"Exclusive" RDAs, Reviewers, and the hype

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tdman77

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Jan 12, 2019
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I mainly just watch YT to see the product and make up my own mind to buy or not. There are very few youtubers that I take advice or listen to. If they have a trophy wall then I tend to think they are only doing it for free stuff. Also a reviewer who never has a negative review is pretty low on my list. Jai Haze is a big ..... but I respect the guy for being completely honest and slamming a product when it is junk. Zophie is to damn cute to not watch.:hubba:
 

mac-nutty

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I mainly just watch YT to see the product and make up my own mind to buy or not. There are very few youtubers that I take advice or listen to. If they have a trophy wall then I tend to think they are only doing it for free stuff. Also a reviewer who never has a negative review is pretty low on my list. Jai Haze is a big ..... but I respect the guy for being completely honest and slamming a product when it is junk. Zophie is to damn cute to not watch.:hubba:
most yt reviewers are not like that not talking about riptrippers online :)
i get sent stuff i don't have a blog,YT etc I'm in forums only if don't like it i say why
just because peeps get sent things without paying doesn't mean that their reviews or view on the product would change,,,cough riptrippers lol
 
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B2L

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I think we should ban whining and soap box ranting before we go after manufacturers selling their own products however they choose.

Asbestos in 2020!

You’ve got my vote :thumb:

My :2c:

I like Todd, his are the only reviews I watch anymore. His vape preferences are pretty close to mine and if he likes it, chances are I’ll like it. I’ve bought several mods and attys because of his reviews and have been overall very happy with them. Also, he’s honest and has a nice (well stocked) shed, a great album collection and a cute pup, what’s not to like?

Are there things that he reviews that I can’t get ahold of? Sure. Does that bother me? Nope. It’s like a Car and Driver article about a Ferrari, I’ll never have one but it doesn’t put me off from reading the magazine, and I can at least drool over the pictures.
 

Punk In Drublic

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most yt reviewers are not like that not talking about riptrippers online :)
i get sent stuff i don't have a blog,YT etc I'm in forums only if don't like it i say why
just because peeps get sent things without paying doesn't mean that their reviews or view on the product would change,,,cough riptrippers lol

It is up to an individual to take what they feel is of value from a reviewer. I am not a fan of Rip’s giddy character and can do without the chuckin’ and trunkin’ comments. But, he has the best lighting and macro shots that I personally have seen out of any vape reviewers. This to me adds value – especially if looking for intricate details with a product. So if I want to see the machining details of a new RDA, I que up Rip to see if he has one under review. It is easy enough to ignore the rainbow fruity nuggets to get what I want.

I don’t have a personal favorite – they all have their own styles, character and annoyances. But I will watch as many as I possibly can, or need, to form my own opinion on a product that I might be interested in. One reviewer may reveal a detail that another does not. And that small detail might just be the selling point of a product.
 

Eskie

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Now that it's name your fave reviewers I'll jump in. :)

I do like Todd. Chances are I won't get most of what's reviewed due to the limited availability and focus (generally not always) on EU products.

DJL mostly for the teardowns on mods and test results. His reviews have become a bit slick and he seems to mostly be doing lower end to mainstream stuff of late but if the product looks interesting I'll watch.

Zophie because she's Zophie. She's also pretty insightful and will pass an opinion on in a way that's not a blast at the product but you know just what she thinks of it. BTW, if you follow her other YT channel you can see all the effort she puts into finding the right colored wigs.

Vic does a nice job. Some folks will say he's hard to understand but for some reason his accent is perfectly understandable but I'm a NYer and deal with different accents all the time.

Jai, I used to think when you got past his nonsense he knew what he was talking about. But a few months ago I finally gave up when he was giving out either mistaken information he wouldn't retract even with the facts laid out right in front of him and cases of just bad vaping advice, one of my last straws was his "don't try this at home unless you're a professional like me" (reminded me of that infamous video of the guy who set the cotton on fire and just kept going saying you have to be a professional to vape at 200W like me, can't remember his name or the video link) by using a 0.18 ohm build on a dual series mech from Purge and thinking it was OK to hit the fire button because it was only for a few seconds.

The rest, Mike vapes, Rip, the other usual suspects just never provide enough info other than their personal opinion to make it worthwhile. I'm looking for enough info to make my own call, certainly not relying solely on any opinions offered. I prefer opinions I find on here from members I know make solid calls on products. And I prefer reviewers who like Todd are up front about their own vaping style which will affect their opinion on a product as it may not work for them, but probably will for a different type of vaper.
 

Punk In Drublic

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reminded me of that infamous video of the guy who set the cotton on fire and just kept going saying you have to be a professional to vape at 200W like me, can't remember his name or the video link)

Someone please post that video….it’s a classic!
 

Asbestos4004

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I try to steer clear of critiquing reviewers. Either I like their content or I don't. I can say this, though...there's only a couple reviewers I watch and very many that I don't. As far as Mark Todd goes, I watch everything he puts out whether I'm interested in the product or not. Why? Because I like him. He's always been willing to call it like he sees it regardless of his relationship with the modder. Furthermore, he seems more interested in contributing to charities via raffles than anyone else I've seen on YouTube. Maybe it's just that we have similar vaping styles, but I generally agree with his opinions on the gear he reviews that I buy. He certainly doesn't need me to back him up in this thread, but of all the reviewers that deserve to be flamed for one thing or another, I find it hard to believe that he's the target.
 

stormjib

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Sep 19, 2014
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One benefit from buying from a fb group is that it's generally easy to find a buyer for the item, within the group, if for some reason you don't like it. I would rather 'jump through a few hoops' to get something I want than to decide that I want something and not be able to find it. Not too many shops sell atties of which there are only a few hundred or a thousand. A lot of times your choice is buy from a group or wait until you find it second hand, which isn't a guarantee. My experience with FB pages for manufacturers has been excellent, even though I haven't bought a lot of expensive gear that way; I have made trades, entered giveaways, seen really cool pics of gear in neat places, and made friends. I do enjoy trying out the 'new new' once in a while, but I really don't expect the vaping experience to be drastically different if I'm vaping on a 150 dollar rda or a 50 dollar one. You're also buying after-sales support. Where it gets nasty is when these businesses go under; sometimes they leave their customers holding the bag....but that can happen just as easily buying from a website.
My favorite reviewers are Todd, and Suckmymod. I have watched a few of Zophie's videos but her voice is hard for me to enjoy. Grimm is pretty good too, when he can concentrate on what he's doing. I'll watch Ambitionz vape if he's reviewing something I'm interested in. Most reviews these days are for stuff that I have no interest in; another 40$ atty or pod system.
 

Fidola13

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I understand your point and for new and very different construction it makes sense. But like the screenshot you show, that takes time and not everyone can commit an hour to a review for a product they likely wouldn't even get ( as the review shown was a 1:08 hour video). There will always be a compromise between the level of completeness that a review and reviewer can cover and the amount of time a viewer may be willing to invest their time in. I gave up on Phil who is a very good reviewer a long time ago for just that reason. I can't sit through a video as long as a box office film.

I almost always fast forward now until the reviewer gets to build. I honestly don’t care that much about all the tiny details with the measurements of grub screws or o rings or what the container is made of lol! but others might find it useful or something. I can trim down a 20 minute review to around 8-10 minutes for the information I’m looking for.
 

Falconeer

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I'm an Edinburgh man originally, an East Coaster no less ... but from when I was 14 I spent most of my time in the West of Scotland ( I'm nearly 69 now ) and married a West Coast Woman. Todd talks the Scots I hear in my head, has the style I know and to my mind tells it like it is.

When he gets freebies he says so ... and he gives the things a fair trial and offers his own opinion on them - as we'd have said there "Tae talk the talk ye huvtae walk the walk!"

I enjoy very much watching his videos ( even when like the rest of us he gets it wrong from time to time ) ... but I make up my own mind about products.

For entertainment value, for me anyway, he gets a score of 100%
 
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smoked25years

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Mar 8, 2018
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This is dedicated to @smoked25years :sneaky:



Winner!

You went above and beyond! Wow! :thumb: :thumbs:

I'm a frequent cleaner. I actually disassemble my Kayfun Prime (everything except the o-rings) and clean every week. Around once a month, I strip the O-rings also and give it a more thorough clean. I could probably do it blindfolded now --haha!

I have a 5mm Wera hollow shaft socket driver specifically to remove the positive block. Looks like it will work on the 2019 Lite as well as the Prime.

I also like to replace the nbr o-rings with silicone o-rings. And I replace the slotted/phillips terminal screws with hex socket screws. They don't cam out like phillips or slotted screws.
 
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