The Altsmoke Yeti review and my introduction

[devonschmoker]

First, my Introduction.
Hello, I am starting to do reviews now and I would like to introduce myself. My name is Devon Schmoker. Yes this is my REAL name, I am the owner / operator of a small locksmith business in Oregon. I am very mechanically inclined and I have a really good working knowledge of electrical theory. I also have a very high ethical standard when it comes to reviewing. I am only able to tell what I see in the products I have. No two are exactly alike. If I notice there is a wide spread problem I will try to find out exactly how wide spread it is and then report it. For example the Dura Poll I posted. I think that is better than any review out there because it shows many people’s opinion and experience with the product. My reviews will be an example of my personal views and experience with the product in question. I hope you enjoy reading my reviews and that they are very helpful to you. –Devon Schmoker

Now with that out of the way The Altsmoke Yeti Review. + A Joye510 Atomizer Autopsy.

I have tested the full set. The packing is the Joye standard 510 box nice and neat. Keep in mind that the Joye510 is also know as the Janty Dura and all of the parts are compatible. There is very little difference between the Dura and the Yeti as far as performance. It delivers the excellent vapor you would expect from a 510 but with the same problems too. Both batteries have a run time of approximately 3.5 to 4 hrs of smoke time. Keep in mind that I am a chain smoker and am very hard on devices.
Ok both batteries now have a cutoff time of 3-7 seconds. The time fluctuations seem to occur at random. It can function properly for extended periods of time and then start malfunctioning for extended periods of time also. Everything seems to point to the switch. I can see how this could get by a QC check. It does seem to have the same issues as the Janty model. The switch appears to like to work backwards (blowing) than forwards. The gist is that it does work albeit not consistently. However there are some improvements. The leaky cart problem has been resolved. The carts fit nice and tight now. No leaking!
IMO the yeti is a bit more reliable than the Dura It has a few improvements on the one I have. But it is not without problems too for example, one of my atomizers died after about ten minutes. The customer service is excellent at Altsmoke and Rob does a great job at making that fast shipping time. I think we all know to approach the Joye 510 with caution now. It is a great device when it is working. Let’s just hope that Joye gets their act together soon.
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And now for the Autopsy


Autopsy results on dead 510 Atomizer.
TOD: approx 10mins of use.
Cause of death: Coil Failure. (Non overheat)
Repairable: No. A new coil must be built.
The coil failed at the first wind (of 10) from the negative side.
The Core wick material appears to be fire resistant fiberglass (same as on stove gaskets) and unharmed and wet.
The coil appeared to fracture due to a flaw in the filament wire. Its break is NOT consistent of an overheat burnout. (It is a shear break not a taper break) I believe this is a failure caused by an unforeseeable flaw in the filament wire at the time of manufacture. There was no other evidence of failure.
Autopsy performed by: Devon Schmoker on 2/20/09

[smokindeuce]

Hi Devon -

That is a really useful review - the first I've read for a while - nice to see some technical know-how in there to understand the finer details a little better...

Keep up the good work!

[Cellmeister]

Oh I forgot to Mention How Rob at Altsmoke is a great guy and sells the Yeti /510 /Beast at his store on My "I got My Yeti" Post.

Rob at Altsmoke.com is The Man! Fast Shipping, Great Prices and an Honest Person Thats Even Better To Deal With! If You have not checked his Store You Should.

Anyways The Joye Yeti/ 510 / Dura is All Old News Now... After the layman's / actual user non-technical results and the "inside word" that the Joye Tech New Batteries are Junk.

I have opened up several of the 1st batches of batteries, checked voltages, check for moisture, found the air switch in backwards, but I am not going to post the specifics.

I opened up the failed atomizers as well, it appears the filaments are defective and are breaking, possibly due to shorted batteries, overheating and or just bad material, something QC should have found. The Failure Rate is To High For This to Be Missed Period from any Manufacturer thats not manufacturing Bubble Gum!

Another Known Fact is Thats Why Janty Yanked Them Off There Site Last Week and are Going To A Manual Battery / With Switch) Because Joye Tech Still Can Not Make A Reliable Battery at Janty's request. Again this was last weeks news...

Devon Great Review, but if you could kindly turn the "Poll Feature" on. because I don't know how to and the results maybe better for the forum user's to get a better review of the product.

In My Opinion & looking at The "I Got My Yeti" Thread It Appears That The Other Reviewers are Getting Less Battery Life & Most Others Their Carts are Pissing Out Juice From The Carts.

The 510/ Yeti / Beast / Dura Really Appears to be an other rushed out the door to suckers product from Joye Tech (my personal opinion).

Too Bad Cuz When The Dura/510 Works for only a few days it does it Does SMOKE! Yes I am One of Those Suckers too!

I keep reading all these nice reviews but when I get the product it appears that the reviews were all smoke & mirrors, there just no smoke after a few days! (I am Not Referring to this Thread or to any Forum Members, Just In general with new products).

Lets see if we can get another Poll Up to see actual user / owner results.

I want to thank Rob at Altsmoke for being able to back up his product without question!

And Thanks to Devon for the Great Review!!!

Please Don't Anyone Take Any Offense, These are my personal opinions.

StillDuraLess

[devonschmoker]

This is just a little update.
After a full night of use the Yeti is still acting in somewhat the same manner. I have not had the leaky cart problem that a few people have. I have only had one instance and that involved an old, warn cart. I think my atomizer tube is tight and that is what seems to be stopping the leak. It takes a bit of force to load the cart. The battery issues are still there. The cutoff is still sporadic and kind of annoying. It still is acting better than the Janty 1st run batteries. The cutoff averages about 4 seconds or so but, it still runs anywhere from 3-7 seconds. My battery life is still good at about 3 to 4 hours and keep in mind I am a bit of a chain vaper. The atomizer performance is still excellent. I am still annoyed at the cutoff time. I always find myself looking at the led to see when it cuts out. (If I keep doing this I may go cross-eyed)

*now for a little rant*
I am still under the impression that that da** switch is installed backwards. And if Joye Technologies is reading this; Please make sure to assemble your switches properly! Once I dissect one I will post detailed instructions on how to properly assemble your switch for the 510 model. And just incase they are not reading I will send it directly to Joye. I am sure that I will make an engineer somewhere quite embarrassed when I correct their work. Oh I have a name! Perhaps it will be the Technical Engineer, Lin Hua Kang or System Engineer Yao Shi Ping who probably upset the Electrical Engineers Gong Ru Wen and Bao Jian Hai for messing up their work by letting the assemblers install the bloody switch backwards! Or possibly it was all managements fault. (There is usually a manager somewhere that managed to mess thing up) …… *end rant*...I said that the short cutoff was annoying me.
It is still a great product with just one particularly annoying quirk. (Not counting the leaky carts as they are at least attempting to fix that one) I still cannot deny the great vapor production.

[aasupplyny]

Hello Devon! Nice review... I actually took apart my Yeti atomizer too had the same issue. As for the battery cutoff... I haven't experience one yet.

How long of a drag are you taking to activate it? The manual says it based on the amount of drags within a certain time frame but I have yet to activate it.

I did notice that once the battery is drained of power... the led flashes and the battery doesn't turn on anymore after whatsoever... until I charge it.

Is that the cutout or are my batteries just out of power? I found that kinda strange since my other ecigs don't do that. My 901 for example, will blink when low on power but will still work when I use it. Are they batteries "protected"? complete shutdown to prevent full discharge?

[e-pipeman]

I did notice that once the battery is drained of power... the led flashes and the battery doesn't turn on anymore after whatsoever... until I charge it.

Is that the cutout or are my batteries just out of power? I found that kinda strange since my other ecigs don't do that. My 901 for example, will blink when low on power but will still work when I use it. Are they batteries "protected"? complete shutdown to prevent full discharge?

It seems to be a feature of many newer batteries. Older batteries would "fade" - they would continue to operate when low on power but much less efficiently. Newer ones (such as those on the Intellicig Evo) keep going at the same level of efficiency until they flash - then they stop dead and need a recharge.

[JSRLKelly]

Hey Devon!

Nice review, but I have a question. DURA is releasing a Manual Control switch for the batteries.

In your opinion:

A) Do you think this will extend battery life?
B) Will it address the rest of the problems you've seen with the Joye / Dura device?

I'm asking because my Dura is supposed to be delivered today..... I'd hate to get stuck with a sub par device to replace my NPRO, because I'm not happy with overall battery life on the NJOY product.

[devonschmoker]

Hey Devon!

Nice review, but I have a question. DURA is releasing a Manual Control switch for the batteries.

In your opinion:

A) Do you think this will extend battery life?
B) Will it address the rest of the problems you've seen with the Joye / Dura device?

I'm asking because my Dura is supposed to be delivered today..... I'd hate to get stuck with a sub par device to replace my NPRO, because I'm not happy with overall battery life on the NJOY product.

Great questions!
Question A: Yes and No. It is possible that the battery life may be a bit shorter due to the fact that you can hold the button as long as you want. However it also won’t go dead from running by itself. Due to the manual switch it will not be affected by wind (like an open car window), loud sound systems, or jolts like setting it down on a table or dropping it. Which may make the battery last longer. But it does pose some new problems like accidentally pushing the button while it is in your pocket. I am also concerned that the button may be too high to fit in the PCC’s charging port. Personally I don’t think it will be a problem but it still concerns me. (I am hoping that they considered this) The thing to remember is that it has an impressive battery life considering that it only has an 180mAh battery. Currently my batteries are still lasting 3-4Hrs. I have heard instances of less.

Question B: I think it will fix all of the problems related to the switch if it is used properly. Like the short cutoff time (which is the main issue) and malfunctions due to people who did excessively dripped (IMO was a very rare problem). I do think we will see more atomizer failures though. Some from metal flaws in the coil wire (which are nearly undetectable at the time of manufacture and really happen no matter what but can be reduced by using a higher grade of wire) and some from user error due to simply holding the button down too long and burning it out.

I already bought a Dura and I am getting an upgrade to the Dura-C. Expect Joye to release the manual batteries to the general suppliers not too long after Janty releases the Dura-C. The Manual switch version of the Joye510 I see as kind of a quick “OH SH**” piece of engineering. It is a quick bandage to a bad situation. I would have been happier if they fixed the Auto switch and made an auto/manual hybrid. I am too interested in the manual switch version to get the new auto switched batteries. I would love to hear from someone who has chosen to get the “Improved” Automatic switched version.

[JSRLKelly]

Thanks, Devon!

I did receive my Dura yesterday, and I am on the lookout for the issues I've been reading about.

A couple of things I like about this (since Dura and Joye 510 are the same I thought it seemd appropriate to respond here...)

1) The cartridges are much better designed than the NPRO / PeeWee / RN4081.
2) The Battery is much more intelligent -- consistent draw, easier draw, and keeps the same heat on the element, no matter the battery charge... right up until the LED won't even come on, unlike the NPRO version.

I do see what you mean about the automatic switch being subpar in these batteries, however, and I will be changing them out to the manual / Dura-C version when Jeff has them available at Janty. Just taking them out of the original packaging saw the LED switch on.

[Cellmeister]

You Just Got Your 1st Dura Yesterday, How Can You Even Start Talking About It Yet??

We are Not Discussing A Comparison To NPRO / PeeWee / RN4081 Carts Here.......

Actually You Should Probably Start a New Thread Called Something Like:

"NPRO / PeeWee / RN4081 Cart Comparison to The Dura"

You also said you read some of the other Dura Post.... Don't they all say everybody loves them the 1st day or 2 before the Batteries Die....

Thanks For Your Great & Informative Post On "The Altsmoke Yeti review and my introduction" Thread it was of great value....