Wednesday, July 6, 2011

V2 Electronic Cigarette Review

This will probably be my last e-cig review for a while.

To start off, V2 is the e cigarette I've been relying on for the last few months to help me quit.
This will easily be my highest recommended brand to everyone wanting to try, I also have a discount code that provides 15% off your starter kit, as well as another to use to get 15% off any cartridges and accessories (but to my knowledge you won't get 30% combined for your starter kit)
Codes will be posted at the end of the review.

Battery: More of the top brands are starting to get on board and use batteries that are compatible with other brands' carts and accessories, so no need to stick to one brand if you wanna try more. V2 uses KR808-D1 batteries which are some of the better ones out there. A good weight and feel, long battery life, 2 piece design for starters. Pertaining to V2, you have tons of options in just batteries alone. Batteries come in 3 lengths, XL, Standard and Shorty. The Shorty most resembles a Blu battery and is good for those who want something more compact. The Standards are my personal favorite. They also stock the XL size which the only drawback is that it cannot fit in their portable charging case. You can also select from 3 colors in each length; black, white, and stainless steel. And on top of all this 2 options! Automatic and manual. I own both and they each have their advantages. The manuals seem to have shorter battery life but it all depends on how you use them. The automatics typically need a first priming puff to get the atomizer at optimal heat. Other than that, they work pretty evenly. These are great batteries that last a long time and charge quick. The best I've tried.
7/7


Vapor Production/Ease of Draw: First off, the vapor you get from these things is crazy. Most people who I let try it and have never tried an e cigarette before usually cough on the first drag and are generally surprised by what it gave. You'll never be lacking anything in the vapor from these. And the ease of draw is perfect. They come shipped with a pretty easy draw, BUT, KR808 batteries have a neat function that allow you to take a flathead screwdriver and loosen or tighten the draw as you please. Pretty sweet!
To sum this one up, you can't complain. However vapor production can't always be perfect and ONCE in a while you'll catch a dud cartridge or encounter a minor problem. Typically an easy fix, but again, never perfect. Plus I can't give a perfect rating for everything here, otherwise I'll look like a robot :P
6/7


Flavors: Now let's talk about the flavors. At the time of writing this, V2 offers, 10, yes 10 flavors. This is great seeing as how some brands might offer 2-5 normally. We have V2 Red (Marlboro), V2 Sahara (Camel), Congress (Parliament), Menthol, Peppermint, Coffee, Vanilla, Cola, Cherry and Chocolate.
Like usual, I break these down individually and have tried every flavor. To make it easy, I'll list each one in order of preference, top being my favorites.
Menthol- Holy mint, Batman! These are the best preloaded menthol carts I have ever tried. Full, smooth, minty, delicious. "Vaping" one right now as I type. My favorite.
Peppermint- Wasn't sure what to think of this one but it is great! A little different than the menthol, much more peppermint "oomph" and a lot more sweeter tasting. 2nd favorite.
Cola- Everyone will probably have different opinions of this one but I found it to be quite good! Depending on what you're eating or drinking, sometimes the flavor doesn't quite hit you. But try vaping this and drinking a Coke, it's wonderful. One of the smoothest flavors they have.
V2 Sahara- Being mostly a former Camel smoker, these were sure to please. Strong and full, great throat hit.
Vanilla- Best vanilla of any brand I've tried. Most just taste like lightly sweetened oxygen, these surprisingly taste much like vanilla. Sweet and light. Using these between the other flavors creates a nice break and makes the next one really hit ya.
V2 Red- I did smoke the occasional Marlboro, and these are what they are trying to replicate. I'd say they did pretty damn good. V2's tobacco flavors are among the best quality and taste.
Coffee- Coffee tends to be some brands' better flavors. This one is somewhere in the middle. On first draw you may be surprised that this is only vapor you're inhaling, not coffee. I found it to be quite good. However my beef with it is that it doesn't have that full coffee hit to me. Maybe they need to base it off a stronger flavor/bean. How it is now, I think most people will like it.
Cherry- Between my starting with V2, and current use they have changed the cherry flavor. The old one was harsh, not much like cherry at all. The new cherry is much better but still a tad harsh and not perfect. I think if they gave this another redo it'd come out like you would expect. For now, it's towards the bottom of my list.
Congress- Never did I smoke a Parliament but I don't think these would taste like them anyway. They aren't bad, but they aren't great. I will pop one on here and there just to use it and see if I think any differently than before. To me it tastes like maple syrup. Not really sure why.
Chocolate- I wasn't expecting a great flavor here, and while some people may really like it, I found it to be lacking. The vapor just wasn't there, the flavor was a bit off. Didn't impress me at all. I guess many people like it but I can't recommend it. My least favorite.

Everyone will have different opinions on the flavors, and just because there's some I didn't enjoy doesn't mean the whole line is bad, and the ones that I love are enough for me to quit. That with just the sheer variety they have here, and that's enough for a good score.
6/7


Value and Options: There's lots to say here, I'll start with this; 5 starter kits. Yup you heard me. 5 options for starter kits. One is just a "couples" kit which is 2 standard kits, but of course cheaper. But even then you'll find one that's good to start with. Their cheapest kit comes with 1 battery and 5 cartridges and I can't say to get this one, when for $15 more you get the standard kit which has 2 batteries and 10 cartridges (you can select as many flavors as you have multiples of 5. Example if your kit has 10 carts, you can get 2 flavors [x5], 15 carts would allow you 3 flavors, etc)
They have the Travelers kit which is a standard kit with tons of accessories, but their Ultimate kit is just insane. For the price of some other companies basic kit, you get 3 batteries, 25 cartridges and every accessory you'll ever need, for $150.
The value on their cartridges is about par with most 2 piece designs, with a 5 pack at $10. You average $2 per cart, but the more you buy you get more of a discount and they have 5 packs, 20 packs, 40 packs, 80 packs and a sampler pack which is one of every flavor.
They also have a custom cartridge option which I don't see commonly. You have to buy 100 at a time and it runs you $220, but you can request ANY flavor you want if they don't carry it. I've seen people order Mountain Dew, pineapple, blueberry, lemonade, honey, and the list goes on.
They have an extensive list of accessories too, including a portable charging case which is a lifesaver on-the-go. It's a tad expensive compared to other charging cases, and the first one I bought was defective. However, it gave me a chance to deal with the customer service. Their customer service is among the best around, or so they claim, and I sent an email about the case. They responded with a couple questions in how I've tried to use it or charge it (the case would charge batteries, but once it ran dry the case itself would charge)
I got a replacement in about 4 days. And they were very kind the whole time.
I've talked about their batteries, and they carry also what is called a USB pass-through. These are USB powered, manual switch and never need charging! The difference in the 2 they offer is cord length.
Overall, it is staggering how much they offer, and the price they ask. You'll never get bored with V2 and all their stuff works great, and when it doesn't, CS is there to pick up the slack and make you a satisfied former smoker. Oh, did I mention a lifetime warranty?
7/7


OVERALL: 6.5/7

I say, if you're interested in a smoking alternative and want to skip Chantix and the patch, an e-cig is a cost effective method that have most people happy and quit successfully.
V2 is one of the top brands out there, the best I've tried and I cannot recommend them enough.
If you're serious about buying, I have those coupon codes I mentioned and my opinion on what to buy.

On a budget: If you're on a budget, want to try V2, I personally say SKIP the Economy kit which is $65. Instead, buy a USB pass-through (V2 calls them the Power-Cig and Notebook cig, respectively)
Each pass-through comes with 5 cartridges of your choice. For $25-$30, its a great way to try V2 and keep it penny friendly.

Best starter kit: I myself bought a Standard kit, which is $80 pre-coupon. 2 batteries, 10 cartridges, everything needed to get started. But after a while I was buying accessories left and right and I regretted getting this kit when I could have got the Travelers kit. The Travelers has to be V2's best kit IMO.
For $110 vs $80 for the Standard, you not only get 15 cartridges (5 more than the standard, which is $10) it includes the portable charging case ($45) AND a USB pass-through. ($30)
And a USB car adapter to those it matters to.
You're getting an extra $90 worth of stuff for paying $30 more. The math is there to me.
You can get the Ultimate kit which includes 3 batteries, all the accessories, 25 cartridges, the whole package.
But not everyone wants to spend $150 if they've never tried e-cigs before.
Advice; get the Travelers kit if you're serious.

----------Coupon codes----------
I have two coupons, one of which you'll receive with your kit.

To save 15% on whatever starter kit you decide on, use code 134667 at checkout.
To save 15% on any additional accessories (batteries, car charger, cartridges) then use sunisshining at checkout.
The sunisshining code is part of a coupon program that runs every month. Usually they send this on a card with your order every so often, and once with every kit. sunisshining expires 7/31/2011
I will do my part to update what code they use every month from here on.

Thank you again for reading what had to be my longest review. This will about do it for electronic cigarettes, and you will see a lot more about music, music production, gaming, movies and more.

-AllWiredBlog

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  1. great article, yet I'm still not convinced to Electronic Cigarette : p

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