Hi ECF members, In this review i take a look at the THELEMA POD MOD KIT from Lost Vape. The THELEMA POD MOD KIT was supplied for the purpose of this review by Lost Vape.
Thelema 80W Pod Mod – Lost Vape
Introduction
Lost Vape are one of the most respected vaping manufacturer and best known for offering premium DNA devices to the mainstream vaper. We then had the innovative DNA Go device which was the forerunner to the latest Pod Mod trend!
In recent times Lost Vape have been concentrating on their own Quest chip and coil technology leaving many including me wondering just what direction are Lost Vape going to take in the future and will it be for the better?
Then came the 250C DNA Centaurus which had a mixed response due to Lost Vape playing it safe with a familiar design but is now selling well and becoming increasingly popular and here with the Thelema we have a Pod Mod with premium build quality that ticks a tonne of boxes, it seems we needn't of worried as Lost Vape have started hitting their straps again!
The Thelema is a Power only device offering variable wattage from 5w to 80w and a colour screen which can be customised. The Thelema features an e-liquid viewing window, adjustable airflow, top-fill, DL and MTL capability and a whopping 3000mAh in built battery, coming in a load of Leather spine options let's give the Thelema a good look!
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In The Box
Contents:
1 Thelema Device
1 4ml Pod
1 0.3ohm UB V2 M1 Coil
1 0.2ohm UB V2 M4 Coil
1 Type-C USB Cable
1 510 MTL Drip Tip
1 510 DL Drip Tip
1 Warranty Card
1 User Manual
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Aesthetics and Ergonomics
The Thelema came in cardboard box packaging with outer cardboard sleeve and on opening everything was neatly placed in one layer. The device is available in three different frames with the choice of three different padded leather spines. I received the Gunmetal with Glossy leather padded spine which is a Ukiran leather with clear plastic covering giving it a glossy look, also available are Ukiran leather spines without the plastic and a Grain Leather finish, the options are SS/Ukiran Leather, Black/Ukiran Leather, Gunmetal/Ukiran Leather, SS/Glossy Leather, Black/Glossy Leather, Gunmetal/Glossy Leather, SS/Grain Leather, Black/Grain Leather and Gunmetal/Grain Leather.
The main chassis is Zinc Alloy and either side towards the front we have a mirrored panel with diagonal etched lined pattern with "LOST VAPE" one side and "THELEMA" the other. Above these panels each side we have a pill shaped airflow slot at a 45 degree angle. On the face central top we have a vertical pill shaped liquid viewing window and below a protruding square fire button. Central we have a screen followed by two horizontal, rectangular navigational buttons that also protrude, right at the bottom of the face we have a Type C USB port. Looking at the base we have venting slots and safety stamps then moving to the top we have the flat top surface of the pod with a silicone piece plugging the fill port towards the rear and 510 drip tip central.
The overall build quality is stellar and with the padded curved spine and large protruding fire button is both comfortable to hold and fire!
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Thelema Specs and Features:
Dimensions - 101mm by 35.3mm by 29.4mm
Battery: 3000mAh built-in Lithium battery
Body Material: Zinc Alloy
Spine Material: Leather
Battery Voltage: 3-4.2V
Output Voltage: 0.8-4V
Power Range: 5-80W
Current Range: 0.3-22A
Coil Resistance Supported Range: 0.12-5ohm
Screen Pixel: 0.96''108*217
Capacity: 4ml
Press Fit Coil Installation
Adjustable Airflow Control Ring
Magnetic Pod Connection
Juice Viewing Window
Silicone plugged top-fill
Type C USB
2A charge rate
Colour/Designs: SS/Ukiran Leather, Black/Ukiran Leather, Gunmetal/Ukiran Leather, SS/Glossy Leather, Black/Glossy Leather, Gunmetal/Glossy Leather, SS/Grain Leather, Black/Grain Leather, Gunmetal/Grain Leather
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Much Better Second Time!
I did originally receive the Thelema a few weeks ago when there was very little information online so i guess one of the first few samples. I loved the device finding it overall better than the Voopoo Drag Pod Mods which is what i used as a comparison but while really testing the coils at and above their max wattage, chain vaping etc i did get quite a bit of leaking which then started resulting in leaking while the pod was left attached full of e-liquid overnight. It resulted in e-liquid getting into the device which wasn't great and it seemed the pod bay wasn't as sealed as it should be!
Kudos to Lost Vape for their response who thanked me for reporting my issues and said they would look into it and send another when addressed. Anyway after asking me a few more questions over the next couple of weeks and a further 3 weeks of waiting i was informed a new device was on it's way and i shouldn't have the same problems!
I have given the coils the same rigorous testing as in vaping higher than their recommended wattage to see how they cope and chain vaping to test wicking and have not had any issues this time. Also looking in the bay it all looks perfectly sealed although i have been reluctant to leave a pod attached overnight due to my previous experience but the next day the desk and bottom of the pod has been bone dry so i needn't of worried. It seems Lost Vape have either fixed what caused the issues i had or i just had dodgy coils with a device not quite sealed correctly, it can happen especially with the first sample batch, i am now an happy camper!!!!!!
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The Pod
The Pod holds 4ml of e-liquid and has a transparent tinted body with flat Black solid top which has a centrally positioned metal lined 510 drip tip fitting so you can use your own if you prefer. Towards the rear on the top flat top we have a large silicone piece which on mine has "OILING" and a drop symbol embossed into it but on the retail versions this will say "OPEN". The flap lifts to unplug the generous fill port and stays attached to the pod but also twists out the way so it doesn't need holding while filling, a small detail but i like this a lot and really needed as the fill port is on the rear section of the top of the pod while the viewing window on the device if filling while inserted is on the front!
Looking at the base of the pod we have a magnet to each corner and the round opening which allows the coil head to be press fitted into position which will be sealed via an O-ring on the coil head.
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The Coil Heads
The Thelema utilises the growing Ultra Boost family of coils which over the last year have constantly been improved and updated. Despite only being version 2 of the Ultra boost coils the process of continual improvement has been ongoing with many reviewers being sent samples regularly to test and fill out spreadsheets regarding their performance and give general feedback.
Included is 2 different Ultra Boost V2 coils, the pre-installed mesh M4 coil head with a 0.2ohm resistance which is recommended between 40w and 60w and the M1 clapton mesh coil head which has a 0.3ohm resistance and is recommended between 30w and 40w. As already mentioned the coil head simply gets press fitted into the base of the pod, just make sure the air inlets line up with the sides of the device for better airflow efficiency!
To date the Ultra Boost range offers 6 coil head options which include both an RBA head and a dedicated regular 0.1ohm MTL coil head rated between 8 to 15w for MTL vapers!
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The Drip Tips
The top of the pod has a metal lined 510 fitting and included is both a DL and MTL 510 drip tip but of course you can fit your own if you prefer. Although the MTL coil head isn't included when using the 0.3ohm coil i found the MTL drip tip ideal with the restriction i like so which drip tip you use for what style isn't set in stone although with the 0.2ohm coil with airflow fully open is very airy so i would recommend the DL drip tip with this coil!
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Fitting The Pod
Looking inside the pod bay we can see the Gold plated, spring loaded contacts and a raised magnet to each corner which will line up with the magnets on the pod. We can also see the airflow slot either side which will allow air to get to the base of the coil head. The magnetic connection is very strong and the pod satisfyingly snaps securely in place leaving no play whatsoever!
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The Airflow
Either side at the top of the device we have a pill shaped slot that allows air to get to the base of the coil. We then have a threaded ring with two cut out sections that screws onto the base of the coil head which when fastened tight the cut out sections line up perfectly with the airflow inlets at the base of the coil head giving fully open airflow. The ring can then be turned to close the airflow exactly to where you prefer it right down to a slither which with a narrow inner bore coil head will give a MTL draw!
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Display
The Thelema has a sharp, bright, colour display with a coloured chevron two thirds down with the area above the chevron being shaded the colour that is set and below Black. The chevron, shaded area, and the words "TIME" and "PUFF" are in whatever colour is selected which will be explained in the nest section.
Top left we have the battery status bar and top right the resistance, below we have "POWER" followed by the wattage. Below the chevron to the left we have the duration of your puff and to the right the puff count, when the device is locked a closed padlock appears between vape duration and your vape count.
Finally at the bottom of the display we have a row of 6 different coloured squares, whichever one is highlighted will represent the colour of the already explained items on the screen!
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Navigating The Thelema
The Thelema is the usual 5 clicks of the fire button to turn on and 5 clicks to turn off, after no activity for 10 seconds the screen dims and if no activity for a further 10 seconds the device goes into sleep mode. When in sleep mode any button press wakes the device up and their is no delay whatsoever when firing from the device being asleep! The wattage adjusts in 0.5W increments from 5W all the way up to 80W, it scrolls at a decent speed and round robins!
Both navigational buttons pressed together locks and unlocks those buttons, when locked the device still fires. Down and fire together resets the puff count and each time up and fire is pressed together the next colour square at the bottom of the display is highlighted and certain accents and information on the screen becomes that colour, the colour options are Cyan, Yellow, White, Red, Green and Purple. That's it, a very simple wattage only device!
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Protections:
Low Battery Protection
Check Atomizer Protection
Short Circuit Protection
Temperature Protection
10s Overtime Protection
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Charging
The Thelema has an in-built 3000mAh battery which is charged via the Type C USB port and supports a charge rate up to 2A. During charging a battery charging progress bar appears which becomes static on all bars full once fully charged, it took around 2hours to fully charge!
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My Experience Using The Thelema And Thoughts!
Very little wrong with this device and without doubt it's premium when it comes to build quality compared to other pod mods with only the Drag X coming close in this regard when it comes to non IP67 pod mods.
The pod although only slightly tinted looks much darker through the viewing window once inserted so you do need reasonable light to view your liquid level although i did manage to constantly monitor the level without needing to remove the pod just feel it should be clearer! Normally pods have a tinted finish for cosmetic purposes but as the whole pod gets inserted into the device i really have no idea why it isn't completely clear which would make viewing so much easier!
Also having the fill port at the rear on the top and the viewing window on the front seems awkward at first as you would naturally have the spine facing you for a rear port, luckily because the design allows the silicone plug piece to be rotated out the way and doesn't need holding not an issue but just seems strange at first!
As far as i can make out the Thelema actually has an 18650 sealed inside and although not a con for everybody there will be many like me who wish it just had an hatch door design allowing the 18650 to be swapped out and charged externally!
My only other niggle is that the adjustable airflow design will allow for MTL with a MTL coil head and indeed you even get a MTL drip tip included so why no MTL coil included? There is one available so even for me if the 0.2ohm coil head was emitted (not that their is anything wrong with this coil head) it would make so much more sense to me for a device promoting it can be used for both styles to be capable of that out the box before a future purchase!
The rest is pros all the way, although not the clearest as mentioned the e-liquid level can be checked without moving the pod as can it be filled quickly and mess free. The adjustable airflow works great and is so much more akin to the performance of adjustable airflow on a tank rather than the sort of design found on the Drag S/X which doesn't have the same precision which makes it a DL device only unless buying an RDTA with independent airflow for it.
The performance is great hitting set wattage without delay and like the Drag X i notice a spike in power for the first 0.5 seconds which helps in this regard. The 0.2ohm coil head gives very decent flavour and i found this more suited to an airy draw, liking some restriction i had the airflow two thirds open and settled at 45w. The star for me is the 0.3ohm clapton mesh coil head which i found gives better flavour than any of the Voopoo PnP coil heads i have used and is so versatile with a wide flavour range span dependant on airflow setting. With this coil head i had the airflow just one third open for a restricted direct lung draw which allowed me to get the flavour and warmth at just 20w under it's 30 to 40w recommendation but both these coils will comfortably do their max wattage recommendations and wick just fine but they become a toasty vape and only suited at the higher wattage with fully open airflow in my opinion!
I like the fact that Lost Vape seem settled and focussed on continuingly improving the same range of coil heads so we have cross compatibility across many devices which will also ensure availability in the future. I also like the Ultra Boost range as it covers most wattage ranges from a 8 to 15w MTL vape right up to 80w, as well as an available RBA.
3000mAh is as good as i have come across with this style of pod mod with internal battery and both having Type C USB and a 2A charge rate are both great allowing the device to be fully charged in 2 hours. It doesn't support pass-through but then i don't think other than testing for pass-through support i have ever vaped using a charging device so subjectively not an issue for me but could be to others.
Finally it's worth mentioning this is a final sample before the retail version and unlike the earlier sample which gave me issues regarding leaking as explained earlier this time i have had no leaking or any other issues whatsoever!
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Likes
Premium build quality
Loads of different Leather spine options
Ergonomic and aesthetically pleasing to the eye
3 Different frame colour options
Simple to use
Colour customisable display
Fires without delay
Adjustable airflow (works great!)
510 metal lined drip tip fitting
MTL and DL drip tips included (also can use your own)
Device can be used for both DL and MTL with appropriate coil heads
Top-fill
E-liquid viewing window
Uses improved Ultra Boost Coils (MTL and RBA heads available)
Cross compatibility
0.2ohm M4 coil head gives very good flavour
0.3ohm M1 Clapton mesh coil head gives excellent flavour and good versatility
3000mAh battery
Type C USB
2A charge rate, charges in 2 hours
Cons
Pod tinted
No MTL coil head included
Can't charge battery externally
Doesn't support pass-through
I would once again like to thank Lost Vape for supplying the Thelema Pod Mod Kit for the purpose of this review, thanks for reading and stay safe!
Thelema 80W Pod Mod – Lost Vape
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