selected during the design process, VooPoo certainly know a hell of a lot more than me on batteries and electronics. I’m torn about it only being 1 Amp charging, 2 Amp would have been nice but I’m not technically minded enough to know whether faster charging effects the battery lifespan or which is safer for inbuilt battery mods. If 1 Amp is safer, then I’m all in and can tolerate slower charge times.

Perfect for a compact out and about setup (though I don’t recommend this juice!)

Conclusion

Overall I highly rate the Argus 40W Pod Kit, there’s not a lot in the innovation front but VooPoo’s designers have done an excellent job on the styling and shape with a lot of attention to detail. I am genuinely in awe of Chinese designers and manufacturing, and VooPoo are amongst the very best in my view, especially over the past year as they have released some fantastic mods and pods. The PnP took me by surprise and remains one of my favourite stock coil tanks, so having both MTL and DL pods and coils included in this kit should appeal to a lot of users.

RDL users might want to use a higher Ohm coil though as the battery life at 40 watts doesn’t last very long.

Size matters it turns out. Having not done my homework before this arrived, I was expecting something larger so it was a really nice surprise to see how compact the Argus Pod was, its mini size makes all the detailing look so much better.

2021 has only just begun, and VooPoo have started off strongly with this release, it’s not perfect but the few flaws I can live with as I just love how it looks, feels and performs. With the MTL draw the way I like it and the auto-draw, I’m left with the dilemma of which kit the Argus Pod will replace. It’s a nice dilemma though. I would go out and buy this kit, in fact I probably get one to match my Denim Argus mod.

Pros

• Compact and stylish
• Solid quality
• Some really nice smaller details
• Versatile dual PnP pods and coil range
• MTL Auto-draw
• One of the better starter kits

Cons

• MTL Airflow needs revising
• Auto-draw is only effective for MTL with airflow closed off

The cons are few and there’s no deal breakers for me as long as you know what to expect.

Final thoughts

Knowing what I know now, then I would definitely buy this kit with the main purpose of a compact MTL device with the option of occasional RDL usage. I really hope VooPoo revise this kit to seal the airflow, but I’m happy with my little hack for now.

Score: 8.5/10 – I just love it.
VooPoo almost nailed this kit, a tighter MTL airflow would take it over a 9/10 (maybe 9.5).

 

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