I ordered my Dura on Jan. 9th and received it with 1 bad battery. Jeff sent a replacement and a few days later the second battery stopped holding a charge. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. The third battery works great most of the time, but sometimes the power is intermittent and the light zones in and out. I also ordered a spare atomizer with it and the spare tastes burnt. I've tried blowing it out, adding liquid, cleaning it etc etc. There's a bit of stray fabric that's out of place and I think that's the cause of it. The original atomizer is still going strong and producing plenty of vapor. The Dura does heat up the atomizer quite a bit, but I think that's mostly due to the lack of a cut-off... which I actually really like. I don't mind waiting a minute or two for the atomizer to cool down if I get to drag as long as I want. I don't think the heat has been damaging the atomizer any though, since the atomizer has already surpassed all of my dse901 atomizers in lifespan and still going strong. Also... the carts leak. The atomizer leaks from the gap between the atomizer shell and the cart, from the atomizer holes, and sometimes through the mouthpiece. I've been dripping with mine and it seems to leak out all of the excess liquid while in storage. The carts are nice... while they last. I've never been a big fan of the cart material, or the use of them for that matter. The Dura's carts are very nice in that they work well and they have a large capacity, but the material gets matted down very easily and unravels when it's taken out of the cart to be cleaned. I've noticed also that while in storage, too much movement will activate the battery's pressure switch and drain the battery... so maybe the switch is too sensitive.
If Jeff can manage to get these devices to be reliable, this is truely a very nice e-cig... although with some drawbacks. The Dura produces a very pronounced flavor and a lot of thick, smokey vapor that is quite enjoyable. I'm currently waiting for this new, "improved," shipment to come in before I ask for my atomizer and battery to be replaced. Until then, it's luck of the draw for me. Although I must say, the Dura does work far more often than it doesn't... and it is consitent when it's working.