Eleaf Istick

[young gotti]

so frustrated with this thing....first one i got wouldn't charge and was faulty the place replaced it, new one was good for 2 days and now that thing won't charge...still vapes as a passthrough but take it off the charger and it's dead....i love the size of the battery and size of the mod but it's getting frustrating

 

[four2109]

What are you charging it with?
Did they replace the charger too?

 

[vince01]

I dont own an istick, but I'm in the market for a box mod with

the istick spec and form factor so I've read plenty of reviews

and discussions and it appears to me that the istick was well thought out

but thrown together to meet a price point and market niche

 

[four2109]

so frustrated with this thing....first one i got wouldn't charge and was faulty the place replaced it, new one was good for 2 days and now that thing won't charge...still vapes as a passthrough but take it off the charger and it's dead....i love the size of the battery and size of the mod but it's getting frustrating

Does the "charging" indicator even light up?

 

[Cotay]

I dont own an istick, but I'm in the market for a box mod with

the istick spec and form factor so I've read plenty of reviews

and discussions and it appears to me that the istick was well thought out

but thrown together to meet a price point and market niche

At the risk of sounding like a broken record, the Vaporshark DNA 30 ($120) is a better long term investment with its excellent build quality and consistent performance. I am looking forward to seeing an iStick 2.0 and how they address the reported issues with the first version. I'm also looking forward to seeing DNA25D devices hit the market...that will likely also give us more affordable options in the "mini" form factor.

 

[tiburonfirst]

At the risk of sounding like a broken record, the Vaporshark DNA 30 ($120) is a better long term investment with its excellent build quality and consistent performance. I am looking forward to seeing an iStick 2.0 and how they address the reported issues with the first version. I'm also looking forward to seeing DNA25D devices hit the market...that will likely also give us more affordable options in the "mini" form factor.

unfortunately, the lowest setting achieved by the dna30 is 4 volt

 

[Kent C]

That's better. You're forgiven.

And yes, it does.

BTW, there will be more smallish box mods with Brandon's chipset on the market, including, possibly, MVP3 deluxe edition. There will also be commercial nickel coil heads available, by Kanger and Aspire or possibly Innokin--soon. So wait a bit and see what happens. Vaping technology is evolving as we speak.

Like I said elsewhere, I'd like to see a side by side like the gizmo with a DNA-40 - I might sell all my hardware, if that happened MVP isn't 'smallish' Perhaps if they 'fixed' the VTR. and took some weight off it.

 

[friediceman]

At the risk of sounding like a broken record, the Vaporshark DNA 30 ($120) is a better long term investment with its excellent build quality and consistent performance. I am looking forward to seeing an iStick 2.0 and how they address the reported issues with the first version. I'm also looking forward to seeing DNA25D devices hit the market...that will likely also give us more affordable options in the "mini" form factor.

No argument there, but I do have to say that different people have different needs. Most of the vapers I know still use Ego batteries, and they simply do not wish or unable to spend the kind of money to get a VS. iStick is popular because it serves a segment of the market well, despite its many shortcomings. I really hope the other manufacturers take notice and produce other products that keeps the small form factor and economic pricing, while improve the deficiencies so that vapers can all benefit from it.

 

[Cotay]

unfortunately, the lowest setting achieved by the dna30 is 4 volt

That is technically true according to the spec sheet, but I understood that if you put a lower ohm coil on it at lower watts (7-8) it will fire at a lower voltage. I understand that it is simply using the battery voltage in this scenario. At least that was my take away from Phil's review of the DNA 30. Maybe I'm missing something?

 

[Kent C]

I think I need to retract my statement that it is not wrong. It is...

......

It also makes the VW mode less useful, as it is supposed to maintain the watts over any variation in coil resistance by adjusting voltage to maintain the watts. It won't.

I still really like the Istick, even with these flaws. It's easy enough to compensate for the perceived power loss with a few clicks once it kicks in.

This would be quite easy to fix in the firmware by just changing the regulation to RMS from mean. Maybe in v2.

Don

I can confirm what you say (bold) just in taste. I know the numbers but know the taste better at this point. I've been basically vaping the same flavors for near 5 years now - I know them well. When I switched to VW setting I could tell the difference, and now revise my 'just change the adapter' to change to RMS as well. Thanks again....

 

[KTMRider]

unfortunately, the lowest setting achieved by the dna30 is 4 volt

Just like the Istick.

That is technically true according to the spec sheet, but I understood that if you put a lower ohm coil on it at lower watts (7-8) it will fire at a lower voltage. I understand that it is simply using the battery voltage in this scenario. At least that was my take away from Phil's review of the DNA 30. Maybe I'm missing something?

Again, just like the Istick. There is no step down but it will fire as low as the battery voltage. As a LiIon battery depletes, the voltage goes down from 4.2v (full charge) to 2.6v, the usual cut off, but these devices will cut off at 3.0v to 3.5v depending on the chipset. The DNA 30 cuts off at 3.2v. I think the Istick cuts off at 3.5v.

This is also why battery meters are not very accurate.

 

[tiburonfirst]

Just like the Istick.




Again, just like the Istick. There is no step down but it will fire as low as the battery voltage. As a LiIon battery depletes, the voltage goes down from 4.2v (full charge) to 2.6v, the usual cut off, but these devices will cut off at 3.0v to 3.5v depending on the chipset. The DNA 30 cuts off at 3.2v. I think the Istick cuts off at 3.5v.

This is also why battery meters are not very accurate.

nope - something gotta be different and if i understood don right there is a sort of step down with the istick

but ...................... all i know for sure, i have tried a dna30 and was not happy with the result while the istick is acceptable. i'm using the istick more now than my provari or dna40

 

[KTMRider]

nope - something gotta be different and if i understood don right there is a sort of step down with the istick

but ...................... all i know for sure, i have tried a dna30 and was not happy with the result while the istick is acceptable. i'm using the istick more now than my provari or dna40

PWM. It's not step down.

 

[love coffee]

Yup, I just saw another thread--poor new vaper couldn't figure out why all of his Evods and T3s and PT2s tasted burnt on his iStick...

Hey, I'm having the same problem! I'm not a newbie, but *I* don't understand why my Evods and T3s taste SUPER burnt on the istick!!! I guess I'll pull out my mini nautilus and see if I can taste a difference. But, please explain why I can't use T3s on my istick??? I'm serious here, and any help appreciated because I'm getting pretty darn frustrated with the istick.

Edited to add:

OK, I just filled my nautilus mini, popped it on the istick, and....

O...M...G!!! The difference is amazing! No burn at all.

Now, can someone tell me WHY there is such a difference in t3s and the Nautilus?

 

[donf99]

PWM. It's not step down.

Yes, PWM, but the Istick drops the peak PWM voltage from the battery boost circuit down from 5.8v to 4.8v once the battery level drops to 2/3, unless you select a voltage level above 4.8volts. This doesn't show on the Istick display, as it compensates the duty cycle to keep the mean volts and watts constant. It DOES affect the RMS voltage/watts and the user will perceive it as a drop in power once the battery hits 2/3 and below when running at lower power levels (displayed voltage <= 4.8v).

The Istick regulates the mean voltage and watts perfectly - it's just that constant heating of the coil depends on RMS regulation, which the Istick does not do. Therefore, the user will perceive variations in power under various operating conditions that would not occur if the designers had chosen RMS-calibrated voltage regulation.

Don

 

[Stosh]

PWM. It's not step down.

PWM is step down, it's what Provari uses for step down, it's what Vamo uses for step down....

If I build a 1.6Ω single coil on a simple IGO-W and put it on my mech mod with a fresh battery, it's 11 watts (4.2 volts), pure DC voltage, low voltage drop, a laboratory standard 11 watts.

And it vapes differently from my iStick at 11 watts, I know that going in....

It vapes differently from my MVP-2 at 11 watts, PWM filtered to a flat DC voltage
It vapes differently from my VTR at 11 watts PWM
It vapes differently from my Spire at 11 watts in RMS mode
It vapes differently from my Spire at 11 watts in AVG mode
It vapes differently from my VV Gripper at 4.2 volts (it's only VV)
It vapes differently from my semi mech mods, as there's additional voltage drop.

And none of them vape the same as any of the others in direct comparisons at the same settings with the same topper. Switch to different toppers and some dual coil toppers and the differences are even bigger. And as the battery charge drops different mods do better or worse in keeping the same vape level.

 

[donf99]

PWM is step down, it's what Provari uses for step down, it's what Vamo uses for step down.....

What he said! PWM is just a way of reducing the voltage, whether the output is filtered to DC or pulsed, like in the Istick.

Don

 

[young gotti]

Does the "charging" indicator even light up?

when i plug it in, the battery shows up full, but not the lightning bolt indicating charging....when unplugged the battery appears empty and then disapears...then it locks if i try to fire it

 

[spdy]

Wire gauge on those Kanger heads are 32/33 or higher. They heat up really fast. I was running a 1.5 ohm/33 gauge coil that was burning my juice and switched to a 1.5 ohm/28 gauge coil. That solved the problem (still ran a little hotter than on my MVP -but OK nontheless)

 

[SS stingray]

when i plug it in, the battery shows up full, but not the lightning bolt indicating charging....when unplugged the battery appears empty and then disapears...then it locks if i try to fire it

One of mine did that same thing. I turned it off and on several times and put it back on the charger several times. Make sure there is no juice leaked. i checked all connections and dried with a cue tip. The tip was gray with residue........