eGo APV question

[FunInAlaska]

I have asked this in an email to TVR but have not received an answer yet.
I am considering purchasing a Joytech eGo APV because I am interested in an ego with a larger battery life and replaceable batteries.

But I do have some concerns about this product.

First on the page for the controller unit here:
Joye eGo-T 2 Upgrade APV Mod Control Unit
it states:
"Protected batteries MUST be used with our Joye APV's! We are not responsible for any injury or damage caused if unprotected or stacked batteries are used."
On the page with the full unit, here:
Joye eGo-T 2 Upgrade APV Mod Unit
It states:
"ONE APV Joye Tube, ONE Joye eGo-T Upgrade Control Unit, ONE JoyeTech SAMSUNG Un-Protected 2600mAh 18650 Battery allowing for around 2 or more days of use depending on usage!"
And lastly on the page for the battery, here:
Joyetech 2600mAh SAMSUNG Rechargeable Li-Ion 18650 Battery
it states:
Samsung Batteries MUST be used with our Joye APV's or eVic's! We are not responsible for any injury or damage caused by not following the below precautions.

Ok, My concerns.
First it is stated on the controller page that the eGo APV "Must be used with PROTECTED BATTERIES"
But then if you want to purchase the whole unit (controller, tube and battery) it is stated very clearly that it comes with an UN-PROTECTED battery.
Furthermore, on the battery page it states that the battery is UN-PROTECTED. It also states that these Samsung batteries must be used with the EVIC and APV, now I am not sure if that is meaning that these batteries can only be used in these devices or that these devices should only be used with these batteries.

With all the discussion on this forum regarding battery safety and protected and unprotected batteries it concerns me greatly that a company such as Joytech would seem to be so difficult to understand on this issue.

I know there are a few other threads on this APV on the site, but my question is specifically to TVR because I am referencing their webpage and planning to purchase the device from them.

From my first read of these pages, what I seem to get out of it is that I should purchase the controller and tube but not the battery and disregard what seems to be a statement saying that only this battery should be used and go purchase a protected battery elsewhere because TVR does not offer a protected battery. This question is furthermore complicated by the picture of the device shown NOT with the Joytech Samsung battery but with a Trustfire battery.

Just trying to get this resolved so I know what I am purchasing is as safe as possible. I would prefer to not walk around with a potential disaster in my pocket.

Thanks in advance to TVR and anyone else who can help shed more information on this question.

 

[FunInAlaska]

I was really hoping to get an answer on this so I could place an order soon as shipping takes quite a while to get here. Does anyone have any insight on this from TVR?

 

[Rickajho]

Ok, this one has me confused too, but I think I can allay your fears.

First off, the head on the eGo T-2: It isn't dong anything stressful to a battery because it only delivers two voltages. Either the regulated mode or unregulated where it gives you the voltage the battery can provide. In other words, it isn't ever trying to give you say 4.2 volts off a battery that only has an output of 3.6 volts left in it.

The head itself has protection built in. If a protected or unprotected battery is in there the head shuts the battery off when it reaches a low voltage cutoff point. You cannot run either type of battery down to a voltage that is out of range for safe charging. Putting a protected cell in there is adding a voltage cutoff device on top of a voltage cutoff device. It will work, but it's redundant.

The lack of information from the manufacturer isn't helping. Considering the length of time this thing has been in the market there is still zero product information up at joyetech.com for it. There seems to be conventional wisdom in posts I have seen on ECF that the T-2 "has" to be used with unprotected batteries. But... if you buy the kit version from TVR? You see that gray Trustfire battery in the kit photo? Well yeah - that's a protected battery shipping with it. That's what I got with mine.

It could be that the info on the TVR product page is out of date. If you are at all concerned though get the kit version as it's likely it's still shipping with a protected TrustFire battery. The bottom line is if it fits it will work. Unprotected with the protection built into the T-2 head. Or the redundant added protection built into a protected battery.

Keep in mind the threading on the battery tube/head is a pain on these things. At best these things are difficult to thread together under the tension from the battery and spring. At worst - many reports on ECF of people stripping threads. Patience is a must to make sure you have the threads lined up correctly. If you already have an eGo charger it's better just to use that to charge and minimize the times you need to screw/unscrew it.

That all being said, I have had mine for nearly a year and I really do like it. It's not my main PV so for me charging it with an eGo charger just isn't an issue. I'd have to say it takes about 6 hours to charge.

 

[FunInAlaska]

Well I ordered one last week after I got a reply from TVR. Their response to the whole unprotected battery is as follows:

Those instructions regarding "protected batteries" are a bit outdated. We now carry "unprotected batteries" which are still safe to use but come with a few more notes of precaution. Mainly they must be kept away from extreme heat sources and a protected from being punctured. These are the two biggest concerns when using a SINGLE unprotected batteries. It still stands that you should NEVER use stacked multiple batteries in one of these units or any APV for that matter. This can vary voltage output and cause catastrophic damage. this all sounds very extreme but if you treat it with the same respect that you would show a remote control or any other battery operated device, you will be fine.

Other questions and answers i got from them:

-Can you use other 18650 batteries with this unit or only the Samsung? Is that based on manufacturer recommendation or other reason? Is there a capacity limitation if you can use other 18650 batteries?

A: Other 18650 batteries may work with this unit but we have tested several types of of these and have found that many are slightly mis-shaped or too large for this model. You are welcome to try other 18650 batteries but any use other than the ones we rovide would instantly void the warranty of every part on the APV, The Samsung we currently is the best fit and the only internal battery covered under our warranty terms.

-Is the tube vented in the unlikely event of a battery failure?

A: This is NOT a vented tube. However, the bottom plate (the end of the battery that is pointed away from you when in use) is constructed to be the weakest point in the tube and provide a fail safe in the unlikely event of an explosion.

-Does the control head have a low resistance cut off to protect from a dead short?

A: Can you elaborate on this question? I would hate to be misleading. I assume you are asking if the control recognizes if a device like an atomizer has too low of an ohms resistance and will restrict its use as to not over work the battery. If this is your question, the answer is no. It would simply kill the battery faster and wear out the coiling much faster.

-Finally, How do the 2 different modes of operation of the "upgrade" feature effect battery life in this device?

A: The 2 different voltage output modes do effect the battery life. The Higher voltage mode gets 4-6 usage hours less on average than the regular mode. The High voltage mode is also unregulated voltage meaning that as the battery dies, the output decreases thereby creating a less intense hit. We have zero failure rate with our customers and these products when it comes to safety.

I hope this helps anyone else that may be interested in this device.
I will also report back to this thread after I receive my unit and have used it for a bit to let you know how it goes.

 

[FunInAlaska]

Well, my APV arrived today.
It shipped with the lavender colored Joytech battery not with the trustfire as pictured.
It is charging now I will report back tomorrow once it is charged and I have a chance to use it a bit.

 

[FunInAlaska]

Ok, so been using my new ego APV since yesterday evening and I can already say it has outlasted my 1100mag egos (I typically went thru 2+ charges on those a day) I have played with the 2 operation settings a bit with my setups. I have 3 DCTs that I use regularly all with Boge LR XL cartos in them. To be honest the only difference I notice between the two modes is that it seems that in the regulated mode (3.3v) it takes a brief pause before the vapor production is as rich as I like on the unregulated mode it is instant. For me though, I am going to keep it in the 3.3v mode just to get an idea of battery life. after beginning to use it last night at around 9pm after it was charged I am hoping that it will last through the day today. We will see. So far I am pleased with this product. Though my wife hates it, she says it is too big. She likes the size of the 650mah egos.

 

[Iron Molly]

I have a set of these I've been using since November. Had one controller unit go so far (button stopped working). Other than that they have been very good. I use the "regulated" voltage mode as well. I like the steady voltage better. As far as battery life I get about 8 hours or so per charge. But I tend to chain vape so I think most people will get quite a bit longer.

 

[FunInAlaska]

Iron Molly, You are probably similar to me as far as vaping habits. if I am not doing something that requires both hands I pretty much have my PV as a permanent attachment to me. LOL
Which battery are you using in yours?

 

[Iron Molly]

I'm using whatever came with them (from TVR) which is... Trustfire 18650's. Had to check as I don't open them up. Battery life in these is the best I have found yet (for an EGO). I'm not much into VV as I use LR atties and drip. I guess I have just figured out how to get a good vape this way since when I started VV didn't exist.

 

[FunInAlaska]

Mine came with the samsung in a Joyetech box not a trustfire. finally killed my battery for the first time this morning. That gives it a little more than one day for me. Granted yesterday my wife and I were testing a lot of DIY juices and I decided I am not going to drip on this mod since we have a bunch of other eGos to get all juicy from flooded attys so there was about 3 hours that I was vaping VERY heavily but not using this MOD. I am guessing I will be able to easily get a full day out of it. I am pleased with the performance of it so far and I think for me it is the perfect balance of simplicity and longevity and affordability that I am looking for. For me it is the perfect mod to hold my AGR tank, it looks sharp, feels good in my hand and most importantly, Lasts long enough to get thru a day.

EDIT: While we were testing juice between the two of us we killed a 650mah, a 900mah and a 1100mah ego. LOL

 

[FunInAlaska]

Is I have been using the apv for a little more than a week now. It seems to last me most of the day. It seems if I start with it first thing in the morning it gets me thru dinner, then my 1100 gets me thru the rest of the evening. Seems to work pretty well. Not sure if it is the nature of the electronics but it almost seems like it has a "fade in" on the press of the button, like it takes a brief pause before it produces vapor. Could just be my imagination. In all I am happy with the device.

 

[FunInAlaska]

Ok, been using this device for a while now. I like it. I like it so much that unbeknownst to me my wife had purchased me a second one. I guess she found it on sale somewhere else and ordered it. It was a little bit different though. The one not from TVR does not have a raised button, the button is a hard plastic button that is formed to be flush with the contour of the control unit. I like the one from TVR much better. But one thing I do like better about the other one is that it has a removable bottom cap as well as a vent hole in the bottom cap. Since the control units are interchangeable I am now using the control unit from TVR with the tube from the other company and using the other as basically a charger to charge my spare battery. I have noticed that even though the claim is that in regulated mode the device will produce a constant voltage through the entire battery life it does have a tail off when you get close to the end of battery life. Not much considering the long life of this system compared to a normal ego, but enough that for me that last hour or so before the battery reaches the end of the charge it does noticeably produce less heat and less vapor. The other issue I have noticed is that with either tube and either control unit if you set i down too quickly it appears to momentarily disconnect power from the battery to the control unit and if you have it in unregulated mode (orange light) it will revert back to regulated mode and then if you want to use it in orange you need to 5 click it off press hold, wait then 5 click it back on. This is an annoyance but not enough to justify not using it. I Like this device and plan to continue using till I get bored and want something new. LOL

Thank you to everyone that helped out with this, and I hope in return I have provided some good info if anyone else finds themselves in a similar situation trying to decide whether or not to try this device.