Time to ask the PROS.

[ImEatingSeeds]

Well, I'm sure this is the first question every newb on the boards asks, however I'm not a newb.

I started vaping back at the beginning of last year, and started with the original DSE901b's. I figured it was better than smoking, but it was highly impractical, the atomizers were slightly high-maintenance, and the batteries basically SUCKED.

It was so impractical that I quit and went back to smoking real cigarettes.

Well, things have changed now, and with a child on the way, I want to get off cigarettes for good. I've been doing a lot of reading, and a lot of research on these boards...for hours a day, for the last week.

From what I've collected, there's TOO many products out there now, with too many different types of parts and exchangeable components to know exactly what is the BEST.

This is what it comes down to. I smoke almost 2 packs a day, and I've been smoking Camel Crush mostly. I realize there's all these modded e-cigs, and switch enabled batteries and a damn SCREWDRIVER you can smoke out of, but I have to ask...

What's the best kit to start with, for a smoker like me? First and foremost, what matters to me is the battery life. I don't want to have to charge up every few hours, and I also don't want to have to carry around 5 batteries with me. I was hoping to find something with reasonable battery life, and USB Pass-through would be great, cuz I spend a good deal of my smoking time in my car, or at the office, in front of my PC. But when I'm away from the car/office, I'm usually out of reach of a wall socket for 5-7 hours. I need something that can last that type of action.

The next most important thing to me is the density/amount/throat hit of the vapor. I need that there. As a smoker, my fixation is more on the oral/filling your mouth with smoke aspect than the nicotine addiction. I can go without the nicotine, I just can't go without having the smokey goodness fill me up from the inside.

Finally, when it comes to juice, I've read so many reviews that my mind is basically fried. The bottom line for me is that I don't particularly care what it tastes like. I like Menthol, and anything sweet (RY3 or RY4??), and I was hoping to vape with low nicotine liquids. And...no, I am not allergic to PG.

I saw a review for one penstyle called the PILOT, and I also remember the initial Janty Dura reviews being great, especially with that little portable charging pack thing it comes with. Now, it seems, there is the Dura-C, as well as the KissBox with all the bells and whistles. And I also saw a really great review on the 801 with USB Pass Through.

I don't really mind much when it comes to the shape/size/form factor the product, but I digg the feedback that has been given to the Dura and the 801 with the pass through. It also seems like the PILOT has been getting rave reviewss. I also really like all the stuff that is included in the pack for the KissBOX Classic on Janty's site.

It comes down to this: of these four that I'm considering, are there any that I have left out of comparable quality/performance, and if not...then which of these four would suit my needs best?

The Pilot, the 801, the Dura-C, or the KissBox?

And as a side note, which juice(s) is/are good?

I know this is totally newb-ish sounding, and a bit demanding, but I would really appreciate everybody's help/input on this.

Thanks and happy vaping!
_RmenR

[yvilla]

For battery life and the best overall ecig (that's not connected via USB), it's the Screwdriver, hands down!

For USB use, the penstyle. If you want to pay more, then the Kissbox extended, which is really just a more expensive penstyle.

AKAIK, the Dura C does not have a USB passthrough as of yet.

Edit: I thought I'd come back and add that like you, I first tried ecigs over a year ago - January 2008, but only lasted about a month. It was an NCig from NJOY, and I had no idea that my disatisfaction really boiled down to inconsistency of vapor due to poor battery life/more quickly loosing power than I would have expected coming from a fresh recharge.

But I tried again in mid-October, and the consistent power from a USB penstyle, and then a Screwdriver (which can last all day essentially), changed all that!

Another extra note: As I prefer the also longer lasting carts of the penstyle atomizer over the 901, I'm one of the few with a special penstyle Screwdriver. But some people are now using the larger Dura carts in the original 901 atomizer Screwdriver, to similar effect.

[ApOsTle51]

Good battery life, usb passthrough , atomizer availabilty, form factor, hmm , I Never thought i'd say it but sounds like Janty's new bit of kit he "JantyStick" may be right up your street.

Not officially released yet , but it seems to fit all your criteria nicely. If you didn't need the USB passthrough i would have suggested the Screwdriver. If you wanted an analogue looking e-cig I would have said Intellicig Evo.
But for all your asking I'd wait a few weeks for the Jantystick to be released and get peoples feedback on that.

As For E-liquid flavours.horses for courses really . I'm a French pipe kinda guy myself. As For menthol I've heard good things about puresmokers True menthol.

JANTYSTICK

SCREWDRIVER REVIEW

INTELLICIG EVO REVIEW

[cosican]

Been vaping 6 months my demands are exactly as yours, now and when I started
If you are not concerned about a passthru, I use a Passthru with a kennsington mobile device and with a 4 port usb hub. This way I can usb til my hearts content w/ several different cigs

The SD is still a powerful and capable product, long battery life and holds up well, I like it ALOT
The 510, for me has done exceptionally well, considering I am hard on my cigs, I also like having a manual switch to control the hit

The Vapor King, is an impressive smoke, although you have to deal w/ a lot of pre order situations, A 2 piece cig with a good throat hit and descent battery life

The mini pipe, is like the ones above, good battery life and descent throat hit, but it is a pipe????
The basic 901 and 801 may have improved since your day???
Doubt it. but they may have
If you are in a MUST STOP MODE and you are, due to the baby and the wife. you do not have a choice but to invest in afew items to keep you off analogs

[D_Struct]

And PS: The Pilot from Puresmoker is a m401, not a penstyle. It's classified as a mini.

[lachesis]

Looks like you are a SD kind of guy to me!
I wish you best of the luck, and congrats on your child.

Also see if Totally Wicked's TECC Titan might interest you - at least the vapor production wise. Otherwise, I'd say stick with the Screwdriver for long-long battery life.

[snap6cat]

I am definitely not a pro, but I have tried all 3 common models. 801, 901, and screwdriver. I like them all alot. If batterylife between charges and portability are important, I prefer my screwdriver. When I leave for work all I need is the device and a small bottle of juice. I take a spare batt and charger, but so far have never had to use them.

The only problems could be $$$, delivery time, and future spare batteries.
Remember these are limited production, the battery technology is not consumer, they are usually for hobbyists and flashlight freaks. The batteries are basically CR123A which are digital camera, but with twice the mah (life between charges). Safe recharging I believe is a good idea.
If you have 901 vaporizers and carts and juice you are basically OK. Not an expert, just my experience.

May your vapors be sweet, and your carts always full.

David

[chicagouser]

Eating seeds-
I was hesistant about e-cigs as well. I tried out NJOY products and they were super helpful. I called them before placing my order and spoke to the owner for 30 minutes. He was very attentive and answered all my questions. They carry both the mini and pen-style.

What sold me on the NJOY brand was their 12 month warranty and the fact that I'd seen them in reputable retail locations (Pilot/TA truck stops and online at Costco and Target). If these places carry / support them, the quality has to be rock solid. I've had my NPRO for 4 months and have zero issues with the atomizer or batteries.

Come to find out they also have colored lights on the batteries (blue, green, purple) which I hadn't found anywhere else as well as variety flavor packs so I could decided what I liked best (couldn't find these anywhere else either!!!). After all this my free shipping arrived in 2 or 3 days after I ordered!

[ImEatingSeeds]

I appreciate everybody's kind help, advice, congratulations, and support!

I checked on Trog's website, and it seems that the SD has sold out. =(

As for the new Janty Stick, it seems that this product has an amazing amount of confidence behind it, and that's all good and fine with me...but this thing won't be shipping till the middle of May. If the reviews are as great as it seems they probably will be, I'll be willing to spend/burn the extra money to purchase THAT vape as well...

But for now, I need the quickest fix I can get. For the juice, I think I'll go with PureSmoker's true Menthol and their Riskee Yuice. These two get consistently good reviews. As for the nic strength, I did more poking around in here and realized you can just reduce the concentration by adding over the counter liquid.

I think I'm gonna pursue drip-smoking as my choice, but that doesn't mean I won't be carrying carts with me anyway. Carts or okay, they're small and convenient.

As for the other items, I dnno. I want to believe that the 901 is better than my initial 901, and I have never even seen an 801. I get that they both have USB pass-through, and I also understand that their parts are most easily obtained/exchanged/nearly universal.

It sort of disappoints me that nobody had much to share on the topic of the Dura-C, and I also want to clarify...is the KissBox like an 801?

It's sounding to me like a pen-style is going to be what I settle on, and it will probably be a Janty, seeing as how their customer service is pretty reliable., but I'm still open to hearing more.

Nobody really shared any experience on the PILOT, and I'm not quite sure I know what a "510" is? In the meantime, I'm gonna go do some homework on the "Vapor King" and try and find out what a 510 is.

Keep em comin guys, this is great! I appreciate all of it!!

[Elendil]

Seeds...............email trog on the SD site. From what I understand he may have an odd SD floating around. If not he will be back in gear soon (I think he just moved his operation)