Kangertech Subox Mini Review
Thanks to @ecigcolpedia for this review which I have unashamedly reproduced - original not used due to links...
The Subox Mini starter kit from Kangertech has become one of the most popular and well-known vaping setups all over the world. And there’s a reason for that – it’s a simple, reliable, quite powerful, all-in-one kit, suitable for beginners and advanced vapers as well.
This kit has been in the market for a while already, and, although many of you may already be familiar with it, let’s take a brief look at it, mentioning the pros and cons we have found in detail.
Kangertech Subox Mini Starter Kit Review
This kit comes with a whole lot of extras – the mod and the tank themselves, two different coils, a rebuildable deck with an already pre-built coil, another coil and some extra screws for the rebuildable deck, two drip tips, a packet of organic cotton, and even a tiny screwdriver. And, of course, a micro USB charging cable. To start vaping right away, you just need to get a good 18650 battery and some e-liquid together with the Subox Mini, and you’re good to go.
- Outstanding price-to-value ratio
- Great visual aesthetics
- Wide variety of coils in the kit
- Display is too deep inside the mod
- Tank color doesn't exactly match the mod
- Coating of the tank may easily chip off over time
GET YOUR SUBOX MINI IN WHITE!
Looks & Design First Impression
The Kanger Subox Mini starter kit comes in two colors – black and white. We’ve got the white version, and, to be honest, we prefer the looks of it over the black one.
When we hadn’t gotten our hands on this device yet, we weren’t very pleased about the design, especially the finish of the mod, the Kanger KBOX Mini. It just looked too plastic for our taste. However, things changed when we finally got the kit and first opened the box. The visual aesthetics are outstanding – the finish is not a finger magnet; it’s neither too glossy, nor too matte, and the white color is just great. It somewhat reminds us of the Art Deco style from the 1930s – with all these posters with the aerodynamic trains in them – but at the same time, it has an ultramodern, sophisticated feel to it. The font chosen for the Kangertech logo also adds a nice touch.
The tank, Subtank Mini, comes in a matching color. We’ve heard people complain that the tank is in a bit different shade than the mod. This is barely noticeable, though, and we suppose that the tank simply has a different type of coating than the mod, so it reflects light differently. Nevertheless, it looks great together with the mod and sits very flush on it.
The box is definitely heavier than it looks. It has some nice, solid feel to it, but it’s not too heavy, either. It fits in your hand quite ergonomically, and is very comfortable – even for a smaller hand. And it’s also considerably small – it easily fits, for example, in the pocket of your jacket.
The buttons are very nice to touch – they are clicky, responsive, and very solid. The wattage can be easily adjusted by pressing the ‘+’ and ‘-‘; by pressing them both together and holding for a bit, you can flip the screen around. The micro USB port also is placed on the side – making it possible to charge the device while it sits vertically. On the same side is also the fire button; however, it fires with a small (around half a second) delay. The fire button can also be used to just check your settings by clicking it once and quickly.
The OLED display is bright and well-readable. It has one tiny flaw, though – it is placed relatively deep inside the mod, therefore one needs to look at it in a pretty much straight angle to see the readings.
Functionality & Performance
The Mod – Kanger KBOX Mini
From the technical perspective, this little box is quite a simple device. It has a non-adjustable 510 connection, and it is powered by a single 18650 battery which is not included in the kit. We use a Samsung 25R battery with a 25 amp max continuous discharge rating in this mod.
The wattage can be adjusted from 7W up to 50W in 0.1W increments, and all of your current settings and readings – wattage, voltage, resistance, and battery level – are shown on the display. The KBOX Mini performs nicely – we haven’t had a single misfire, and, after clicking the fire button 5 times, it always turns on or off flawlessly.
The KBOX Mini features a magnetic battery cover which holds great in its place. The engineers have come up with an interesting solution here – the battery lid has an opening for ventilation in the shape of the Kangertech logo. And, to make the battery match the color scheme of the device, there are sticker strips included in the kit – in our case, we got black strips to be applied on the battery.
The Tank – Kanger Subtank Mini
Some of the goodies you get with your Subox Mini Starter Kit. 1.5 ohm OCC coil & 0.5 ohm OCC coil.
The Kanger Subtank Mini is a dual adjustable airflow sub-ohm tank made of Pyrex glass and stainless steel with a capacity of 4.5 ml. Aside from the good looks, it also does its job quite well – switching between the three different airflow settings happens without a hitch; the airflow adjustment ring is a bit ‘clicky’ and quite solid.
To change the coils or fill the tank up, you need to unscrew the bottom part of it. Such fill method can be considered a bit outdated and not so straightforward, but it works. In this kit, the tank comes with the 0.5 ohm OCC coil pre-installed; however, you can also choose one of the other coils which come with the kit.
Let’s take a closer look at the coils:
1. The 0.5 ohm OCC coil performs flawlessly. Although it has the optimal wattage written on it, I prefer firing it at around 25W when using a 50/50 PG/VG blend. With the airflow slots wide open, it delivers plenty of vapor, as well as great flavor with every hit, and is a true workhorse for lung hitters. Our coil lasted us around a week of heavy vaping, then we started getting some burnt taste.
2. The 1.5 ohm OCC coil is more suited for lung-to-mouth hits. Therefore, this is an outstanding option for smokers who have recently switched to vaping and chosen the Subox Mini as their first serious vaping kit. This coil also works great; however, it should be fired at much lower wattages – to be honest, we got the best hits from it only at 12-15 watts. It is also a great idea to adjust the airflow to the smallest airhole when using this coil.
3. The rebuildable deck with the pre-built 0.5 ohm coil is a nice option for those who wish to step into the world of rebuildables. The coil is already pre-installed – all you need to do is put a small piece of the included organic cotton in it, carefully drip some e-liquid on the cotton, and you’re good to go. There’s another pre-built coil in the kit, and, of course, you can get some kanthal wire and try to build your own coils. Although the rebuildable deck is quite small, it really does what it is supposed to do – we really enjoyed using it at around 25 watts.
The OLED display is bright and well-readable
As an all-in-one kit, the Subox Mini is an outstanding option for sub-ohm vaping. In fact, we can’t help but wonder: what more does a vaper need? If you do not strive for hundreds of watts, cloud chasing competitions, and tinkering around complicated coil builds, this is a kit for you! And, really, it has it all – superb looks, a much-better-than-average sub-ohm tank with two different coils and a rebuildable deck for you to choose from, as well as the flexibility of 18650 battery support. Well, the latter might be a con for some – but, even if you hate the non-inbuilt batteries, you can easily charge this mod – and vape on it at the same time – using the included micro USB cable. Besides, all of this comes with a simply awesome price tag!
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